Shelter for Elizabeth (Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes Book 5) (9 page)

Beth looked at her friend in disbelief. “You think I keep
anything
sensitive on my computer? No way. As soon as the alarm went off, all my passwords were automatically changed, and they’ll continue to update every forty-five seconds until I stop the program.”

“How will you know what they are so you can log into your stuff?”

Beth didn’t bother to answer, just rolled her eyes.

“Okay, so you’ve figured that out already. How do you know he won? Was it really a competition?”

“How do I know he won?” Beth turned her screen again so both Pen and Cade could see it. There were electronic fireworks going off on the screen and the words “I WON” were flashing on and off as well.

Cade coughed into his hand, trying not to laugh. It really wasn’t funny, if Beth’s pissed-off face was anything to go by, but whoever the hacker was had a pretty good sense of humor.

Penelope’s phone pinged with a text. She looked down and grinned.

“What’s so funny?” Beth asked, obviously still upset.

Penelope turned her phone to Beth and showed her a picture of a computer screen, which looked exactly like Beth’s did. The text message under it read, “Tell Elizabeth, I win.”

“
W
hat the
hell
, Pen? You know who did this?” Beth asked in disbelief, looking ready to lurch across the room and strangle her friend.

“Yup.”

When Penelope didn’t say anything more, Beth put her computer to the side and stalked over to her friend. Before she got to her, Cade grabbed her hand and pulled her down next to him. “Easy, sweetheart. You can’t kill my sister in front of me. I’d have to call my friend Dax and I’d be an accessory to murder and do twenty to life. Then you’d be the one visiting
me
in the penitentiary.”

Cade felt good when Beth didn’t pull away from him, but gripped his hand hard.

“Who is it?” Her question was geared toward Penelope.

“My friend, Tex. He’s a computer genius who helped get the teams in to save me. I’ve only met him once, but have talked to him many times.”

Beth’s eyes narrowed. “So why did he hack into my computer?”

“Probably to see if what I told him was true.”

“Pen, I love you, but I swear to God if you don’t start making sense, I’m gonna email every news agency I can come up with, pretend to be you, and tell them you’re dying to finally tell your side of your story.”

Cade saw his sister pale, and squeezed Beth’s hand in warning. “Beth…”

He saw the remorse on Beth’s face as soon as the words left her mouth. “I’m sorry, Pen. You know I wouldn’t do that. But shit. Really? Who
is
this guy?”

“Look. All I heard from the men who rescued me is how great this Tex person is. How he can hack into anything, how much he’s done for them, and how no one is as good as he is. I just…when you were talking about getting into my computer and keeping those jerks from accessing my info, I wanted to introduce you to Tex.
All
I said was that you were good and maybe you could help him out someday.” Penelope fingered the pendant around her throat nervously as she spoke.

“And he hacked into my computer as a result?”

Penelope shrugged. “I guess he wanted to know if I was exaggerating or not.”

“So, now that he got through, I guess he knows you were exaggerating.”

Beth’s computer made a weird dinging noise again, and Cade let go of her hand as she lurched across the cushions to pick it up. Her fingers darted over the keys again and she said under her breath, “I’ll be damned.”

“What now?” Penelope asked, leaning forward to try to see her screen.

Beth looked up. “He restored my firewall and repaired the hole he made. Not only that, but, look…” She turned the computer and showed Cade and Penelope the note on the screen.

Tiger was right. You’re good. Want a job?

“I don’t get it. Who’s Tiger?” Beth asked in confusion.

“That would be me. It’s what the guys who came in to rescue me called me,” Penelope said sheepishly.

“Hmmmm. Wonder what kind of job he’s talking about?”

“Uh, one with computers?” Penelope said as if Beth had a couple of screws loose in her head.

“Hey! I haven’t had the chance to talk to Daxton or Cruz yet about you working for them,” Cade complained. “But now that I think about it, it’s probably better if you work for him. You know…with your penchant for illegally hacking into Fortune 500 databases and all.”

“She doesn’t do it to steal stuff,” Penelope huffed, sticking up for her friend.

“Well, I’ll think about it and contact him later.”

“What? Beth! You should take Tex up on it!” Penelope urged.

“I’m busy. I’m hanging out with you guys. Besides, my heart hasn’t gotten over the shock of someone breaking into my computer yet.”

Cade smiled. It was amazing how different Beth was when she was at home in her own space and comfortable. He liked it. He liked
her
.

