Crashing Into Jake

by Sara Blackard

  Crashing Into Jake

  Stryker Security Force

  Sara Blackard

  Copyright © 2020 Sara Blackard

  For more information on this book and the author visit: https://www.sarablackard.com

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  Editor Raneé S. Clark with Sweetly Us Press.

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  Cover Designed by MethodMike.

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  Author photo by Michele Flagen https://micheleflagenphotography.pixieset.com

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  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Want to know how it all began? Find out what propelled Zeke and the team to create the Stryker Security Force by signing up for Sara Blackard’s newsletter, and you’ll receive Mission Out of Control, the Stryker Security Force prequel for FREE.

  www.sarablackard.com

  One

  Chloe Rose leaned over the table and snagged a French fry from her cousin Piper’s basket, striking when the server came and distracted Piper. Chloe put the end of the fry in her mouth and crunched the tip off. She closed her eyes and moaned as the salty goodness filled her mouth.

  “I saw that.” Piper cocked her eyebrow from across the table.

  “I know, I know. They just looked so tempting.” Chloe’s shoulders slumped slightly as she placed the fry on a napkin.

  “You’ll get sick.” Piper took a drink of water and glanced around to hide her concern, but Chloe still saw it in the way her cousin bit her lip. Piper wasn’t very good at hiding her emotions.

  “It’s just a little taste, not even a real bite. I’ll be fine.” Hopefully. She took a gulp of iced tea to wash the possible poison down.

  “I’m sorry, Chlo. I should’ve ordered the salad, too.” Piper glared at her pot roast sandwich like it was the devil.

  If Chloe could eat it, she’d have the thing half gone by now. Of course, if her body didn’t turn gluten into poison because of her severe celiac disease, the tempting plate wouldn’t be so tantalizing. But then, the forbidden always drew people in.

  “Stop. You know how I hate that.” Chloe pointed her fork at Piper. “Eat that plate of goodness. Enjoy it, please. Besides, we can always stake out the grocery store later for some sinful treats we can both indulge in.”

  Piper smiled as she rolled her eyes. “You forget, I’m already cheating. I’m supposed to be eating healthy, not downing heart-attacks on a plate. I’ll be eating salads for the next two weeks because of this bad boy.” She lifted the dripping sandwich to her mouth and took a big bite. Her eyes widened, and she spoke around her food. “So worth it.”

  They both dissolved into giggles as Piper attempted to keep the bite from flying out of her mouth. Chloe hated that Piper thought she needed to eat healthy all the time, though she guessed she understood why. Being teased mercilessly as a kid for being a little on the heavy side would do that to a woman. Yet, Chloe failed miserably at keeping her jealousy over Piper’s womanly curves and flowing dark brown hair stifled. Chloe yearned for, but probably would never have, curves men would drool over. Just mosquito bites for breasts and a flat backside. Thanks for nothing, celiac.

  Most people didn’t even give her celiac disease more than a “that sucks” thought. Not Piper. She was conscious of everything. She never brought gluten home to the apartment they shared. Rarely ordered gluten when they went out to eat. That was just one reason Chloe loved Piper so much. The fact that her sweet cousin had ordered the sandwich revealed how stressful the last few days had been on her.

  Chloe relaxed into the booth seat and took a bite of her grilled chicken salad. When the director for the Winter Wondergrass music festival had called and begged her and her band to fill in for a last-minute cancellation on the main stage, it had been exactly what they needed. Any time she could get a gig, she jumped on it. There was no telling which one might catapult her budding career through the roof. It was a bummer they hadn’t had enough time to scrounge up any other performances in the area. As Chloe’s manager, Piper did wonders, but she wasn’t a miracle worker.

  Too bad the relief wasn’t just for a fresh performance opportunity. Chloe shivered and turned her thoughts away from the odd messages being left on their business phone line. She and Piper were probably just overreacting. Chloe didn’t have the fame to draw a stalker. Not yet, at least.

