by Lora Leigh
"I have other things to do," Nik told her.
Eleanor nodded as she headed for the back door. "That's a good thing for Mikayla's heart, a bad thing for the situation itself. I have a feeling, though, if you don't leave you'll only end up hurting her."
Or himself.
Nik watched as Eleanor left the house before he turned back to the window to stare into the soft light of early evening.
He was packed and ready to roll out, though he hadn't figured out why he hadn't left yet.
There was a part of him that loathed walking out the door, nothing in hand but the leather bag he had arrived with. There was something he was leaving behind, but he was damned if he could figure out what the hell it was.
Shaking his head at the thought, Nik went through the house, secured it, then picked up the leather bag that held several changes of clothing as well as the weapons he had brought with him.
He had to force himself out the front door. Hell, walking away had always been easy, especially since his "death." He hadn't known it possible to possess a hunger for a woman the way he did for one tender, sweet little virgin at the moment. He stepped outside, pausing on the porch to stare into the slowly dimming light of a summer evening. Rain was coming. He could feel it in the air, almost taste it against his tongue.
The scent of it reminded him of Mikayla.
He shook his head, trying to shake the regret growing inside him away as he strode to the driveway and the motorcycle parked there.
"Nik."
She stepped from behind the Jeep and moved to the strip of grass dividing the driveways, moving to stand beneath the heavy oak tree growing there. 78
Fairy princess. That was what she was. He couldn't get the idea out of his head. So damned petite and innocent, still believing, somehow, in the good of the world. He could have told her, would have told her, there was so very little good left.
"You should have stayed in the house, Mikayla." He secured the leather bag in the metal saddlebag on the side of the cycle.
"I shouldn't say good-bye?" There was the faintest edge of hurt in her voice now; it matched the hurt he had glimpsed in her amethyst eyes, in her pale face.
" 'Good-bye' is for friends," he pointed out to her as he straightened and stared back at her. "Are we friends, Mikayla?"
It was a challenge and he knew it. She was still angry. That spark of ire still lingered in her gaze, in the tightly controlled curve of her lips.
"Why are you here?" As he moved around the back of the cycle, he knew lingering here was a mistake.
He should leave now, before he was drawn in any further. Before he completely fucked the fragile peace he'd found after all these years.
"I say good-bye." Her fingers were laced together in front of her, her shoulders straight. The heels she wore barely got her to the middle of his chest. He wanted to protect her, he realized. He wanted to wrap her up, protect her from the world, and keep all that innocence and fire for himself alone.
He should be locked up for even desiring such a thing, because he knew how fragile that illusion could be.
"I told you, you say good-bye to a friend," he growled.
"Or someone you wished could have been a friend," she mused softly before pulling at her lower lip with her teeth and nibbling at it nervously for a second. "I won't forget you, Nik."
His stomach clenched; his cock, hard since the moment he laid eyes on her, tried to thicken further. Hell, he'd never been so hard in his life.
"You should." Anger was slipping through the tight leash he fought to keep on it.
"You should forget me the moment I ride out of here, Mikayla. Or do you like it when men lie to you? When they hurt you?"
She flinched, her lips thinning. "Maybe that's why I'm saying good-bye, Nik," she suggested then. "Maybe I'm scared if I just watch you ride away, then I really won't be able to forget you."
That made more sense, but it wasn't going to work. He could tell her himself that there were points in a person's life that couldn't be forgotten. For them, what they hadn't had would always haunt them. It couldn't be helped.
Nik shook his head. "What the fuck do you want from me, Mikayla?" He sighed.
"I told you the truth. You should have your brothers standing here rather than standing here yourself."
"And what would they do?" she asked bitterly. "If they tried to fight you, you'd decimate them. If they got lucky and hurt you, I'd never forget it. It's a no-win situation, isn't it, Nik?"
