Runaway Heiress (2 page)

              “I have plenty of women to warm my bed. I don’t need to put a ring on any of them,” Chad answered back. Joseph shook his head and went back to talking to his brother. The boys all laughed, happy with their small victory. Chad could hold his own any day of the week.

              While everyone was occupied, Chad stepped out on the balcony, needing a few moments alone. He’d been bluffing Joseph. He certainly wasn’t a monk, but he barely had time for himself, let alone finding myriads of women. He just wasn’t interested in tying himself down in a relationship. There were too many complications.

              He looked out over the large back yard and sighed. It had been a long time since he’d been able to relax and
smell the flowers
. He wasn’t sure if retirement was a good or bad thing. At least with his own land, he could work night and day if he desired. He wouldn’t have to answer to another person, and more importantly, he wouldn’t be responsible for other people’s lives.

              “Time for dinner,” Katherine called. Chad took a calming breath, then stepped through the door. He kissed Katherine on the cheek as he passed by. She was like a mother to him. He didn’t know how his life would’ve turned out if it hadn’t been for Joseph and Katherine. They were the kind of parents every kid dreamed of having. He’d bend over backwards for them – all they had to do was ask.

***

              She was sick of it. While she loved each one of her brothers, she was tired of their overbearing, overprotective, he-man tactics. She had to get away for a while, take time for herself and prove she wasn’t some delicate flower needing twenty-four hour supervision.

              Brianne Lynn Anderson, or as everyone called her, Bree, was the youngest of four children. Her siblings were all strong, stubborn, alpha males who treated her like she was still ten years old, even though she was twenty-eight and a college graduate.

              She hadn’t managed to keep a boyfriend for longer than a few weeks because once they met her brothers they went scampering for the hills. She was so disgusted with the cowards for running that she wasn’t even upset when they left. Still, she’d like to actually find out what it was like to be treated like a woman. She was probably the oldest living virgin in the United States. Her brothers would like for her to die an old maid.

              She jumped in her car and quickly hit the gas pedal. Her father had summoned her to Joseph’s mansion for a welcome home party for some friend of Mark’s, but she figured it was the perfect time to escape from her overprotective family. She jumped on the freeway and started driving south - the farther she pulled away, the bigger her smile became. Freedom flashed over and over in her mind. Even though it was overcast and cold she flipped open her sunroof and stuck her hand in the open air. She laughed with pure joy at what she was doing.

              Maybe by the time she returned, her family would realize she wasn’t a little girl anymore and they could let her live her own life. She loved them – but she could only take so much pampering.

***

              Chad sat on the couch holding a glass of deep amber whiskey, smiling as he enjoyed the warmth from both the liquor and the flames in front of him.

              The Macallan sixty-year-old Single Malt Whiskey was like butter on his tongue. He laughed at the idea that anyone would spend sixty thousand dollars on a single bottle of alcohol, even one that tasted as good as what he was sipping. Chad was incredibly wealthy by anyone’s standards, but sixty thousand...

              Over the past twenty years, Chad hadn’t had to spend anything of what he made. Every dime he received went right into investments. Luckily, those gambles had paid off well, leaving him with millions. He’d paid cash for his ranch and it hadn’t even made a dent in his account. He’d been so frugal his entire life, changing his ways wouldn’t be easy. As his commander had said many times, he needed to live a little, whatever the hell that meant.

              The Anderson’s made him seem like a pauper, though. He figured when the US government needed to be bailed out in a crisis situation, Joseph Anderson was who they called. He may be exaggerating a bit, but still, the family was America’s Royalty.

              Chad didn’t know why he’d been summoned back to Joseph’s place. He’d just been there the previous week for dinner and he needed to get his ranch settled. However, when Mark called and asked for a favor, he would always drop everything and be there for him – just like he knew the same was true of Mark. If Chad needed him, he’d be there – and with back-up.

              As Chad looked around the room, the Anderson men began entering. Mark had left him sitting on the couch while he hunted down his father. He was being tight lipped and Chad’s suspicions rose when he saw Mark’s cousins’ step into the room. They eyed him warily and he didn’t back down. He stared them straight in the eye, wondering why he felt like he was in enemy territory all of a sudden.

              He’d brought back a lot of battle wounds from his years of service, not just mentally, but physically, too. He unconsciously rubbed his rib where a bullet had struck. One more inch to the left and he’d have been dead. All that remained was a minor scar but it was something he looked at often to remind himself to be careful who he trusted. That bullet had come from someone who was supposed to be on the same side as him.

              “Sorry to keep you waiting so long, Chad,” Joseph said as he entered the room followed by Mark. If Chad had been nodding off, Joseph’s booming voice would’ve certainly woken him. The man had a way of making people stand at attention better than Chad’s old commander.

              “It hasn’t been a problem. I’ve been enjoying your whiskey,” Chad responded as he swallowed down the last of the amber liquid.

              “You have excellent taste, my boy. George got me that bottle for my last birthday. It’s almost out so I’ll have to hunt down some more. It’s hard to find truly exceptional products these days,” Joseph answered, not even blinking at the five-thousand dollars’ worth of whiskey Chad had drank without tasting.

              “What was the big emergency?” Chad asked. He didn’t want to be rude but he had a lot to take care of and didn’t want to stand around discussing liquor.

              “I like a man who gets straight to the point,” Joseph replied, not answering Chad’s question. Chad looked again at Mark’s cousins and felt like he was being assessed – and they found him wanting.

