Fighting For Her Read online

  Bryan swiped a hand over his face. “I stepped out to make a phone call, all right? I thought she was in, safe and sound—”

  “We both did,” Tom Wayne interjected. “And we have no idea how her location got compromised. But we’re here now because we were told to deliver her to this location.” A rough exhale. “And then to walk away.” Tom actually sounded relieved as he delivered that last bit of news.

  Shock flashed for a moment on Kat’s face. “Walk away? You’re abandoning me?”

  Neither agent spoke.

  “Somehow,” Kat dramatically sighed, “I’ll have to find the strength to move on without the two of you in my life. It will be hard, but I’ll soldier on.”

  A muscle jerked beneath Bryan’s left eye as he fixed his gaze on Eric. “You’re taking her case?”

  A nod from Eric.

  Bryan inclined his head toward Rick. “He’s the bodyguard?”

  That tone was almost insulting. No, there was no almost about it. Rick gave him a cold smile. “I’m a whole lot more than just a bodyguard.”

  Now Bryan rose. He moved toward Rick. Tilted his head back and stared up at Rick. “You swear you’ll keep her alive?”

  “I hate when people talk as if I’m not in the room,” Kat declared. “One of the most annoying things in the world.”

  “I’ll keep her alive,” Rick promised.

  Bryan gave another nod. “She’s a pain in the ass, but she grows on you.”

  “You do care,” Kat sounded amused.

  Rick swung his gaze to Kat. Her life was on the line. “I will keep you alive.” Because that was the job. She was the mystery job that had dragged his ass out of a very warm bed in the middle of the night. There were seven days—just seven—until Kathleen O’Shaughnessy was scheduled to testify in court. The first of many appearances before a judge because she was supposed to help take down some of the worst criminals on the East Coast.

  She could destroy a whole lot of lives with her testimony.

  And that was the reason a whole lot of people wanted her dead.

  “If you’re taking over her case, our work is done.” Bryan rolled back his shoulders and cast a glance at Kat. “I’d like to say it’s been a pleasure, but we both know that would be a lie.”

  “It’s been more like a nightmare.” Tom rose to his feet. He slapped a hand around Rick’s shoulder. “Good luck, man. You’re gonna need it.”

  Kat didn’t move. “You’re deserting me. Both of you.”

  Bryan reached into his pocket and pulled out a card. He tucked it into the palm of her hand. “We don’t have a choice. Rank has been pulled.” His voice roughened as he told her, “Only FBI agents knew we were at that hotel.”

  Did Kat get what the guy was saying? Rick sure did. The case was being given to Wilde because the FBI couldn’t be trusted. Someone had bought his or her way into the Bureau. Someone who wanted Kat dead.

  That was where he came in. “So long, boys. Don’t let the door hit you in the ass.”

  Bryan glowered at him.

  Rick motioned toward the door. They had work to do. The sooner the FBI suits got out of there, the better.

  Tom headed toward the exit first. Bryan hesitated and glanced over at Kat.

  “You’re…really leaving me? With them?” Now Kat was on her feet. “How do I know that I can trust them? I mean, who are these guys?”

  Bryan rubbed a hand over his jaw. “My boss said they’re the best. But if I were you, I wouldn’t trust anyone completely.”

  Well, wasn’t Bryan a fun greeting card type of fellow?

  You need to go, bro.

  “You have my number,” Bryan muttered to Kat. “If you need me, I’m there.”

  Nope. Not gonna happen. The last thing Rick intended to allow was for her to call the FBI and give away her hidden location. Rick shoved away from the desk. He caught Bryan by the scruff of the neck and guided the fellow to the door. “Don’t worry. You’ll see her again in seven days.” He didn’t like the way Bryan kept shooting brooding looks back at Kat. “She’ll be the one at the courthouse, singing like a bird, and getting all the bad guys sent to jail. You won’t be able to miss her.”

  “But—”

  “Security is waiting beyond this door. They’ll see you downstairs.” Security that had been there all along, just lurking in the shadows. Wilde agents knew their shit. They knew how to be seen and how to hide. They wouldn’t be hiding any longer. “Good-bye.”

