“I can see why the aborted sentences bother you.”
She choked out a laugh. “Maybe the women in my family are wired differently. Maybe this is the way love is for everyone, but I couldn’t get over you. Trust me, I tried, but I love you completely. I missed your socks on the floor and your razor on the sink. I missed your dirty limericks and your romantic poetry. I wake every morning at five because that’s when your alarm went off, and that empty pillow killed me every time. I can’t find a single thing to hate except that you left me.” Tears streamed down her face and she couldn’t hold them back. “I want a lifetime, not a few stolen moments. If that’s not what you want, too damn bad.”
He lifted her across his lap, so close his breath brushed her cheek. “When I’m around you, I can’t breathe. You’re everything.” He squinted his eyes closed. “But if I go off the rails, I could hurt you like Madigan hurt Maggie.”
“There are no guarantees. My father’s death was proof of that.” All her life, Lauren had wanted her mother to be better prepared for the loss that had devastated her, maybe to shield herself and love him less, but the joke was on Lauren, because you couldn’t shield from something so encompassing. She wanted Ryder, risks and all. “We’re—”
“Everybody decent?” Rose pushed the screen open and stepped onto the porch. “Craft has a lead on the bank. Fowler is a half a day out, but on his way. Let’s get moving.”
Ryder nodded. “Give me two minutes.” When Rose left with a dark look, Ryder turned his attention back to Lauren, nuzzling along her throat. “As long as I live, I will remember every word you just said to me, but you need time to process. The protocol might affect any children we could have, if I even live long enough to—” He cleared his throat. “I could lose it like Madigan. The company could end me. I left you to protect you from all that, and now that you know the truth, you should seriously considering leaving. You’re safer without me.”
“I don’t want safe. I want you.”
He peered deep into her soul; his dark eyes a deep mossy green that hid so many emotions. “It’s easy to say those words sitting here in the sunshine. I won’t accept an answer now. While we work on fixing things with Smythe, you need to consider protecting yourself from the risk I pose.” He rubbed his hands over her jean-clad thighs. “I’ll accept it if you decide to leave.” He lifted her off his lap and set her back on the stoop. “Now I need to get to work.”
He returned to the house without looking back.
“I’m not leaving and neither are you.” She whispered the words to his retreating back. “I control my future and you’re in it.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Debi set a serving bowl of scrambled eggs onto the already packed kitchen island as Ryder joined the meeting. The smell of bacon had his stomach growling.
Rose stood from his seat at the nearby table and moved to Debi’s side. “Need help?”
“Ha. Now you ask, Rosie, after the cooking is all finished. Great planning on your part.”
His face went red. “Sorry, I was—”
“Sit. Eat. You boys can be on KP afterwards.”
Ryder poured a cup of coffee while the two went at it. He added a teaspoon of sugar and handed it to Lauren when she followed him in. While he poured another cup, she retrieved plates from a cupboard. Debi grabbed silverware and set it on the table. “Eat while it’s hot or you’ll insult me.”
Rose shot back out of his seat and half-filled a plate with the eggs. He added cheese and salsa before setting it in the microwave to melt the cheese. Everyone else served themselves off of Debi’s buffet. The food hit a spot that went beyond hunger. He hadn’t eaten this well in months. He and Rose went back for seconds while Craft pulled out a laptop.
When he sat back down with another full plate, Lauren lifted her brows. “Hungry?”
He leaned over to whisper in her ear. “Worked up an appetite earlier.” The little goose bumps on her neck where his breath brushed made him smile. He shoveled another bite of eggs into his mouth. “What did you find?” he asked Craft.
“I found out that you’re an idiot.” Craft’s big hands fumbled across the keyboard. “Your mortgage company is Sun City Freedom Mortgage.”
“I am aware.”
“Your payments were deposited to Sun City Freedom LLC.”
Ryder swallowed a mouthful of eggs. “And?”
“They’re not the same thing, shithead.”
Ryder dropped his fork to his plate. “Excuse me?”
Craft’s smile was nearly feral as he leaned back and took a sip of coffee. “Instead of posting your bill pay check to the mortgage company account, someone posted it to one with a similar sounding name. Smart move, since you didn’t catch it. Lauren didn’t question it.” He gave her a slight smile. “Sorry.”
“Not your fault.” She rose to rinse off her plate and set it in the dishwasher. “Can you tell which teller made the switch?”
“No. I have a teller number, but no name.”
“Can you compare it to the bank’s HR records?” Debi asked. She’d eaten in silence, surrounded by strangers for the most part.
“I like the way you think.” Craft clinked his coffee cup against hers. “And yes, I am that good; however, Ryder’s mortgage check isn’t the only one going into this bogus account. I need to do some forensic accounting to figure out the other accounts affected.”
Rose pushed his plate back. “Do we care?”
“You’re all heart, Rosie.” Debi stood and grabbed an empty plate with a frown. “There are other people being scammed. Of course we care.”
Lauren stood to help clear the table. “Rose has a point. We’ll nail Smythe either way, right?”
