Witness Protection (11 page)

She could feel his heartbeat against her chest, his rapid rhythm matching hers. His arms encircled her waist. His body, flush with hers, caused sensual heat to pulse through her.

She wouldn’t argue that she felt drawn to Nick from the start, even when she thought he was a nerdy radiologist. Getting to know him better was only deepening the attraction.

“Don’t mention it,” he said, his low baritone vibrating over her already sensitized skin.

Sadie took a step back, trying to get her bearings and erase his warm body and citrus soap scent from her thoughts. He was masculinity personified. Her mind tried to wrap around the fact the air could be charged with so much chemistry and heat in such a short time.

She suddenly remembered Luke could walk in any second. Embarrassment crawled up her neck in a rash as she glanced around.

She focused on Boomer. “He did good yesterday.”

Nick cleared his throat. “Sure did. He’s not the only one. He’d make a good officer, wouldn’t you, boy? We’ll figure out a way to keep him.”

Sadie should feel relief. She was getting what she wanted. Or was she?

The past few minutes had her suddenly wanting more...she wanted the whole package. Would she ever have a house with the white picket fence and the perfect man to go along with the dog? Was Nick that perfect man?

Whoa. She was seriously getting ahead of herself.

There was an undeniable sexual current running between them. But real feelings? Wasn’t it way too early to tell?

A short, well-kept curly-haired woman who looked to be in her late fifties walked in the back door. “Boys, come help me get bags from the car.”

Luke didn’t make eye contact with Sadie or Nick as he walked by, and out the door. He’d already said his piece about Nick breaking protocol to bring her to the ranch. Now she was practically throwing herself at him in front of his brother.

Nick introduced Sadie to his mother—she had the same thick black hair as him. Hers curled around her ears. She couldn’t have been more than five foot four. Her arms were filled with grocery bags. Her wide brown eyes took Sadie in for a minute before she spoke. “You must be Sadie.” His mom looked her up and down with a smile.

“Nice to meet you,” Sadie said. “Let me help with those.”

“The pleasure is mine, sweetheart. I’m looking forward to getting to know you better.” Her gaze honed in on Nick. “I brought the supplies. Grab your other brother and help unload the truck so we can give Gran the celebration she deserves.”

Nick relieved his mother of the bags she held. As soon as her arms were free, she wrapped them around Sadie in firm hug. “It sure is nice to meet you. Call me Melba.”

“It really is nice to meet you, Melba.” Sadie didn’t shrink at the older woman’s contact. Instead, she had an unexplainable feeling of being right where she belonged. It was a temporary feeling at best. Sadie hadn’t felt as though she belonged anywhere in her entire life. Even when her parents were alive, they’d never made her feel this safe.

The memory of when she was twelve flooded her. She’d had to stay after school for choir practice. She lived too far away to walk home. Her parents had had to work but promised to be there to pick her up by six o’clock.

Choir practice ended and she went outside with the other kids.

The carpool line was long.

She watched each car go past, smiling parents picking up their children.

The choir teacher gave her an annoyed look.

She’d told them her parents would be there any minute. She prayed they hadn’t forgotten like they did her school play.

They were so wrapped up in their business, their own lives, Sadie wondered if they’d cared about her at all.

She never knew what to expect from them.

The choir teacher marched her inside after waiting forty minutes at the curb and told her to call her parents. He took that moment to remind her they’d had to sign a slip at the beginning of the school year saying they understood the commitment they were making.

They didn’t pick up the phone.

Sadie lied, saying she suddenly remembered they’d wanted her to walk home.

The teacher reluctantly agreed, saying they were supposed to send a note if other arrangements were needed.

She’d sworn to him they’d be fine with her walking.

He let her go.

Anger and humiliation had her stalking toward home. Then she realized she’d have to walk through a dicey part of town to get there.

Fear assailed her when she heard music thumping from a boom box. Cars with missing parts were parked on front lawns.

Sofas were used as porch furniture.

Midway up the street, several men stood around the cars, downing forty-ounce cans of beer.

The anger that had brought her there turned to apprehension. When one of the men catcalled her, apprehension gave way to fear.

Her heart thumped so loudly she was certain people could hear it from a block away.

She kept her head down and crossed the street.

One of the men, the one who whistled at her, followed.