  Yeah, he kicked the two agents out. Rather enjoyed it, too. Then he slammed the door and spun around.

  He came face-to-face with Kat. He hadn’t heard her cross the room. Probably because the carpeting was too thick. Eric needed to learn how to stop overindulging with expensive things.

  Kat’s eyes were wide, and, for the first time, a little afraid. “They can’t just leave me here.”

  “They can.” He nodded. “They did.”

  “But—”

  “Maybe you shouldn’t have ditched them today for a…what was it?” He glanced over her shoulder at Eric.

  “Brownie run,” Eric supplied helpfully.

  Rick snapped his fingers together. “Right. Disappearing on agents—that makes them look bad to their bosses. Then when the bad guys find your location and shoot up your bed—that makes the agents look even worse.”

  She sucked in a sharp breath. “Wouldn’t it have been worse if I’d been in the bed when it was shot up? The way I see it, my brownie run saved my life.”

  Actually, it probably had. He intended to rely on more than blind luck when it came to her safety. Rick inhaled and pulled in more of her sweet vanilla scent. “What did they do?” Rick asked, genuinely curious. “Take one look into your green eyes and get lost? Fall for that husky voice that you know is pure sex? Did you wrap the Feds around your little finger within the first five minutes of meeting them? Or did it take longer? Maybe you went in for a whole ten minutes before you had them wrapped up and lost in you?”

  He expected his words to make her angry. He wanted her angry. Instead, she smiled at him.

  Fuck. Tread with caution. Extreme caution. Warnings blasted in his head.

  Her hand rose and pressed to his chest. “Why don’t we see…” Kat murmured, “just how long it takes you to get wrapped up in me?”

  She was dangerous. A player to her core. And he was supposed to believe that she’d really disappeared to buy brownies? Oh, hell, no. She’d been up to no good, and he would be finding out the truth about her little jaunt. Later. After all, that was part of the plan.

  Some people thought she was the innocent victim. He didn’t buy that particular line of BS. She was treacherous and cold, and he had to keep a very close eye on her.

  “Princess,” he told her, edging even closer to her. “There aren’t going to be any more brownie runs.”

  “We’ll see about that, sweet cheeks.”

  “But you do have one thing right…you and I will be wrapped up in each other soon. In fact, we’re about to be inseparable.”

  “Oh, no, we’re—”

  His hand flew up, and he locked a handcuff around her wrist. A second later, he snapped one around his own. He’d had the cuffs in his back pocket the whole time, knowing they would be needed.

  Her eyes doubled in size. Then narrowed. Became pretty much slits.

  “You’re insane,” she whispered.

  He winked at her. “I am…and for the next seven days, I’m also all yours.”

  Chapter Two

  The FBI agents had left her. Since they’d been cramping her style—and getting in the way of business that she needed to take care of—Kat wasn’t exactly mourning the loss of their companionship.

  But she also wasn’t ready to jump on the crazy boat with the hot guy who’d just cuffed himself to her. Play the game. Stick to your role. Her chin notched up. “You’re into bondage. That’s great. Good for you, living your best life. Bravo. But I don’t have time to live out your fantasy right now.”


  A furrow appeared between his heavy brows. She was also pretty sure that his jaw clenched. She was so tempted to pat his beard. It wasn’t a thick, too long beard. It was a nicely trimmed one that hugged the hard edges of his square jaw. Made him look all sexy and yummy.

  What didn’t make him look yummy? The freaking handcuffs. Maybe under different circumstances…but right then? Hard no.

  “Kathleen…” He growled out her name, all hot and dark. Her stomach did a funny flip.

  She pasted her fake smile in place. Let her eyes drift over him, and, for the moment, kept ignoring the other man in the room. As far as she was concerned, the big fellow in front of her was the main threat. “Usually,” Kat allowed, “I at least know a man’s name before he handcuffs me.” She tugged her wrist back. Pulled his with it. “You still haven’t introduced yourself.”