  She loved the warmth that determination spread through her body. It drove her, had from the moment she’d lain in the hospital bed through most of her senior year with a diagnosis after years of being sick. Her body had cannibalized itself to the brink of death. It was amazing the destruction a microscopic protein could wreak.

  “So, now that we’re in beautiful Steamboat Springs, Colorado for the next week, what the heck are we going to do?” Chloe ticked off the reality of the situation on her fingers. “It’s cold as all get-out. We’ve never skied, never ice skated, never snowshoed. We have time to waste for once, but we’re stuck in winter wonderland.”

  “It does pose a problem. Too bad we aren’t more outdoorsy.” Piper smiled at Chloe in the way that always got them into trouble as children. “There’s supposed to be some good shopping downtown. You might need a new outfit for the concert Friday.” She wiggled her eyebrows up and down.

  Chloe loved shopping, and from the artsy-fartsy atmosphere they’d experienced in Steamboat so far, she could do some real damage here. While it might be superficial, there were some benefits to having parents that covered their inability to cope with her illness by giving her a ridiculously large trust fund.

  Her parents hadn’t ever really wanted kids, which was why they had stopped at one. Oh, they never came right out and said it, but leaving every summer for months of “business” vacations without Chloe had clued her in pretty quickly.

  She’d had a pretty lonely childhood until Piper and her brother Davis came to live with her after their parents died. Having two more kids hadn’t seemed to slow down her parents’ travels. If anything, they’d been gone more. Then, when Chloe’s illness had finally landed her in the hospital after years of being sick for no apparent reason, she’d felt the burden she placed upon her parents more heavily than ever before. They had always claimed she was being a hypochondriac just to get their attention. Surprise, surprise when she ended up having a real-life chronic illness that almost killed her.

  While her parents’ money had given her the best care, it hadn’t immediately fixed the problem. Then after she was better, her parents’ relief that life was back to normal had been celebrated with a large bank account opened in her name.

  Money fixed everything, at least to her parents’ way of thinking. So while she wouldn’t allow her father to buy her way into the music industry, she wasn’t up to starving while doing it the good old-fashioned way. She’d already starved once in her life. She’d never do that again. Or have her closet suffer.

  “Shopping it is.” Chloe rubbed her hands in anticipation. “Forget about those calories you’re so worried over. We’re shopping so much they’ll fall off.”

  “Ugh. I wish. My luck, we’ll have to buy me a whole new wardrobe after this disaster.”

  Chloe rolled her eyes at Piper’s comment about her food, while adrenaline rushed through Chloe’s body at the opportunity her unsuspecting cousin had just given. “Just remember, you asked for it.”

  Piper’s hand stopped halfway to her mouth, dropping ketchup from her fry to the table. “Wait. What? I think I missed something.”

  “A new wardrobe.”

  “Nope. Not going to happen.
You know how much I hate trying on clothes.” Piper shook her head and stuffed the fry into her mouth.

  “Yes, dear cousin, but I also know you’ve been wearing the same handful of outfits for the last ten years.” Chloe leaned over the table to drive the point home. “I need my manager looking her best. You are my representative, right? If I have to play the part of country sweetheart, so do you.”

  The dowdy outfits that made Piper look frumpy had to go. She needed to realize what a hottie she was. Chloe’s mission for the day became plain. Operation Piper Makeover would be in full effect as soon as they finished stuffing their faces.

  When they ended their meals, Chloe dragged Piper to the rental car. She slumped dejectedly in her seat. Chloe ignored the pouting as she took off for Lincoln Avenue. The waitress had assured them they’d find plenty of shopping there.

  Chloe whipped into a parking spot in front of a boutique and turned in her seat to face Piper. “I know you don’t want to do this, but it’s time. Please, just trust me. When have I ever steered you wrong?”

  “What about the time you got me stuck in the elm tree?”

  “That doesn’t count.” Chloe rolled her eyes. Piper always loved to bring that up.