In that moment, Sadie realized what true fear was. And how someone could instill it in her in five seconds flat.

The other men goaded him on.

Sadie broke into a run.

A voice from behind her, nearing, called to someone in front of her. A man four houses down stepped onto the sidewalk. The look on his face, the grin, was still etched in her memory.

Her twelve-year-old self picked that moment to scream.

“No one can hear you,” the man behind her said, his hand on her shoulder. To this day, just the thought of his touch gave her the willies.

She slapped it off.

“Someone’s feisty.”

The man in front of her closed in.

“This one’s spunky.”

Fear and anger and abandonment welled inside her. Where were her parents when she needed them?

Yes, it had been stupid to think she could walk.

Anger had her doing that when she shouldn’t.

This was too much to handle.

She had no means of escape and one of the men touched her ponytail. His hands were dirty.

Sadie shivered, glancing around wildly.

She was trapped.

“You better think twice before you touch that little girl again.” An unfamiliar man’s voice to her left said.

She hadn’t noticed the couple standing on their porch until just then.

“I push one more button on this phone, and the police’ll be here before you can count to three. I doubt your parole officer would be real impressed, Sean.” The woman held up a phone.

The man they addressed as Sean, the one who’d touched her, hesitated before holding his hands up in the universal sign for surrender. “No harm here. We was just having a little fun, wasn’t we?”

His gaze flicked to his buddy before settling on the couple again.

The woman had handed the phone to her husband and moved to Sadie’s side. The older woman’s arms around Sadie marked the first time she’d felt safe. “You best keep your fun on your side of the street if you don’t want to serve the rest of your time in prison.”

Melba’s arms around Sadie gave her that same fleeting feeling of comfort as the strangers’ had. They’d asked her if her mother knew she was alone in the neighborhood and, embarrassed, she’d said no.

Sadie searched her memory for a time when she’d felt protected by her parents and came up empty.

They’d been frantic when they’d found out what had happened.

Were they a perfect family?

No.

She didn’t question their love for her. Work always came first. They’d always told her the best way they could secure a future for her was to make sure she had enough food in her mouth.

Even so, she couldn’t help but wonder if they’d notice if she was gone.

Nick’s mom patted Sadie’s back before letting go.

She gave a quick smile and then clapped her hands together once. “You boys ready to get started? I’ve got a new bread pudding recipe I’ve been dying to try out. I’ve been looking up recipes for the last week.”

“All we need are a few good steaks for the grill,” Nick said, smiling.

The warmth on his face at his mother’s reaction to Sadie put a wide smile on his face.

Luke walked in the back door, bags hanging from his arms, and winked. “You better run while you can get away, Sadie. Or she’ll put you to work, too.”

“Sadie’s quite a talented baker. She might teach us a thing or two if we let her loose in the kitchen,” Nick chimed in.

Was he beaming when he said that?

Nah. Couldn’t be.

Sadie had to be seeing things.

She’d seen Nick Campbell survive bullets, lead her through underbrush and trees to safety, and outsmart dangerous men. He was most definitely not the type to beam.

Boomer, tail wagging, walked circles in front of Melba.

“And who is this baby?” Melba acknowledged, as Gran and the others filed into the kitchen.

“He’s mine.” Sadie smiled, despite feeling like the odd man out in the room. And yet, everyone in Nick’s family had made her feel welcome in some way.

Maybe, someday, when all this was behind her and she had a normal life again, she’d live on a ranch like this one.

The image of children running outside, drinking Kool-Aid on a hot summer’s day, pierced her thoughts.

What did she think about having children?

For so long, she thought she’d marry Tom, and they’d start a family two years after the wedding. He’d wanted to give them a chance to adjust to being husband and wife before they added to their family.

Part of her thought planning everything out was a good idea. Another side to her railed against the notion. She, of all people, knew how life had a way of charting its own course for people, and especially her.

In her life, if she planned an outdoor vacation, it was sure to rain.

She’d learned years ago not to fight it. Things tended to work out best for her if she found a way to relax and go with the flow.

Tom had been order and plans and spreadsheets.

Miraculously, his plans seemed to work out. The sun even knew when to cue for him if he’d planned their getaway. She had no idea how he’d managed it, but it had worked out.