              “Alright, if you don’t want to tell me why you wanted me here, then do you want to explain why your nephew, Max, looks like he wants to tear my head off?” Chad said. He smirked at Max, who looked like he was thinking about stepping over and slugging Chad. After a second, Chad raised his brows at him in a bring-it-on gesture, then smiled as he watched Austin grab his brother’s arm when it looked like he was about to step forward.

              Chad hadn’t been around Mark’s cousins much; just saw them a few times when he was in town, but not enough to really feel he knew any of them. They’d never before been hostile, though and he couldn’t understand why they felt a need to act macho all of a sudden.

              “Sorry about my boys, Chad. We have a situation and my brother and I have come up with a solution that the boys aren’t too thrilled about. They can’t beat down their sister so they want to take their frustrations out on you,” George said as he stepped forward.

              “What do I have to do with this?” Chad asked, wanting to know what was going on. He was sick of them sidestepping the issue.

              “There’s no way to say this but to just come out with it, Bree’s gone missing,” George said. Chad instantly tensed – his full military training coming to the front. This was something he could handle.

              “Have you put in a missing person’s report, hired an investigator? Have there been any threats made against her?” Chad fired off questions.

              “No, no, it’s nothing like that. She was feeling a bit overwhelmed by her brothers and cousins. We found where she is. She’s not all that great at hiding, and we were able to trace her credit cards. She’s staying in a small town in Oregon. I went there to try to find out what was going on and she refused to come home. She said she was being smothered and she’s determined to make it on her own. Apparently, she’s refusing to come back until everyone backs off,” George said a bit sheepishly.

              “Then, I don’t understand what the problem is,” Chad said with confusion. She wasn’t really missing after-all. Why were they acting as if it was an emergency?

              “Bree’s been very sheltered her entire life. She’s never known about the danger involved, coming from a family like ours. She’s determined to make it on her own, but she’s a target, being my only daughter. I’ve received threatening letters before regarding all my children, but lately there’s been several targeted at Bree. I have surveillance on her at the moment, but I need someone I can trust. Mark regards you as the best man he knows,” George trailed off.

              “You want me to babysit?” Chad asked with horror. They were asking a bit much of him if they wanted him to keep an eye on a spoiled heiress.

              “I know it’s asking a lot,” Joseph piped in and Chad turned to look at the man who had kept him out of the legal system. If it weren’t for Joseph stepping in and taking responsibility for him when he’d been an angry teenager, he never would’ve shaped up. He wouldn’t have joined the military and he certainly wouldn’t have the same life he did. How could he refuse him anything?

              “We hate to ask you to do this but if any of the family goes down there we know she’s going to try to slip away again. She wants to have independence, which I can understand, but she needs to be watched over. This last letter that came in, scares the crap out of us,” Mark jumped in.

              Chad reached for the note Mark was holding. The words sent a shudder down his spine. Some person was infatuated with her and Chad knew how that could turn out. If she refused the man and he had no hope of winning her over, he very well could take her life.

              “What makes you think she won’t run if I’m in the picture?” he asked.

              “We thought about that, too. She won’t like having you there but she doesn’t deem you a threat against her independence. Since I moved the family back east for so many years, she hasn’t been around you. I know she won’t like the idea of you babysitting her, but I don’t think she’ll take off again just because you’re there,” George offered.

              “Crap, you’re asking a lot. If anything were to happen to her on my watch, I’d never forgive myself,” Chad said as he ran a hand through his hair and started pacing the room. He felt like he was damned if he did and damned if he didn’t.

              “You won’t let anything happen,” Mark said with full confidence. Chad looked at his long time best friend and a look passed between them. Mark was right – Chad would take a bullet before he ever let anything happen to a person he was protecting. His hand rubbed his ribs once more, unconsciously. Never again would he lose a person under his watch – he couldn’t survive it, not after his sister.

              “Give me the details,” he commanded, putting himself in full control. He was in ops mode and he wouldn’t let the Anderson family down. Joseph and George breathed sighs of relief, while Bree’s brothers stiffened their shoulders. They weren’t happy with the arrangements.

              “This is stupid, Dad. I say we drag her back here and lock her in the flipping basement. If she wants to act like a spoiled brat, then treat her like one,” Max growled as he started pacing.

              “Your sister is an adult and can go where she wants. Do you want to drive her further away? This is the best thing we can do for her. If you want to be the one to shatter her world and make her afraid to even leave her apartment, then be my guest,” George said while he stood to his full six and a half foot height. He may be getting older but he was still an intimidating man. Max backed down, not from fear, but respect.

              “Sorry, Dad, I’m just frustrated. We’ve had some rocky years since losing mom, and I thought it was finally getting put behind us. I’m worried about her,” Max apologized.

              “We’re all worried,” George said while placing a hand on Max’s shoulders.

              “You know, Redington, if you lay a hand on my sister in any way, I’m going to knock your teeth out,” Trenton said with a smile of anticipation. Chad outright laughed at him. No wonder she’d ran – they really did act as if she was a teenager, instead of a twenty-eight year old woman.

              “Tell you what, Anderson, if she doesn’t do it first, we’ll have a go,” Chad said. Trenton sized him up for a moment, before his shoulders relaxed and he realized what an ass he’d made of himself. Finally he laughed and the rest of the tension fled the room.

              “I think we’ll get along just fine,” Trenton said as he stuck out his hand. Chad felt like he’d passed some kind of test he didn’t know he was taking until it was over. He shook the man’s hand, then they all sat down and gave Chad the details on where Bree was and what to expect once he got there.

              He knew she was going to be a handful but he was suddenly anticipating his babysitting duty. She wasn’t hard on the eyes and he was curious about the fire he knew was just below her uptight surface. He may actually find the next few months enjoyable.