Hard Core (Onyx Group) (17 page)

As he rose from his chair and walked to Alana’s room, he
knew he would do exactly that.

He only hoped he didn’t live to regret it.

* * * *

“Alana, wake up. It’s time to go.”

Alana woke slowly, opening her eyes to warm sun shining
through her bedroom window. Memories of making love to Cristian invaded and she
smiled, stretching pleasantly sore muscles.

He stood next to the bed, fully dressed. His gaze dropped to
where the sheet had ridden down, revealing her breasts. Heat flared and her
body responded, readying.

“Do we have to go now?” she asked, rubbing her foot up his
thigh.

He gripped her foot, caressed it for a moment, and then let
it drop. “Yes,” he said roughly.

Disappointed, she climbed out of bed and reached for the
clothes he’d let her borrow. She heard him groan softly and smiled to herself.
Not so immune.

“Sam left some clothes for you on the dresser,” he said,
sounding like he was chewing on glass. Definitely not immune. “I’ll meet you in
the kitchen.”

The door opened and closed with an abrupt snick and she shook
her head, still smiling. She wasn’t the only one who felt the chemistry between
them. Like it or not, Cristian Slade wanted her. And she planned on giving him
what he wanted, every chance she got. Not just for him, but because she wanted
him.

Crossing to the dresser, she picked up the jeans and light
blue button-down shirt. They looked close enough to her size. Better than
wearing Cristian’s clothes, which were two sizes too big.

She changed quickly, brushed her hair and pulled it into a
ponytail, then went to find Cristian and Sam sitting in a small breakfast nook,
drinking coffee. Mercer stood in front of the windows, looking out. She
hesitated briefly, wondering if they had heard her and Cristian last night. The
master bedroom was at the opposite end of the house, but she’d discovered she
was vocal in bed with Cristian. That had never happened before. The man knew
how to make her scream.

Uncertain of what they knew, she walked over to the coffee
pot and poured a cup. “How is Caleb?”

“Complaining about having to stay in the hospital a couple
more days. He asked me to thank you.”

Tasting the strong coffee, she nodded to Sam. “I don’t like
the idea of you going to Chicago and leaving your brother here alone to heal.”

Sam waved her off. “Caleb can take care of himself.”

She’d seen the panic and concern on Sam’s face when he
thought Caleb had stopped breathing. She knew he cared deeply for his brother,
even if his words were callous. “I’m sure he can, but I don’t want to be the
reason you have to leave him.”

Cristian stared at her, his expression masked.

She didn’t look at him for fear she’d give away what they’d
shared the night before.

“You need protection. That’s already been decided. I’m going
with you.”

“I have Cristian and Mark.”

Sam glanced at Cristian, and Mercer turned around to stare
at her. She got the impression they knew something she didn’t. “What?” she
asked.

“We need to go.” Cristian rose to his feet. “If you need to
stay, Ryden, I can have Gallagher send someone else to Chicago.”

Alana pursed her lips. They weren’t going to tell her
anything. That close-mouthed thing again. She really despised their silence.
Why did Cristian think she needed three bodyguards?

“I’m going.” Sam tossed back the rest of his coffee.

“Wait.” Alana looked at Cristian. “Sam can’t leave. Caleb is
going to need time to heal. Can we stay here another couple days? Just until
the chest tube is removed.”

Cristian looked at her, clearly not happy with her
suggestion.

“I have three bodyguards,” she reminded him.

Cristian looked at Sam. “Your call.”

“Caleb won’t be able to finish the branding,” Sam said. “A
couple more hands wouldn’t hurt.”

“You said so yourself, we were safe here for now,” Alana
piped in. If she got Cristian to agree, she could oversee Caleb’s recovery. She
didn’t want him to go back to work too soon or have a setback without her here.
Until Caleb was on the mend, she wasn’t leaving.

“Three days,” Cristian said. “No more.”

Not enough, but she didn’t argue for more. It would be a
waste of time. Cristian’s mind was set, he wouldn’t change it. Surprising, that
he gave her three days.

“When is Caleb being released from the hospital?” she asked
Sam.

“Today. He refuses to stay another.”

“What about the chest tube?”

“Doctor said his lung was inflated so they can remove it.”

Alana nodded. “The pneumothorax was small. I’ll make sure he
doesn’t shower for forty-eight hours and takes it easy.”

“Good luck with that,” Sam grimaced. “He won’t stay down
easily.”

Alana cast a quick glance at Cristian. “I’ve dealt with
worse.”

“Work your magic, Doc,” Sam said. “I’m on my way to the
hospital.”