Penelope hadn’t told him much about the men who’d rescued her, and she certainly hadn’t mentioned anyone with the unbelievably cliché name of “Tex.” He’d have to talk to his sister privately about the man. While he was proud of Beth’s computer abilities, what she was doing
was
illegal, and the last thing he wanted was for her to get caught. She had enough on her plate as it was…she didn’t need any more hassle.

Wanting to get Beth’s thoughts off her computer, he asked, “What’s with all the candles?” Cade liked it when Beth was relaxed, and now that she knew some random hacker wasn’t messing with her data, she’d put the computer aside again and had folded against him. But with his question, he felt her tense up. He hurried to reassure her. “I wasn’t making fun. I like them, it’s just that I haven’t seen them before.”

Cade looked around the room and noted just how many there were. There were some tealight candles on the kitchen counter, and a variety of colors and sizes of them in a box on the floor next to the sliding glass doors that led into the courtyard.

“Now that I think about it, you have a ton of them, Beth,” Penelope chimed in. She leaned over and picked up one from the coffee table and smelled it. “This one isn’t even scented.”

“Uh, yeah. I thought they were…but I bought the wrong ones.”

“I have a friend who sells the really good kind. I can hook you up if you want?” Pen asked, trying to be helpful.

“It’s okay.”

“Well, if you want more, just let me know.”

“I will.”

Cade felt Beth relax against him again as they turned their attention back to the movie, now that the drama of the night was over. Something niggled at the back of his mind, but he pushed it aside, lost in the softness of Beth’s body against his.

T
hree hours later
, well after Penelope had left, Cade stood at Beth’s door looking down at her. “I feel like we spend a lot of time standing here.”

Beth smiled and wrinkled her nose. “I know, right? It’s just a door, but sometimes it feels like I really am in jail.”

“You really shouldn’t be so hard on yourself.”

“I’m trying to get better.”

“I know.”

Beth looked away, then brought her eyes back up to his. “What if it doesn’t ever get easier? I don’t want to be like this for the rest of my life.”

“All you can do is go one day at a time. Don’t borrow trouble, sweetheart.”

Beth sighed and slowly leaned into Cade, resting her forehead against his chest. “I want so badly to be like everyone else.”

“I like you just the way you are.”

Beth felt his words rumble through his wide chest and into her own body. “If I was like everyone else we might have normal dates.”

“I don’t know. This one was pretty good. We hung out, watched a movie, laughed, and now we’re going to kiss each other good-night.”

His words brought her head up, and she saw the blinding smile aimed at her. “First, I’m a total computer geek. I love it, but unfortunately it’s not exactly the sexiest thing in the world. Second, it might have been a good night here, but I want so badly to be able to hang out with you in public. A restaurant, a bar…your place.”

“Done.”

“What?”

“We’ll start with my place. I’ll come and get you and we can hang over there. It’s not as cool as your apartment is though. It’s a bachelor pad.”

“I’d love to see your place,” Beth said wistfully. “And meet your friends. You’ve talked about them so much, I feel like I know them.”

Cade laughed. “You can meet them, but I swear if Driftwood or Crash hit on you, I won’t be responsible for my actions.”

“They’re the playboys, right?”

“I guess that’s as good a label to give them as any,” Cade said easily.

Beth wrinkled her forehead. “Who are the others again?”

“Let’s see. Firefighters first. Taco was here at your place when you tried to super-fry your chicken. He wasn’t the asshole who tried to force you outside though, just making that clear, that was one of the new guys who, thankfully, I don’t work with much. Squirrel is who you might call our resident geek. Tall, skinny, and wears glasses, but he’s the best medic we’ve got. There isn’t a medical situation he can’t figure out and take control of. If I ever have a heart attack, get my arm cut off, stab myself or get shot, I’d want Squirrel to be at my side.”

“He’s that good?”

“I once saw him triage and treat eight people at a bus wreck site. We were all there, but it was utter chaos. Every single person he touched that night survived, and every single one sent him a thank you note. And just so you know, this is highly unusual. People are thankful we’re there to help them, but only one percent actually follow up to say thank you.”

“I’ve been meaning to get those thank you cards sent,” Beth said with a small smile.

“You can thank me with a kiss, sweetheart. I’ll pass your thanks on to the rest of the team.”

“What about the others?”

“Ah, you’re killin’ me. Okay, there’s Chief and Moose.”

“Moose is the one who was at the minivan fire the other night and who Pen likes, right?”

“Yes. But the two of them are so stubborn, I don’t know if either of them will ever pull their heads out of their asses long enough to do something about it.”

