Protected by a Hero

by Susan Stoker, Cristin Harber, Cora Seton, Lynn Raye Harris, Kaylea Cross, Katie Reus, Tessa Layne

“Rude?”

  He started to laugh then and her face flamed. God, what a stupid answer. What a stupid, stupid answer.

  “The right response if you don’t want to fuck someone is either to say no or to knee him in the balls. But use the knee only if he won’t take no for an answer. And I would have, believe me. I’m not some mindless asshole who’s ruled by his dick. I kinda like the woman to want me too.”

  “I’ll make note of that.” She sounded prim and he laughed even harder. Really, was it too much to ask to disappear into the sand below the vehicle right about now? Why couldn’t she just shrug it off and tell him no big deal? Or, even better, why couldn’t she drag him back to her and tell him to have his wicked way because she was more than ready?

  He popped open the door and stepped outside. “Go ahead and sleep, Victoria.”

  “Where are you going?”

  “Gonna drive, sweetheart. Unless you’d rather do something else?”

  She couldn’t think of a single thing to say. He shut the door, climbed into the front seat, and started the car. She lay down again, fuming at herself, at him, at the whole situation. She kept trying to think of things to say, a way to redeem herself, but nothing would come. Eventually, the road noise and hum of the engine lulled her to sleep.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  They drove all that day, taking turns, and long into the night. When they pulled over this time, Nick told her to get in the back and he’d stay up front. When she protested that he’d be more comfortable in the back, he gave her a steady look with those gleaming hazel eyes of his.

  “Think it’s best one of us stays on watch,” he said.

  “I don’t disagree. But why does it have to be you?”

  “Why is everything an argument with you?”

  For some reason, that made her smile. “You like it that way and you know it. What would you do with someone who obeyed every command you gave her?”

  He snorted. “I’d give her a lot of filthy commands that she could fulfill.”

  “Pig.”

  “Really? You’re the one who mentioned this theoretical woman obeying all my commands.”

  “Oh, for fuck’s sake, I’ll sleep first,” she grumbled, crawling in the back just to shut him up. Next thing, he’d be telling her what those commands would be—and she didn’t need to hear it.

  They were much farther from Baq than they’d been last night, and the roads out here were less traveled and more dangerous. It didn’t take two days to get to Ras al-Dura because it was so far. It took two days because of the crumbling infrastructure and the roving patrols. But Ian had contacts, and so far they’d sailed through every checkpoint.

  Still, it didn’t pay to forget they were far from help if something happened. Victoria went to sleep much quicker than she expected, only to be awakened by a rough hand what seemed like minutes later.

  “Get up, honey. We gotta move on.”

  “But you didn’t sleep.”

  “You drive. I’ll nap in the passenger seat.”

  She got behind the wheel and headed out onto the road. The sun was still behind the horizon, and the sky was darker tonight because of cloud cover. Nick leaned back in his seat, eyes closed, hands folded over his belly. She didn’t kid herself by thinking he was unaware, however. The handle of a Sig Sauer peeked out of his shoulder holster, and she knew he’d snap awake and draw it in a flash if they encountered trouble.

  Fortunately, they didn’t. They rolled into Ras al-Dura as the call to prayer rang from the minarets of the city’s mosques. It took about fifteen minutes, but they found the apartment where they were supposed to stay. As soon as she saw it, she knew what the target was. She glanced at Nick. He was also studying the big compound across the street with interest. There was a crest on the gate, which indicated that it was an official building. There were two guards stationed on the street, holding machine guns and watching the traffic slide by.

  Whoever they were here for, he was going to be in that building.

  Nick looked grim as she turned into the parking garage attached to the apartment building. “I don’t fucking like this at all.”

  “The job is the job, Nick. It’ll be all right.”

  “Unless Black’s setting us up.”

