by Kaylea Cross
“I’m former Army too, and I have connections of my own. So yeah, I found out what happened that day. But your cowardly actions didn’t just kill Cole.” She shook her head, eyes glittering with unshed tears, voice shaking as she continued. “I lost my fiancé, and four days later I lost our baby, too. The only part of him I had left. Well fuck you, Captain Hollister. I’m going to kill your girlfriend while you watch, so you can feel the same pain I did, and then you can finally rot in hell where you—”
“Beck?” The familiar voice came from off to the left. Far away enough that Noah must not have heard the woman ranting.
Shit. Beckett darted a glance to the left as the woman spun to face the direction of Noah’s voice. He had to answer. “To your right,” he called back, firming his grip on the pistol. He would have only a second to aim and fire if he got a shot.
The woman jerked back around to face Beckett, face pale and pinched, Sierra still held in front of the woman, the pistol muzzle to her head.
“I’m not alone,” Beckett said in a calm voice, fighting the urge to charge. With that pistol against Sierra’s temple, only a headshot would end this before the woman could fire, and he didn’t have the angle. Might not get it. “I’ve got the sheriff and another vet with me, and they’re armed. So put the pistol down and let Sierra go. Let her go and we’ll talk.”
“You think I’d want to talk to you?” The woman’s mouth tightened, fury burning in her fanatical gaze. “Fuck. You.”
She was going to pull the trigger. He could see it in her eyes.
A howl of pain and fury gathered in his chest.
“Drop your weapon and put your hands up. Now,” Jase said, appearing out of the trees to the right.
The woman whipped to face Jase, giving Beckett a target for a fleeting moment.
Blocking out that it was Sierra she was holding, he raised his weapon and fired.
The shot exploded through the forest as a mist of blood spattered the leaves. The woman dropped, dragging Sierra to the ground with her.
Beckett charged forward, heart in his throat.
The soles of his shoes thudded against the forest floor as he ran at the kidnapper, weapon up, finger on the trigger. From the corner of his eye he saw Jase rushing toward him but he wasn’t taking his eye off the woman. She lay crumpled on the ground with her eyes half-open, a hole just above her left eye.
Before he could reach her Sierra twisted away from the woman and rolled to her bound feet, but stumbled and fell in her haste to get away.
“Sierra.” Beckett shoved his weapon into the back of his waistband and skidded to his knees in front of her to gather her up in his arms. “Christ. Christ.”
She made a choked sound and buried her face in his shoulder. Beckett fought to get his breathing under control as he fumbled with the cord binding her wrists behind her. As soon as it came loose he reached up and pulled the tape off her mouth as quickly and gently as he could.
“Beckett,” she whispered, and grabbed him tight.
“Shh, I’ve got you. I’ve got you. Everything’s okay now.” Beckett crushed her to him with a groan, burying one hand in her hair, keeping her face tucked tight to his shoulder to prevent her from seeing the woman’s body beside them.
Jase and Noah reached them almost simultaneously, scanning the area for more threats. “Are you okay?” Jase asked her.
Beckett closed his eyes. Jesus, he’d come so close to losing her. But he couldn’t handle thinking about that right now. He had to take care of Sierra. “She’s okay,” he told them. “She’s all right.”
“Was she alone?” Noah demanded.
“Yes,” Sierra answered, holding on tight. “Oh, God, she sh-shot Macy.”
It was over.
“I’ve got you,” Beckett murmured against her hair. “I’m getting you out of here right now.”
He scooped Sierra up in his arms and started away from the body, carrying her through the forest as fast as he could. Noah and Jase could handle everything else. Beckett’s only concern right now was Sierra and getting her the hell out of here.
Chapter Twenty-Three
“Sierra. Look at me, sweetness.”
It was the endearment that managed to penetrate the numbing fog of shock enveloping her. She forced her eyes open and lifted her head from Beckett’s shoulder to look into his face.