“And these cop friends I keep hearing about?”

“Daxton is a Texas Ranger. He rescued his girlfriend, Mackenzie, from being buried alive. Cruz is with the FBI. He met his girlfriend when he went undercover in a motorcycle club.”

“She’s a biker?” Beth asked incredulously.

“Good Lord, no. She’s the sister of a woman who was in too deep with the club and… Anyway, no. I’m sure you’ll hear the story sooner or later from Mickie herself. Then there’s Quint, who’s with the San Antonio Police Department, and his girlfriend is blind, but she rescued herself when she got into trouble, which is totally awesome. By the time he showed up to save the day, Corrie had already gotten away. Then there’s the rest of the crew, who are all still single, and if they flirt with you, I’ll have to hurt them. Hayden, the lone female in our close-knit group, you might remember from the grocery store the other day. She’s the one Penelope was going shooting with. Then TJ is with the Highway Patrol, Calder is a medical examiner, and Conor, who’s a game warden.”

“How did you guys get so close? I didn’t think firefighters hung out with cops.”

“It was inevitable. Our paths cross so much. There aren’t a lot of calls we go on that don’t have some sort of law enforcement involved. They’re all great guys, and now that some have girlfriends, it’s even more fun to hang out with them. You’ll meet them all eventually. I know you’ll like them though.”

“I
hope
I’ll get to meet them. I want to be able to go to that softball tournament you’ve told me about so often. It sounds hilarious.”

“You will. We’ll work our way up to it. Although the game is only funny because the damn cops can’t play fair to save their lives. We have to resort to underhanded techniques to keep them from cheating,” Cade told her with a smile.

“I’d do anything to be able to be casual about being outside this damn apartment. To be a normal person and able to meet you at the bar and have a drink or two before we headed off for a night at the movies or with your friends.”

“Stop. If you were this fictional ‘normal’ that you keep talking about, we might never have met. You wouldn’t have been in that counseling session with Penelope and I wouldn’t have offered to help you clean up your place after that fire.”

“You wouldn’t have?”

“No, contrary to what it seems, I don’t go around helping all the people I meet on the job after hours. I fully admit I enjoy being there when folks need help, but it’s not something I purposely set out to do when I go home. You knew my sister; that, along with the attraction I had for you, pushed me to want to see you again.”

Beth licked her lips and looked up at the amazing man in front of her. He was so much braver than she was. She’d been attracted to him as well. The fact that he was Pen’s brother also made her let her guard down around him. She most likely wouldn’t have opened up to him otherwise.

“So…you said something about kissing?”

Cade’s smile lit up his face. “Yeah, I believe I did. Put your arms around my neck.”

Beth stood on her tiptoes so she could clasp her fingers together at his nape.

“Hold on, sweetheart.”

Cade lowered his head and did what he’d wanted to do all night. Watching her bite her lip as she cyber-battled with Tex, as she licked her lips after drinking from the water bottle, as she smiled while he and Penelope bantered back and forth, almost pushed him over the edge several times.

Now that Penelope wasn’t there to act as a chaperone, Cade took Beth’s mouth as if it would be the last time he’d ever touch her. He wasn’t gentle and didn’t ease into the kiss. He devoured her mouth with all the passion he’d been suppressing all night.

Beth met his tongue with her own, curling around it and sucking. Cade could feel her fingernails digging into the sensitive skin on the back of his neck and he growled in approval. She learned quickly what he liked and what made herself feel good. He slanted his head and took her deeper, tasting and nipping. He probably shouldn’t have been surprised at her eagerness, but he was.

The last time he’d stood at her door and kissed her, he’d gotten the impression she wasn’t that experienced, but tonight she seemed much more confident. It was if she was a different person, and the dichotomy entranced him.

Finally, knowing he needed to pull back before he stripped her naked and took her against the infamous door she hated, Cade licked her lip one last time before ending their kiss. They were both breathing hard and he rested his forehead against hers.

“Wow.”

He smiled at the breathy word. “Yeah, wow.”

Her fingers continued to caress him in what he thought was an unconscious act on her part. He squeezed her waist where his hands had crept during their kiss. They were resting under her shirt on her bare skin and Cade could feel goosebumps rise as he caressed her.

“I feel like I could take on the world when you kiss me.”

Cade’s fingers involuntarily clenched and he forced himself to relax, not wanting to hurt her. Her words were so sad. Cade couldn’t help but feel both elated and so very sorry for her at the same time.