HIS Choice: An H.I.S. Novel (H.I.S. series Book 2) (7 page)

“Baby, I’ve cleaned up my ways. I miss you.” He used the suave voice that originally had her turning his way.
No longer.

“You want to get back with me?” The thought made her sick, her stomach turned over. How could he not realize she’d never take the cheater back? She thought she’d been clear the day her world collapsed. But she’d had to repeat it to him over and over
since then.

“Someone needs to take care of you. Why
not me?”

“You know why
not you.”

Trent walked into the room and raised
an eyebrow.

She shook her head, but he
stayed nearby.

“Baby, I’m sorry. I never meant it to happen. I promise it won’t happen again. I
need you.”

Why was she still having this conversation? “We’re not getting back together.” Her firm tone should put an end to this. Why couldn’t she just be rude and hang up? Dang Southern manners her mother instilled
in her.

“I’m not going to give up. I
love you.”

“Goodbye, Marcus. Don’t call
me again.”

“Wait, Megan,” he said hurriedly. “No matter how you feel about me, I care about you. Leave this story. It’s too dangerous. Didn’t your brother’s disappearance prove that? I may not get to be with you, but I still want you
to live.”

Who planned to try to scare her off the story next, the Pope? “Goodbye, Marcus.” She ended the call before he could respond.Talking with her ex, hearing his voice, brought it all back. Her blood boiled. How dare he?

“Anyone I should
know about?”

She frowned. “My ex-fiancé. He’s not a threat except to
my sanity.”

“Tell me about him.” He settled on the sofa, crossing one leg over the other knee, leaned back and rested an arm across the back. He’d been followed and his shadow jumped on his lap purring. He smiled and petted Bob. Trent must’ve overcome that fear
of animals.

“There’s not much to tell. We were getting married and now we’
re not.”

“Megan, I told you earlier you have to tell me everything and about everyone. Now is the
perfect time.”

She closed her laptop and dropped her feet from the coffee table. “
All right.”

She recapped her experience with Marcus and detailed her co-workers. When she mentioned that Merissa, the woman who had cheated with her ex-fiancé, was now her co-worker, his brows almost hit his hairline. After he finished asking questions, he watched the news. She opened her
laptop again.

Trent had tried to sway her to drop the story. It’d make his job a lot easier he’d joked. She refused. Maybe it wasn’t the smart thing to do, but she would do it. She should’ve hired Trent a long time ago. Then AJ would never have made it in the door and deep
inside her.

“Ugh!”

“Everything okay?” Trent’s face seemed stuck between a smile
and concern.

She couldn’t afford to be sidetracked. She had to keep her mind on her current story, not the curious prison escape. She had to solve this and something told her she had to do it soon. Exactly how she’d accomplish that when the police have been at it for years still stumped her. But she’d find
a way.

She tapped her finger to her chin wondering how many police officers were in the Magician’s employ. There had to be good police officers who feared crossing him and eventually caved to support him, especially after an officer disappeared last year. The word on the street was that the crime boss was responsible. It was his message to law enforcement. Since then, Magic Shop hadn’t had any major problems from
the police.

She didn’t care if she angered the police department more. She would expose as many of their corrupt officers as she could. They turned their back on crime and received payment for it. It
disgusted her.

“Trent.”

He glanced at her then turned his gaze back to the television, remote in hand. “What’
s up?”

“You said you were FBI. Did you know anything about Magic Shop?” Maybe he would be her best source. He had no ties to the bureau any longer so he should be free to share
his information.

“I know of them, sure. I never worked on any cases that
involved them.”

She rose and Trent followed her to the dining room table where her notes and photos were spread out. She could figure this out. She separated the photos where someone interacted with the dealers but didn’t purchase drugs. She hoped she’d captured at least one boss in the pile. Not knowing for certain
irritated her.

“I know a few of these people if that’s what
you need.”

“That’d be great if you wouldn’
t mind.”

He identified a few dealers and, most importantly, the two police officers. He also provided her names of a few suspicious officers on the force. Thankfully, Detectives Cooper and Kelvin weren’
t mentioned.

To help her better understand what she was up against, actually what they were up against since he was her new shadow, he sketched out a crude organizational chart explaining that most criminal organizations were run similar
to businesses.

He started with Magic Shop’s boss, of course, added at the top as a CEO of sorts. His top men fell below him. Trent listed out the groupings, drugs, prostitution, enforcers and money laundering. She learned a great deal when he went into detail on how the lower levels would probably be staffed. She needed to share the prostitution information
with Victoria.

She and Victoria had four bosses to identify who would eventually lead them to the head of the organization. Megan needed more help. Her sources hadn’t seen the new photos so she called and scheduled meetings with them. She’d never felt a stronger pull in her stomach about a story. In here would be someone who could lead her where she needed
to go.

