Rescue Me (18 page)

Truth was, he
didn't
deserve another
chance, plain and simple. He'd let her take the blame for something
she had nothing to do with. As long as Kathryn continued to believe
she'd caused that man's death, there would always be that wedge of
deceit between them. She didn't know the truth, but he did.

Weber spoke again. “Now you understand why
I'm so against you starting back up with her. I'm trying to protect
you.”

“You're trying to protect TREX,” he corrected
in a cool, even voice.

“That, too.”

Spencer tightened his jaw until it ached. He
brought his gaze to the ceiling to gather his words carefully.
“Weber, there are things I'll do for this agency.” He then rested
his eyes on his SAC. “And things I won't. If you are forcing me to
make that choice, then do it. I'll turn in my gear right now.”

Weber studied him. “Are you serious about
this?”

Spencer held his gaze. “What do you
think?”

He didn't look away. “I'm not backing down on
this, Allen.”

“Neither am I.”

The two men stood locked in an exchange for
several seconds. When Weber broke eye contact and fell back in his
chair, Spencer finally let out the breath he'd been holding.

“Why do you have to be such a pain in my
ass?”

“I can ask the same.” When he saw that spark
of irritation back in Weber's eyes, he added, “Sir.”

Weber wasn't amused. He didn't even crack a
smile. “I should bust your ass for talking to me like this, but I
won't. At least you waited until we were in private to challenge me
this time. I will tell you this. If you ever go against a direct
order again, if you choose Kat over your own brotherhood, I'll
personally toss you out with the fucking trash. You got it?”

The breath in Spencer's throat caught. He
wasn't fired, and he still had Kathryn. Drawing in several breaths
before he spoke, he made sure his voice remained steady and not at
all conveying the swirl of anxiety pinching his chest. “Can I go
now?”

Weber looked at him as if he'd just asked
permission to rob a bank and kill all the hostages. “I haven't even
started in on why I called you here. Now have a seat. We need to
talk.”

Wonderful. Spencer slowly sank into one of
the rickety metal chairs. It popped and creaked in protest. He
turned when his jeans rubbed against him wrong. Damn, he hurt. He
twisted again to relieve some of the discomfort.

After he settled, Weber asked, “Comfy?”

No
. “So why did you call me here if it
wasn't to fire me?”

“We've picked up chatter.”

Finally. Something about the job and not his
personal life. “What kind of chatter?”

He glanced at Spencer, gravely serious, his
face suddenly stony white. “We have reason to believe Kat's life
may be in danger.”

A cold chill washed up Spencer's spine. The
news hit him like an iron fist. Every muscle in his body tightened
and sent his protective nature into overdrive. He stood and paced
from one end of the small office to the other, his guts cramping in
rage. In fear. Who'd want to hurt her? “When? How? Why wasn't
I—”

“Intel informed me late last night,” Weber
interrupted. “It kills me to admit this, but when I heard you were
with her despite my direct order, I was so goddamn relieved. You
have no idea how tense I was when I couldn't get a hold of
her.”

Spencer stopped pacing and stared at him.
Oh, he had an idea, all right.
His pulse rate spiked. “Why
were you so concerned?”

“Believe it or not, I do have a heart.”

That didn't answer the question. Spencer let
it go. Right now, he didn't give a shit why Weber cared. He wanted
to get to the bottom of the threat. “How did intel pick up on
this?”

“It came in an email to K-SAR that we
intercepted.”

“Why are you monitoring K-SAR's email?”

“We monitor all of our contractors' emails.
McKoy says the IP traces back to the fucking cabin.”

Spencer went back to pacing. “How? It didn't
even have power. How in the hell could it have Internet?”

“That's your takeaway from this? I tell you
about a death threat to your girlfriend and you are more worried
about whether or not you can Google from it?”

God
damn
it. “McKoy tracked the IP?
Since when do we get our intel from a member of our own field
team?”

“There's an entire litter of McKoys, most of
them either in TREX or training to be in TREX. I'm sure they are
all equally irritating. I picked Logan McKoy for field work after
seeing him shoot. He took a gnat out at three hundred yards in high
wind. The man makes sharp shooting an art form.”