He’d wanted to graduate from college before he got a job. He did.

He’d planned to work for a company that was willing to pay for his advanced degree so he could save for a wedding. Check.

His last year of graduate school, he expected to date the woman he planned to marry. They’d met Valentine’s Day of that year.

He planned to get engaged after dating for two years. He’d already started laying hints.

The marriage part? Well, that didn’t work out quite so well for him.

Sadie glanced around at people milling around the room.

She only hoped she could survive the next couple of hours surrounded by all the people Nick loved.

Chapter Eleven

The special occasion plates had been washed and put away in the china cabinet. Everyone had settled into the family room to watch a movie. The sun was beginning its descent. Nick figured he could zip out relatively quietly.

He borrowed Luke’s keys and slipped out back.

Most people confused Nick for his brother at a distance, anyway. The safest way to slip out of town unnoticed was to be mistaken for Luke.

Sadie wasn’t expecting him to leave until midnight, so he should be good there. She’d excused herself to go lay down after supper, no doubt her body was still on bakery time. Adjusting to being awake in the daytime would take a few weeks.

Dallas was a good forty-minute drive. What was Grimes doing with a warehouse downtown? The obvious answers? Funneling weapons. Human trafficking. Or using it to store product.

As he opened the door and then slid into the driver’s seat, his internal warning bells sounded. He drew his weapon, turned around and yanked the blanket from the floorboard.

“Dammit, Sadie. What do you think you’re doing?”

She didn’t respond.

“You didn’t answer my question,” he said, immediately withdrawing his weapon and tucking it in the back of his jeans.

“Um, I guess there’s no point pretending it’s not me.” She gave the universal sign of surrender and smiled.

She was kidding around? Trying to make light of the situation? He didn’t think so.

“I don’t appreciate this at all. What kind of relationship will we have if I can’t trust you?” He immediately realized just how hypocritical he sounded.

She gave him a “go to Hades” look that could set ice on fire. “My thoughts exactly.”

“Point taken,” he conceded, offering a hand up. “How’d you know I was leaving early?”

“I wasn’t sure. I guessed. Why? What does it matter? I’m here. That’s the most important thing.” She hopped over the seat and eased onto the passenger’s side.

“No. It isn’t.” He deadpanned her. “You’re not coming.”

“Yes, I am. Please. I promise to stay in the truck.” Her green eyes pleaded, and his heart stuttered.

“No, you won’t.” He let out a suppressed laugh. Not a good idea to let her affect his decisions. He’d crossed a line with her physically. Couldn’t say he was especially sorry for holding her in the kitchen. But that’s where it had to end. When it came to his investigation, there was no give-and-take. She might jeopardize his information-gathering mission.

“I will. Just let me come with you. I’ll do whatever you say.”

He could think of a few interesting suggestions with their bodies this close. None of them involved work. “Give me one good reason not to haul you out of this truck.”

“Because I’m scared something will happen to you if you go alone and you said Luke was coming. Because my conscious wouldn’t be able to handle knowing you’d gone alone. Because maybe I can help.”

She was concerned about his safety? “That’s three.”

“I’m scared.”

In a split second, she scooted next to him. Before he could argue, her lips found his. All rational thought as to why he shouldn’t allow this to happen flew out his brain when he tasted her sweet lips.

With her mouth moving against his, wasn’t as if he could stop himself. He took hold of her neck and positioned her head exactly where he wanted her. Desire was a current running through him, seeking an outlet. This close, the scent of her flooded him. His body so in tune with hers, he was already getting excited. Blood pulsed thickly to the erection growing in his jeans.

He laid her back against the seat, his heft covering her. Her tongue battled with his in the best war he’d ever waged. She tasted sweet, and he wanted more. Now. Not a good idea.

With great effort, he disengaged. “You sure this is what you want?”

Her hands slipped inside his shirt, feeling their way up his chest in answer.

She tasted better than the fresh-baked-bread-and-lily scent he’d first been attracted to. He hadn’t forgotten the brief kiss they’d shared at the cabin. He’d had to break apart too soon for his liking.

He cupped her full breast and groaned when her nipple beaded in his palm. A little voice in the back of his head said he shouldn’t be doing this. He should take a step back. Analyze the situation.
Like that was about to happen.