She had a plan for tomorrow, and it would move her forward. If her photos turned out to be a bust, she’d hit the streets again. She would not
give up.

“You do realize you aren’t attending these meetings without me, don’
t you?”

She pulled her shoulders back. “These are anonymous sources. You can’t be there,” she
responded indignantly.

“Doll, you have a lot to learn about having
personal protection.”

* * * * *

Lying in deep, hot water helped release the relentless chill out of Megan’s body. Tonight she soaked in a pomegranate scented bath to help rid her of the tensions of the day. Tensions named AJ and Trent. Situations like this made her wish she cursed. Another thing her mother had instilled
in her.

Growing up she heard “a Southern lady does this.” “A Southern lady doesn’t do that.” She’d taken to most everything to please her mother. All except the rule that a woman should be pure for her
wedding night.

Today would’ve been Kevin’s thirtieth birthday, and he’d been due to marry next week. Jenny Grant, her brother’s fiancée had been three months pregnant when
Kevin disappeared.

She’d vanished the same day as he had. Megan hoped she and the baby were fine. Perhaps they’d left town to hide, instead of enduring the same fate as her brother. She closed her eyes and said another silent prayer that they
were safe.

The day Kevin disappeared he’d told Megan he was developing a source. Raven said the talk was that Kevin had witnessed something he shouldn’t have, and Magic Shop took care
of him.

Of course, the police hadn’t cared, deciding that he and his girlfriend left town. She argued that he’d been murdered by Magic Shop. The police claimed that with no body there was
no murder.

After Kevin’s disappearance, she took over his investigation before Kristen gave her the go ahead. And that had been a hard fought approval to work the story for the paper. She would finish Kevin’s work and make them pay for killing him, no matter how long
it took.

She believed they’d killed him. There was no other explanation. He wouldn’t go without talking with someone in his family or leave Jenny and
his baby.

Things weren’t moving as fast as Megan liked, but she wouldn’t give up. The theft of his notes shouldn’t have surprised her. She wished she’d been able to decipher what leads he’d been following or who the new source had been. That individual might know what happened. He might have even set up
her brother.

Her head ached considering
the possibilities.

An image of AJ’s lust filled eyes as he rode her to bliss popped into her head
.
He might be her brother’s killer. He’d admitted that he’d be the one to return if punishment
was ordered.

She slid deeper in the water in an attempt to drown out the crawling sensation that ran over her skin. God, she was such a traitor to
her brother.

Kevin would’ve insisted she stop investigating after she’d received that threat. Of course, if it had been him, he’d have kept working on the story. He’d be right to tell her that she should be worried. He’d never published a story on Magic Shop. He’d been waiting until he had it all. She’d, however, published several articles, and they’d sent someone to stop her. Not
kill her.

If they hadn’t called in the death threat to her,
who had?

It no longer mattered. She now had Trent, the bodyguard who would protect her and help her continue
to investigate.

Megan grumbled as she emerged from her home.
It’s Sunday, dang it.
Why Kristen had called the team in no longer mattered. It just angered Megan, kept her
temper short.

She slid a look at Trent. His unkempt blond hair, just a hint of stubble, as though he’d been too lazy to shave this morning and ocean blue eyes, mmm
,
was all she could muster. Definite eye candy. They’d had fun with their banter back and forth the night before. Maybe he could help remove AJ from
her mind.

Trent constantly scanned the street, and she fought the urge to do the same. She couldn’t control her racing heart when she noticed new faces. Had Magic Shop decided to watch her? If they had she couldn’t put her sources at risk which meant she couldn’t ask them about the photos. The men were too valuable
to her.

Dang it!

She took in a deep breath to calm her frayed nerves, but instead the cold air sent a shiver travelling through her. She couldn’t afford to be paranoid. It was a holiday. People had relatives over. That’s probably who most of the people were. She had Trent beside her. She trusted him to protect her. The racing thoughts in her mind slowed but didn’t completely disappear. He didn’t hide the fact that he was armed. Or that he wasn’t letting anyone
near her.

To her relief, he drove them to work in
her SUV.

During the quiet drive, her mind wondered about her hunky bad boy and their meeting. Dreaming about him last night brought thoughts of their hot, sweaty sex to the forefront of her mind. She couldn’t gain her balance with him. How could she lust after a man
she feared?

The thought that he would prevent anyone from hurting her floated through her mind. Why would he disobey his boss for her? They’d just met. It was only a quick jump in the sack
between strangers.

What was his deal? He stood there while Keyshawn took a beating and then acted like he didn’t want to return to hurt her. Did he draw the line at hurting women? Oh, she
hoped so.

Why had he left the FBI? How did a good man get tangled with a gang? The curious need in her to learn about him was even more startling than the lust she experienced, and her desire for another bout of wild sex. She didn’t understand how these feelings came about considering their brief
time together.