“Fascinating.” He didn't give a shit about
McKoy's sniper skills at the moment. “What does any of this have to
do with Kathryn?”

“The intel is from the oldest McKoy, Charis.
She's even more annoying than her brother, always talking and
making these noises to fill the silence.” Weber grabbed a pencil
from his desk and kept his hands busy. “But, like I told you, she
puts Aims to shame on a computer, so I tolerate her. She told me
about the email. It reads like a text book. That's how detailed it
got on what this sick bastard wants to do to her.”

“Who sent it?”

“We're still working on that.”

“Why now?” Spencer needed more detail. Weber
couldn't drop a bomb like this and not expect Spencer to dig. “Does
this have anything to do with the Miller search?”

“We're still working on that, too.”

Spencer closed his eyes to the news. Knowing
someone out there wanted to hurt Kathryn gnawed at his insides like
a wild animal, attacking his control. He couldn't allow this to
happen. He wouldn't. “Then the answer is clear. I stay by her
side.”

Weber shook his head. “Not an option.”

“Why the fuck not?”

“I just got through explaining why.”

“And me staying away from her is helping her?
How?” He refused to allow this to happen. Permission or not, he'd
stay by her side. Period. It went against every fiber of his being
to stand back and let a threat go like this.

“I'm only telling you this so you'll
understand why I want you to stay away from her.”

“You're not making any sense,” Spencer
roared, aware of the horror in his voice but unable to control it.
“If Kathryn is in some kind of trouble, why wouldn't you want me by
her side?”

“Allen—”

He ignored Weber as concern fueled his words.
“Who are you going assign to her? Gessler?”

The thought of Steve Gessler being within a
football field of Kathryn made Spencer's insides turn upside down.
The guy was a man whore who treated his women like his personal
play things. He was a damn good agent, but Spencer wouldn't trust
him alone with Kathryn. He'd be more focused on fucking her instead
of protecting her.

Spencer smacked the desk. “It should be me
and you know it.”

“It's not going to be you. It's not going to
be Gessler.”

He shot a glare at Weber, who told him more
with the look in his eyes than Spencer ever wanted to know. “You
are
assigning someone to watch her, aren't you?”

Weber shook his head slowly and took a breath
to no doubt start in on some bullshit reason.

“Why the hell not? You said yourself that you
were worried when you couldn't get a hold of her.”

“Because that isn't our job. We find things.
We don't provide security detail on what could turn out to be
bullshit. Besides, we don't have the resources.”

“Me!” He slammed his fist into his chest.
God, Weber had no idea how close he had Spencer to a stroke. “I
know her better than anyone else. I can stay by her side 24/7. No
one will get within a mile of her without my permission.”
Desperation filled his voice and he drew in several breaths. When
he started again, he kept his tone even and cool. “Weber, think
about this. By not assigning anyone to her, you are leaving her
wide open. I just got her back.”

“Fine. I'll have surveillance bug her. We'll
keep an eye on her. Happy?”

Hell no, he wasn't happy. Far from it. “She
needs someone protecting her.”

“I don't think you're hearing me, Allen.”

“The fuck I'm not!” When Weber's jaw clenched
and his spine went ramrod straight, Spencer didn't care. This
couldn't be happening. He wouldn't let it happen. Kathryn would
have his protection whether Weber approved of it or not. No one
would harm a hair on her beautiful head. He'd see to it. Dragging
in a deep breath, he offered up his plan. “I'll protect her on my
own time.”

“And if we get another job? I can't have you
babysitting your girlfriend while on a find.”

“God
damn
it!” Spencer slammed his fist
down on the desk again, his fear overtaking his usually practical
senses. “I will not step aside on this.”

“Why do I feel like this plan of yours isn't
negotiable?”

“It isn't.”

Weber sighed and rolled his eyes. “Fine, as
long as it doesn't interfere with your duties as a TREX agent.”

“It won't.”

“Uh huh,” he replied, clearly doubting
Spencer's conviction. “Until we can identify how real this threat
is, there's no need upsetting Kat with this information. It stays
between us.”