  “Rick Williams.”

  “Was that so hard?” She tugged again. “Now get the cuffs off, and we’ll talk like adults.”

  But Rick shook that dark head of his. The man had some wonderfully thick hair. The kind of hair that a woman could sink her fingers in.

  “No can do,” he told her. “You’re a flight risk.”

  Yes, she was.

  “You eluded your government agents because they looked at you and got sucked in by that beautiful face.”

  Now he was just being sweet. “You think I’m beautiful?”

  “You know you are. You use that shit to trick dumbasses. I’m not a dumbass.”

  “Good to know.”

  “The cuffs stay on until we’re in a secure location. Once we’re there, I’ll let you go.”

  Was she supposed to believe him? “Promises, promises…”

  “Enough.”

  Kat and Rick both turned at the rough voice.

  “Hi, there.” The man standing behind the desk smiled. “I’m Eric Wilde.”

  He’d already introduced himself—

  “This is my office, my building, and my company. So how about you both sit down and we’ll go over a few ground rules so that we can get this case going?”

  How about no—

  Crap. Rick was heading for one of the chairs near the desk, and since they were connected, she either got dragged along or she double-timed it and kept up. For the moment, she double-timed it. And once more, Kat found herself seated in front of Eric’s desk.

  This time, Rick was beside her. Leaning in all close. Well, okay, maybe he wasn’t leaning in. He was just big so he took up a lot of space.

  “I think your cuff is going to bruise my wrist,” she mumbled.

  Immediately, his free hand reached out and started rubbing her wrist, easing below the cuff. She jumped because the movement was so surprising and because his touch felt so good. Warm and soothing. He had callused fingertips and massive fingers, but he was being extra careful as he stroked her skin.

  “Stop,” she said, aware that her voice was way too husky. “I was just bullshitting.”

  He stopped.

  Eric cleared his throat. “Obviously, you two will get along wonderfully.”

  She gaped at him.

  Looking slightly sheepish, Eric told her, “Kat, you’re in good hands—”

  “I’m in cuffs. My federal protection ditched me, and now I’m trapped with you guys.”

  Eric leaned forward. “We’re better than the Feds. I assure you, my agents are the best that you’ll come across. Your safety is our priority, and nothing will happen to you before the court date.”

  What about after the court date? No one ever talked about that part.

  Still looking all sincere and intense, Eric continued, “Your hotel location was leaked. The Feds were the only ones who knew where you were—”

  “Tom and Bryan didn’t sell me out.” An automatic response, but…was it one that she believed?

  Eric shrugged. “Not saying it was them. I have people looking into the matter right now. Someone at the Bureau was bought. Someone gave you up. The higher ups at the FBI don’t want to take a chance of that happening again, so they turned to me.”

  “And turning to a civilian agency is really what the FBI does?” She wasn’t buying it.

  “I’ve worked for Uncle Sam more than you might realize. The clearance I have and that my team members have—it goes exceedingly high up the food chain.”

  Kat eased out a slow breath. If someone in the FBI had sold her out, then she needed to proceed with extreme caution. How many times had her father said the Feds were dangerous? But, then again, she’d thought no one was more dangerous than dear old dad. “What’s the plan?”

  Rick shifted in the chair next to her. “You get the package deal. I keep you hidden, keep you safe, and I kick the ass of anyone who tries to hurt you.”

  He sounded so confident, but he hadn’t lived her life. “You don’t know the people who are after me.” She could feel the crack in her mask. The stupid facade that she wore all the time. “You get in their way, and you’ll be hurt. Or you’ll be dead.” She knew there was a target on her back. But why bring him into the crossfire?

  “I’m not scared.”

  She turned her head. Stared into his dark, deep eyes. “You should rethink that.”

  A shrug of his massive shoulders. “You’re not looking at an amateur. I can keep you safe.”

  Or what—die trying?

  “Rick will have backup,” Eric inserted smoothly. “Other Wilde agents will have his six. You’ll both be monitored and protected.”