  “Or the time you convinced me to go skinny dipping, and my brother and Rafe caught us?”

  Chloe cringed. Okay. That had been pretty bad. Especially since Piper had a major crush on her brother’s best friend.

  Piper took a deep breath and continued. “Remember the time—”

  “Those times don’t count and you know it.” Chloe cut her off before she could continue the lengthy list of trouble. “You got me in a fair share of pickles when we were growing up as well. You know I’m talking about when it really matters. We’ve never let each other down. Ever. I promise I won’t let you down now.”

  Nuts. She hadn’t meant to get all emotional with her voice cracking and vision glazing over with tears. Chloe meant this to be fun. But the way Piper had a death grip on the door handle waved a big, red flag that fun didn’t describe this activity. Chloe just wanted to see Piper finally get over the bullying she’d had to endure and embrace the amazing woman she was. Fancy clothes could never change a person, but it might just give her the confidence needed to see herself in a different light.

  Chloe pushed Piper’s hair behind her ear. “Come on, Pip. Let me show you what I see when I look at you.”

  Piper swallowed. “If I hate it, we don’t buy a thing.”

  “Fair enough. If you love it, we have a bonfire with your old clothes as the fuel.”

  Piper turned away and narrowed her eyes at the boutique. She stuck her thumbnail in her mouth and bit it. Chloe prayed that her cousin would say yes, that Chloe could pay back a minuscule part of what Piper had done for her. Though clothes and a fresh look couldn’t compare to the love and support Piper had always given, even when everyone else said Chloe wasn’t well enough to chase her dream.

  “Okay.” Piper gave one firm nod. “But I get to light the match.”

  Chloe squealed and hugged Piper tightly over the console. “This will be so much fun.”

  “For you, maybe. For me it’ll be torture,” Piper countered, but Chloe didn’t miss the suppressed smile behind the grimace.

  “Come on. We’re roasting marshmallows tonight.”

  “You do know you probably shouldn’t roast food over burning clothes, right?”

  Chloe shrugged. “Enough dawdling. We’ve got shops to conquer.”

  Three hours later, Chloe pulled into the drive of the house her father had insisted on renting for them when she’d told him of her gig. It was huge, with five bedrooms and more space than two people could ever use. It was ridiculous that her father also rented a different house entirely for the band, though it was nice to have this time with just Piper. Lately, the whole traveling band thing had taxed on her.

  “Okay, I’m not sure if I can make it up the stairs to the door. My feet hurt that bad.” Piper groaned in the passenger seat as she rotated her feet.

  Chloe peered up the steps that earlier had seemed picturesque, but now looked like torture, and slumped. “Think we can get all the bags up in one trip?”

  “It’s worth a try. If we end up dropping some, at least they’ll be closer than coming all the way back to the car.”

  Chloe popped the trunk, and they both threaded as many bags as their arms could carry. The straps cut into her muscle, and the load weighed so much she could hardly lift her arms. Maybe this wasn’t such an excellent idea.

  “Don’t think. Just go.” Piper nudged her toward the front door.

  As they got to the bottom of the stairs, Piper’s phone started singing Mac Davis’s old song, It’s Hard to be Humble. Chloe laughed as Piper twisted to get into her handbag. Chloe wished she could reach her own phone just to take a video. Would the owners let them watch the security feed if this ended in an inevitable debacle?

  “Just leave it. You can call him back.” Chloe trudged up the steps.

  “You know how hard it is to talk to my brother. I’ll never get him again if I don’t answer now.” Piper grunted, then smiled in triumph as she pulled out her phone.

  Calls from Piper’s brother Davis were few and far between, with him being in the military. He tried to call every few weeks or so, but the time between calls had been closer to a month this time. After their parents had died in a car accident, the brother and sister had become closer than peas nestled in a pod. Missing a call was not an option for Piper.

