by Em Petrova
After she relinquished the podium to another speaker, Edie scrambled back through the crowd and made her way to the parking garage.
When she hit the unlock button and reached for the door handle, a car pulled up behind and hemmed her in.
The back window rolled down, and she was staring at her father.
“Get in,” he said and then rolled up the window.
Heart pounding, she weighed her options. She could run away and refuse to speak to him, but she had hoped for this moment.
Her footsteps sounded incredibly loud in the parking garage—or maybe that was her heart pounding in her ears.
She reached for the door handle, but the door pushed open from the inside. She slid in.
“Close the door.” His blue eyes burned into hers. “Nate,” he said to the driver.
The car rolled smoothly through the dim garage.
“You took a huge risk today in coming here, Eden.”
“Edie. I go by Edie.”
His gaze latched onto her face, and she couldn’t tell by his scowl if he didn’t like her nickname or didn’t like to be corrected or interrupted.
“Edie, you compromised us both. In a big way.”
“I won’t be chastised for speaking out on my opinions, which helped you, by the way.”
“You’re a smart girl—I’ve heard that enough from your mother.”
They kept in touch? She’d always assumed there was some secret bank account where money was deposited for Edie’s wellbeing and nothing more.
“You know I’ve spent the last year and a half fighting to keep myself and my family safe. And after you stepped on that stage with me, and everybody in that arena and every reporter in the country snapped photos of us together, you’ve just added another target to the terrorists’ list.”
She swallowed.
His gaze traveled over her pale hair and latched onto her blue eyes. She felt like she was looking into a mirror.
“Eden—Edie,” he corrected himself in a heated tone, “you’ve got to get out of the spotlight now. Lay low.”
“Lay low. What does that mean?”
“It means that whatever you’ve been doing for years, you have to do differently. If you take the six-thirty bus, you have to take another at a different time. These people will find you. No, they will hunt you, Edie.”
She blinked at him. “I know they’ve been targeting you and your… family.” The word was a choked and hollow sound. “But—”
“But you’ve made the entire nation aware of our ties!” He gripped her hand.
She stared at their fingers, her face hot with emotion and the embarrassment that she hadn’t given enough thought to the entire situation before making the snap decision to get onstage.
A car in front of them and one behind kept them protected—that alone jolted her to awareness. He was a guarded man, and he was sitting here telling her she had to hide.
He released her hand and reached into his jacket, pulling out a long wallet. He opened it and removed a stack of cash. “Keep low. Change your lifestyle. Take this to get you by until you find another job—not in journalism either—but I suggest leaving no paper trail. Get something that pays under the table.”
She wasn’t aware they had circled the garage and arrived back at her car until they stopped.
Senator Arthur shoved the cash into her hand. “I can’t help you after this, Edie. I can’t help any of my family. I wish you hadn’t put yourself in danger. You’re the last person I can’t protect.”
With that, he reached across her and opened the door.
She got out of the car and watched him drive away, the red taillights blurred in her vision as the tears came.
* * * * *
“We’re in the clear. The senator left right after his speech and didn’t return. The police are handling the mob of people leaving the arena, but it looks like we won’t be needed this afternoon, boys.”
Sully’s news had a cheer going up. Linc and Shaw pushed to their feet. “Good. We’re heading back.”
Jess and Cav exchanged a look. “Think we might stay here and enjoy the hot tub downstairs, if nobody cares,” Cav drawled.
“You just saw those coeds down in the lobby,” Lennon said with a grin.
“You only live one life. Might as well enjoy myself.” Cav planted a big foot on the floor and pushed up to his full height. He topped Lennon by a good inch. “You stayin’ to keep us company, Lennon?”
“Nah, I think I’ll go back with the others. My dog’s waitin’ for me at home.”
“Or the dog sitter is…” Jess’s comment had several of the guys tossing out their two cents about her services, but Lennon waved them all away.
They left Jess and Cav to make their own way back home, and the trip passed quickly. When Lennon arrived at his house, he saw Deanna outside with Ranger on a leash, just returning from their afternoon walk.
He got out of his truck and threw her a grin as Ranger almost yanked her arm out of the socket trying to reach Lennon. He crouched to meet the dog, who pulled free. The dog attacked him with kisses, and Lennon rubbed his big square head and talked to him.
Deanna walked up hesitantly. “He’s really missed you this time.”
He stood and caught the end of the leash so Ranger didn’t take off after a rabbit or squirrel. “Thanks for stayin’ longer with him.”
“About that, Lennon…” She was a student who’d grown up in this neighborhood, and she was a blessing for Lennon and Ranger. But she looked at him with a worried expression.
He held his breath.
“I got another job. Something with better hours. I’ve loved watching Ranger while you’re gone, and I’ll miss him so much, but I’d like some kind of a personal life, and I can’t have that working for you.”
Hell, now what?
He understood. It just sucked. And he had all of five minutes to find a replacement, because he couldn’t risk being called out with nobody lined up to take care of Ranger.
If he couldn’t care for a dog, how could he even think about a long-term relationship, or what was more, kids?
