by Katie Reus
“I found some guy trying to take her out of the club and realized it’s likely she’s been drugged. I’m friends with her cousins, Grant, Porter and Harrison. I used to work with Grant. Please call him and confirm.”
“What hospital are you taking her to? We’ll meet you there.”
“Not taking her to a hospital.” Because the ER on a Friday night was a nightmare. Didn’t matter that he was a cop. That would only get him so far in the favor department. She’d still have to wait hours to be looked at. They’d check her vitals, stick her in a room with three other people and come back and check on her when they could—and that was only after they finally got her to a damn room. No way was he going to put her through that when he could get her looked at immediately.
“I’m taking her to a local clinic. Friend of mine runs it. Call Grant and confirm who I am. You know his number?”
“Uh, yeah. Well, my fiancé does. He’s with me. He works with Grant.”
“Good. She’s fine. I’ve got her phone and she doesn’t need to deal with a bunch of people down at the clinic.”
“I don’t know how this happened. We were all together, then when I turned around she was just gone. I thought maybe she’d gone to the bathroom or to grab another drink, but then none of us could find her. Is she really okay?”
“Yeah. I think…someone slipped her Rohypnol.” He didn’t want her friend to freak out even more, but decided to be honest. It was also known as a date rape drug, something he guessed her friend knew by her worried gasp.
“There’s no way!”
He turned on his blinker as he neared the turnoff to his friend’s clinic. The neighborhood bordered a sketchy area of town, but that was sorta the point of the clinic’s location. People who needed medical care the most often couldn’t get it. His friend tried to combat that problem by providing affordable medical care. In some cases, free. And he was better equipped to give Raegan his complete attention as opposed to the harried, Friday night ER staff at a hospital. If Ford had been worried she’d overdosed he’d have taken her straight there.
“Well it happened. Look, I gotta go. Gotta get her inside now. Call Grant, confirm to make yourself feel better. I’m sure she’ll call you in the morning. She’s safe, I swear.” He cut her off before she could respond. He didn’t care if it was rude. Being polite wasn’t a concern right now. Raegan was his only concern.
“I’ve never heard you talk so much at once.” Raegan giggled a little as she watched him.
He was glad she was awake, but having all her focus on him was jarring. “How’re you feeling?”
“Funny. You think I was drugged?” She giggled again, softer this time.
“Maybe.”
“I’ve never done drugs. And I’m not saying that because you’re a cop. A very sexy cop.” She laughed at that, seeming to think it was hilarious.
“We’re going inside here,” he said, nodding at the darkened clinic. It was late but he knew his friend was still here in the back. He always stayed until midnight even though he locked the doors—to keep out would-be thieves and junkies looking for a fix.
“You sure it’s open?”
“Yeah.” He was out and to her side in seconds. He hated that someone had done this to her, but he’d worry about finding the guilty party later. Right now he just needed to make sure she was safe.
* * *
Montez frowned, listening to Ivan talking to Grant Caldwell on the phone. They’d all left the club after his sister Julieta had talked to some guy on Raegan’s phone. Some guy who claimed he was a cop and was allegedly taking her to a clinic.
Now they were in the parking lot, waiting while Ivan talked to Grant, confirming whether this was true. He hated the thought of anything happening to Raegan. Hell, any woman. But Raegan was a sweet girl and a little naïve in general. It was hard not to like her.
After a lot of one-word answers and short questions, Ivan finally hung up the phone. “She’s okay as far as Grant knows. He said he’ll keep me updated.”
“That’s so scary,” Dominique said, wrapping her arms around herself.
Next to her, Ruby looked as worried as he’d ever seen her. And he’d seen the beauty in a hospital room after nearly being hit by a car. She’d only sprained her ankle and suffered from a few cuts and bruises but he’d never forget seeing her there, injured. It had shaved years off his life, knowing that day could have been much worse. The maniac driving the car could have killed her and wouldn’t have cared.