  “Hey, Davis. You’re on speaker.” Piper’s breathless voice made Chloe chuckle.

  “Hey, Pipster. What’s got you panting like you just ran a mile?” Davis Field’s smooth, low tone always soothed over Chloe’s frazzled nerves.

  It was too bad they didn’t make more men like him. Then maybe finding someone who’d be willing to put up with her issues wouldn’t seem so daunting.

  “Shopping. Lots and lots of shopping.” Piper panted.

  “Chloe on a binge again?”

  “Hey! I’ll have you know most of this is Piper’s.”

  She got to the top of the stairs and noticed a paper taped to the door. The managers must’ve needed to leave some paperwork or something. Piper’s gasp and the thud of her bags dropping turned Chloe from the words written in marker she had started to read. Piper’s face had turned white as the snow that surrounded them.

  “Piper, what’s wrong?” Davis’s concern came through a second before Chloe opened her mouth to ask.

  She lifted her trembling finger to the note. “He’s found us.”

  “Who’s found you? What’s going on?” Davis practically shouted through the phone.

  Chloe whipped her head back to the note, her eyes skimming over the words. Her stomach bottomed out, and she dropped her bags on the porch.

  You think you can hide from me?

  Chloe scrambled for the key to the door. Unlocking it, she pushed Piper in, then began chucking the bags they’d dropped into the entryway. As she stepped in, she ripped the note off the door and crumpled it into a ball. Perfect fire starter.

  “Piper, talk to me now.” Frustration edged Davis’s normally calm voice.

  “Chloe has been getting some strange text messages on our phone line for the band. We were hoping it was nothing, but it appears he followed us here to Colorado. He just left a note on the front door.”

  “Crap. Okay, listen. I have some friends who served in the Army with me that now run a security firm in Colorado. I’ll call them and get them there as fast as possible.” Davis’s words came out rapid, like Chloe’s heartbeat. “In the meantime, call the police and get them there. Maybe there’s security footage of this guy.”

  “Okay. We’ll do that.” Piper nodded as she clung to the phone.

  “No matter what, don’t open the door to anyone unless you can read their badge number, or they give our password.”

  Piper turned wide eyes Chloe’s way. “Okay.”

  “Love you, Pipster. Y
ou too, Chloe.”

  Piper stared at the black screen on the phone, the excitement of the afternoon that had lit her face leeching out to worry. Chloe turned to close and lock the door with a heavy heart. She’d done it again, brought that weight of apprehension on her cousin’s shoulders. Maybe Chloe should just do like her parents wanted and live a quiet, safe life. Because if it wasn’t her health, it was something else she did to cause the people she loved distress.

  Two

  Jake Silva yanked his hand away from where he rubbed his knee. He’d twisted the prosthetic bottom half while playing chase with his boss’s stepdaughter, Evangeline, earlier, and his knee still ached. The last thing he needed was for the others to witness him nursing it. The worry he’d see in the women’s expressions would pinch, but it would be the guilt he saw in his brothers-in-arms that would turn Jake’s contented mood dark.

  “Uncle Jake, you stopped reading.” Eva peered up at him from where she leaned against his side.

  “Sorry, honey. I got distracted.”

  He’d already read Beauty and the Beast to her three times in the last thirty minutes, yet here he still sat, regaling the precious four-year-old of how Belle’s love changed the beastly prince. He wished Eva still obsessed over Sleeping Beauty. That book didn’t hit so close to home. It wasn’t like the rambunctious girl to stay on one princess for long though, not when there were so many to choose from.

  Eva ran her hand down the picture with a dramatic sigh. “What do you think your princess will look like?”

  “My princess?” Jake forced his voice to not turn gruff. “I thought you were my princess.”

  Eva turned so she sat on her knees facing him, her little fists plopped on her hips. She screwed her face up into what he imagined she thought was mean, but really was just adorable. Man, he loved this girl. The last few months since she and her mother had showed up brought a light to the pit he’d spiraled into.