She didn’t expect to see him again. A slight pressure rested on her chest. She had to remember he was an enforcer for a drug lord who she planned to expose, possibly her brother’s killer, not a regular
bed partner.

She strolled into the newsroom to her friends crowded around her desk, ready to ambush her. They parted when they noticed Trent
shadowing her.

She groaned in frustration, loudly. Not again. A beautiful bouquet of white orchids sat on her desk. Marcus. He wouldn’t give up. Wait, how did he know she’d be at
work today?

Kelly smiled. “Hi, Trent. Megan, let me guess. Marcus?”

Megan didn’t find a card. Weird.

“I’m going to wander around and talk with security. Here,”
Trent murmured.

He handed her a small fob the size of a car remote. She was to keep the device with her at all times. It would send an alert to his phone should she be in trouble. He’d be there as quickly as possible to rescue her like Superman. His lips lit into an
amused smile.

“I’ll be at the security desk if you need me.” He nodded to Kelly and
walked away.

What was their relationship? Was he the true Mr. Right Kelly
waited for?

Megan placed the alarm on her desk and turned back to her friends. They
all smiled.

“So you did it? You hired a bodyguard.” Janet’s face glowed. “He’s handsome and he
likes you.”

“Yes. You won and you were right. And he doesn’t like me.” He acted like it but she didn’t wish to get into
that conversation.

Kelly leaned in close. “Well, you know, Trent dropped me near your house to visit my friend Christine. I saw a hot guy leave your place when he arrived. Maybe the flowers are from
that guy.”

Hot guy? Who the heck? Oh. AJ. Hot? Definitely. Best, hot sex she’d
ever experienced.

“A guy, Megan?” Janet raised an eyebrow. “Finally
someone new?”

She hated to burst their hopeful looks. “I’m afraid you won’t
like this.”

Megan relayed the story minus the heated, off the charts volcanic, stuff. Throughout the story she heard gasps and, “Oh my God,” once
or twice.

As soon as she finished, Kelly jumped up from her chair. “Megan, it’s getting serious! They came to your home.” She looked around the newsroom. “Where’s Victoria? Did she get a
visit too?”

Megan shrugged. She hadn’t thought to call to warn her. No. Their message had been for
her alone.

“She’d already left town when Kristen called us in. She gave her a free pass for today,”
Janet volunteered.

“First, you need to drop this story. Second, you need more than a bodyguard. You need police protection, Southern belle,”
Kyle stated.

She almost didn’t tell them about the meeting because she knew they’d react exactly like this. Police protection my ass. Trent was enough. He’d hire more men if he felt
it warranted.

“Now, Kyle, you know we get threats all of the time. Why should this one be any different? Besides, it wasn’t a death threat, and Trent will be better protection than
the police.”

She inwardly cringed. She hadn’t told them about the death threat. There was still the puzzle of who was behind it which worried her somewhat. Maybe it had been just another prank threat. The timing did coincide with the printing of her article about the councilman and Magic Shop dealers. Trent vowed to get to the bottom of it, and she would let him deal with it. She had too much on her
plate already.

Before she’d hired him, she’d been on the streets without personal protection many times and nothing had happened to her. She winced. Determined to find justice for Kevin, she’d neglected her own safety. No more. Her brother would want
her protected.

“Well, because we know they follow through with their threats, it may as well have been a death threat.” Kyle yanked the knot on his horse-covered tie to
loosen it.

The day had barely begun and she’d already stressed
him out.

She hadn’t considered that her next visit from them would be her death. A part of her realized it, but didn’t want to believe it. AJ hadn’t been specific on what punishment would follow should she continue. Since she refused to back down, she guessed she’d find out what
he meant.

Thank God she’d hired Trent. That eased her worry somewhat. It didn’t stop her shuddering when she did think about it. Death. I was foolish to believe they wouldn’t
kill her.

“Aren’t you at least a little bit worried?” Janet hugged her belly in a protective hold. “Oh, Selena is active today. I think she will be a professional soccer player.” The visible kicks from the baby sent a round of laughter through them and lightened
the mood.

“Megan? You aren’t getting off that easy. I asked you
a question.”

Of course she wouldn’t forget. Janet didn’t leave unanswered questions. Come to think of it, none of them did. Kristen had instilled that in them. Never let someone lead
you astray.

“Truthfully, I am a little worried.” Her paranoia this morning had been significantly higher than a
little worry.

“Janet, there are so many what ifs that my
head spins.”

“Megan, you have to tell the police. This has gone too far.” Janet’s concern filled
her voice.

Merissa smirked, no longer attempting to hold in her dislike for Megan. What had become of the friend she
once knew?