His harsh expression eased a fraction as he scanned her anxiously. “Are you hurt?”
She shook her head once. “N-no. Just c-cold.” She was shaking apart, her teeth chattering even though she was in Beckett’s arms, safe in his living room with the spring sunshine streaming through the windows.
He lifted her off his lap and set her next to him on the couch to reach down and untie her ankles. As soon as she was free he sat back up and took her face in his hands, studying her.
She wrapped her fingers around his thick wrists, needing the anchor. Staring into his worried dark eyes, all the fear she’d been battling collapsed under a rush of combined relief and sadness. She crumpled.
Beckett made a low sound and cupped the back of her head as she buried her face in his neck, the tears breaking free. He didn’t try to quiet her or tell her not to cry, simply held her, rocking her slightly from side to side while she fought to come to terms with what she’d just survived.
She was glad Natalie was dead, but she would never forget what had happened today, or those endless moments while she’d stared across the space at Beckett and thought she was about to die while he watched…
She shuddered, gulped in a choppy breath. “I couldn’t d-do anything,” she gasped out. That’s what bothered her the most. She hadn’t been able to do a goddamn thing to stop it—any of it—or protect either of them.
“I know.”
“I t-tried,” she said, needing him to know that. The thought of him thinking she was weak and useless in that kind of situation was beyond bearing. “I f-fought her. But I…c-couldn’t get away.”
“Don’t,” he said softly. “Don’t blame yourself. This wasn’t your fault. None of it. And you were so goddamn brave, you did exactly what I asked you to.” He rested his cheek on the top of her head.
“She k-killed Macy. Shot her dead right in f-front of me, like she was nothing.”
“I know. I’m so damn sorry.”
Oh, God, it was all so awful. And Beckett… He’d just had his father’s funeral hours ago. Now this. She shuddered.
“You’re safe now. It’s all over, and I’ve got you.”
Sierra gulped in a steadying breath, let it ripple through her, her jerky muscles slowly relaxing. She blocked out all the awful memories and focused on Beckett.
His clean, masculine scent. The heat of his body. The feel of his strong arms around her and the steady thump of his heart beneath her ear.
He had her. Wouldn’t let anything happen to her. She was safe now. They both were.
They looked up at the sound of footsteps on the front porch. Noah walked in, Jase right behind him.
Sierra sat up, reached for her brother as he knelt in front of her to pull her into a hug. “You all right, honey?”
“I’m okay,” she whispered. Easing back, she searched his face, worried. “What happens now?”
He smoothed a hand over her hair. “My guys have taken over so I could come check on you. I know you’re not up to it right now, but I’m going to need you to come in so we can get a full report on record.” He glanced at Beckett. “Sure she doesn’t need an ambulance?”
“No,” she protested, leaning closer to Beckett. “I’m fine. Scrapes and bruises, nothing else.”
Her brother studied her for a long moment, then relented with a nod. “All right.” He stood and spoke to Beckett. “I gotta get back to the scene. Need to talk to you first, though. Alone.”
Sierra bit back the protest that wanted to burst free. Beckett had killed Natalie. Under the circumstances he wouldn’t be in any trouble legally, but as sheriff, Noah had to make sure this was all handl
ed according to procedure, no matter if Beckett was his best friend or she was his sister.
Beckett kissed her cheek, his lips warm, chasing away more of the chill. “Sit tight. Be back in a few minutes,” he murmured, and eased her off his lap. “Jase, you stay with her.”
“Hey, angel face,” Jase said, sinking down beside her and wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “You hanging in there?”
“Yes.” For the most part. She just couldn’t believe this had happened, and wanted the whole nightmare to be over with. She had so many questions, most of them for Beckett. The timing was beyond shitty. How much could a man take before he broke?
“I’ve called Molly. She’s on her way right now.”
