Guarding Hearts (Living Again #3) (43 page)

Brianna burst out laughing and put her forehead on Bull’s expansive chest. His high school football coach gave him that nickname because of his enormous and formidable stature. Following through on his duties was tantamount to his sense of honor—and one of his duties was to be an uncle to the baby growing inside of her. And his honor would not be impugned.

Brianna shook her head in only slight disbelief at his statement and asked, “What if it’s a girl?”

With an equally serious face and tone of voice, Bull answered, “She can learn, too.”

When Brianna laughed, Bull finally conceded and laughed along with her. “Seriously, Brianna, I am looking forward to being an uncle. You and Noah will be great parents.”

“Thank you, Bull. That’s so sweet of you. I mean that,” Brianna responded before straining on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

“I want you to have fun on your honeymoon, but I want you to be careful, too, Bri. Don’t leave Noah’s side if you can help it. I don’t want anything to happen to you.
Promise me
.” His smile was gone and so was any glint of humor. He was instantly back on soldier duty and she was his charge.

Bull’s sudden seriousness and frankness caught her by complete surprise. Bull was normally a man of few words, but when he did find it necessary to issue a command, he meant what he said. For him to specifically ask her to stay close to Noah and be careful meant he knew something she didn’t know. She knew that much about him, and she also knew better than to quiz him about it. Years of working on a “
need to know
” basis made him keep information to himself much more than the average person.

Still, Brianna searched his eyes for any trace of worry or any other sliver of information she could use later to pry everything out of Noah. Bull felt her penetrating stare, knowing what she was looking for, and steeled himself against it. The last thing he wanted was to add undue stress on her, especially while she was pregnant, but he learned to rely on his instincts many years ago. Those instincts had kept him alive in many hazardous conditions.

Realizing she would have better luck penetrating Fort Knox than penetrating Bull’s thoughts and feelings, Brianna nodded in agreement. She responded, “I promise, Bull. I don’t intend to leave Noah’s side the whole two weeks unless I absolutely have to.”

Satisfied with her word, Bull escorted her back to Noah, who was waiting patiently at the bride and groom table. As they approached, Bull watched Noah’s eyes take in his new wife. He was amazed with how they filled with love and admiration. They demonstrated how possessive and protective he was of Brianna.

He became even more possessive and protective of her after he learned of her pregnancy. In honor of the love that flowed between Noah and Brianna, Bull made a silent oath to do whatever it took to keep Brianna safe. He meant what he said—he was looking forward to being an uncle and he would use any means necessary to protect his family.

Noah’s eyes reluctantly left Brianna and met Bull’s. Brianna saw the immediate shift in Noah’s demeanor—the crinkling of the outer corners of his eyes, the hard set of his jaw, and the deep breath he inhaled that drew Noah up even taller than his normal Greek-god self. She knew he saw something in Bull’s countenance that set him on guard. Noah and Bull had worked together for too long and had too many full conversations without ever saying a word for Noah to have missed it. She just wished
she
knew what it was.

Noah took Bri’s hand and pulled her into him for a full body embrace. Since he towered over her, Brianna couldn’t see the looks he and Bull exchanged or even guess at what the looks conveyed to the other. When she pulled back, Noah lowered his head and gently brushed his lips on hers, his hands on either side of her face, then deepened it to kiss her thoroughly and completely.

It really didn’t matter how many times he’d kissed her in exactly that manner, every time made her weak in the knees and gave her heart palpitations. Mr. Noah Steele was one fine specimen of a man, and she was so thankful that their lives were reunited.

“It’s time to go on our honeymoon,
Mrs. Steele
. Let me take you away from here now,” Noah whispered seductively to Brianna. Brianna knew full well that his words held a triple meaning—that it actually was time to leave, that he wanted to get her alone, and that he knew something was wrong and he wanted her as far away from it as possible. She decided to go with the meaning that she liked the most.

“Take me away, Mr. Steele.
Take. Me. Away
,” she replied as she wrapped her arms around his neck, stretched on her tiptoes, and kissed him back. As his strong arms wrapped around her, she forgot about Bull’s warning. She forgot about the guests who were most likely watching. She forgot about anything and everything else that the world wanted to throw at them.

It was time for her honeymoon with the man she loved.

The wedding reception ended with the tradition of the bride throwing the bouquet and the groom removing and shooting her garter into the crowd. The crowd whistled catcalls when Noah lifted Brianna’s dress and slowly dragged the garter down her leg. She blushed bright red when he stopped midway and softly kissed her thigh. The smoldering look he gave her left no room for doubt of exactly what he had in mind.

Bull, Rebel, and Shadow each took their assigned locations to guard all sides. Each man automatically covered and protected Noah and Brianna’s flank without giving it conscious thought. Bull’s position put him in the optimal location to catch the lucky garter when Noah shot it into the crowd.

The surprised and disgusted look on Bull’s face at catching the feminine adornment was priceless. He was such a big, macho man but he had no clue what he was expected to do with the girly garter Noah had just removed from Brianna’s leg. He turned it over in his hands, smirking at the crowd of people who clapped him on the shoulder to congratulate him, though he had no idea why they thought it was such a big deal.

Brianna teased him, telling him it was the male equivalent of the bridal bouquet. It meant he would be the next male there to get married. He quickly tried to pawn it off on any other single, unsuspecting male but no one would have it. He vehemently argued with his brothers that he would never get married. He had big plans to be a career bachelor.

