Taking a Risk, Part One

by Anna Blakely

  So, instead of shooting him, Olivia used one of the skills her brother and Jake had taught her. Much to her surprise, it worked like a charm.

  She’d head-butted Scarface. The ominous cracking of bone when her forehead slammed into his nose was more satisfying than she could’ve ever imagined. It also hurt like a bitch.

  Ignoring the bruising pain, she'd then rammed her knee up into his crotch. The move effectively took his breath away, making it impossible for him to yell for help.

  Pushing him off, she’d rolled away quickly and grabbed his gun. Then, just as he’d done to her the day the she’d been taken, Olivia slammed the rifle’s butt against the back of his head, rendering him unconscious.

  It all happened so fast, and had gone even better than she’d originally planned. With the exception of forgetting to bring the gun with her.

  Olivia had been so stunned that she’d actually overpowered the asshole that—like an idiot—she’d dropped the gun and ran. She didn’t even stop to grab her boots.

  So, here she was...running through the jungle with no weapon, no shoes, and no underwear. But hey...it could be worse, right?

  A hysterical giggle tried to bubble its way to the surface. Focus, Bradshaw!

  Olivia shook her head against it and kept running, her face and limbs smacking into the large leaves surrounding her. She had no idea where she was going, but knew she needed to put as much distance between herself and the camp as she could before the others discovered she was gone.

  She tripped and fell. Ignoring the pain, Olivia got right back up and kept moving. Pushing past the ache in her ribs and the pounding in her head, she paid no attention to the stinging in her bare feet. The only thing on her mind was escaping.

  Running as if her life depended on it—which it did—Olivia’s burning, malnourished muscles kept on. She moved straight and fast, refusing to stop. Until she was grabbed from behind.

  A strong, masculine arm hooked around her midsection. Olivia grunted loudly as her body flew forward and then bounced back. Her shoulder blades smacked against the man’s chest. She opened her mouth to scream, but a gloved hand pressed against her lips, muffling the sound.

  Scarface hadn’t been wearing gloves, which meant this most likely wasn’t him. This guy must have seen her running away and had come to take her back.

  I’d rather die.

  With her adrenaline pumping at full-force, Olivia did the only thing she could think of. She turned her head back and forth, wiggling her mouth until she was able to open it slightly. Then, she bit down as hard as she could.

  Her attacker growled. Loosening his hold, she was able to ram her elbow backward into his solar plexus. The man grunted and took a step back just as she turned around and jammed the palm of her hand up toward his mask-covered nose.

  He raised his arm to protect his face, but at the same time, Olivia swung her foot up between his legs. Taking him by surprise, she hit her goal with perfection. He went down to one knee, letting out a string of curses as she turned and began running again.

  Olivia almost smiled. Take that, asshole. From what she could make out, the guy’s English was perfect with not even a hint of an accent like the others. He was also dressed differently.

  There was a mask over his face, and his shirt and combat pants were black, not camo. He was also wearing some sort of protective vest over his shirt.

  Somewhere in the back of her mind, Olivia wondered why he hadn’t fought back, but none of that mattered now. She continued on, nearly tripping again when she heard her attacker’s voice.

  “Liv, wait!”

  The man’s voice sounded familiar, but she wasn't stupid enough to think that automatically made him a good guy. Still running, Olivia heard the man swearing again. This time she did smile.

  He’d probably catch up to her eventually, but she couldn’t help but enjoy the fact that she wasn’t making this easy for him. Olivia was still grinning when a wall of muscle slammed into her from behind.

  They both fell onto the ground, her chest and face smacking against damp leaves and dirt. The fall—not to mention the giant buffoon lying on top of her—reignited the fire burning behind her ribs. Olivia gasped sharply from the pain as she was flipped over onto her back, her newest threat looming above her.

  Strong hands pressed her wrists into the ground above her head. His grip was firm, but oddly, it wasn’t painful. In fact, the guy had actually lifted his torso away from hers, easing the pressure that had been making it so hard to breathe. It was almost as if he was being careful not to hurt her, which made absolutely no sense.

  Refusing to fall for the nice guy routine, Olivia pushed against his hands and lifted her hips, trying to buck him off. Then she heard—

  “Goddamn it, Liv. Knock it off! It’s me, Jake!”

  Olivia’s whole world stopped. Just...stopped. She quit fighting and simply lay there, sweaty and panting, trying to wrap her mind around what she just heard.