Sierra nodded, a heavy weight of fatigue beginning to settle over her. She sighed and leaned into Jase’s strong body, beginning to shut down inside. “I want a shower,” she mumbled. She might have blood spatter on her. She shivered.
“You can take one as soon as Molly gets here.”
Thankfully Molly arrived a few minutes later and immediately took charge. She followed Sierra upstairs while she showered and dressed, then wrapped her up in a blanket without any fuss and brought her some sweetened tea to help counteract the adrenaline crash. Sierra sat with her and Jase until Beckett came back half an hour later.
Her friends immediately got up to make room for him, but Beckett didn’t sit next to her on the couch. Instead he bundled her up, blanket and all, and carried her upstairs.
He laid her down on his bed, stretched out beside her and pulled her into his body. Sierra groaned and wiggled in closer, starving for the contact. His arms locked around her, hard, and the fierce pressure was exactly what she needed. The anxiety began to bleed away, her pulse slowing.
Her mind refused to stay quiet, however. “Was it true?” she finally asked him in the quiet. Jase and Molly were both still downstairs, she hadn’t heard either of them leave, but they wouldn’t disturb them here. “What Natalie said? She said that was her name. I don’t know if she was lying or not. Was it true? About you letting her fiancé and the others die?”
He stilled, his whole body going rigid.
A few beats of silence passed. Sierra heaved a sigh, dread and annoyance filling her. “Beckett. I need you to talk to me. I can’t do this if you won’t talk to me.”
She was about to push away from him and roll over when he finally spoke. “Yeah. It’s true.”
The admission surprised her. She kept her face tucked into his shoulder, instinctively knowing that looking him in the eye would make it impossible for him to talk about this. She needed him to tell her this. “What happened?”
“It was during my final deployment, in Syria. Jase was with me. We were on an op to observe American hostages. Cole Goodman was one of them. Army vet.” He was quiet a moment. “We might have been able to stop it, or at least mitigate the body count, but command refused our request to intervene. So we stayed put and watched through our binos while they all died by firing squad.”
Sierra winced. God, that must have been awful. “Is that what you dream about when you have nightmares?”
“Partly. But that wasn’t the first time I’ve watched people die without stopping it. And there were plenty of others I tried to save and couldn’t.” He swallowed. “That’s what I dream about.”
She reached a hand around him to stroke his back. His muscles were rigid. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”
“I didn’t want you to know. Ever. None of this was ever supposed to touch you,” he said, a dark edge to his voice.
Sierra heard the self-hatred in it. “What happened today wasn’t your fault.”
He snorted. “Yes it was.”
“No.” She refused to let him do this to himself. Squeezing him tighter, she implored him to see reason. “You followed orders and took care of your men. If you’d disobeyed you would have been up for a court martial.”
“Maybe, but then none of this would have happened. Macy would still be alive, and you wouldn’t have been taken captive and held at gunpoint.”
He wasn’t going to listen to her, no matter what she said. But she had to try. “Natalie made her choice when she pulled that trigger. But how did she know about you? How did she find out what happened?”
“I don’t know, but I’m gonna find out. That mission was highly classified. Someone must have leaked the intel to her. Maybe someone in intelligence. Maybe a politician, who knows.”
“I’m glad she’s dead. But I’m sorry you were the one who had to do it.” And thank God he hadn’t missed. That had been one hell of a precise shot he’d delivered. A few inches off and he might have hit her instead.
“I’m not.” He rolled away from her a little, cupped her cheek in his hand to look into her eyes. “I told you, I would do anything to protect you. Anything. If that means laying down my own life, then so be it.”
Tears burned her eyes. “Don’t say that. Losing you would kill me.”
“You’re not going to lose me. Even if you deserve a helluva lot better than me.”
She shot him an outraged look. “Don’t say that either. It insults both of us, because it’s not true. At all.”
He shook his head once, his gaze softening. “Sierra, I love you. I’m in love with you, and I can’t imagine my life without you in it. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to keep you safe.”
