It didn’t matter that she was a trained professional, and that he’d hired her to keep his daughter safe. He knew now that ignoring her on the plane had been a mistake. He wanted her.
It sucked that the realization became clear to him as he was waiting for her to reappear, not sure if either of them was going to live to see morning. That wasn’t true. He was Nigel Carter, a rough and tough street kid who’d made more of his life than anyone thought he had the right to. He certainly wasn’t going to die in a hangar in Lima, Peru.
“Can you fire and move?” Anna asked.
“I can,” Nigel replied.
“I, as well,” Pedro said.
“We’ll move forward on the count of three. Justine and Charity are in position, so all we have to do is close the net. Draw them in. Ready?”
“Yes,” he said.
“Sí.”
“We move on three.” Anna counted down and they all moved, fanning forward while maintaining their cover. It was difficult, but the instinct to survive and win was one that Nigel was used to. And it was very strong at this moment.
A bullet whizzed past him from the left, almost hitting him in the shoulder. He ducked, but a second bullet tore through his upper arm, the pain a deep burning. He dropped his weapon and picked it up with his other hand. He wasn’t as accurate with his left hand, but he could still fire with it.
He turned to the left and waited a moment, forcing away the pain in his arm. He held his breath and saw movement in the corner. Positive he had the position of the man who’d just shot him, he returned fire and was satisfied when he heard the sound of a weapon hitting the ground.
Nigel ran forward, hitting the man in the gut and knocking the breath from him. He brought his hand down on the side of the man’s neck, aiming for his carotid artery and finding it. The man collapsed at his feet, and Nigel glanced to his right to see that Anna had subdued two other men.
“Do you have anything to bind his hands?”
She tossed him a pair of flex cuffs. He bound the unconscious man’s hands.
“Nice job,” Anna said.
“Thanks. How’d Pedro do?”
“Just as well as you,” Anna said.
They searched the rest of the garage area and found two dead bodies, one of which Nigel was certain was the man he’d hit when he’d first pulled his Kimber. He looked down into the man’s eyes because taking a life wasn’t something that should ever be done lightly.
Nigel reached down and closed the man’s eyes, then got to his feet.
They stepped outside the building, guns drawn, and found Justine and Charity with four men bound between them. “This area is secure.”
“The building is, too,” Nigel said.
Justine walked over to him, looking from the weapon held loosely in his hand back to his eyes.
“Good job, Nigel.”
He nodded to acknowledge her thanks. But inside, he realized that this was her world. She was at home here and totally comfortable with the violence and blood. At one point in his life, he had been, too, but he no longer was. He wondered if he ever would be again.
M
aldano’s men arrived with local law enforcement to take the assailants into custody. They were known terrorists in the area, and after questioning them, Charity found out they weren’t targeting Nigel. They had been following Maldano, looking for a high-profile person to kidnap and further their cause.
“Have you talked to Constance?” Nigel asked, coming up behind her. His accent was crisp. He looked tired and didn’t really seem like an executive at this moment. It was as if the firefight had striped away the layers of posh sophistication that he’d had before. Now she saw there was more to him, and that intrigued her.
“No. Our driver should have checked in, though. Let me see if Anna has.”
Nigel followed her across the room. It was the kind of place that didn’t have any real décor to mention, unless one considered late ’60s metal desks and cracked framed prints décor.
“Have you heard from Jesse?” Justine asked Anna. She wanted Nigel away from her. She was ultra-aware of him walking behind her. She had wanted to reach for him after the shooting was over. Whatever attraction had sparked between them on the plane had grown while she’d been defending them. While she’d watched him show his measure of the man he was.
He wasn’t a useless executive, which she’d already begun to suspect. And she wanted more from him. She was wondering if that kiss on the airplane had been a fluke. Had he really felt right in her arms? Was she completely losing it?
The heat in Lima must be making her crazy, she thought.
“No,” Anna said, her accent just as crisp as Nigel’s. “As I just told you ten minutes ago.”
“You haven’t followed up?” Justine asked, her own tone sharp. She didn’t like being taken to task by anyone, especially her partners. Her own temper was short as she tried to figure out what was going on with her emotions about Nigel. She didn’t do this. She wasn’t the type of woman who got her panties in a twist over a
man
.
“No, I haven’t. I have been dealing with the local authorities and explaining our body count. Would you rather have done that for me?”
She shook her head, running her hand through her short mane. “Sorry. Will you check on his GPS? He’s not answering his cell.”
“No problem,” Anna said, pulling out her small minicomputer. “Give me a second.”
“What does it mean that you can’t get in touch with the driver?” Nigel asked.
His shirt was torn and he had the gun tucked into his waistband. He was so different from the man she’d first seen earlier.
“It could mean nothing. Just bad satellite reception.”
“But you don’t think so?” he asked.