The men nodded, but Rose’s color was high as he made notes in his ever present notebook. Craft typed away at the laptop. “While I would typically agree with Rose, this time, we need corroborating evidence. The account is the way to track the scam back to the lawyer as well.”
Lauren tripped over her feet and dropped the plate she was carrying. “There’s a lawyer involved?”
“Right. The lawyer,” Ryder emphasized. Still pissed him off for no damn good reason.
Craft didn’t look up from his computer. “William Muehlberger, esquire.” The women clearing the table froze, the silence destroying the calm. Craft looked up. “What? I assume everybody knows that’s how the realtor found his victims.”
Including his wife. She refused to meet his gaze but turned to put another plate in the sink. Debi bent to sweep up the broken pieces. Rose knelt to hold the dustpan for Debi, but she brushed his hands away. “We got it, Rosebud. But you boys are responsible for dinner. That is, if you’re staying.”
They all turned to Ryder. He expelled the breath he’d held since the first mention of the lawyer. “The dirtbag and his henchmen know about this place. We need to keep an eye on you ladies until Smythe and company are out of commission.”
Rose took the broom from Debi’s hands much the way he had the rifle the night before. “Craft’s the best cook, and if he’s sitting on his ass all day, he has the most time.”
“Chili and cornbread. It can simmer while I work. That leaves you two with the job of following Smythe as well as recon on the bank teller.”
“Ryder blew his cover with Smythe.”
“How?” Craft took a sip of orange juice.
“Dumbass walked right up to him. If Smythe was a skunk, he’d have sprayed him.”
Craft set his OJ on the table. “You have lost your fucking focus, brother.”
“It was the right thing to do.” Knowing Smythe was putting the moves on yet another female had been unbearable. Ryder brushed toast crumbs across the table. “I’ll take the bank while you follow Smythe,” he told Rose.
“Why do we even have to follow Smythe?” Lauren wiped the table down with a dishcloth. “We know he’s in on it, we know where he works and where he lives.”
“We need to find a connection to those men last night.”
She rinsed the dishcloth in the sink, but raised her voice over the running water. “They’re not going to make it easy on us and show up at his office. Seems like a waste of time.”
“She has a point,” Rose offered.
Lauren squeezed water from the dishcloth before draping it over the rim of the sink. “I often do.”
“Probably better to stick together when you’re out of the house. Two-man teams.” Craft glanced up from the laptop screen. Then he winked. “I’ll keep an eye on the women.”
Debi settled a hand on her hip. “Well, this woman has some business to handle if we’re hiding out here until this blows over.”
“You’re not going alone.” Rose stepped closer to Debi.
“I can go with you,” Lauren offered.
“Sorry.” Debi frowned. “I’m for sharing and all, but this is a solo gig.”
Craft stared between them. “Whatever you decide, do it quickly and get out of my hair. I have work to do.” Ryder nailed him with a glare. Craft lifted his hands in a sign of acquiescence. “Your call, boss.”
Lauren braced her arms on her narrow hips, drawing attention to her ample bosom. Craft added in his intention to purchase surveillance equipment and burner phones, and Lauren offered to hold down the fort.
Ryder stepped into the melee before it grew into an argument. “Rose, you’re with me. We need Craft on computers and surveillance, but before you head out, put a tracker on Debi’s phone so we can keep an eye on her. Can I talk to you?” Ryder put a hand around Lauren’s bicep and led her to the back bedroom, torn between letting her stay at the ranch alone or riding along on bank surveillance. Both carried risks.
“I know what you’re going to say. Stay down, stay safe.”
“Something like that.”
“Who says staying is safe? Bad things happen and we have no warning where and when. If I’m going to bite it, I’d like to do it actively resolving the problem rather than waiting around.”
Ryder brushed a hand through her long tresses. “You’re not going to bite it.”
She stepped into his embrace and his arms naturally circled her waist. “I learned something about myself when you left. I don’t handle the waiting well. At all. If something happened to you while we were apart, or something happened to me? The pain and the guilt would be unbearable.” Her voice faltered. She wrapped her arms around his waist and stared up at him with shimmering eyes. “I’m safer with you.”
Damn, but she had a point. “Okay, but you do what I say. No free styling.”
“Would I do that?”
“In a heartbeat.” He traced his fingers through her hair, felt her shiver in response. “You’re right. We are safer together.” For now. “But every mission has a leader, and today, that’s me.”
“Yes, sir.” She lifted her hand in mock salute.
“I see your smartass bone is fully healed.” He dropped a kiss to her lips. He meant to keep it light, but the energy running through his system made it damn hard to hold back. With a firm grip on her hair, he pulled her head back and dove in. When he lifted his head, her eyes stayed closed an extra moment, before opening with a wide grin.
“Now I get to see how the big boys play.”
The big boys were boring. Lauren shifted in her seat, wedged between two hulking and overprotective men. She dropped her head to her hand, smacked her injury. Again. “Can we go already? We’ve been sitting here an hour.”
“What’s the plan?” Ryder prompted her to repeat the plan. Again.
