She tenses up as the door creaks open behind her and she waits for whoever comes in to say something. Anything. The silence is deafening, and she struggles to stay silent when she finally asks, "What do you want with me, Charles?"
"Not Charles."
She rolls over and her mouth falls wide open. The last thing she expected was to see him standing in front of her. "Daddy? You're alive?" A glimmer of hope fills her body as she struggles against her restraints. "How did you get in here? We need to hurry before someone comes back and finds you too."
When he doesn't move from his spot in the middle of the floor a single tear drips down the side of her face. Her limbs scream out in pain and she forces herself to stop struggling. All it does is twist the restraints even tighter.
He pulls a rusty chair away from the wall toward the bed she's lying on and he takes a seat. The bags under his eyes have gotten larger since the last time they saw each other but her eyes aren't deceiving her. Her father starts rolling up the sleeves of his button up shirt and releases a heavy sigh. "I can't recall the last time you called me that Maria. It's nice. But nice doesn't mean much of anything when your own daughter turns her back on you. So how long have you been working against me and feeding information to the feds?"
Chapter Sixteen
Rhett
Rhett can't process the information that Ghost just told him, but all he knows is standing here talking any longer isn't helping them find Maria any quicker. "Okay, where are we going? How are we going to get her back?"
Ghost shakes his head and starts walking away toward the door. "You're not going anywhere I can't take you with me. You're a civilian."
"Do you really think I'm going to let you go out there without me while I wait here sitting on my hands waiting to hear if you've found Maria?"
"Can you shoot a gun?"
Rhett smiles and says, "I was raised in East Texas on a cattle ranch. I've been handling guns almost as long as I've been walking."
"A simple yes would have sufficed. Now go get dressed. She's been missing for a few hours already and we can't waste any more time."
The conversation stopped after that as Rhett quickly got dressed and they made their way downstairs to Ghosts' waiting SUV. They've been driving for a few minutes now and the silence has been driving Rhett insane. Finally, he asks, "How can you be sure we're going the right direction?"
"I'm not."
What kind of an answer is that? They've been following something on his phone the entire time they have been driving and he doesn't know where the hell they're going?
"But?"
"We got a tip that her father is still alive and that he faked his own death"
"You want to repeat that one?"
"She just got back from Florida where she attended her father's funeral. But apparently, he's not actually dead."
That must be what she was doing when they met, flying back from Florida. "So, what then? You know where her father is at?"
"I'm tracking his phone as we speak. If he's as dumb as I hope he is, we're about five minutes away from his location."
Five minutes feels like an eternity with so much uncertainty surrounding Maria's whereabouts. Rhett started this day thinking he would be going to a wedding with a gorgeous woman on his arm. Now he's praying with everything he's got that he can find that same woman and save her. He didn't know Maria last week or even a few days ago, but now he can't imagine what his life would be like without her in it.
Ghost brings his SUV to a stop and puts it in park. He pulls a case from the floor of the backseat and before Rhett can ask anything he opens it up revealing a set of handguns. He loads one and then the other keeping one for himself and handing the other to Rhett.
"I don't know what we're going to find when we go in there but be prepared to be on high alert. We don't have time to stake out the situation before going in there. Maria could be in serious danger if her cover was blown and I'm not willing to risk her safety."
He doesn't know where the sudden intensity of his feelings came from, but he asks, "What part do you play in all of this? I'm not saying I'm not appreciative that you're concerned about Maria, but you never really explained your connection to her.
"I knew her uncle. He died while serving and asked me to always look after her. He knew the kind of shit her father was up to and I've always kept an eye on her. When I heard rumblings about her dad faking his own death, I immediately got on a plane to find out if she was okay. I had just barely landed when I got her 911 text."
Rhett can't help but wonder how things would have turned out if Ghost hadn't hopped on a plane. He wouldn't even know that Maria is missing in the first place. As they both get out of the SUV, Rhett sends up a silent prayer that everything turns out okay and pushes all of his fears to the back of his mind.
Ghost motions toward the small house in front of them and they both head toward the garage first. They run by the side of the house and find a door on the side of the garage. Rhett waits impatiently as Ghost pushes the door open and slowly makes his way inside. He walks back outside and whispers, "Come on."
Nothing could prepare him for what they find inside. Maria is tied to a bed in the middle of the room with zip ties both at her wrists and ankles. She immediately starts crying when they come into the room and both Ghost and Rhett make quick work of her restraints. When she's fully released, she dives into Rhett's arms and he holds her tight.
Ghost looks over at Rhett and motions for them to head outside. "We're going to head back to my SUV and we're waiting for backup. I already called them on the way here, but I wanted to get in first to find her."