  Was it possible? Could this guy really be Jake? No, you fool. It’s not possible. Jake thinks you’re dead. Everyone thinks you’re dead.

  Yet, that voice was so familiar. Had she imagined it? After weeks of captivity and nearly being starved to death, had she finally lost her mind?

  The man didn’t move, allowing Olivia to look more closely. His build was similar to Jake’s. Lord knows she’d spent enough time sneaking peeks at his body whenever possible.

  A black backpack hung off a pair of wide shoulders, and the camouflaged mask covering his face was made of some type of thin, mesh material. His black t-shirt was covered by what she assumed to be bullet-proof vest, and on his left bicep, barely peeking out from beneath his sleeve, was the bottom of a very familiar-looking tattoo. A Delta Force tattoo.

  Just like Jake’s.

  The man let go of her wrists cautiously, as if he were expecting her to strike out at him again. He made no attempt to try to hurt her, which only added to the unwanted feeling billowing up inside her.

  God, how she hated it. Fought it with everything she had, but it was no use. For the first time in weeks, and beyond all logical reason, Olivia felt hope. Freaking hope.

  Unable to help herself, she raised her trembling hand up to remove the cap. Her assailant made no attempts to stop her, and when the material cleared his face, she forgot how to breathe.

  The cap slipped from her fingers, landing on the ground next to her. Olivia’s mind whirled as she stared into a set of steel blue eyes. Eyes she’d dreamt about endlessly. The same eyes she thought she’d never see again.

  His nose was slightly crooked from an old break, and there was a small crease in the middle of his chin. And, God...that mouth.

  The man’s lips were perfectly shaped, as though they’d been made for the sole purpose of kissing. His short, dark hair was messed up from the cap, and he hadn’t shaved in a while, but was still as sexy as sin.

  Olivia looked back up into those eyes, their image blurring behind her unshed tears. When she was finally able to speak, her voice came out as a cracked whisper.

  “J-Jake? Is it...is it really y-you?”

  Chapter 5

  Olivia was looking up at him, her beautiful, round eyes filled with fear and pain. Jake wanted to kill the bastards who’d made her feel those things. More than that, he wanted to kiss her quivering lips and never, ever let go.

  He almost did, too, but then he remembered he had no clue what she’d endured these past few weeks. The last thing Liv needed was a man—any man—forcing himself on her.

  “Yeah, Liv,” he reassured her. “It’s really me.”

  Olivia’s eyes grew wide, as though she’d needed to hear his words before trusting herself to believe what she was seeing. She threw herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck.

  “Jake! Oh, my God.” Her hot breath hit his ear as she spoke. “I can’t believe it’s really you!”

  Jake hugged her back just as forcefully. Her entire body shook beneath his as she struggled to
keep it together. Burying his face into her hair, he wondered if she could tell she wasn’t alone in that fight.

  He held on for dear life and squeezed his burning eyes shut, absorbing every ounce of warmth from her touch. Then, he sent up prayer after silent prayer, thanking God for bringing her back to him.

  Olivia’s hot tears fell against the skin on his neck as she spoke between sobs. “It’s s-so...good to...s-see...y-you!”

  “Ah, sweetheart,” he choked out. “You have no idea.”

  Overcome with his own emotions, Jake held her even tighter, afraid she’d disappear if he let her go. She flinched beneath his strong grasp. Back off, dickhead. You’re hurting her.

  Jake loosened his hold before kissing the top of her head. He stood, instantly missing her warm embrace. Taking her hand, he helped her to her feet.

  A flash of powerful anger struck when he stepped back just far enough to get a good look at her face. He’d been so busy struggling with her, waiting for her to trust that he was who he said he was, he hadn’t looked anywhere other than into her eyes.

  Assessing her now, Jake noticed a fresh bruise forming across the left side of her face. There was another one in center of her forehead, and blood was starting to dry where it had trickled from her nose.

  Some bastard had hit her, hard from the looks of things. Seeing bruises like that on any woman pissed Jake off beyond reason. Seeing them on Olivia’s delicate skin made him want to fucking kill. Then, when he glanced down at the front of her dress, his heart damn near stopped.

  “Jesus, Liv. You’re bleeding? Where’s the wound? How bad is it?” He didn’t wait for her to answer before reaching for the buttons on her dress.