“I’m sorry to hear that, Deanna, but I get it. You’ve been excellent for Ranger, and we both appreciate it so much. Come inside and I’ll pay what I owe you.”
After he gave her some cash and a hefty tip, he and Ranger were left staring at each other.
Even though Ranger already had his walk, he was always up for another. Lennon changed his clothes and shoes and then grabbed the leash again.
Ranger jumped around in excitement, only standing still long enough for Lennon to hook him up. “Let’s go, boy. We’ll find you a new dog sitter when we get back.”
What Lennon needed was a run to clear his head and get rid of some of his pent-up frustration about his life. He loved his job, didn’t want to give it up. But the past few days… he was thinking about having more.
That might have something to do with Edie.
Or it might be his desire not to exit this world without having someone who loved him the way his buddy Adam had done. Cav was right—life was short. While Lennon didn’t want to flirt with young coeds, he knew he wouldn’t have many chances at grabbing happiness.
The last time he’d been happy was with Edie. Talking to her, laughing with her. They had managed to have fun at her ex’s wedding, and that told Lennon that they could enjoy themselves anywhere.
Wasn’t that what it was like to have a life partner?
After a long jog with Ranger, Lennon returned home and got them both drinks. While Ranger slurped away, he checked his phone. No reply from Edie.
She must really not be into him.
No, he didn’t buy that. She had responded with much enthusiasm to his advances. It had crossed his mind that she could still be hung up on her ex, but she hadn’t given the guy a second glance at his reception. She had, however, sent quite a few looks toward the door as if waiting for someone to walk in.
He couldn’t shake the connec
tion he’d felt for her. He had to give it one more shot before moving on. He kept saying that—one more shot. When was he going to give up?
He sent off another text.
Of all your beautiful curves, your smile is my favorite one. Go out with me.
A bit on the cheesy side, but he was shooting for lighthearted, something to put that smile he loved on her face.
Now he just had to sit back and hope it worked. In the meantime, he would search for a new dog sitter.
* * * * *
“What are you doing here?” Edie opened her apartment door to a surprise visit from Hallie. She hadn’t called ahead, just shown up on the security camera when she buzzed in to Edie’s apartment building.
She hurriedly shut the door behind Hallie and stared at her friend.
“I have something for you.” Hallie placed a hand over the messenger bag slung across her body.
“Couldn’t you have sent it?”
“Not this.” She opened the bag and pulled out a sheaf of papers. On the top was the photo of Edie onstage with Senator Arthur.
She sucked in a breath.
“I’ve been patient with your explorations into the senator’s life, Edie. I realize it’s a huge story and that it would help push you out of the internship into a permanent position at Notable News. But this…” She tapped the photo showing them together, her pale hair a beacon to the public that she had a familial tie to the politician.
Edie swallowed hard. “Come in.” She twisted the door lock just in case. While she wasn’t certain what the senator had said to her—lay low—wasn’t an overreaction on his part, she felt more comfortable not taking chances.
She went into the living room and sank to the couch, staring into space.
Hallie dropped beside her. “What is going on, Edie? I’m your closest friend—don’t you trust me?”
“I do,” she said at once. “It’s just that… nobody knows.”
“Knows what?” Hallie searched her face for answers.
A heartbeat passed. “That Senator Arthur is my father. I’m the product of his extramarital affair with my mother, who was reporting his story from the start of his career. But now it seems like everybody knows.”
Hallie pushed out a breath. “My God, Edie. I saw this photo and had to ask, but I didn’t think I would be right.”
She reached for the photo and wished she had never gotten up on that stage.
She shook herself and laid the photo on the rustic coffee table in front of her.
“Maybe people won’t draw conclusions.”
“You did,” Edie said flatly.
“Only because I know how involved you are in finding out more about the senator. Is that why you stayed so long with Jake?”
She dropped her gaze to her knotted hands. She nodded. “I think it might be.”
“Oh, Edie.” Hallie’s voice echoed the despair she felt.
Should she share what had happened after the rally—that the senator had followed her to the garage, asked her to get in and then scared the hell out of her with what he had to say to her?
He didn’t even know the name I go by.
It was a silly thing to distract her, but her mind kept returning to the fact that he had called her Eden. Nobody called her that except people who didn’t know her.
Of course he didn’t know her—he’d never tried to.
Despite hating him for that, she still wanted to help him by uncovering more about the tie to Breckham she’d found the other day. She couldn’t shake the idea that there was a link.
“Edie, I found something else.”
She jerked her gaze up to her friend’s. “What is it?” Her voice came out weak.
“I got this from a friend of a friend. He knows a lot of insider information.”
“I’m listening,” Edie prompted.
“There’s rumor of an informant. On Senator Arthur. Somebody who works for him on the inside.”
“I knew it.” She snatched up the picture again but didn’t really see the faces that resembled each other so much. “Do you have a name?”
Hallie shook her head. “Like I said, it’s a rumor.”
“But you don’t just follow rumors, Hallie. You have cold, hard facts.”