Spencer's jaw hit the floor. “You want me to
keep this from her?”

Weber nailed him with a glare that made his
insides twist. “It wouldn't be the first time you've kept something
from her, now would it?”

“We'll dock here and walk the market for a
bit, then have some lunch before we head back. How's that sound?”
Spencer jumped onto the dock and methodically tied off the
thirty-foot Bayliner. He looked ruggedly handsome in his beige
sailor sweater and blue jeans. Kat glanced at his feet. He had to
be the only person she knew who boated in his waffle stomper, no
doubt TREX-issued, black boots.

With a quick peek at her reflection in one of
the boat's windows, she decided she didn't care how much better he
looked than her. They were together. So she wore an old pair of
blue jeans. So she wrapped herself up in one of Spencer's sweaters
so big it swallowed her and hung down to her thighs. At least she
wore sensible shoes.

She swung her gaze over to the Olympia
Farmer's Market. Today was opening day. They'd painted the building
a different shade of green and hung a new sign out front, welcoming
people to the market. The food vendors lined the outside of the
building while the flower vendors lined the front. A mixture of
fried foods and flowers wafted from the marketplace down to the
docks. She had no idea where they found fresh flowers in the middle
of winter, only that the vibrant colors called to her.

The market always opened on the first Sunday
in February, and it just so happened to fall on Groundhog's Day
this year. Kat and Spencer stayed in bed and watched TV, waiting to
see whether good old Phil would see his shadow or not. He did, and
that somehow concluded winter would last another six weeks.

She had to get out of the house and suggested
they walk the market. Spencer protested and tried to talk her into
staying home, and inside. Yet they'd barely come up for air since
getting back together. Whenever she did leave the house for the
smallest errand, he insisted on going with her.

She'd finally talked him into it, and he then
decided at the last minute to take the boat. She hated boats. She
hated the water even more. But the thought of visiting the market
again, and his promise to take it easy in the boat, convinced her
to give it a try. After all, she was all about trying new things
now and refused to give into her fear any longer.

He kept glancing up at her as he tied off the
boat. In fact, ever since that cryptic call from his SAC ordering
him into the office a few weeks back, she'd caught him watching her
even more, his attentive gaze ever vigilant.

But the way he looked at her now was
different. He kept watch over her like a parent would a child. Add
that to the fact he seemed to take an even greater interest in
their surroundings lately and she had to admit, it had her
suspicions on alert. Every time she asked him about it, he'd change
the subject. It annoyed the hell out of her.

It wouldn't hurt to keep trying.
“Spence?”

“Hmm?” He brought his head up.

“What is it?”

He grinned, but she knew better. The smile
didn't reach his eyes. He studied her, as if trying to memorize
everything about her.

“Come here,” he said and held out his
hand.

Kat stepped off the boat and held onto his
hand for dear life. She'd had a thing against water ever since she
was seven and nearly drowned. But somehow, with Spencer around, her
fears seemed less.

He lifted her up and pulled her into his
arms, kissing her before setting her down on the dock. “You,
Katy-Lou, are mouthwatering. We could go back to the house right
now and I'd be happy with my dinner.”

“I want fish,” she countered, though the
thought of what he had in mind did sound appetizing. Her body
agreed and awoke, the anticipation sending ripples straight to her
core.

He followed her up the dock and onto the
boardwalk. Once the sidewalk widened, he took his place by her side
and brought his hand to the small of her back. She loved that. The
warmth of his safety enveloped her and she let out a content sigh.
He made her feel like she was his only focus. How long had she
waited for him to put her first? And now he did. She smiled and
sighed again.

“Fish it is.” He led her to the market and
stopped at the first outdoor booth they came to. With a wicked
twinkle in his eye and a coy curl of his lips, he pulled a red rose
out of a bucket. Bringing it to his nose, he slowly took in its
scent. He then faced her and offered it to her. They locked gazes
as she drew in a deep breath and allowed the scent from the flower
to consume her senses. He licked his lips as he watched her
reaction with darkening eyes.