“I have no idea. I just want to make sure we cover all our bases. Someone threatened you. Your daughter should be safe, but I won’t be happy until we know where she is.”
“She’s with Constance. That should be enough of a reassurance.”
“You can’t get in touch with her,” Justine said. “How reassured are you?”
He scowled at her.
“Listen, I’m not trying to wind you up. We just need to cover all the bases. That’s why you hired us.”
“You’re right. I know that, but I just want to know that Piper is safe so I can relax.”
“I doubt that will be enough for you to relax. Was this your first firefight?”
Nigel looked away from her and she realized he was about to tell her a lie. That newly awakened part of her felt a twinge of disappointment. She’d almost started to believe that Nigel was different than other men.
“Don’t bother answering,” she said, talking over whatever he’d been about to say.
“Why not?”
“I’m not interested in being lied to.”
She saw the surprise on his face. “Not many people would call me a liar to my face.”
“Maybe they have a higher tolerance for falsehoods than I do.”
“Or maybe they just don’t consider evasion lying.”
“Then you must be surrounded by idiots,” Justine said. She was on edge. She should get away from their client and just take a breather. But Charity was still talking to the authorities, and Anna was still doing a computer track of Jesse’s whereabouts.
So no one else was available to take care of Nigel, and leaving him alone wasn’t an option. No matter that these assassins weren’t after Nigel—there was an enemy out there gunning for him. And no matter how angry he made her right now, he was her responsibility.
“Justine?”
“Yes?”
“I think you need to relax.”
“That’s not going to happen,” she said. “I’m not really one of those people who’s all smiley faces.”
He barked out a laugh, and she felt a little bit of the tension that had been riding her slide away.
“No kidding.”
“Listen, Anna will get back to us when she finds something, but I need to get out of this room. You’ll be safe if you stay here. Okay?”
“Where are you going?”
“Just outside. I need to breathe.”
She walked away before he could say anything. Before the spark of attraction that had once again flared to life had a chance to burn any brighter. Because Nigel Carter was so different than any other man she’d met, he was making her realize there was an entire part of herself as a woman she didn’t know.
The night air was heavy and warm as he stepped outside the Quonset hut. He needed a stiff drink or a fight, he thought. Justine had almost given him the fight, but at the last minute she’d dropped back and retreated. He was edgy and restless. No doubt from having killed.
He’d forgotten his gang days. Forgotten the emotions that went with violence. And they weren’t always the ones he expected. There had been the thrill, and the excitement and adrenaline rush during the actual fight, but now he had the excess still running through him.
His daughter was out of radio contact, but safe. Constance would protect Piper with her life, and the staff at Liberty Investigations had proven they hired only the most skilled.
He didn’t question why he wasn’t able to relax…he scanned the area outside the hut and found the reason. Pacing angrily back and forth. Hands held loosely at her sides. Those combat boots of hers making a solid sound with each step she took. She had on a shoulder holster and two guns strapped to her back. There was a knife sheath at her waist and as she turned to face him, Nigel realized he’d never wanted a woman more.
“Has Anna heard anything?” Justine asked.
“Not yet,” he said.
He closed the gap between them. The lights outside the hut were the kind that didn’t cast a shadow, so they were both utterly exposed. He didn’t mind. Not really. Physically, he wasn’t hiding anything from her. And he knew instinctively that Justine wasn’t, either. She wasn’t the kind of woman to use subterfuge.
“Then what are you doing out here?”
“Following you.”
“That’s dangerous.”
“I think you can keep me safe from my enemies…besides, we’re at the security compound.”
“I wasn’t referring to your enemies.”
He arched one eyebrow at her. Maybe he wasn’t the only one spoiling for a fight. “Are you threatening me?”
“Of course not…I’m just saying there are dangers everywhere.”
“I know that,” he said, thinking of his own life. As a kid he’d thought having money would ensure that he’d be safe. But then Piper had come along, and he’d realized that he’d always be vulnerable.
God, he missed that little girl. He absolutely needed for her to be safe. And waiting here…was killing him.
“Sure you do,” Justine said.
“Wait until you have a kid, and then talk to me. You have no idea how vulnerable that makes a man.”
Justine froze. “I had a kid sister…I do understand what you mean.”
“What happened?”
“She…she and I lost touch.”
There was more to this story than she was saying. He could see that and he wanted to keep pushing, but his gut said that now wasn’t the time.
“Recently?”
“No…a long time ago. Let’s go back inside and see if Anna has found anything.”
“I thought you needed to breathe.”
“I can’t do that while you’re out here.”
He touched the side of her face; she tipped her head to the side for a second, leaning into him, and then seemed to realize what she’d done and stood up straighter.
“Nigel, you make me crazy.”