  She didn’t like to think of that possibility, but she knew he was right. Anything was possible out here. Her gut told her Ian hadn’t known that bin Yusuf had intended to kill her in Akhira, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t on board with the project now. Ian was all about the business and the money, and if selling her out kept the money flowing, then she wasn’t so certain he wouldn’t do it, no matter what he said about her being his best sniper.

  “Do you have a better plan? Because so far as I see it, we’ve been sent to do a job. The job is here. If you and your people want to know what Ian’s up to, you have to complete the job and return to Baq. If we bug out now, it’s over.”

  “I know that. I still don’t like it.”

  She parked the Land Rover and they got out. Nick’s gaze roved the darkened garage, but nothing was out of place and no one came gunning for them out of the shadows.

  “Give me the key to the apartment,” he told her.

  “Why?”

  “Because I’ll go up and check it out, see if it’s safe.”

  “What makes you think I can’t do it?”

  He was a big hulking shape standing over her in the gloom. For a second, she thought he might take the key by force, but then his mouth opened and his teeth flashed white. “Be my guest. I’ll wait here.”

  She seriously thought of doing it, but then she had to acknowledge that if this was a setup, it probably wasn’t the best idea to go strolling upstairs alone. Still, she wasn’t letting him have his way about everything.

  “We’ll go together,” she said, reaching into the Land Rover for her gear.

  He jerked his own bags from the vehicle. “If that’s what you want, honey.”

  They took the elevator up to the fifteenth floor. She glanced over at Nick before the doors opened. His jaw was set and he had his hand on his Sig. The doors slid open… and nothing happened. They exited the elevator into a long hallway. It was quiet as they moved down the corridor. They found the apartment, but before she could put the key in the lock, Nick stopped her.

  “Just a minute,” he said, pulling something from a pocket in his duffel. He took out a white swab and a small item that looked like a tube with a flashlight at one end. Then he proceeded to run the swab over the doorframe and handle before inserting it in the tube and looking at it under the light.

  “Is that an ETD?”

  She could tell he was testing for explosives residue, but she’d certainly never seen a device so small.

  He nodded. Then he dropped the items into the duffel pocket and nodded. “It’s clear. Go ahead and open it.”

  “That’s amazing. Where’d you get it?”

  If that was available on the open market, Ian would have had one. But he didn’t.

  Nick grinned. “We’re well funded. And we get to play with prototypes.”

  She blinked at him. She still didn’t know who we was. She’d thought they were Delta Force, but Nick said they weren’t. Didn’t mean he was telling the truth, but then again, this part about him being here with her and undercover was a bit out of the ordinary. More like the CIA than anything.

  But she didn’t think he was that, either.

  She slid the key into the lock and turned. The door swung open to reveal a long room with two chairs and a small table. The apartment was a corner unit with a sweeping view of the compound across the street. The windows were wide and tall—and they slid open on tracks, which was perfect for access.

  They dropped the gear in the center of the room. Nick went into the adjoining rooms with his bug sweeper.

  “We’re clear,” he said when he returned. “And there’s a bed, so at least we have that.”

  Victoria pushed her hair over her shoulders. “I hope there are towe
ls, though I’m going to shower regardless.”

  “There are.”

  She walked over to the refrigerator and opened it. There was food and water, and she took a bottle out and twisted off the cap. “I need to call Ian and let him know we’re here.”

  Nick’s expression said he wasn’t thrilled about it, but he knew as well as she did that it had to be done. She’d turned her phone off two days ago, and Ian would be pretty pissed if he’d tried to call.

  “Keep it as short as you can.”

  “This isn’t my first rodeo, stud.”

  She went and fished the phone out of her bag and turned it on, her heart hammering on the off chance that Emily had sent a message. She hadn’t liked leaving the phone off, but it had been months, and she’d reasoned with herself that it was highly unlikely Emily would suddenly get in touch now.

  Her phone started beeping with messages once it powered up. She scrolled through them with her heart in her throat, but they were all from Ian.

  She dialed and walked over to the window. Ian picked up right away.

  “Where the fuck have you been?”

  Her already frayed temper spiked. “Driving, asshole, what do you think?”