“Yes, and as soon as I have a contact, I will get it to you. I thought you also might be able to do something with this.”
“Give me what you have.”
Hallie handed her the sheaf of papers, and Edie sat back to skim a few pages before lowering the stack to her lap.
She let out a sigh. “I thought I might read something about Jake. I’m glad I was wrong, because I never thought he was crooked, just ambitious.”
“No, I don’t think it’s Jake,” Hallie said.
Edie nodded. “Thank you for driving all that way to bring me this, Hallie. You’re the best friend.”
“I wish I could do more to help you.”
“Just keep being there for me, okay? You know I love you.”
“Love you too, sister from another mister.”
They laughed.
“You really are from another mister, aren’t you? All right, I have a long drive back and a deadline to meet. The e-zine goes out day after tomorrow. I don’t suppose you’ll come with me as my second set of eyes?”
Edie shook her head.
“I already knew that. It’s okay.”
Long after Hallie left for home, Edie sat there staring into space. Occasionally, she picked up the photo and searched her own face and then Senator Arthur’s. To her, the resemblance was uncanny. Who else would see it? His family who knew nothing about her, reporters… terrorist groups?
She had some hard choices to make, and it was all due to her stupid act at the rally. She either had to listen to the senator and change her life until this all blew over, or she would go about her life as it was and chalk up his words to overreaction.
By the time the first rays of dawn seeped through the window, she was convinced the senator had only reacted strongly to seeing her. Perhaps he’d even felt some paternal concern for her safety.
She would go about her business as usual and return to her internship on Monday morning. In the meantime, she would take the rest of her weekend to comb through all the information Hallie had provided her with.
But then she found the note, slipped under her door sometime during the night.
Stay out of sight. Don’t go out.
Chapter Four
Lennon flipped through the pages of the classified ads on his computer tablet, scanning them for people looking for work as a dog sitter. At this point, even a babysitter might be willing to cross over to canine care.
He was damn lucky the Ranger Ops team hadn’t been called out over the past few days, but to cover his ass, he’d spoken with his neighbor about dropping by and letting Ranger out, feeding him or even allowing him into the fenced back yard for exercise while Lennon was away.
The neighbor was in agreement, but she had also suggested Lennon give the dog up for adoption or rehome him if he didn’t have time for Ranger.
Which left Lennon grinding his teeth. He loved that dog, and he’d gotten Ranger as a rescue after Adam died. It didn’t take the place of his friend, but it had taken his mind off the worst.
Getting rid of Ranger wasn’t an option—he needed the help.
He grabbed his phone and called Linc. His twin picked up after two rings.
“’Sup, bro?”
“I’m calling for some advice. I lost Deanna as my dog sitter.”
Ranger wanted out into the fenced yard, and he opened the back door off the kitchen to set him free. He bounded out and grabbed one of the balls he’d left outside. Lennon stood at the door watching him.
“Tough break. She was reliable.”
“Yeah. Know anybody who would work out for me?” Lennon asked.
“No, I don’t. But I’ll ask Nealy. She may know somebody. Have you checked the paper?”
“Yeah.”
“Then you also saw the senator’s targeted again.”
“No, I haven’t. I skipped the headlines and went straight to the classifieds.” He turned from the door and grabbed his tablet again. When he brought up the page, he stared harder. Then he tapped the image to get a closer look.
“Son of a bitch,” he said quietly as he recognized that pale hair and the curves he’d been fantasizing about for weeks.
“Sucks for the senator, but it might mean we’re kept close to home in case of another big attack on him. At least we won’t be sent to Mexico anytime soon.”
Linc kept talking, but Lennon wasn’t listening. He was skimming the article. It made no mention of Edie.
But that sure as hell was her. And the senator sure as hell shared a lot of her looks.
He used his thumb and forefinger on the screen to enlarge the image. The pixels made it blurry, but he zoomed in on the woman’s face. He’d know that delicate chin and those wide eyes, even hidden behind glasses, anywhere.
“Lennon? Dinner?”
He was jarred from his thoughts, returning to his brother’s conversation. “What’s that?” he asked.
“Nealy asked if you’ll have dinner with us tonight. She’s making a roast and said there’s plenty.”
“Roast sounds good,” he said automatically.
“Good. See ya at six.”
Lennon hung up, and the dog scratched the door to get back in. He walked blindly to the door and opened it for him. Ranger ran to his water bowl. Lennon had to get in touch with Edie.
What would he even say? She hadn’t answered him after the first attempts, and it was quite unlikely she would respond to his question about her tie to a politician who was always in danger.
Fuck—he didn’t like this one bit.
He grabbed his phone and thumbed a text to her once again. This time, he asked if she knew anybody who’d be interested in a dog sitting position. It was the first thing that came to mind.
When he saw the little blip on the screen that she was responding to his text, his heart beat faster.
I happen to know someone.
Jesus. She’d answered.
That’s great! Who?
Me.
He pressed a button to call her. She picked up immediately, and his libido did a leap at the sound of her feminine voice even as his chest tightened with worry.