Rhett hugs her tighter to his body and carries her outside to the vehicle. When they're settled in the backseat he pulls her away slightly and assesses the damage to her body. She's got some nasty cuts and bruises but nothing that will leave permanent damage. It's still enough to piss him off and he says, "I don't care what kind of argument you have for me. You're coming back to Texas with me and that's that. None of this shit is okay Maria and you're not safe here."
"I know."
"Your father is in some deep shit and he just fucking had you kidnapped. You don't have to stay with me, but you're not staying here."
"Rhett, stop. I'm not fighting you on this. Today was the scariest day of my life. I owe you everything and I'm coming back with you. I don't want to stay here any longer than I have to."
"You're coming with me? No fight. No argument about being an independent woman and I can't order you around?"
She shakes her head from side to side. "No even strong women need comfort and support sometimes. I just want you to hold me and tell me everything is going to be okay."
Rhett wraps his arms around her body and does just that. Pulling her tightly into his embrace he holds her as the effects of today take their toll on her. Maria's body shakes with the sobs she releases and grips the front of his shirt like it's a lifeline.
He whispers reassurances into her hair as he holds her tight. "I've got you. Don't worry about it now. I'm never letting you go again."
And he isn't. Rhett doesn't know what the future will bring, but no matter what he will always have her back in whatever aspect she'll allow it.
Epilogue
Rhett
One Year Later
The day Rhett rescued Maria was the scariest day of his life. He barely knew her, yet felt like it was his job to save her. That fate intervened in his life putting him on that plane that day. As hard as this past year has been, he wouldn't change anything about it. It's been an uphill battle but they've taken it easy, just one day at a time. When he brought her back home to Texas, he didn't have any intentions with her other than getting her as far away from that desert as possible. He knew he loved her and wanted to do anything he could to protect her. But that also meant putting his feelings aside and making sure she could heal.
There was a long period of time where Maria didn't want to leave the house. She was terrified that they
were going to find her and come back for her. And whenever Rhett would convince her to leave, she was always looking over her shoulder. It was hard, really hard not being able to protect her against her own demons. He couldn't imagine the hell she went through that day. Or what she was reliving every time she closed her eyes at night. Those nightmares are the one thing that killed him the most. In the beginning, he spent his nights sleeping on the floor next to her bed.
Once she finally agreed to start talking to someone, bits of the old Maria started coming back out. It's been a month since her last nightmare and she's finally starting to trust going out in public again. Which is why he's standing here like an idiot in front of his bathroom mirror with two different ties in his hand. If anything, they have grown closer than he ever thought imaginable in the past year, but tonight is their first official date. How backward is that?
Rhett shakes out both ties in his hand, one red paisley and the other a navy blue. His heart has been racing all day and he can't tame the excitement flowing through him. The sun shining so strongly through the window reinforces his thoughts that today is a good day. A day he's been patiently waiting over a year for and he would have waited a lifetime if that's what Maria had needed. But fortunately for him, he doesn't need to wait any longer.
His breath catches in his throat when she appears in the bathroom door with the sun forming a glow around her body. She's got on a long gauzy white dress which only highlights the bronze hue to her skin. A lot of her therapy has been spent with the horses on the ranch. Funnily enough, the one horse she has connected with the most and claimed as her own is named Angel.
He knows how much she hated her stage name, but now? With her standing in front of him, she's the epitome of an angel. His angel. She walks over to him with the biggest grin on her face and places her soft gentle hands over his own.
"Skip the tie. I like my Cowboy a little more rugged than that." She removes the ties from his hands and tosses them on the cluttered bathroom counter. Leaning up, she undoes the top button on his shirt and whispers into his ear, "Let's skip dinner and go straight to dessert." She nibbles on his earlobe and Rhett releases a groan.
His hands form fists at his side and he uses everything in his power to stop from grabbing her waist and thrusting her into his hardened dick. Fuck it's been way too long. Jerking himself off in the shower every time he's wanted more has been really hard. But the last thing he wanted to do was pressure her.
"Are you sure that's a good idea? Maybe we should just get going?"
She takes a step away from him and runs her hands down his chest and lightly settles them on the top of his jeans. There's a sinister look in her eyes and she replies, "I guess we can just go out if that's what you want." She slowly moves her hand down and just grazes him before taking her hand away and turning away."
Before she can get very far, Rhett grabs her arm and whips her body back around. "I'm more than happy to do whatever you want right now. I'm barely holding on by a thread though. So if you don't want to do anything, that's fine. But please just don't touch me there again."
"Or what?"
He points to the shower behind him. "Or I'm going to have to hop in there and take care of this before we can go on our date." He's straining against his tight jeans and the only thing on his mind right now is relieving all of the pressure.
MARIA
She has been ready, more than ready for months now. It wasn't her idea to hold back and take things slow that was all Rhett and she loves him for being so concerned for her while she's been working toward becoming her old self again. Not the woman he met in Vegas but who she truly was before she got mixed up in all of that undercover bullshit. She doesn't regret a minute of it because it led her to the love of her life, but she does wish things hadn't gone done quite the same way as they did.
