Explosive Force

by Lynette Eason

  “Then someone will have to stop him. Period.”

  The flat confidence he infused into his words gave her hope and terrified her at the same time. Because stopping him might mean putting Nick’s life in danger. “Nick—”

  “It’s going to be okay,” he said.

  She shot to her feet. “Don’t say that!”

  His brows rose. “What? Why?”

  “Because you don’t know that it’s going to be okay.” She jabbed a finger at him. “It might not be okay. Sometimes, it’s just not okay.” She paced to the window and looked out through the blinds, hating that she thought to stay to the side so no one could see her. The afternoon sun shone bright—a direct contrast to her moody, overcast emotional state.

  He gave a slow nod. “All right. That’s true. Sometimes it’s not okay.”

  Crossing her arms, she closed her eyes for a moment while she gathered her emotions tighter. Then she turned. “I’m sorry. It’s just my dad used to tell my mom that every time he left to cover a story and she expressed concern or fear. Those were some of his last words. ‘Don’t worry, honey, it’ll be okay,’ he said. Well, trust me, it wasn’t okay.”

  “Aw, Heidi, I’m so sorry.” Nick rose and stepped over to her, the look of sheer compassion in his eyes making her want to cry all over again.

  But she refused. That wouldn’t help anything. She set her chin. “Don’t worry about it. I shouldn’t have reacted so strongly.”

  “But some things do turn out okay, right?”

  She sniffed and offered him a small smile. “Yes, some things do. Specific things. Like the fact that I’m still alive. And I have you watching out for me. That’s definitely okay.”

  “Good,” he said softly. “Because I’m glad you’re still alive and I’m for sure watching out for you.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate it.” She sighed. “And now, I need to work.”

  “Anything I can help you with?”

  “Not unless you want to give me the scoop on the evidence you found at the training center.”

  “Sorry, that’s a negative.”

  Letting her shoulders droop, she nodded. “I kind of figured.”

  He sighed. “Heidi, it doesn’t have anything to do with whether or not I trust you. It’s an investigation. There are some things I simply can’t talk about.”

  “I know.” She smiled. “It’s okay.”

  When his brow lifted at her use of the words, she shrugged. “You can say those words when it really is—or is going to be—okay. Just don’t say them when you have no way of knowing if it’s going to be okay or not. You can’t predict the future.”

  “Got it.” He cleared his throat, stepped back and started cleaning up the remains of their lunch. “I’ll let you do what you need to do. Work, take a nap and recover, or whatever. Just do me a favor?”

  “What?”

  “Don’t go anywhere alone. Don’t make yourself a target. Stay inside and stay safe.”

  Her jaw tightened at the request. “I won’t be a prisoner in my own home.”

  “Don’t look at it as a prison. Look at it as a safe house.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Nick—”

  “Please.” He placed his hands on her shoulders. “I don’t want to see you get hurt—or worse.”

  The look of compassion in his eyes had morphed into something entirely different. “Why do you care so much?” she whispered.

  “I don’t know.” He gave a low laugh. “A few days ago, I would have said you were as irritating as a gnat.”

  “Well, thanks. And now?”

  “Now that I’m getting to know you a bit more...well, let’s just say I want to continue to be able to do that.”

  She swallowed. Hard. “Okay.”

  “So, are you going to be all right if I leave you here alone? And be honest with me. Today was really scary. It’s only natural that you might not want to be alone.”

  “Are you a counselor now?” she teased half-heartedly.

  His lips turned up in a sad-tinged smile. “Just a guy who’s been through some scary stuff.”

  She nodded. “I think I’ll be all right. I’ve got coverage on my home, remember?” With a sigh, he stepped over to her and wrapped her in a hug. “I like you, Heidi Jenks.”

  The thud-thud-thudding of her own heart said she liked him, too.

  He pressed a kiss to her forehead and she blinked.

  “Call me if you need anything,” he said. “Promise?”

  Still reeling from the feel of his lips on her skin, she simply nodded.

  And then he was gone.

  And she was alone...

  ...with the fact that someone wanted her dead. And she was falling in love with Nick Donovan. She wasn’t sure which scared her more.

  * * *

  Nick gave himself a mental slap. He was doing it again. Letting his heart have a say in how he acted. He decided he needed some rules when it came to Heidi.

  Rule number one: keep your distance. Emotionally and physically. Which led to rule number two.

  Rule number two: stay at arm’s length—i.e. not close enough to hug.

  Rule number three: definitely no hugging.

  New rule number four: no kissing of foreheads.

  Seriously, he had to get it together.

  He let himself into his home and found his grandfather in the recliner, watching football. “Gramps? What are you doing here? Thought you were golfing.”

  His grandfather muted the game. “After everything settled down, the others decided to postpone and try again next week. I’m on the schedule. How’s your girl?”

  “My girl?”

  A raised eyebrow was the only response from Gramps.

  Nick resisted rolling his eyes. “She’s fine. For now.”

  “Why was someone shooting at her?”