  Like she hadn’t heard that before. Kat bit her lower lip.

  “We’re your best chance,” Eric assured her. “And we’re your only option.”

  No, she had another option. Get away. Run. Hide. Become someone new and leave the nightmare behind. Only it was a little hard to run when she was handcuffed to the Rock wannabe beside her.

  So, step one for her…ditch the cuffs. And in order to do that, she had to make Rick think she was along for whatever ride he had planned. Her shoulders sagged. “I apologize for not saying it sooner, but thank you.” She let her head dip forward. “It’s been really, really hard and scary, and I’m grateful for the help you’re giving to me. You…you don’t need to cuff me, though. I’ll cooperate fully.”

  Silence.

  She risked a glance at Rick.

  The man was smirking at her. “Does that shit usually work? The trembly, breathy voice? The weak, wounded posture? Because, seriously, that was a pretty good performance, only it wasn’t one I was buying.”

  Such. A. Jerk.

  And had Eric smothered a laugh? Her gaze shot to him.

  He coughed. “Ah…that’s why Rick is in charge of your protection detail. He’s not, um, easily swayed.”

  “You mean he has a heart of stone.” Good to know.

  “I mean you won’t get past his guard. He won’t make mistakes. You should be grateful for that fact. He’ll keep you alive, and that’s all that matters.”

  She could practically feel the heat pouring from Rick’s body. He was going to be her constant companion for the next week? From the corner of her eye, she took his measure once more.

  Big, bad, and dangerous. Dammit, she was screwed.

  And cuffed.

  ***

  “Why are there five identical SUVs in here?” Kat’s voice seemed to echo in the parking garage.

  Rick tossed her a quick smile. “Because, Kat, we can’t just have one car seen leaving the facility. If you were tailed here—or if your helpful FBI buddies sold you out again—we don’t want to make it easy for the bad guys to follow you.” He motioned toward the waiting SUVs—and toward the agents who were already behind the steering wheels. “They’ll all leave at once. All go in different directions. And anyone trying to follow you will have one hell of a hard time figuring out where you really are.”

  Now, time to stop chit-chatting in the garage and get moving. He opened the rear door of the nearest SUV. “Ladies first.”

  “Bite me.”

  I would
love to.

  She climbed inside, he followed because—cuffs. Not like he could be far away from her. Not like he wanted to be far away. He yanked the door closed behind him. “We’re moving under the cover of darkness. That makes it even harder to track us.”

  The SUVs were already moving. All of the drivers had their instructions. Getting Kat to a safe house was priority one. Once he had her inside and locked up, then they’d see about getting the cuffs off. Until he had her secure, though, there was no way he was letting her go. He already felt as if the woman was one moment away from jumping and running.

  It was harder to jump and run when you were attached to another person.

  “What’s the safe house going to be like?” Kat wanted to know.

  “Not the five-star hotels or the lavish mansions that you’re used to, I’m afraid. But it will do.”

  A huff. “How do you know what I’m used to?”

  Because he’d seen her file. Her very thick file. Instead of saying that, though, he told her, “Because I can read a gossip website. I saw all the pics of you and your family. The fancy cars. The expensive clothes. Everything bought with dad’s blood money.”

  She flinched.

  And he felt like an ass. “Kathleen—”

  “I told you to call me Kat. It’s my name. And you know what? I’m tired. It’s been one hell of a day and night, and if it’s all the same to you and whoever is up there driving this SUV—”

  Carter was driving. Carter Styles. But Carter knew when to stay silent. This was one of those silent times.

  “I’m going to sleep. Wake me up when we get to the safe house, all right?”

  She turned away. Put her head against the window. Closed her eyes.

  Shut him out.

  “All right, princess,” he murmured. “I’ll do that.”

  Silence stretched in the vehicle. The SUVs were dispersing, just as planned. Carter drove through the city and Rick glanced back, making sure he didn’t see a tail on them. The road appeared dark and empty behind him.

  And beside him, Kat’s breathing was soft and gentle.