"Rhett, I promise I'm ready."
He hesitates still far enough away from her to drive her crazy. "Are you sure?"
"Can you please just get naked and fuck me? I have the sexiest boyfriend in a cowboy hat and I want to feel all of him."
"No."
"What do you mean no?"
He pulls her to him and wraps his arms around her. Leaning down, he kisses her on one cheek, and then the other. He continues working his way around her face. Her nose. The corner of her mouth. Up her jaw. Until he lands on her favorite place right behind her ear. Her body shudders within his grasp and he can't wait to feel her fall apart in his arms.
"I won't fuck you. I will never fuck you. What we have is so much more than that. And I will remind you as many times as I have to in as many different ways as I have to so you'll never want to fuck ever again. Even if that reminder takes the rest of our lives."
Her words come out breathlessly as she says, "I think I'll need to be reminded often. I tend to be forgetful."
"Well, darlin' looks like I have my work cut out for me."
"I think we should get started right now." She steps out of his grip and he almost reaches back for her but she shakes her head. She slides one thin strap down her arm and then the other. Rhett gasps when her dress slides down her body and to the floor leaving her completely bare in front of him. She might not be playing fair today, but she wasn't going to let anything stop her from getting what she wants and she's craving his body.
Leaning up on her tiptoes, she wraps her arms around her neck and smiles. She kisses him on the lips and says, "I love you, Rhett Walker."
"I love you too Maria Walker."
She smiles hearing his name roll off his tongue attached to her own name. With everything that happened last year, she needed to go into hiding so that anyone from her father's organization still in the wind couldn't find her. After they found her, the house she was in was raided. They found her father, along with Charles, and a few other thugs. Apparently, they were dumb enough to bring her to their safe house in Las Vegas with enough information to put all of them away and the locations of quite a few other high-ranking men in the organization. By bringing her there, they put the cuffs on their own wrists.
When they gave her a new identity, they also created a marriage license for her and Rhett. According to their license, they've been married for five years and Maria was born and raised in Texas.
The minute she stepped off the plane with Rhett a year ago, when he brought her back in Texas it was like she could finally breathe again. She felt like she was home and right where she belonged. When she was kidnapped he might have rescued her at the time, but ultimately, they rescued each other. Neither one of them knew how much they needed the other at the time, but they've both healed in ways that can't be explained. Maria found her forever in Texas with Rhett and she's never letting it go.
New Release Alerts
Stay up to date with alerts for new releases, sales, and exclusive giveaways. Sign up here!
Playlist
“Dear Maria Count Me In” All Time Low
“Small Town Throwdown” (Feat. Justin Moore & Thomas Rhett) Brantley Gilbert
“There Goes My Everything” Kane Brown
“Texas is Forever” Pierce the Veil
“Body Like a Back Road” Sam Hunt
“In Case You Didn’t Know” Brett Young
“Come Over” Sam Hunt
“Ride” (Feat. Macy Maloy) Chase Rice
“Runnin’ Out of Air” Love & Theft
“Landslide” Dixie Chicks
“Fall Into Me” Emerson Drive
“Craving You” (Feat. Maren Morris) Thomas Rhett
“She’s Everything” Brad Paisley
“Playing with Fire” (Feat. Jordin Sparks) Thomas Rhett
“Heartbeat” Carrie Underwood
Listen to the entire playlist here.
Also by Alexandria Bishop
Marlowe Series
Finding Flynn
Falling for Hudson
Freeing Jude
Fighting for Jax
Love, Snow & Mistletoe (Charity Anthology)
&nb
sp; Coming Soon
Dating Trilogy
Dating in the Dark (March 19th)
Sinking in the Shadows (May 14th)
Loving in the Light (July 16th)
About the Author
Born in a small southeastern island in Alaska, Alexandria moved to southern Oregon early on in her life. Where she still resides with her young daughter, husband, and fur baby.
She's insanely obsessed with fashion and used to dream of becoming a fashion designer creating new outfits for her Barbie's with her childhood best friend. For now she's loving writing and fulfilling her fashion addiction with shopping.
Along with fashion, Alexandria is a big lover of music. She's always listening to something while writing and creates a playlist to go along with each book she writes. She's always on the hunt for new music and loves getting suggestions from her readers.
Connect with Alexandria!
Join my reader group!
Alexandria spends way too much time on social media and would love for you to say hi!
www.alexandriabishop.com
[email protected]
Special Forces: Operation Alpha
Did you enjoy reading Rhett & Maria’s story and catching a glimpse of Ghost? Read all of the other stories in Susan Stoker’s Kindle World here.
Special Forces: Operation Alpha: Rescuing Maria (Kindle Worlds Novella) Page 7