When she looked at him, he automatically looked away. Because yeah, he was a coward where she was concerned.
As everyone started talking about heading home, Ruby sidled up to him. It surprised him. “Give me a ride tonight?” she asked quietly.
For the briefest moment, his mind went where he swore to never let it. He’d love to give her a ride. Over and over. But he’d never have a shot with a woman like Ruby. Not with his jacked-up face. She was friends with his sister, had worked with Jules for years. He’d only ever met her a year ago for the first time though. Since then she’d consumed his fantasies. Which was just plain stupid. “Sure,” he said instead, surprising himself.
She gave him a sweet smile, but there was a glimmer of…something in her eyes. Something he couldn’t get a handle on because it looked a lot like sexual attraction. He’d seen her shoot down pretty much every guy who hit on her, including his younger brother. Jules always joked that Ruby made grown men cry. And Montez believed it.
Ruby looked like Marilyn Monroe. Blonde, curvy and walking sex. And damn she had a mouth on her. He loved the smart-ass stuff she was always saying to people. Tonight she had on one of those pinup-style dresses his sister sold at the shop Ruby ran with her. She looked like one of those women painted on World War II bomber planes. He wanted to peel the black and white thing off her, to slowly reveal every inch of her luscious body before he kissed all of her smooth skin. But that was a stupid, stupid thing to wish for.
They weren’t even in the same league, and not just because he was fucked-up looking. Though that was a big part of it.
After everyone said goodbye to each other and his younger brother gave him a not-so-subtle thumbs up about taking Ruby home, they headed out. He wasn’t sure what the hell Sandro thought would happen, but this was just a ride, plain and simple.
“Are you working tomorrow?” Ruby asked as he steered out of the parking lot. She crossed her legs so that she was turned toward him.
He got hard at just that flash of leg. Who was he kidding? He’d been hard practically all damn night watching her. Because simply watching her was addicting. The thought of actually touching her…nope, not going there.
“Yeah. Saturday nights are always busy.” He owned and ran La Playa Grill. Had pretty much since he’d gotten out of the Marines. He might not have come back from his last combat tour whole, but he could cook and he knew numbers. Not to mention he’d grown up in his parents’ restaurant. He knew what it took to make a restaurant successful. The right employees, enough startup capital and a lot of hard work. Mainly hard work.
“I’m surprised you were even out tonight.”
He hadn’t planned on coming at all. And he probably wouldn’t have if he’d known she’d be there. Being around her hurt too damn much. Seeing what he could never have. But his brother had asked him, so he’d come. “Sandro begged me.”
She snorted, laughing. “As a wingman for his fruitless quest to land Dominique, right?”
He shot her a quick glance, saw the laughter dancing in her eyes. “You would be right.”
“He needs a woman to take care of him, but D isn’t it.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Which part?”
“Both.”
“Well, your brother is the type of man who needs a woman to take care of him. Period. I blame your sweet mother for that.”
Now he snorted because it was the truth. “Dios, my mama spoiled him.”
“And he’s not D’s type.
She wants a man to take charge of her.”
Montez cleared his throat. This was the first time he and Ruby had ever been alone together and this was veering toward…interesting territory. He wondered if she wanted a man to take charge of her. It was hard to imagine, knowing what he did of her. “Yeah?”
“Not, like, financially, but you know…” She trailed off, her grin wicked. “In the bedroom.”
“What type of woman are you?” The question was out before he could stop himself. He didn’t want to know. Except even he couldn’t make himself believe his own lie.
“I want a man who knows what he’s doing in the bedroom. And…” For the first time since he’d known Ruby she actually looked vulnerable. She paused a little longer than was normal before continuing. “I want someone who can take charge. To dominate me.” She said the last three words in a rush before looking out the window, away from him.
Shock threaded through him. Yep. His dick was never going to go down at this rate. Different responses were on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn’t voice any of them. His throat was too tight. All he could imagine was tying Ruby down, pleasuring her with his mouth as she came on his tongue, as he tasted her pleasure. He’d never pictured her as the type of woman to let herself lose control.