He’d wanted, no needed, to feel her milky skin against him. It had been too long since he’d had sex, and he was already growing hard as her fingers outlined the muscles in his chest. Her hands came up to his shoulders, pressing deep.

His body ached to feel her naked and positioned right where he wanted her underneath him. Then again, he wouldn’t complain if she decided to take charge and climb on top, either. She wrapped her legs around his hips, denim on denim, and he thrust his hips deeper inside the V of her legs.

His tongue slicked across her lips and he swallowed her moan.

Much more and he wouldn’t be able to quit.

To hell with that. Another second and his control would be shattered.

Every bit of his body battled against his logical mind. He pulled on all the restraint he could muster to break away from her. “You make one hell of an argument, but if you don’t stop this right now, I won’t be able to. Your lips are the sweetest things I’ve ever tasted.”

“Then what’s stopping you?”

“I don’t want you to regret anything you do with me, for one.”

The sun was an orange glow in the distance.

She looked up at him, all big green eyes and full pink lips. “Then don’t stop. I want you to make love to me right here. And then I want to go with you.”

The first part? No problem.

The second presented the hiccup. He had no plans to take her with him. And yet, all he had to do was give her a quick nod, and he’d be in paradise in the time it took them to strip.

He had no doubt it’d be the best sex of his life.

But then what?

Their physical connection would be built on a lie. Not exactly the way he’d planned to start their relationship.

Relationship?

Whatever this was. No good could come of deceit.

She looked up at him, desire darkening those incredible green eyes. Didn’t seem as though she planned to make this easy. Did she have any idea how easy it would be to rip open the condom in his wallet and show her how sexy and desirable she was right then and there? He wanted nothing more than to thrust himself deeper inside the V of her legs without all that denim getting in the way...to allow her to wrap those naked silky legs around him.

The heat had been building between them since he’d broken into the bakery to save her.

If he was being honest, there’d been sparks from the second their eyes met the month before. That spark had grown into a raging fire. He wanted her more than he wanted air.

But he couldn’t let her make a mistake she’d regret. “I’m not trying to punish you by keeping you at the ranch. I’m trying to keep you safe.”

“The only way you can guarantee that is to keep me with you. Besides, you’ve waited too long to kiss me. Is there something wrong with me? Don’t you find me attractive?”

She shifted her weight underneath him, and his erection throbbed.

If she wasn’t going to stop this, he should. He wanted to make love to her. Just not on the bench seat of a pickup truck. He wanted to take his time and kiss that freckle on the inside of her thigh until she moaned.

“Finding you desirable is not the problem. You sure you want to make love with me?”

She nodded.

His resolve fractured. “You just gave me an even better reason to march your butt in the house. But I guarantee we wouldn’t leave anytime soon. I plan to take my time. And I need to follow up on this lead. Make sure those men can’t hurt you anymore.”

Her smile made him want things he shouldn’t. Threatened to open old wounds, too. More alarm bells sounded, but these had to do with a totally different danger. His heart. He ignored them, dipping his head one more time to taste her sweetness.

With every bit of his strength, he pushed himself up on his arms. “So, you have to go inside.”

“We have an agreement. Remember? You don’t make decisions without me.”

“I didn’t violate—”

“No. You didn’t. And I don’t plan to, either. But take me back in there and I’ll be gone before you get back.”

He searched her eyes to see if the threat was hollow. He’d suspected it was when she’d made it earlier after they’d first arrived at the ranch. Where would she go? Just run off into the night? She had to realize she didn’t have a bargaining chip in this poker game. She wasn’t stupid. On the other hand, her back was against the wall. Would she be desperate enough to follow through with her threat? She was smart, sexy and stubborn.

She watched him intently as he processed the information. The minute she figured out she had him, she smiled.

He had no choice but to let her come with him. He didn’t want to risk her leaving, even though somewhere inside he knew she was bluffing. Calling her on it would take away what little power she had left. He didn’t have it in him to do that. He could make this work. Stash her in the truck and keep her a safe distance from the warehouse. That way, even if she did try to find him, she wouldn’t be able to.

“Are you considering taking me?” Her smile melted what was left of his resolves.

“Yes.”

She rewarded him with another sweet kiss that was gently pressed to his lips, which almost had him thinking bedding her right then wasn’t such a bad idea.