  “We think it’s the person who bombed the training center. She was there when it happened and saw a guy in a ski mask and hoodie running from the place just before the explosion. The guy didn’t realize she was there and took off his ski mask. Then saw Heidi.”

  “That would explain it.”

  “Only the hoodie hid his face enough that she was only able to give a partial description. Good enough for a detailed drawing of a guy wearing a hoodie, but nothing more than that.”

  “Frustrating.”

  “No kidding.”

  “So what are you doing back here? You should be watching out for her.”

  “She’s got someone on her place.”

  “Then what are you going to do?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You’re standing there, with your keys in your hand and that look in your eyes.”

  “What look?”

  Another raised brow. Nick huffed a short laugh. His grandfather could read him so well.

  “I think I’m going to talk to Justin Blackwood and see if he thinks any of this is related to our ongoing investigation of Boyd Sullivan.”

  “It’s Sunday. Supposed to be a day of rest.”

  “Unfortunately, killers don’t seem to care about that. Which makes it hard for the good guys to take the day off.”

  “I know, boy. I’ve been there. Just don’t like to see you working so hard.”

  “Wish I didn’t have to, but at least I like what I do.” He did like his job. He might wish it wasn’t necessary, but as long as there were bad guys with bombs, he would do his best to stop them.

  He shot a text to Justin, who answered that he was in the conference room of the base command office. The captain agreed to meet and Nick headed back out the door. “Sorry I can’t stay and watch the game with you.”

  “Trust me, you’re not missing anything. The Cowboys are playing like they’ve never seen a football. It’s maddening.”


  Nick gave a low laugh and headed for his truck.

  When he pulled into the parking lot of the base command building, he noted several other vehicles he recognized.

  Inside, he made his way to the conference room, where he found Justin with Westley, Oliver and Ava. Files were spread across the table and yellow legal pads held copious notes. “Did my invitation get lost in the mail?”

  Justin waved him to a seat. “You didn’t miss anything. I knew you were with Heidi.” He met Nick’s gaze. “Is she all right?”

  “She is. She’s at home resting. Or working. Probably the latter. There’s an officer on her house, watching out for her.”

  “Okay, good.” Justin caught him up on what the quartet had been discussing. “Vanessa’s been keeping an eye on Yvette but hasn’t seen any indication that Yvette is hiding anything or is in contact with Sullivan, but it’s only been twenty-four hours. We’re going to keep up with the surveillance.”

  “That sounds wise. If Boyd had anything to do with that explosion, he could be lying low for a bit until the investigation slows.”

  Justin nodded. “The good thing is, Sullivan’s targets have received no more threats. We’ve got those who’ve received roses under protection and there’ve been no movements against them. Heidi still needs protection, though, so we’ll keep someone on her.”

  “Which brings me to a question,” Nick said. “Do you think Sullivan is behind the threats to Heidi?”

  “I don’t know. If Sullivan had a hand in blowing up the training center, then I’d say it’s possible. But until we find the bomber, I don’t think we can make that assumption.”

  “So, in the case of the others, Sullivan’s biding his time,” Nick said. “Waiting.”

  “That’s what I think. He sure hasn’t decided to stop.”

  Nick shook his head. “This shouldn’t be taking so long. Why is it so hard to catch him?”

  “We’ve all been asking ourselves that question,” Oliver said.

  Ava shrugged. “He’s smart.”

  “And rubbing our faces in the fact that he’s smarter,” Westley muttered.

  “He’ll mess up,” Justin said.

  “Right,” Nick said, “hopefully before someone else dies.”

  His phone rang, and Heidi’s number flashed at him. “Excuse me while I get this.” He slipped into the hallway. “Heidi? Everything okay?”

  “I need a favor, if you don’t mind.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I’m going to do a couple of interviews. MP Evan Hendrix is going with me so I should be fine, but could you pick me up when I’m finished?”

  “Yes, of course. Wait a minute. What interviews?”

  “For the medals, Nick.”

  “And you have to leave your house? Can’t you just do phone interviews?”

  A sigh reached him. “I could, I suppose, but it’s really hard to read body language over the phone.”

  “FaceTime? Skype?”

  “Nick, this is my job. I promise to be careful. I’ll take every precaution and I’ll have Evan with me.”

  “I still don’t like it.”

  “Sorry. Talk to you later. I’ll text you my location, if you can come get me.”

  “I’ll be there.” Oh, yes, he’d be there. Because while Evan was very likely a good soldier, there was no way he’d watch out for Heidi like Nick would. And he was going to make sure this type of situation didn’t crop up in the future.

  * * *

  Heidi glanced at her watch and pressed a hand against her rumbling stomach as she left the last interview for the day. She’d texted Nick her location and told him Evan needed to leave but would wait with her until Nick arrived.

  And true to his word, he stayed as close as a burr.

  They walked down the steps of the latest theft victim’s home and Heidi placed the recorder in her pocket.

  “You’re good at that,” Evan said.

  “Thanks.”