He shifted uncomfortably as he drove through the bright streets of Miami. Even this late, the city was alive, pulsing with energy. Some places would be quiet, especially the older, more established neighborhoods, but Ruby had a townhome in one of the newest parts of the city.
They weren’t that far from the club, about twenty minutes. Her townhome was in an area that neighbored a shopping center complete with a Target and locally owned boutiques. It also wasn’t far from where she worked with Jules.
“My car is in the garage but you can park in the driveway…” She blinked suddenly, her eyes narrowing at him as he put his truck in park. “How the hell do you know where I live?” she demanded, shifting away from him until she was practically against the door.
The flash of fear he saw in her eyes stunned him. “I brought you food before, when you hurt your ankle. Jules gave me the address. I swear.” The streak of terror rolling off her slashed at him even as it surprised him. He wanted to reach out, to comfort her, but sensed it wouldn’t be welcome.
She pushed out a harsh breath, raked a shaky hand through her hair. “Of course, I’m…jeez, I’m sorry. I just, I was stalked by this guy once. It freaked me out. Wait…you’re the one who brought me all that food?”
“Yeah.” He slid out of his seat as he answered. He didn’t want to talk about that. And even if they weren’t dating, he was still walking her to the door. And he was going to go back to that stalking thing.
“Why didn’t you ever say anything?” she asked as he opened her door for her.
Of course she wouldn’t let it drop. He shrugged.
She smacked his shoulder as they walked to her front door. “That’s not a good enough answer. I’m going to need some actual words here.”
“I don’t know, I figured you knew it was me.” Which was a lie. He’d just wanted to do something nice for her but he hadn’t wanted her thanks or anything. She’d been injured and…he couldn’t even think about what might have happened to her. He knew she’d assumed it was his parents or one of his siblings and he’d never felt the need to correct her.
“Well I didn’t. I would have said something.” She dug out her keys and slid one into the lock. “Want to come in for a drink? I’m still kinda wired after tonight. I won’t sleep until I hear from Jules that Raegan is really okay.”
Montez knew he should say no. But… “Yeah, okay.” He already had a feeling he’d regret staying, but he couldn’t leave her now. He hadn’t had any alcohol tonight so a beer or whatever would be fine. Once they were inside he looked away as she turned off her alarm system. “You had a stalker?” That better be past tense too, because if someone was bothering Ruby, they wouldn’t be for long.
“Yeah. It was years ago.” Sighing, she motioned that he should follow her down a short hallway. Her place was bright and colorful and even smelled like her. A sort of vanilla and something, maybe cinnamon, that always reminded him of Ruby surrounded him here.
It was hard not to stare at her ass as she walked. And it was really hard not to wonder what she’d meant about being dominated. He wasn’t into kink, but the thought of having Ruby all to himself… He rolled his shoulders once. He needed to stop thinking about something that wasn’t going to happen.
“He killed himself,” she continued. “Not that I’m happy about it, but that’s a former part of my life.”
He could tell by her tone she didn’t want to talk about it so he didn’t push. When they reached the kitchen she flipped on the lights and slipped her heels off by the kitchen entryway. Oh, hell, he should have done the same earlier. “You want me to take my shoes off?”
Laughing, she shook her head and made a beeline for the refrigerator. “Don’t worry about it. Tomorrow’s my cleaning day. I don’t care about the floors right now. That’s crazy about Raegan,” she said, pulling out a beer and a bottle of water.
When she handed the beer to him, he realized her hand was shaking.
Well hell, she was really shaken up still. Of course. He hadn’t even thought about that. In Afghanistan he’d seen more than his share of death. Had killed men and seen his own friends killed. Tonight sucked for Raegan but it didn’t even register on his scale of screwed-up shit. Going against his self-preservation instinct, he took both drinks, put them on the nearest counter and pulled her into a hug. Seeing her shaken like this made all his protectiveness kick into high gear.