“Good,” he said, leaning down and claiming the kiss he needed. It was the only thing that felt right at this instant. She didn’t melt against him, but then Justine wasn’t really the melting type of woman. Instead, she caged his head in her hands, holding on to him as she tried to take control of the kiss.
He let her. At six-four he was a big man, and most women just naturally let him take the lead, but that wasn’t in Justine’s makeup. And as she angled her head and thrust her tongue deep into his mouth with blatant sexuality, it was all he could do not to grab her waist and draw her to him, lift her off her feet and wrap those slender legs around his hips so he could go where his cock demanded. He needed to have her wrapped around him.
Completely at his mercy.
He took control of the kiss, thrusting his tongue back into her mouth and sweeping his hands down her back. He cupped her butt and lifted her off her feet. She gasped. He felt it, and for a second he thought she was going to knee him, but then she wrapped one thigh around his hips and let him take her weight.
He held her to him and plumbed her mouth, sucking at her lips and tasting her. Tasting her courage and her femininity and craving more. He couldn’t get enough of this one woman, and that never happened to him.
Was it simply the danger? The fact that they’d faced death together that made him want her like he’d wanted no other? Or was it something more?
Hell, why was he trying to think when his dick was influencing him? Maybe this was nothing more than a raging case of lust. She was different; she was hot and she was a challenge.
He tried to find her skin underneath her T-shirt, but it was tucked in and there was an arsenal strapped to her body. He groaned.
She pulled his shirt from his waistband and he felt the touch of her small hands against his chest. He looked around for privacy. He carried her to the side of the Quonset hut, turning so that her back was against the side wall and they were out of view of anyone who came to the door.
He let her legs drop and put his arms on either side of her head as he leaned into her. Letting his body come to rest on hers. He reached for her breasts, but she exploded into action, her knee coming up between his legs and her hand hitting him in the throat.
He doubled over in pain and stepped back. “What the hell?”
Justine didn’t have time to explain. She was wrapped in a cloud of the past. As soon as Nigel had placed her body between his and the wall, the present had fallen away. She remembered…Franklin Baron, and the way he’d cornered her in that long hallway on the third floor.
She had reacted with instinct and now…she backed away from Nigel and tried to get a grip on where she was. Dammit, she needed to get away. She moved farther from him, but he started toward her.
“Justine?”
She heard Anna calling as if from a distance. She couldn’t take her eyes off Nigel. She didn’t want to turn her back on him, but the reality of what she’d done filtered through her fear-and-panic-dazed mind. She stepped around Nigel and put the wall of the hut at her back.
“Give us a minute,” Nigel said.
“What’s up?”
“Nothing. We need a minute.”
Justine knew she should step in and speak up, do something to alleviate the worry she saw on Anna’s face, but all she could do was stare at both of them. Keep her back to the wall and let the flashback of her past play through her mind. She knew it wouldn’t last forever. That it would end and she’d be okay, but right now, keeping her screams deep inside was really all she could do.
“Justine?” Anna asked.
“Go.”
Anna disappeared back inside and she was left alone with Nigel. “You, too.”
“I’m not going anywhere until I’m sure you’re okay,” he said.
He was still a bit pale, and she knew she owed him an explanation for kneeing him, but she had no idea where to start. This was precisely why she never got involved with men. She kept her sexual urges to herself because she really wasn’t comfortable with them.
And now she knew that the legacy from Franklin Baron was pain. Not just for her, but for anyone who came in contact with her.
She started shaking and realized she was on the edge of completely losing it.
“What can I do, love?”
She just shook her head, but he took a step toward her and she realized he wasn’t going to leave her alone. She moved around him and stepped to the left so that he was between the building and her. Maybe she could play off her reaction as some kind of claustrophobia.
But lying went against her grain and Nigel deserved better from her.
“Is it me?”
She shook her head “I can’t talk about it. I need to put that,” she said, gesturing to the wall area, “behind me for right now.”
He nodded. “I’ll keep my hands to myself.”
She didn’t want him to, but she knew now that she wasn’t going to be able to experience the kind of relationship with Nigel that she’d been half-hoping to. She’d been hoping…Oh, my God. She really had been hoping she was normal. That with Nigel she could be a normal woman.
“I think that would be best,” she said, even though inside she felt like crying. Which was silly and ridiculous because she was too tough for tears. She always had been.
Why then would this man with the tough attitude make her feel like she was losing something? Losing a part of herself?
“We better go see what Anna found,” she said. “I’ll follow you.”
She finally realized that she’d essentially forgotten she was the bodyguard—Nigel’s bodyguard. She’d left him unprotected while she’d been kissing him, and then later as well.
“Let’s get you back inside.”
Nigel didn’t say anything else, just walked in front of her into the hut. When they got inside, the lights seemed bright and there was a strangeness to the normalcy of the room. She walked over to her partners and tried to slip back into work mode, but something had changed inside her.