“Can I tag along?” she asked. “I need to pick up a few
things in town.”

“You’re confined to this ranch.”

She turned to face Cristian. “A prisoner?”

“We’ve already had this conversation.”

Aware that Mark and Sam had skulked from the room, she faced
Cristian head on. “Gavin isn’t here, Cristian. He wouldn’t have found us so
soon. He knows nothing of your team.”

“It isn’t impossible to figure out what group I work for.”

“You have safety measures, don’t you?”

“They aren’t fool-proof.”

Breathing a frustrated sigh, she sipped her coffee, then
dumped it into the sink. Either she’d been too long without it or Sam made
extremely strong coffee. Whichever, it made her stomach churn.

She rubbed her forehead and leaned back against the counter.
“I know you’re right. I just don’t like it. I’m not obligated to Gavin any
longer and yet he still holds me captive,” she said in an afterthought. Her
deal was no longer effective, yet she felt more a prisoner now than she’d been
on the island.

“What do you mean?” Cristian asked.

She straightened from the counter. “Nothing. Am I allowed to
go outside?”

“As long as someone knows where you are. You didn’t answer
me.”

“And I’m not going to. We both have secrets. I don’t think
either one of us wants to share. I’m going to wait in my room for Sam to bring
Caleb home.”

He didn’t stop her when she hurried out of the room, evading
his questions. Would they would ever reveal to each other the things they both
kept hidden?

Alana quietly closed the door to the basement where Caleb
slept soundly. He’d come home ready to work and it had taken three of them to
keep him in bed so he could heal properly. He was as mulish as the rest of
them. She didn’t ask if he was a mercenary also. Didn’t want to know. She had
enough of them in her life, and didn’t need another.

At first, she’d protested him staying in the basement. Until
she went down there to find a bachelor pad, almost an apartment. Sam said Caleb
preferred privacy for his extra-curricular activities. It didn’t take a rocket
scientist to realize he meant women.

Deciding she wasn’t in the mood to be alone, she put on her
boots and went out the sliding doors onto the deck. Cristian hadn’t slept with
her last night and it bothered her more than she cared to admit. The subject
hadn’t come up and she hadn’t pushed. Did she really want to know why he’d
distanced himself? Assuming it was because Mercer had slept on the couch and
Cristian didn’t want him to know was the least painful excuse.

The sun beat down on her as she stepped onto the lawn. She
longed to take off her boots and walk barefoot through it, but the sound of
men’s shouts drew her to the barns.

As she approached, she saw a handful of men near a corral
filled with restless cattle. She smelled singed hair and frowned as she drew
closer to the melee. Sam had said they were branding today. Caleb had about
come out of his skin when he heard it. It had taken a threat from Cristian to
get him settle down.

Branding sounded barbaric to her, but she knew it was
necessary with a ranch this big. Cattle broke through fences and thieves would
steal them if unmarked.

Her steps slowed when she saw Cristian, shirtless, muscles
gleaming with sweat, as he wrestled a roped calf to the ground. Dust kicked up
around their feet as another man helped him. Sam had a branding iron; three
other men were there on horseback, roping and herding cattle.

Another side to Cristian she’d never seen. She wouldn’t say
he was a natural, but he certainly looked good in this element. Rugged,
primitive, his tanned skin slicked in the hot sun. This was man in his most
primal form, and it called to her on a level she’d never experienced.

She knew every inch of Cristian’s body, but had never seen
him like this. Not getting down and dirty. He was a mercenary. Independent. A
man alone. He didn’t seem to want or need anyone. Yet, here he was. Lending a
hand, sweating with Sam and the rest of the men who worked on the ranch. Even
while injured. Which made him either a good guy or an incredibly stubborn one.
She wanted to believe he was a nice guy, but the description just didn’t fit.
He was gruff and aloof, a straight shooter. Respectable qualities, if annoying
at times.

Hanging back, she watched without being seen. It didn’t take
long to realize she didn’t want a life of ranching.

Sadness bore down on her, making her miss her father and the
life they’d had. She wasn’t supposed to be here. Shouldn’t be doing this.

Feeling suddenly very alone and empty, Alana looked around
at the endless miles of rolling green landscape. She didn’t belong here. Or
anywhere. Where did she belong? Where was she supposed to be? Where did she go
from here?

When this ended and she was free to live her life again,
what would she do? Go back to Boston and pick up her old life? Try and become
the surgeon she was once destined to be?

Could she go back?

Experience told her that opportunities missed rarely came
back around for a second chance. Once gone, always gone. Besides, she wasn’t
that woman anymore. She didn’t want the things she’d once wanted. So many
things seemed inconsequential now.