To his surprise she practically lunged at him, wrapping her arms around him tight. “I had a friend in high school who was roofied at a party. She wasn’t as lucky as Raegan.” Her whole body shook so he wrapped his arms tighter around her.
Tried not to notice how good she smelled. Or how amazing she felt pressed up against him. Her breasts were full, more than a handful. And he felt like a total dick for noticing. “I’m sorry.”
She shook her head, her face tucked against his chest. “Tonight was just a reminder how careful we’ve always gotta be.” Her voice was a little muffled.
“People suck,” he muttered. He couldn’t comprehend the need that some people had to hurt others, to violate them. But it permeated the world. That entitled, bullshit behavior.
“Yeah, no kidding.” Her voice was soft as she pulled back, but only enough so that she could look up at him. Her eyes were wide as she watched him, and there was more than a hint of lust there.
The sight made something shift inside him. She’d had a few drinks tonight and she was clearly feeling vulnerable. He didn’t want to take advantage of her but he’d give his left arm for a kiss. Just a taste.
“We got some new naughty nurse costumes at the store,” Ruby murmured, her gaze dropping to his mouth.
He swallowed hard. How the hell was he supposed to respond to that? She shifted slightly against him and yep, came right in contact with his erection. He barely bit back a groan. It was impossible to hide. Now that he was holding her, touching her? No way it was going down anytime soon. Thinking about baseball or anything else wouldn’t matter because Ruby was in his arms. That meant he was going to stay hard.
“They come in two different styles,” she continued, her eyes locked onto his mouth, clear hunger there.
All he could do was stare at her beautiful face.
Now her gaze snapped up to meet his. “I was thinking I could model them for you, see which one you like better.” Her voice was low, sultry and a mix of emotions bled into her gaze.
He couldn’t get a read on any of them. He just knew that whatever this thing was, it wouldn’t last. After getting burned before, literally and figuratively, he knew what his limits were. He could only offer her one thing. “Ruby…”
“Don’t give me some song and dance about how you’re Jules’s brother and this can’
t happen. I know you want me.” But she didn’t sound sure. If anything, the confident woman he’d known the past year looked almost vulnerable.
That had to be bullshit though. She was perfect. “Of course I want you,” he growled. “But I don’t have anything to offer you other than sex. Just straight fucking and no promises of anything else. It’ll be good, that I can promise, but nothing else will ever happen between us.” He knew the words were crude, harsh, but this gave her an out.
Maybe she wanted to sleep with him, but he knew she wouldn’t be proud to have him on her arm out in public. His ex-girlfriend had made that clear when he came back with a screwed-up face. He was good enough to sleep with but not to take out in public. Things between him and Ruby would only ever be physical. He hated it, but he was a realist. He could lay things out early so that he didn’t get hurt, so that—
She stepped away from him, hurt etched into every line of her face. “Lock the door on your way out.” Her voice was soft, too soft, as she walked out of the kitchen. He wished she’d have slapped him or…something else instead.
Fuck him. He gritted his teeth, rubbed a hand over his face. The feel of his damaged skin, the way he looked, was the only thing that kept him from going after her.
He shouldn’t even be alive. He shouldn’t have been the one to come home. Not when so many of his friends had been husbands, fathers. He didn’t deserve Ruby. He didn’t deserve anyone. Some days he thought the scarring on his face was his punishment for returning home alive. A constant reminder that he should have died in that desert.
So he left the way he’d come, locking the bottom handle of the front door before he pulled it shut behind him.
Chapter 4
Raegan felt as if she was coming out of a haze or a fuzzy dream in which nothing made sense. She could remember parts of it, but everything was cloudy.
“You sure she’s gonna be okay?”
She blinked at the sound of male voices…Ford’s voice. He was talking to someone in scrubs. A man. A doctor. They were at a clinic, not a hospital.