  “You dropped off the grid.”

  “Nothing unusual about that.” She always went into radio silence on a job, though she usually checked in once a day. She hadn’t done so this time, and he wasn’t happy about it. Or maybe he wasn’t happy for a different reason, such as bin Yusuf was breathing down his neck about being unable to find her.

  Though now that they were here in this apartment, it was like turning on a homing beacon for anyone looking. The resigned expression on Nick’s face said he knew it too. He was busy removing guns from his case, stowing them in easy reach. He also set something that looked like a speaker on the table—she knew it was actually a white-noise device—and then turned back to his gear and kept unpacking.

  “Well, don’t do it again. Jesus, Victoria, what if the target had changed locations? Or what if I had to get critical information to you?”

  “I’ll check in once a day, as always.”

  “Every four hours on this one. And keep the phone on. This one could change fast.”

  She gritted her teeth. “Fine, every four hours. Care to tell me what I’m here for?”

  “I’ll transmit the information when it’s time. How’s the pretty new recruit doing?”

  Victoria swallowed. Pretty? She glanced over at Nick and her belly flipped. Yes, definitely pretty. Gorgeous, in fact. And, whoa, could the man kiss. Parts of her started to tingle. “Fine. Why?”

  Ian chuckled. “Don’t get distracted, Victoria.”

  “What makes you think I would?”

  “You’ve been out here a long time. Gets lonely, doesn’t it? Besides, I saw the way you looked at him.”

  She was pretty sure her ears were red. “A girl can look. Doesn’t mean a damn thing.”

  “Let’s keep it that way, all right?”

  “Not that it’s any of your business, but that’s my intention.”

  She ended the call and looked up to find Nick watching her. Her mouth grew dry looking at him. Tall, dark, and brooding—just her type, it seemed. She hadn’t known she had a type, but this one was pressing buttons she’d thought so rusty they wouldn’t work.

  “A girl can look at what?” he asked, his head tilted to one side as he leaned against the doorframe, oh so casually.

  “At you.” No sense lying about it. She’d stammer and turn red and he’d know anyway. “Ian seems to think there’s interest and that maybe I can’t keep my hands to myself.”

  One corner of that sensual mouth turned up in a grin. What would it feel like if she let him put that mouth on her skin again? If he slid his tongue around her nipple and pulled it between his lips?

  The answering throb in her pussy was not a good sign.

  “I’d like to think Ian’s right. And if he is, you just feel free, sweetheart. Anytime you want to put your hands on me, I’m yours.”

  Victoria tucked her phone into her pocket. “Sorry to disappoint you, but you aren’t that irresistible. Hot, yes. Tempting, yes. But not irresistible.”

  He unsnapped his shoulder holster and shrugged it off. Then he lifted the black T-shirt he was wearing and tugged it over his head with a grin. Broad shoulders tapered down to a narrow waist and abs that she could count. He wore a set of dog tags that hung between his nipples, gleaming silver in the light shafting into the room. His body was untouched by a tattoo needle, which was rather unusual for a military guy these days—or at least the ones she’d known—and he had a single scar that ran diagonally from beneath his left pectoral muscle to midway down his side. It wasn’t an ugly scar, but it was noticeable.

  Hell, everything about this man was noticeable. Her head started to swim. Her feet stuck to the floor. Nick slid a hand down his chest and flicked open the button of his cammies. Oh dear God…

  “Wh…what are you doing?” She managed to force the words from her stiff lips.

  “Heading for the shower, sweetheart.” He arched an eyebrow at her. “If you care to join me, you know where it is. I promise I’ll take good care of you. Wash every inch of your beautiful body and then lick it all over while you pant my name and beg me to finish the job.”

  Her skin was on fire. Her nipples, traitors that they were, were tightening. She folded her arms over her breasts and fixed him with a glare. “The only thing I plan to beg you to do is hurry up and get out of the damn shower so I can use it.”

  He laughed as he turned away. “Your loss.”