With the festivities and fun coming to an end, Brianna and Noah left the shelter and sanctity of the tent and took their exit as man and wife. Their friends and family tossed birdseed onto them as they left. They entered the waiting limousine with beaming smiles, obviously excited to leave for their two-week honeymoon at a secluded resort in Fiji.

The uninvited guest was still hiding in the shadows, trying unsuccessfully to catch a glimpse of the newlyweds as they walked from the massive tent to the waiting stretch limousine. A giant man strategically blocked every viewpoint of the bride and groom. None of the men moved until the happy couple was safely tucked away in the limousine and the car was then driving away.

Bull, Shadow, and Rebel exchanged glances and turned back toward the tent and beach area, each man taking a different route and moving with the confidence and prowess of a well-trained reconnaissance team. After a few minutes of the men nonchalantly mingling with the few remaining friends and family members, they made their way around to the backside of the tent. A few members of Brianna’s family were still gathering the last of the wedding gifts as the three men each made their way around to the backside of the tent.

Their time together in the military made them a lethal machine that could operate without any verbal communication. The way they could communicate and read the other’s thoughts was more than a little intimidating to others. They stealthily moved into position, quickly identified the culprit’s location, and descended. Focusing too much on where Noah and Brianna were, and not enough on the immediate surroundings, the intruder was suddenly cornered by the three intimidating giants. And there was no way out.

One of the giants spoke first, his voice low and instinctively threatening, “This is a private party. And since I don’t know you, I know you weren’t invited.”

When the intruder didn’t answer, Bull spoke more forcefully, “Tell me what you want with the bride and groom.
Now.
”

“I have business with Noah Steele,” she finally answered, tentatively.

“Not today you don’t,” Bull responded in an end-of-discussion tone.

“You don’t understand. I have to talk to him,” she argued.

“No.
You
don’t understand. He’s married now, so whatever you think the two of you had once upon a time is long over. You have no business with him now.”

Confusion etched her face for a moment as Bull’s words sunk in. “Oh, no, it’s not like that at all. I, um, I,” she stammered under his watchful glare.

“Yes?” he prodded, his irritation and disbelief obvious in his voice.

“I’m in trouble and I need protection. Noah Steele—he owns Steele Security, right?” she hedged, pressing on with her questions about Noah.

Bull’s threatening stance toward her didn’t change. He instinctively knew there was more to this lady than she revealed. Her persistence in reaching Noah, at his wedding of all places, was blatant and now she was asking questions to which she obviously already knew the answers. He decided that he would get answers from her and then he would personally escort her from the premises.

Bull narrowed his eyes, tilted his head, and thoroughly examined her from head to toe. He knew from the first glance that she was accustomed to looking and behaving in a more refined manner than her current casual appearance displayed. She wasn’t someone who had lived a life in the criminal element. In other words, she didn’t appear to be very street smart, but Bull never trusted anyone at face value.

She had long, black hair that was thick and naturally wavy. The natural tan glow of her skin made her mint-green eyes stand out and be noticed. Her lean, muscular frame fit her five-foot-seven height with perfect proportions.

She wore khaki mini-shorts with a stylish, flowing tank top that showed off her tanned arms and shoulders. Her fingernails and toenails were expertly manicured and she wore the exact amount of jewelry that was considered appropriate but not overdoing it. She was truly a beautiful lady and he would definitely be interested under better circumstances. Interested for a night or maybe two, that is.

When her mint-green eyes fearfully looked up into his, Bull felt electricity arcing between them. The attraction was immediate but he didn’t trust that feeling. He was never one to give in to sudden impulses, so he mentally shook those thoughts away and continued with what he knew best.

“I think you know Noah
Steele
owns
Steele
Security. But what I don’t know is why you came to his
wedding
to ask for protection instead of calling his
office
. The office that has manned phones, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week,” Bull retorted, his Southern drawl more evident now than earlier. He’d learned to hide his accent fairly well, but it was ingrained in him.

The extra few seconds that it took her to respond told Bull everything he needed to know. She didn’t have an answer for not calling Noah’s business and she had no business being at his wedding. He reached down and took her hand, intending to lead her away. Her reaction was completely unexpected.

“
No, please don’t!”
she pleaded as quietly as she could as she resisted his attempts to move her. “Please—I’m really scared.” Her eyes were wide open and darting around the open area, looking for hidden dangers and safe passages. She recoiled into the shadows, trying to stay hidden from sight.

Bull stopped moving but kept her hand in his. He squeezed it lightly to catch her attention. He knew that look—the wounded look, deer-caught-in-the-headlights look, the near full-blown-panic-attack look.

”You really need our help?”

“Yes,” came the whispered, strained reply. He knew she was simultaneously fighting tears while internally determining whether she would fight or flee. He was leaning heavily to the flee option, if her demeanor was an accurate indication.

Taking a deep breath and letting it out with an acceptance of resignation, Bull softened his voice, “Alright. You’ll have to come with me and answer a few questions. We’ll figure out how to best help you.”

Shadow and Rebel silently witnessed the entire exchange. Bull looked at each of them and the unspoken request was conveyed. They surrounded her and walked her to Bull’s waiting Steele Security SUV. Once she was safely seated inside, Bull pulled away from the curb and stole a glance at her.

She drew her sandaled feet up in the seat, bent her knees, and rested her chin on them. Her arms were bent and also resting on her knees, almost completely covering her face as her eyes darted back and forth from the windshield to the side window. Bull realized this part of her story was true—she was very scared of something or someone.

“What’s your name?” Bull asked, breaking the silence and making her jump unexpectedly.