“That kiss is to be continued later. And, sweetheart, I don’t plan to be in a hurry when I peel off your clothes and kiss every inch of the silky skin on the inside of your thigh.” He pressed his hand to the inside of her leg. “Or your stomach.” He ran his finger along the waistband of her jeans, barely touching the sweet skin there. “Or your neck.” He dipped his head and skimmed her breastbone with his lips.

She let out a sexy little moan through ragged breaths. Her jewel-toned eyes glittered with need. “I sure hope you’re a man of your word.”

A big piece of him cursed the timing of the drive to Dallas. He’d be a lot happier if he were back at the ranch. With her. In bed.

The thought sobered him as he took the driver’s seat. He patted a spot next to him. “Buckle up.”

She scooted over and leaned her head on his shoulder. “You know, if you’d asked me out on a date back in Creek Bend, I most likely would’ve gone.”

“I couldn’t. Against the rules. There were times when you looked like you could barely stand to be in the same room with me. Thought for sure I’d scared you off more than once.”

“Everyone freaked me out but you. There was something about you that put me at ease. I guess it’s all your training. It worked.”

His gaze moved to hers and intensified. “Darlin’, flirting with you was the only time I wasn’t acting in Creek Bend.”

He put the truck in Reverse and backed out of the lot. He maneuvered onto the highway with the all-too-real notion his feelings toward Sadie were growing. She’d put a chink in the armor surrounding his heart. This wasn’t part of the plan.

What he needed to do was focus on the job ahead.

Grimes was out for revenge. They had no idea where he was but believed him to be somewhere in Texas. He’d partnered with her handler, and quite possibly given up his supervisor. Grimes wouldn’t let up until he erased the woman Nick was falling for.

Hold on there.

Was he admitting she’d become so much more than a witness to him? The sexual chemistry between them could light a fresh-cut log on fire. But his heart? Not on the table.

His cell buzzed. He fished it from his pocket and handed it to Sadie, instructing her to put the call on speaker when he saw the name Smith on the screen. “You’re on speaker with me and Sadie. What’s the word?”

“I have good news for you, Sadie. Evidence points toward Charlie’s innocence. Looks like your handler was clean. And there’s a pretty good chance he hid your file before he was murdered.”

A mix of relief and sadness played across her features.

“Thank you for telling me,” she said.

“I figured you’d want to know that first.”

Nick kept his gaze trained on the yellow stripes in front of him, leading the way to Dallas. His headlights slashed through the darkness descending around them. This turned his theory upside down. “What else did you find out?”

“I have it on good authority Jamison is the one who set Charlie up. He threw Charlie under the bus to appease them, since Jamison wasn’t having luck finding information on Sadie’s whereabouts.”

Nick muttered a curse.

“Worse yet, Jamison wasn’t their lackey. He was their partner. My source discovered—”

“Don’t tell me. Let me guess. Money in a Swiss bank account.” Nick grunted the words.

“Close. Jamison had a weakness for the Cayman islands.”

“So, Jamison was on the take? The greedy bastard got a good agent killed to pad his own retirement fund?”

Smith coughed. “My sources say it’s worse than that. Two hours ago, a list of all Texas deputies and their personal information surfaced.”

The words hit Nick like a sucker punch.

His mind snapped into focus. He knew exactly what that meant. The ranch was no longer safe. He had to get word to Luke. His brothers would know how to handle any threat. It wouldn’t be safe for Sadie to return, either. He hated to think of her reaction when he told her she couldn’t go back for Boomer. They couldn’t go back to the ranch now.

He glanced at her. She held up the phone. Didn’t say a word. He could almost hear the wheels cranking in her mind.

“Nick.”

“Yeah.” He was still trying to get his head around this last bit of information.

“I won’t stop until I find him.” His voice was nothing but steel resolve.

“Any chance Charlie stashed her folder somewhere safe?” He gripped the wheel. “Never mind that question. They wouldn’t have found her.”

“I’m going to send some pictures. Sadie, I need you to look at them. If you can identify him, I’ll be able to get a warrant to search his house.”

Sadie sucked in a breath. She must’ve realized the implication. “One of the guys who abducted me might be a U.S. Marshal.”