That familiar weight of uncertainty and loneliness settled
on her shoulders. Unable to bear it, she turned and walked back to the house.

* * * *

Slade watched Alana walk slowly up the hill toward the
house, her shoulders slumped. He didn’t like seeing her defeated. She was the
strongest woman he knew. He found himself caring more and more about her
welfare and that bothered him as much as her misery.

He couldn’t care, dammit. The last time ended in
tragedy--the death of the only woman he’d ever tried to get close to. He’d
tried that life once and gained nothing but grief and loss. He was not an
ordinary man meant to live an ordinary life. When he tried, his life was torn
away. Fate putting him in his place. Best he remember that, because having
history repeat itself with Alana was not an option. No matter how different his
feelings were for her. No matter how much she made him long to have that life
again. To be a man someone could be proud of.

As long as Alana had someone to take care of, she’d be fine.
Alana was a survivor, a fighter. She would land on her feet.

He never should have given in to the three days. He’d agreed
to stay because he saw her desperate need to nurse Caleb back to health. It was
familiar to her. It distracted her. Grounded her. He could understand the
desire to feel normal in the face of tragedy. And she didn’t even know the half
of it. He had yet to tell her how her father died. Or of his promise.

“Hey, Slade, you with us?” Sam asked, drawing his attention.
“Don’t need another one of you laid up injured.”

Slade tore his eyes off Alana as she disappeared over the
hill, and back to the task at hand. She was a constant distraction for him. He
would do well to keep her at arm’s length or else risk more than their lives.
He wasn’t willing to lose either. No matter how much he wanted to chase after
her and take away her pain.

* * * *

Assured that Caleb was on the mend, Alana went up to her
bedroom to get ready for bed. Cristian and the men had been working hard all
day, only coming up for a quick lunch of sandwiches and chips. Other than that,
she’d been alone to take care of her patient.

The phone rang as she crossed through the kitchen. Sam was
still down working, so she picked it up.

“Hello?”

“Ah, Alana, darling. How did I get so lucky as to have you
answer the phone?”

Recognizing Gavin Ross’s voice, she went rigid, her hand
gripping the phone with white knuckles. “How did you get this number?”

“It took some doing. Slade must not be right there, or he
would have taken the phone by now. How do you like the States? It’s been a long
time for you.”

“You don’t know where I am.” Please let it be true.

“But I do. Your bodyguard has hidden you well. Not well
enough I couldn’t track you down, though. Are you ready to see me? Because I am
certainly ready to see you.”

Fear snaked down her spine. He didn’t only have the number
to the ranch, he had the location and Slade’s identity. Which meant he probably
knew of the organization he worked for. “What do you want with me, Gavin?”

He tsked softly. “I thought we already established that.
Nothing has changed. Our arrangement still stands. Very clever of Slade to
separate you and my donor. I’m afraid we’re going to have to find a new one.”

“What did you do to him?” she asked, fearing the answer. Not
liking the way he said
we
.

“Nothing yet. My boys should be arriving in Louisiana very
soon. I had no idea Slade was part of such a group. My mistake to assume he was
a freelance operator.”

Dave. He found Dave. “You leave him alone,” she cried,
desperate. “Do you hear me, Gavin? Leave him alone!” She didn’t realize she was
screaming until it echoed through the kitchen. But she couldn’t stop. Her fear
for Dave overrode diplomacy.

The door to the basement flung open at the same time someone
pulled the phone from her hand.

“What’s wrong?” Caleb asked, breathless from his climb and
leaning heavily on the doorjamb.

Cristian put the phone to his ear. “You’ll never have her,
Ross.” He hung up.

“Why did you do that?” she cried. “I could have stopped
him.”

Cristian stared her down, angry. “You can’t stop him. What
did he say?”

Shaking, terrified for Dave, she said, “He knows where Dave
is. He’s got men on the way right now. We have to warn them.”

Mercer had already pulled out his cellphone. “I’m on it.”

Sam was at his brother’s side, urging him to sit down. “That
means he knows where we are too.”

“We have to go.” Alana grabbed Cristian’s arm. “All of us.
We have to go now.”

Cristian covered her hand with his. “Sam, you good here?”

Sam nodded. “Got it covered. Get her out of here.”

Alana’s gaze bounced from Cristian to Sam and back again.
She shook her head. “No.” Then, desperately, to Cristian. “We can’t leave
without them. Gavin knows where we are. He’ll hurt them.”

“We can handle ourselves, darlin’,” Caleb drawled. “You just
get yourself somewhere safe.”