  “Seriously. You asked great questions, were compassionate about her loss, and didn’t lead her to answers that you wanted her to have. You let her come up with her own. I’ve seen a lot of reporters, even answered some of their questions, but I’ve never seen one do it the way you do.”

  Heidi gave him a smile. “That’s really kind of you to say so. Unfortunately, not everyone in the business acts with integrity.” Understatement of the year? “But my dad taught me that integrity comes before the story. And that if I act in such a way, I’ll always be the better reporter—and others will trust me.” A flash of grief speared her. “And while it takes years to build relationships and gain the trust of others, lies can destroy that in seconds.”

  “You’re referring to the fact that people think you’re the anonymous blogger.”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you know why they think that?”

  “I suspect because John Robinson spread that rumor.” She sighed. “You know, I get that he’s ambitious. This job is very competitive and cutthroat and it can bring out the worst in people.” She met his gaze. “But it doesn’t have to be that way. I want to help catch the bad guys, not tell them what’s going on in an investigation by leaking stuff that will help them.” She shook her head. “But I don’t know how to prove to everyone that I’m not the blogger. Other than to continue doing my job with integrity and honesty.” She shrugged. “And hope, in the end, that pays off and people see it.”

  “After hanging out with you and watching you work, I don’t believe you’re the blogger.”

  She squeezed his hand. “Thank you, I appreciate that. Now, pass the word, will you?”

  He laughed. “Sure.”

  Nick pulled to the curb and stepped out. “Sorry it took me so long.” He walked around and opened the door for her, a scowl on his face.

  “No problem. Evan kept me company.” She said her goodbyes to the MP and climbed into the passenger seat of Nick’s work truck. She buckled her seat belt and scratched Annie’s head while watching her ill-tempered chauffeur settle into the driver’s seat. “Are you okay, Nick?”

  He shot her a frown. “I’m fine.”

  “Then why are your eyes narrowed, brow furrowed and smoke curling from your nose?”

  “Smoke?”

  “Might as well be. What’s the problem? Did something happen with the case?”

  A sigh slipped from him and the frown faded a bit. “Nothing.”

  “Nothing’s wrong or there’s nothing more with the case?”

  “Both.”

  “Liar. Maybe not about the case, but something’s definitely wrong about you. What is it?”

  “I didn’t—” The scowl deepened. “Never mind. It’s not important.”

  She let it slide while a fragment of hurt lodged in her heart. “Fine.” Once thing she’d learned about Nick—if he wasn’t going to talk, he wasn’t going to talk.

  Silence dropped between them.

  “What are you going to do now?” he finally said as he turned onto Canyon Boulevard.

  “Go home and write this story.”

  “What did the victim have to say about the robbery?”

  “The same as all the others. She was out to dinner with her family. When she came home, her house had been ransacked and the medals were missing from a box in the top of her closet. Along with three hundred dollars in cash.”

  “Doesn’t anyone use safes anymore?”

  She huffed a laugh. “Guess not.”

  He pulled to a stop in her driveway. “Thanks for being smart.”

  Hand on the door handle, she paused. “What do you mean?”

  “You called me. You took precautions.”

  With a sigh she turned back to him. “Of course. I’m not stupid.”

  “I didn’t mean to imply you were. It’s just that I guess I didn
’t expect that. I would have thought you were the type to get a lead on a story and just take off regardless of the consequences. That if you needed to conduct an interview you would just do it without thinking things through.”

  “Remember the fact that someone tried to kill me today?” She stepped out of the vehicle. “Thanks, Nick. I really appreciate that you think so highly of me. Go home. And don’t come back until you can get over your preconceived notions of who I am and are willing to take the time to find out.” She stared at him, fighting tears. “Because you really don’t have a clue.” She slammed the car door.

  And then she ran for her home. Once inside, she leaned against the door and placed a hand over her pounding heart. A heart that was more and more drawn to the man who’d just hurt her feelings in a major way. She was so on the emotional roller coaster when she was in Nick’s presence. The thought that they might never really get along or move forward into some kind of romantic relationship because of her job pained her.

  She sighed and moved into the den. And stopped. Wait a minute. Something was off. She took in the sofa, the recliner, the end tables. What was it? Everything looked fine...except for the throw on the back of the chair by the fireplace. When had she put that there? She kept it on the couch.

  Had Nick moved it when he’d been here last? Pressing a hand against her forehead, she couldn’t remember. Uneasiness settled in her gut. Had someone been in her home?

  * * *

  Nick slammed a fist on the wheel and Annie whined. He glanced at the animal, and her sad eyes drilled him. If he didn’t know better, he’d almost believe she was chastising him for being a jerk.

  He sighed. He had been a jerk. A colossal one. What had compelled him to say such a thing to her?

  Fear.

  The answer leaped into his mind. He shoved it away before snatching it back. Fear? Yes. Because if he gave her the power, she could hurt him.

  Not to mention the fact that someone was out to kill her.

  What if that person actually succeeded?

  And he’d pushed her away. Made her run from him.

  Jerk.

  His phone rang and instead of opening the door and going after Heidi, he lifted the device to his ear. “What?”