For a second, tears glittered in her eyes before she blinked them back. She turned her gaze from him for a second, then returned it with renewed strength. She had to be one of the strongest women he had ever laid eyes on. Damn her. She made him remember the dreams he was ordered to throw away so long ago. That 79
dream of finding peace amid war, safety in a world where safety was a liability rather than an ethereal dream.
"It's a no-win situation," he finally agreed. "What you do with it is what makes the difference, baby. When I'm gone, just forget. Otherwise, you'll only hurt yourself." He knew inside he had begun the painful process though, watching the hurt that was building in her eyes. A hurt he wanted nothing more than to heal before he did exactly as she had told him to do. He was riding out of town, moving right out of her life. Unlike her, he wouldn't have his anger to hold onto. She'd done nothing to deserve his anger, therefore there was no shield between his hunger and her memory. Her tongue slid over her lips again, tempting him to taste, to lose himself to the hunger rather than running away from it.
"Deirdre was wrong," she finally whispered as he forced himself to keep a distance between them.
"About what?" Fists clenched at his sides, his entire body so tight he wondered why he hadn't cracked.
"Saying good-bye won't help me forget. A woman doesn't forget her first hunger. Ever."
He moved to her. Just in time.
As he reached her there was a flash of light high to his side, a distinctive splintering of light where there should have been none as the fading sun struck against glass. The splintering of the tree bark as Nik jerked Mikayla to him and threw them both to the ground as the sharp retort of a sniper's rifle cracked through the air.
"Move!" Nik didn't give Mikayla a chance to move on her own despite the order. Hooking his arm around her waist, he jerked her from the ground as the next bullet struck the ground at the exact spot her head had been and he pulled her around the tree, in front of the Jeep, then raced for the house.
Another round hit the cement of the sidewalk just ahead of him as he threw them both into the house, adrenaline and sudden racing terror streaking through him as Mikayla collapsed against the wall, a streak of red against her face, on her pretty, creamy blouse.
"Mikayla." Her name was a harsh, broken sound as he jerked the edges of her blouse apart, searching for a wound. There was none there. Nothing. Just blood. Blood on her face, her head.
"Ah, God. Mikayla. Mikayla." She was staring up at him in horror, her eyes wide, shocked, the black nearly filling the amethyst color as her hand lifted to her head, the golden color stained.
His hands were shaking. Sweet Lord. Ah, God. She had to be okay.
"Wood." Her voice was strangled. "I think it hit me." She touched her head again, her fingertips coming back marred red as she stared at them. They began shaking like a leaf at an oncoming storm. She lifted her gaze to him once more.
"Please," she whispered. "Please don't let them kill me, Nik. Please." A tear fell. A single drop of fear and pain that slid slowly down her too-white face to mix with the smear of blood on her cheek.
Fear raked across his soul. Only once in his life had he ever known anything approaching the sheer agony, the horror, that filled him now. 80
He had no weapon but the small snub-nosed pistol secured just inside the top of his boot. It was no match for a sniper. And there was blood on his woman. His woman.
He wasn't going anywhere. Not until he found who Mikayla saw that day, and who sudd
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Chapter 8
Nik escaped just after midnight, Mikayla's father's vow that he wasn't leaving his daughter alone giving Nik the chance he needed to make a little visit. Only one person had reason to want to silence Mikayla, and that was Maddix himself. He knew Nik was leaving the job unfinished. Just as he knew that Mikayla wouldn't stop trying to prove he had killed Eddie Foreman.
If it wasn't Maddix, then someone close to him. Someone who feared she would prove Maddix guilty. Or was it someone trying to make it appear as though Maddix had grown tired of her accusations?
The possibilities were becoming endless, and it was time to begin eliminating them.
Fury was cold and silent inside Nik. A murderous rage that he had only felt once in his life, burning in his soul. God help the shooter when Nik got his hands on him, and he would find him. And he'd kill him. Slowly.
The sight of Mikayla's blood would live in Nik's nightmares.
The police had been very little help, and that had only served to piss him off further. She had on more than one occasion called the chief of police a liar when he'd given Maddix an alibi. That had placed her in a very tenuous position now that she needed help from that same police force.