Lauren stared out the window. They were parked beside the bank. Traffic on the nearby street was steady as was traffic in and out of the parking lot. If they stayed any longer, someone was going to call the cops on suspicion of something. It’s not like they were sitting in a coffee shop or mall parking lot. “We all go in. We go to separate tellers. Make small deposits. Get a receipt. Easy-peasy, Ryder. Chill.” It’s not like they were going to rob the place. They just needed a name and face to go with the teller number Craft had found.
“If something unexpected happens?”
“Like what, Ryder?” The frustration welled up in her voice. They’d been over this plan too many times to count.
Rose set a gentle hand on her shoulder to turn her to face him. “He’s trying to keep you safe. Let him. It goes against training to let a civilian walk into danger.”
“Do you honestly think there’s danger here?”
“A week ago, did you honestly think someone would cut your brake line, cause a crash, and kidnap you?” Rose asked.
Lauren turned to Ryder and saw the unwinnable edge to his jawline. She couldn’t force them to go before they were ready, and honestly couldn’t force them to let her go into the bank if they didn’t want her to. “Fine. If something unexpected happens, I run out the door. I do not engage. I head straight for this truck.” She gripped the keys in a fist. “I get in the truck and drive off. Leaving the two of you to fend for yourselves.”
“Damn straight.” Ryder nodded emphatically.
“Can we go now?” Lauren winced. Even she heard the whiny edge to her tone, but she hadn’t prepared for the long time of nothingness that made up surveillance.
Rose twisted her around to face him again. “Sweetheart, this is how a mission runs. We brief it until everyone knows the plan. We plan for every contingency. You wanted to see how the big boys play. This is it.”
Ryder squeezed her thigh. “Most of the time, a mission is death by briefing.”
Lauren took a deep breath. “And the rest of the time?”
“All hell rains down on your head. Since it’s your head, I’d rather avoid that outcome.”
All things being equal, she’d rather not lose her head. They had let her come, the least she could do was act like a part of the team. This was the chance to gain insight into her husband rather than watch silently from the sidelines. “Okay, so tell me what you’re looking for?”
Ryder’s eyes lightened with approval. He pointed at the building across from them. “Perfect spot for a sniper. As is this building.” He pointed to the one next to them. “We circled the building so we know all the entries and exits. We made sure all the cars in the parking lot are empty and no one followed us here. If we go inside, we make sure we control the area first. We don’t half-ass it because we’re stateside.”
“What happens when you’re sure you control the environment?”
“Accept that shit we cannot control will happen.”
Rose nodded his head in agreement. “Every damn time.”
Lauren’s heart rate increased. The building was a bank in the downtown area, but the way they viewed it, the way they saw the surrounding world, all of it notched up her stress. No wonder they’d jumped at the chance to be fearless. “Okay. Things I cannot control will happen.”
“Use resourcefulness, agility, and intelligence to overcome the unknown. Egress if at all possible.”
“Egress?”
“Get the hell out.”
She glanced up at Ryder; willing him to see that she would do anything to stay on the same team, even follow orders. Then maybe they could become true partners. “What happens next?”
“We go in. Rose, you take point. I’ll take rear.” Ryder slid off the bench seat and held out a hand to help her from the cab of the truck. Before she could move, he trapped her against the side. He dropped a punishing kiss to her lips before escorting her around the truck and across the lot. Following Rose with Ryder’s heat close at her back, she felt like someone protected by the Secret Service or something. She clicked the lock button on the key fob and followed the rules, stepped where Rose stepped until they hit the entry.
Two steps inside and Rose stopped. Lauren was so close she stumbled into his back. Wow, he was as packed as Ryder. And now her head really hurt. Rose did an about face. “We’ve got a problem,” he said.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Lauren’s head throbbed where she’d rammed against Rose’s back. He used h
is speed and agility to get them out of the lobby before she’d taken a full breath. Her heart pounded from his words and fast moves. Ryder opened the exterior door and they egressed like two tanks. Lauren tried to look over Rose’s shoulder, but he mashed her head down like bullets would start flying any minute. Once past the bank’s double doors, Rose dropped her to her feet and she stumbled several yards before stretching her legs to keep up. They ate up sidewalk on the way to the truck. “What trouble?”
Rose did a three-sixty sweep before speaking in low tones. “The plan just got easier. Remember the redhead from yesterday?”
Ryder nodded. Lauren looked between the two men. “What redhead?”
“Real looker, built like a brick house. Had lunch with Smythe yesterday.”
“Looks like we have the third player. Now, what do we do about it?”
“Well, since you screwed our covers, dipshit.” Rose flicked Ryder on the ear. “She’ll make us the second she sets eyes on you or me.”
“Smythe’s a slime ball. I don’t regret interrupting lunch. It was worth it. And she didn’t exactly look like she was there willingly.”
“Slow down.” Lauren was practically skipping to keep up. “This would be so much easier if you took me with you yesterday.”
“Smythe would have made you instantly.” Ryder wrapped an arm over her shoulder and took another look around, his eyes focusing on the cars surrounding the truck in the parking lot. The embrace felt more protective than personal.
Despite the sun beating down on them, a chill slithered over her skin. “How do we know she’s involved? If she wasn’t with Smythe willingly?”
Live By The Team (Team Fear Book 1) Page 17