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“Tyler and my mother met in Nashville. She was a waitress, and he was just starting to play the clubs. He wasn’t famous. Hell, he wasn’t even in demand. He was good on a guitar and he had a couple of songs he’d written. But he needed to go to the next level, and he wasn’t getting there. He was stuck in a rut. Until he met her. Until they started living together and she listened to him and encouraged him. She wrote lyrics for him and he set them to music. They were a team, and he promised her the world.

“But then she got pregnant, and he got his big break. He left her to play with B.B. King, promising he’d come back when the tour was over. He didn’t. He met someone else, and he didn’t come back.”

“He’s an asshole,” she said, her voice breaking.

He swung his head to look at her, surprised to see tears on her cheeks. He had a sudden urge to tug her into his arms and hold her close. But he wouldn’t do it because he was afraid he wouldn’t stop at that.

“She was too proud to ask him for anything. He sent money from time to time—and then one day he decided I should visit him and she agreed. That’s when the California trips began. I have no idea why he suddenly wanted me to spend time out there. But when I was sixteen, I told him I wasn’t coming back. And I didn’t. End of story.”

“She should have sued his ass for child support. You deserved that.”

She sounded angry, and he swallowed the sudden lump in his throat.

Fuck.
This shit was getting too deep. Why had he delved into the depths of his painful childhood? And why did he feel kind of stunned by her vehemence on his behalf?

“Yeah, maybe she should have. But I think she was more afraid he’d try to take me away from her. And maybe he would have out of spite.”

Her eyes glittered and her jaw was set in a stubborn line. She was pissed, and it kind of awed him.

“She was probably right. He’d have gotten custody of you and then ignored you while he partied and had a good time. You were better off, even if you didn’t have all the things you wanted.”

“Did they ignore you, Sophie?”

She snorted. “Let’s just say that sometimes the adult in the room was not Tyler or my mom. They would drink until they were falling-down drunk, smoke weed, and fight until they passed out or started ripping each other’s clothes off so they could make up. I stayed in my room and pretended my real parents were coming to get me.”

“Jesus, I’m sorry.”

She shrugged. “We’ve said that a lot to each other tonight. Maybe we should talk about something else for a while.”

He could only stare at her. Her eyes flashed and her cheeks were high with color. She was beautiful, fiery, and he wanted her right now.

But taking her when they were both angry and hurt was not the thing to do. If he hadn’t known it before her revelation about Tyler and her mom fighting and fucking, he definitely knew it now.

Instead, he reached for her hand and twined his fingers in hers. She stiffened for a moment—and then she relaxed and squeezed his hand in return.

14

S
ophie snuggled into the covers and fought the first currents of wakefulness. She was comfortable, warm, and safe. If she woke up, she didn’t know if she’d be any of those things.

The bed was small, narrow, and she was crowded up against the edge on one side and the wall on the other. Definitely a narrow bed. Perilously narrow.

She opened an eye and tried to focus on her surroundings. There was a table and a lamp… and the soft glow of a television. There hadn’t been a television in her room—

She gasped and spun over in the bed. The wall she’d been pressed up against was definitely solid. It was also human. She sucked in a breath at his nearness. His utter perfection.

Chase lay on his side, one arm slung across her body, his naked chest a study in ideal human anatomy. She followed the line of dark hair that arrowed down his abdomen, disappearing into his shorts.

Oh, where did anyone on this earth get abs like that? Hard, defined abs that she wanted to trace with her tongue just to see if they tasted as perfect as they looked.

He never opened his eyes as his hand wandered from her waist to the curve of her ass where he tugged her in close. So close that she didn’t have to wonder if he was hard or not.

He was. Gloriously, hugely hard. Her gaze shot from his chest to his face. His eyes were still closed, and she swallowed.

Oh fuck, now what? She hadn’t intended to fall asleep out here with him, but after they’d spilled their guts and he’d held her hand, she’d felt such a sense of belonging that it had stunned her. They hadn’t said another word as the hockey game played on. She’d focused on their hands, on the warmth and rightness that flowed over her. It had been comforting in a way she couldn’t ever remember experiencing.

She didn’t remember falling asleep, but she was surprised he hadn’t wakened her. No, he’d gone to sleep beside her. And now he was
really
beside her.

“Mmm,” he said, and her heartbeat quickened.

“Um, Chase. Chase.”

“Yeah, baby?” he whispered. “You want it again?”

Again? What the hell?

No, no. Calm down. If they’d had sex, she’d damn well know it. They had not had sex. He was asleep and dreaming. Or something.

“No, I do not want it,” she said. “It’s me, Chase. It’s Sophie. Your, um, stepsister. Kind of.”

“Whatever game you want to play, honey,” he murmured before spearing his other hand into her hair and pulling her face toward his.

Sophie put her hands on his chest and pushed. “Chase! Wake up!”

His eyes popped open then, and he looked her over in that lazy way he had. “Hi, Sophie.”

He had not let go of her ass, she noticed. “Hi, Chase. Can you let me go?”

“You sure about that?”

His erection nestled against her pubic bone, burning into her. Her body responded with a surge of heat and moisture between her legs. Her sex sizzled with electric tingles every time he shifted his hips in the slightest. She wanted to grab his ass and rub herself against all that delicious hardness while pressing her mouth to his chest.

Before she could find her voice, he squeezed her ass one last time. “Much as I’d like to convince you otherwise, we gotta get up. Hawk will be here soon.”

He rolled away from her and sat up on the edge of the bed. After grabbing his phone and presumably scrolling through his messages, he stood and stretched, his bones cracking and muscles rippling as he reached skyward.

Then he grabbed his T-shirt and dragged it on over his chest, covering everything she’d been staring at. Her gaze dropped lower, and her heart flipped in her chest at the evidence of his arousal. Wow, that was quite an impressive bulge in his shorts. It lay against his body, pointing toward his heart… and it reached almost to the edge of his waistband.