“What do you think the police will do? Remember, I took down some of theirs a couple of years ago. They don’t care for me. Do you think they’d want to protect me?” Telling her friends had been a mistake, they would worry and nag her about going to the police. After hearing her history with the police, even Trent didn’t
recommend it.

“It doesn’t matter if they want to or not. It’s their job,”
Janet insisted.

“Look, it was just a verbal threat.” The thought of AJ in jail sent a cold shiver rushing through her body. Why could she not
forget him?

Before Merissa departed, her comment to Megan was, “They’ll get you too and then the story will
be mine.”

Megan fisted her hands and her pulse raced as she gaped at the evil woman’s back as she sauntered to her desk. Did this come from Marcus attempting to reunite with her and not Merissa? He wasn’t worth such vile wishes. She could have him for all
Megan cared.

“If he comes back, promise me you’ll go to the police,” Janet pleaded. “Even if Trent takes care
of it.”

Megan let out a heavy sigh. Only one answer would halt this conversation, even if it was a lie. “
I promise.”

* * * * *

“Megan, your phone’s been ringing off the hook while you were in the break room.” Kyle accepted the cup of coffee she
handed him.

Someone needed to invent a way to infuse caffeine right into one’s veins. At this moment, she could
use it.

Just her luck. She left her cell phone at her desk and it rang.

Please don’t let it be Marcus.
The flowers were more than enough for
the day
.

She scrolled through and saw the numerous missed calls from a
blocked number.

She willed her phone to ring just one more time. If the phone rang as many times as Kyle said, this had to be important. It could be the big break in
her investigation.

“Do you think it’s a source on your drug investigation?” Janet asked from her desk next to Megan’s.

“I sure
hope so.”

Come on, ring.

Kristen had ordered them to stay put while she attended a meeting. No way would Megan follow that directive if this turned out to be
a goldmine.

Kyle chuckled and muttered something about her trying to use The Force to get her phone
to ring.

Startled when it rang, she jumped and pressed the accept button before it had time to
ring again.

She greeted her caller and listened. Her lips curved into a
wide smile.

Jackpot!

* * * * *

“Did Damian say why he wanted to see us all the way out there?” AJ asked the man before him. He took a sip of coffee and waited for the man’
s answer.

Hank had arrived at AJ’s apartment with the message from their boss. Why had Damian not contacted him directly as he usually did? The beginning of a chill trickled down his spine. Something wasn’
t right.

“No. He just told me to pass word along to you. Since I was out, I stopped by to tell you.” Hank scanned the room. “When are you gonna move out of
this shithole?”

AJ wouldn’t explain himself to this degenerate. Living in this rent-by-the-week, fleabag, one-room apartment provided him mobility for when he felt threatened. Being an enforcer sometimes meant attempted retaliation from relations of those he had made disappear. He needed to be able to move at a moment’s notice, so week to week worked well for him. He could live anywhere, so he overlooked the shabby furniture
and carpet.

“Have you heard when the next mission is, and if they’ll use us?”
AJ asked.

He wanted on that team. There were several different positions, but none were available. Now that he knew who held a position on the team, it was time to make a vacancy so he could slide
into it.

Unfortunately not all escapes were as easy as the last one. Convincing someone to have plastic surgery to be a twin to a convict and changing places wouldn’t
work again.

His visitor shrugged. “Next couple of weeks. Why’d you wanna do that again? It was
fucking boring.”

AJ leaned against the wall so he could watch the door. “I was curious. It was easy money.” They’d been paid a hefty bonus for their participation. It was a tiny piece of the millions of dollars Denzel had paid to be broken out
of prison.

“Did you put fear in that reporter chick?” his unwelcome visitor asked, raising
his eyebrows.

AJ didn’t know her well but doubted anything could put fear into Megan. She was a strong-willed, stubborn woman and a dedicated journalist out for vengeance for her brother and one hell of a fuck. He couldn’t believe he’d lost control like he had. He’d meant to keep his hands off her, but once they’d touched, his body
craved more.

Disgust with his behavior settled in his heart. Self-destruction was his middle name. He’d taken someone he shouldn’t have. The experience stirred something deep in him. Even now he could feel her heat around his cock. That part of his anatomy came
to life.

Trent had been a good and bad choice. He believed the man would keep her safe. But, he was a flirt. His old friend was more of ladies’ man that he’d ever been. He didn’t want him in Megan’s bed. The thought of them together fired
his blood.

Hell! She’d driven him to madness. He had a problem to deal with right now. She’d have
to wait.

Nonchalantly he shrugged. “I did my best. She’s a feisty little hellcat. I don’t think she’ll listen.” He failed to mention she now had a bodyguard. They’d have to kill Trent before he’d let anyone
near her.

“Is she a hot little piece under that jacket? Did you fuck her?” The other enforcer’s sick grin proved that AJ had been the right choice to send. Or
had it?