  She heard the shower turn on a couple of seconds later. She resolutely went over and slid into the chair to wait. For good measure, she sat on her hands and forced herself to think about the mission instead of the man.

  * * *

  Nick finished his shower and put the cammies back on with a fresh T-shirt. He didn’t usually go on jobs with showers or beds, but when they were there, you had to take advantage of them. He strapped his guns back into place—shoulder, ankle, small of back—and walked out into the hallway. Victoria was at the small stove, doing something with food that was beginning to smell heavenly.

  He picked up an orange from the bowl on the counter and started to peel it. “Thought you wanted a shower.”

  “My stomach growled.”

  “Is there enough there for me?”

  She flashed him a look that would flay the hide off a lesser man. “I’m not your maid, Preacher Boy.”

  He separated the orange segments and put one in his mouth, savoring the juice sliding over his taste buds. He imagined rubbing a segment around Victoria’s nipple, licking the sweet juice off her body. His cock liked that idea too, throbbing to life in an instant.

  “Didn’t we discuss this name business, Vicky?”

  “Sorry. I’m not your maid, dickhead. That better?”

  He couldn’t help but laugh. Victoria Royal was one of the crankiest women he’d ever known. Hell, one of the crankiest people he’d ever known. And even if she didn’t like him, she did want him. That he was certain of after their little misunderstanding in the car.

  “You need to get laid, Vic. Ease up some of that tension you got going.”

  “And you know just the guy, right?”

  “I am the guy.”

  She turned, spatula in hand. “Word to the wise, but I’m pretty sure there’s not a woman alive who likes a man telling her he knows what’s best for her.”

  He finished the orange and started licking his fingers. Her cheeks colored and she quickly turned back to the pan. For a cranky, prickly woman, she had the most expressive face. And she got embarrassed over the tiniest things. Almost as if she didn’t know how to handle anything sexual.

  “All right, I don’t know a damn thing,” he said. “But I think easing some of that tension you got going with a good orgasm or two might help you relax. I’m willing to sacrifice myself for the sake of your health—or you can do it yours
elf if you prefer.”

  She didn’t say anything. Instead, she picked up a plate and slid an enormous omelet onto it. Then she set it on the counter between them. She took two forks from a drawer and handed him one.

  “Seriously? After I pissed you off?”

  “Just take it, for fuck’s sake.”

  He did, and they dug in at the same time. She blew on the bite on her fork, then popped it in her mouth and chewed. He took a bite after she did, pretty sure now that she’d eaten it she wasn’t trying to poison him for pissing her off.

  “It’s good.” He meant it. He didn’t know what she’d added, but it was more than just a cheese omelet.

  “I’m sorry I snapped at you.” She forked another bite. “You press my buttons pretty hard.”

  He wanted to say something about pressing the right buttons and how good that would feel, but he wisely refrained.

  “Understandable. This isn’t an easy situation for you. You’re working for us, Black thinks you’re working for him—and there’s a terrorist out there who not only has your sister, but who’s also tried to kill you recently. It’s a lot to deal with.”

  “And you wonder if I’m still working for Black and setting you up, right?”

  He wasn’t able to hide his surprise. In fact, he nearly choked on the omelet and hot cheese. But he managed to swallow and followed it with a swig of water.

  She was looking at him with an arched eyebrow, daring him to deny it.

  “Yeah, I wondered that.”

  “If I thought Ian could get Emily for me, I’d have told you and your colonel to go fuck yourselves. He’s had two years. It’s your turn.”

  “Fair enough.”

  They ate in silence until the omelet was gone. She dropped her fork and stretched, her breasts pushing outward as she arched her back. Her skin was creamy and spotted with freckles. He wanted to see more, but he knew she wasn’t going to show him.

  “I’m going to take a shower, and then I’m climbing into that bed and sleeping for a couple of hours. Unless you object?”

  He shook his head. “Nope. Best to catch up on sleep now since we have no idea how long we’ll be here or when the target will appear.”