Safe? Was there such a place? Would she ever be free again?

“Cristian?” She looked to him for answers. She didn’t want
to leave Sam and his brother here. Not when Caleb was still healing. How could
he defend himself? She would never forgive herself if something happened to
him.

“He’s right. We have to go.”

“You’re going to leave them behind?”

Cristian’s face hardened into a tight mask of control. “They
can take care of themselves.”

Bothered that he could so easily leave them to their own
defenses against a man who wouldn’t hesitate to slaughter them all, she glared
at him. She’d seen what Gavin could do. The man was ruthless, merciless, when
it came to getting what he wanted. Nothing would stop him from getting her.

“But...” She glanced at Sam and Caleb, who stared back at
her with equally fierce expressions that told her she insulted them by arguing.
Foolish, stubborn men. Did all mercenaries think they were invincible? They had
no idea what kind of man came their way.

Mercer came back into the room. “Fortier and Sarver are
moving Dave to another location. Bodley got delayed in Azbakastan.”

Azbakastan? Where on earth was Azbakastan? Alana’s nerves
frayed a bit more. She didn’t want to hear about Azbakastan or what this man
named Bodley was doing there or what delayed him. Her fear must have shown on
her face because Mercer frowned at her, then at the others, saying, “What did I
miss?”

Alana turned away and wrapped her arms around her waist. Her
every last nerve stood on end, ready to snap. She had no control over the
situation and it made her edgy. Things like this just didn’t happen. Or so
she’d naively once thought.

“Are we leaving?” Mercer asked.

“Yes. Sam, need to borrow your truck,” Cristian said.

She stiffened. This was happening. She could do nothing
about it except go along. Gavin held all the cards, leaving her empty handed.

“Keys are in it.”

They shuffled her out the door minutes later. As Cristian
piled her in a newer four-wheel drive truck, she realized she had no
belongings. No bags, no purse, no money. Nothing but the borrowed clothes on
her back.

A punch of reality she didn’t want to take. It left her
breathless in the front seat next to Cristian, who climbed behind the wheel and
turned the key, bringing the engine to life. His army-green duffle was in the
back, along with Mercer’s. They had stuff. A life somewhere. Maybe even
families like Sam.

What did she have?

An empty ache filled her chest. Mercer jumped in the back
seat and Cristian backed out of the drive. In the darkness he couldn’t see her
rubbing her chest, trying to take away the ache.

She watched the lights of Sam’s house fade into the
distance. A heavy weight settled on her shoulders. Worry. Fear. Uncertainty.
For the men protecting her. Because of her they might lose their lives. They
were putting themselves in danger for her. Sam and Caleb were staying behind
and risking their lives in order to protect her.

The burden of that weighed even heavier on her and she
wrapped her arms around her waist, pressing into the seat, wishing herself
somewhere else.

They turned onto the main road and Cristian pressed the gas
pedal, the powerful truck shooting forward. It made her feel even more alone as
they traveled away from Sam’s ranch. She glanced over her shoulder, but the
lights were gone. Sam and Caleb were gone.

Biting down on her lip, she turned back around, feeling
Cristian’s eyes on her. Refusing to look at him, she stared out the side window
at the passing darkness, feeling lost. Like sinking into a bottomless pit.
Gavin Ross did this to her, pushed her into the pit.

“Stop,” Cristian said quietly so Mercer wouldn’t hear.

Alana looked at him, unable to read his expression in the
dim lights of the dashboard. “What did you say?”

He didn’t look at her when he spoke. “Stop.”

“Stop what?”

“Thinking.”

Baffled, she shook her head. “You want me to stop thinking?”

“You’re sending out negative vibes.”

“And they’re what? Ruining your chi?”

“Mercer’s maybe, not mine. Stop worrying.”

Alana scoffed. “Stop worrying,” she repeated. “I like you
better when you’re brooding and stoic.” She was pushing him away when she
needed him more than ever. She didn’t want to think of him as her only lifeline.
Right now he was exactly that. And she hated that dependency. The weakness.

“Sam and Caleb can take care of themselves.”

So he kept telling her. Leaning her head back against the
seat, she closed her eyes and said wearily, “I’m too tired to argue.”

“Recline the seat and rest. We won’t stop until we need
fuel.”

Wishing she could curl up next to him, Alana did as
suggested and reclined her seat. Maybe she’d wake from this nightmare and
everything would be right.

But, as she closed her eyes and tried to relax, she knew
that wouldn’t happen. This nightmare was far from over.

Part of her wondered if it would ever end.