Holy shit.

“See something you like?”

Her gaze shot to his. He’d arched an eyebrow, staring at her with a smirk on his handsome face. Daring her, she supposed.

She pushed herself up on an elbow and yawned. “Don’t be so full of yourself,” she said lazily. “I saw tons of hot guys growing up in LA. You’re nothing special, Chase.”

He snorted. “Liar. You’ve been staring at me since you walked into my apartment two days ago.”

Oh, he was irritating. And confusing as hell. Prickly one minute and sexy the next. Pulling her to him and pushing her away. Being so sweet it hurt and then being angry and defensive.

“That’s because I’m not yet convinced you won’t get tired of this and ditch me. I’m watching you in case you leave me.”

He sobered instantly. “I’m not leaving you, Sophie. I’ll protect you with my life. You can count on that.”

A knot formed in her throat. After the past two days, she knew it would be no small task to protect her. “Thank you.”

He shrugged. “No need to thank me. It’s what I do.”

She pulled her knees up to her chest and sat back against the couch. “You do this all the time? Run from bad guys and try not to get killed?”

His look was so intense it took her breath. “No, I don’t run from the bad guys. If they’re smart, they run from me.”

“And if they don’t?”

“I kill them.”

A chill skated down her spine. He was serious. Deadly serious. “What happened to bringing them to justice?”

“What I do is war, Sophie. Innocent lives depend on me and my team. If someone takes Americans hostage, we’re not making sure they get due process before we bust in and take the hostages back. It doesn’t work that way. Due process is a bullet in the brain of our enemies and no man or woman left behind.”

The hair on her arms stood up as another chill rippled through her. Somehow she hadn’t understood how deadly he was until that moment. How frightening. “You seem awfully certain.”

“I am. Not everyone in this world is kind, and not everyone believes everyone else has a right to live. Some people think killing innocent Americans is justified—well, I’m there to make sure they don’t get to do it.”

She knew what he did was necessary, and yet it pained her to think of him taking such risks. Making such choices.

His phone rang and he answered. Her heart thumped as she imagined all kinds of bad scenarios. But then he broke out in a big grin and relief coursed through her.

“Yeah, come on. We’ll be ready.”

C
HASE OPENED
the door to Hawk and Dex “Double Dee” Davidson.

The latter smiled and shook his head, his Kentucky twang pronounced as he spoke. “Shoo-ee, boy, what kind of trouble did you get into now?”

Chase rolled his eyes in mock disgust. “The kind you can’t handle, cowboy.”

Hawk and Dex came inside and shut the door behind them. Sophie had gone into the bedroom to get dressed and hadn’t yet returned. He was glad for that because he wasn’t sure what Hawk would have to tell him. If it was bad, he didn’t want Sophie to know.

“How did Mendez take it?” Chase asked.

Hawk snorted. “About as well as you’d expect. He can’t provide support, but then we knew that. He may have a connection to work—no promises. He’ll probably also take his pound of flesh out of your ass when this is all over. You know that, right?”

“Yeah, I know.”

The colonel was a hard man, a scary man in many ways, but there was no doubt he cared about his men. When Ice had been on the run with Grace Campbell, Mendez had put everything he had into helping them reach safety. And then when Gina was kidnapped and Hawk had nearly been killed, he’d sent the team into action to extract Gina and her son even though the mission would take place in the fancy neighborhoods of Northwest DC.

Again and again, Mendez did what it took in support of his warriors. Chase admired that about his colonel—though he also wasn’t looking forward to the ass-chewing he was very likely going to get when this situation was over.

“Got some clothes for you both,” Hawk said, handing over a hanging bag. “There’s a carry-on in the car with a couple of days’ worth too.”

“Sophie needs shoes,” Chase said. “Hers are ruined.”

Dex held up a bag. “Right here.”

Chase took everything and laid it on the table. Hawk came forward and pulled an envelope from his jacket. He dropped it on the table as well.

“Passports, plane tickets, and a short-term rental apartment a few blocks from the Eiffel Tower where Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Chandler will be spending their honeymoon. Oh, and plain gold rings to complete the illusion.”

Chase picked up the envelope and opened it. He didn’t like having to play mister and missus with Sophie, but he was grateful that Hawk had thought of an apartment rather than a hotel. It would make sleeping in separate beds a whole lot easier. And after this morning and the raging hard-on he’d had, sleeping in separate beds was a
very
good idea.

“There’s some cash and a couple of credit cards too.”

“Thanks, man.”

If this were a HOT mission, he’d expect this kind of thing. But it was personal, and his guys were right there with him, giving him everything he needed.

“We called the team,” Dex said. “Everyone’s out of town, but they’re on standby if needed. They wanted to come back, but we told them not to.”

Chase’s throat constricted. “Why aren’t you somewhere, dude? It’s R & R.”

Dex shrugged, though the corners of his mouth tightened for a second. “Nowhere I wanted to go. Besides, this is more fun.”

He grinned and Chase shook his head. “Adrenaline junkie.”

“And you aren’t? Hell, we all are.”

“Yeah, that’s the truth.”

The door to the bedroom opened and Sophie came out. She was wearing her clothes from last night, though she was shoeless. She hadn’t put on her jacket and the tank top molded to her, showcasing her fabulous rack and impressive cleavage. She stopped, her gaze going to his.

Fuck, those were some gorgeous eyes.

Her hair was loose and curly, and he found himself wanting to spear his fingers into it to see if it was as soft as it looked. Wanting to see if her lips were as soft as they looked.

“Whoa,” Dex said, and Chase glanced over at him. He was currently staring at Sophie with his eyes bugged out.