After Nik slipped into Maddix's gated community, it didn't take long to slide into his backyard and make his way to the glass patio doors that led to Maddix's study. The chief of police's car was sitting at the front of the house, which meant Maddix had been warned about the shooting, as Nik had known he would be. Hagerstown was a fairly large city, but some things just got around fast.
"Goddamn, Daniel! What the hell are your men trying to prove?" Maddix's voice rose in fury. "Son of a fucking bitch, get them under control!" Maddix's tone suggested panic. His eyes were filled with confused astonishment, his expression furious.
"Dammit, Maddix, don't tell me how to do my fucking job," the chief growled back at him. "And what the hell do you expect from my men? How many times has that little bitch called me a liar? She insults the whole police force when she does that."
"I don't care if she personally insults every son-of-a-bitching man on the force, their ancestors, descendants, and future in-laws," Maddix yelled back, his hands flattening on the sleek cherrywood of the desk he stood behind. "Do something!" Nik slipped to the entrance into the empty living room, his lips thinning at the piss-poor security of Maddix's home even as he took advantage of it. Slipping through the darkness, he made his way to the heavy wood door that barred the study. Thankfully, it wasn't locked. Not that it would have posed much of a problem.
"Look, Maddix, she's bringing this trouble down on herself."
"Fuck you, Daniel!" Maddix sounded as though he were ready to have a stroke. 82
"Find the bastard. Now."
Nik stepped into the room. "And when you find him, I want him." Nik was armed. The Glock he carried easily in his hand wasn't missed as the chief of police turned to Nik in shock and Maddix sat down heavily in his chair.
"Thank God," Maddix muttered, shaking his hand as he pushed his fingers through his hair, not for the first time. "Is she okay?" Nik closed the door, locking it carefully behind him as he faced the two men.
"Your chief didn't tell you?" The icy fury threatened to escape. Maddix lifted his gaze to Daniel questioningly.
"It was minor," the chief snapped. "A scratch, nothing more."
"Sweet Lord," Maddix whispered. Leaning forward, he braced his arms on his desk and stared back at Nik. "She's going to be okay?"
"I told you it was a damned scratch, Maddix," Daniel snarled, his large, wideboned face flushing in anger. "Do you think I'd lie to you?"
"What I think is that you'd encourage your men to take less care with Mikayla Martin than any other citizen in this town," Nik answered for Maddix. "Your detective was less than thorough and your crime scene unit negligent. Trust me when I say I'll make certain you pay for it."
"God, Daniel," Maddix muttered again. "You can't handle this in such a manner. You have to take care of her."
"I can't control this, Maddix," the chief argued. "Hell, she's pissed off the entire force. You can't handle it, either."
" I'll handle it," Nik assured them.
It was already being handled. The phone calls Nik had made on the way over had ensured that the situation would receive its own special investigation.
"Why the hell are you here anyway?" Chief Riley snapped, his lips thin, his hazel eyes sparking in outrage. "I don't need you or anyone else telling me about my men or how they should do their jobs."
"I disagree." Nik shrugged. "And you can leave. It's not you I need to talk to."
"Like hell."
"Go, Daniel. You're about as much help as your men were tonight," Maddix growled.
Daniel threw Maddix and Nik both a furious glower before stalking to the door. It took the chief a moment to unlock it before he slammed it heavily behind him. Nik holstered the Glock as he turned, relocked the door, then faced Maddix once again.
"Someone almost killed her tonight, Maddix," Nik said, his voice low, murderous intent clear in his tone. "I don't like how this game is going."
"And you think I do?" Maddix nearly came out of his chair in outrage. "God, Nik, if she dies, the whole world is going to believe I'm behind it. Do you think I'd be that fucking insane?"
Nik moved to the leather chair facing the desk and sat down slowly, propping his ankle on the opposite knee as he stared back at the other man for long moments.
"I think desperate men employ desperate measures," Nik finally answered.