She hitched in a breath, the tears breaking free. “I love you too. Have for a long time.” She grabbed him, hugged him tight. “And you just turned the worst day of my life into the best one.”
****
Beckett had never been more thankful for anything in his life as he lay holding Sierra while the afternoon light began to fade outside the bedroom windows. She dozed for a bit, but there was no way he could sleep after what had happened.
She loved him. She loved him even though he still wasn’t sure he deserved it, and he’d damn near lost her today.
After a time she stirred, and he knew the moment it all came rushing back to her because she sucked in a sharp breath. “Hey,” he murmured, kissing her forehead, his hands stroking up and down her spine. “I’m here.”
She melted into his hold. “What time is it?”
“Almost seven. You hungry?”
“No.”
“We need to go in and talk to Noah. You up to it?” They should have gone immediately but Noah had bent the rules for them. Especially for Beckett, because of their long friendship and because he’d saved Sierra.
She sighed. “Yes. I’d rather get it over with.”
When she was ready he took her into town to talk to Noah. After giving their statements and wrapping everything up, as expected there were no charges laid and they were both free to go. He called his former superiors, alerting them to what Natalie Tenant had done and found out. They had promised to look into it and inform him of what they found.
Beckett took Sierra straight back to his place, where Jase had dropped off the takeout Beckett had asked him to pick up from her favorite restaurant. Sierra took a long, hot shower, ate with him at the kitchen table, and then crawled into his lap to wrap her arms around his neck. Beckett scooped an arm under her butt and carried her upstairs, his mouth finding hers while she twined her legs around his waist.
By the time he reached his room he was rock hard and desperate to be inside her. They undressed each other, stroked and tasted and teased until neither of them could take it anymore.
Beckett gathered her beneath him, settled between her open thighs and propped himself up on his forearms to gaze down at her. She was a gift he had never expected to receive, one that had almost been taken from him today. He needed to bury himself deep inside her to ease the beast roaring inside him.
“I love you, Sierra.” More than he could ever express in words.
A soft smile spread across her face. “Show me.”
He did. With every kiss, every stroke of his hands and surge of his hips.
He worshipped her, brought h
er to the edge twice, waiting until she was gasping and pleading before he slid his thumb over the swollen bud of her clit and stroked his cock along her inner sweet spot. She moved underneath him like a gentle wave, her face so beautiful as she came undone, her body locked around him.
Raw possessiveness exploded inside him. She was his, and no one was taking her from him. Ever. “All mine, sweetness,” he ground out, the pleasure of being held within her like this turning his voice guttural.
“Yes.” Those gorgeous deep blue eyes focused on his, full of love and a possessiveness all their own. “And you’re mine.”
A growl ripped out of him, primal and fierce. He took her mouth, drove into her again and again as release seared along his nerve endings. She held him tight, thighs locked around his waist, fingers digging into his scalp.
And while he lay helpless in her arms recovering, she enfolded him with her body and covered his neck, shoulders and face with sweet kisses that made his heart clench. Her words from earlier came back to him.
This had been his worst day too, but had somehow ended up his best. All because of her.
Lifting his head to look down at her, he stroked his fingers through her soft hair. She knew the worst about him now, and hadn’t turned away. Instead she’d opened her heart even wider and tucked him inside it. “Just so we’re clear, I want forever with you. A family someday, the works.”
A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth, even as her eyebrows drew together in a frown. “Are you asking, or telling?”
“Whichever gets me the answer I want.”
Her teeth flashed white in the growing darkness as she grinned up at him. “Well, if you’re asking, then my answer is yes. Because that sounds perfect to me.”
Beckett growled in triumph and sealed her promise with a deep, thorough kiss.
Epilogue
Five weeks later
Sierra paused in the midst of rinsing off the colander full of fresh local strawberries to glance out the window above the sink. She smiled as she glimpsed Beckett’s truck pull into the driveway, back from getting groceries.