"Fortunately, I also don't think you're desperate yet. Which leaves it up to me to figure out who is. Who is so determined to take you down?"
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Maddix leaned back in his chair, an air of exhaustion surrounding him.
"Hell, just every competitor I have. I've managed to snag some prime contracts in the past years. It's caused several other companies to feel the pinch. But nothing could be pinching them this bad. I know the owners of those companies, Nik--"
"We'll get to that," Nik broke in. "My job now is to protect Mikayla. That means finding out who murdered Eddie Foreman. I find that person, then I find the man who nearly put a bullet in her head. And when I do find him, you won't have to worry about him causing any further problems."
Maddix swallowed tightly.
"Now, we're going to go under the assumption for the moment that you didn't kill Eddie and that Mikayla isn't lying. She believes she saw you. That leads to the question, who looks like you?"
Maddix shook his head fiercely. "Not even my son resembles me. I take after my mother's side of the family, and she's an only child. There aren't even any cousins on that side."
"Illegitimate cousins or brothers?" Nik asked.
"Hell no. As much money as I make, I'd know if there were any. They crawl out like cockroaches when you have money."
Nik stared back at Maddix thoughtfully. It had been worth asking. He'd had to rule it out before he could begin his own investigation.
"I'll need any information you have on Eddie as well as the investigation your police department has put into this case, no later than tomorrow afternoon."
"I can do better than that." Maddix reached to a drawer at the side of his desk. "I have the file. Daniel has kept it updated as well. I've gone over every inch of it, though I can't find anything that points to anyone in particular, Nik. There are no suspects. No one saw anything except Mikayla, and I swear to God, she didn't see me there." He pulled the file free. It was easily three inches thick. At least the police department had been doing something.
Nik took the file, glancing at it for just a second before tucking it under his arm and staring back at Maddix emotionlessly.
"Keep Luke away from her," Nik finally ordered the older man icily. "If he comes around her again, Maddix, he's going to get hurt."
Maddix sighed heavily. "He liked her an awful lot, Nik. Despite appearances, this hit Luke hard."
"I think he's a spoiled little bastard and the only thing that hit him hard was the fact that he couldn't fuck her. Keep him the hell away from her, or I'll fuck him up. Are we understood?"
Maddix swallowed tightly. "I'll make certain he stays away from her." Giving a quick nod, Nik turned and left the room, disappearing into the shadows of the house and exiting out the way he had come.
He had his work cut out for him.
There were no easy answers here, and no suspects. All he had was a woman he knew was innocent, a friend he suspected was innocent, and a game with no rules. Fortunately, those games were the only games Nik played well.
"Mikayla?" Deirdre's voice outside Mikayla's door held a hint of warning. Mikayla lifted her attention from the dress form and the ball gown hanging on it. 84
"Yes, Deirdre?"
The door opened as Deirdre peeked in apologetically. "Um, there's someone here demanding to talk to you."
"Who?" There was an edge of irritation in her voice and she couldn't help it. She so didn't want to have to deal with Luke again.
"Me."
Nope, not Luke, but perhaps just as bad.
Glenda Nelson stepped into the room. Maddix's trophy wife. She was easily twenty years younger than he, model gorgeous with her dark cocoa skin and shoulderlength raven black hair. Deep, dark brown eyes stared back at Mikayla with a hint of anxiety rather than the animosity she would have expected.
Glenda was just as arrogant as always, though. Pushing past Deirdre, she entered the room, looking around the large sewing area curiously before turning back to Mikayla with a haughty air.
"We need to talk," Glenda stated.
"I have this, Deirdre," Mikayla assured her. "Go on back to the shop." Mikayla waited until the door closed before turning back to the other woman.
"What can I do for you, Glenda?" she asked wearily. "If you're here to throw your own little fit like Luke did, then I don't want to hear it." Glenda shook her head with a grimace as her chocolate brown eyes seemed to darken further. "I heard about the shooting last night. I was worried, and concerned."
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