  Olivia grabbed his wrists and shook her head. “It’s not mine.”

  Unable to hear past his fear, Jake fought against her grasp, determined to assess her injuries. She squeezed his wrists tighter and raised her voice, finally getting his attention.

  "Jake! I’m okay. It’s not my blood.”

  He blew out a breath of relief, willing his racing heart to slow down. He wanted to ask whose blood it was, but there’d be time for that later.

  He lowered his hands, but Olivia kept ahold of one of them, and Jake didn’t even consider pulling himself free from her grasp.

  For a moment, they both just stood there, Olivia staring up at him with an expression of bewilderment. Then, she smiled.

  Sweet Jesus. Olivia was standing in front of him, alive and...smiling. He was touching her, yet Jake was still struggling to believing it. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one.

  “This is so surreal,” she whispered. “I can’t believe you’re really here.”

  Her brows scrunched down, the smooth skin between them bunching up like it always did when she thought too hard about something. Fucking adorable.

  “I...I don’t understand, though. They showed me the paper. They said everyone thinks I’m dead.”

  “They do,” he answered softly, the pain from seeing the news that day still fresh. “I did.”

  “Then, why are you here? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. I just don’t understand. If you thought I died, then why...” Her voice trailed off, and she shook her head again.

  Jake understood Olivia’s confusion, and she did deserve an explanation, but the threat to her was still too close to go into it all right now. He squeezed her hand.

  “Sweetheart, I know you probably have a million questions”—he ran his other hand through his hair and rubbed the taught muscles on the back of his neck—“Lord knows I have plenty of my own. But we have to get you out of here, first. I promise you can ask me anything you want, later. Deal?”

  She bit her lip, quickly canvassing the area around them. Seeing the fear come back into her eyes gutted him.

  “Deal,” she agreed softly.

  Jake gave her hand another squeeze before touching his earpiece. Without breaking eye contact, he updated the others.

  “I have Olivia. Head back to the chopper. Our new priority is getting her home.”

  “Hooah, boss!” Coop whispered loudly.

  It was immediately followed by Trevor’s emotional response. “Thank God!” His voice thick, he teasingly added, “Tell her there’s going to be hell to pay for scaring the shit out of us like that.”

  Jake couldn’t help but smile, both at Trevor’s words and the look on Olivia’s face.

  Those gorgeous eyes grew wide. “There are others with you?”

  With a single nod he answered, “My team.”

  Olivia’s brows turned inward again and, damn, if he didn’t want to lean down and kiss those cute little wrinkles away.

  “Your team?”

  “Trevor says hi.”

  Jake nearly laughed out loud when her brows shot up, again, and her mouth dropped open. “Trevor’s here?”

  He gave her a playful wink. “Come on. I’ll fill you in on everything later.”

  Picking up his mask, Jake shoved it in his pocket and took hold of her hand once more. He couldn't hide his smile. The second chance he’d prayed so hard for had just been granted. His very own, honest-to-God miracle.

  With her hand in his, Jake began leading them back toward the spot where he’d been positioned initially. They made it about twenty yards when gunfire erupted all around them.

  “Sonofabitch!” Gun drawn, Jake pushed Olivia down to the ground, his body hovering protectively over hers. To his team, he yelled, “SITREP!”

  “Sorry, boss,” Derek answered first. “Looks like we’re gonna have to take the bastards out now after all. They’re comin’ out hot and heavy, and they’re severely pissed off. Pretty sure they know your girl is gone.”

  “Eliminating as many of the bastards as I can,” Hill added. “The second I’m clear, I’ll light their asses up.”

  Olivia shook beneath him, and Jake wanted nothing more than to storm that fucking camp and take out every single one of the assholes himself. Pushing back his fury, he responded to his team.

  “Copy that. Matthews?”

  “Taking fire, but holding them back,” Trevor answered swiftly.

  “Mac? Coop? You still in position?”

  “Negative, boss,” Coop answered for them both. “Already had boots on the ground when they came out shooting. Making our way to cover now.”

  Just then, Jake heard a grunt of pain followed by Mac’s uncharacteristically panicked voice. “Coop! Shit! Coop’s down! I repeat, Sean’s been hit!”

  Fuck. “How bad?” Jake asked, praying it was just a graze.

  “Leg,” Coop’s voice came through the mic as a painful growl. “Through and through. I’ll live, but...goddamn it! I’m gonna need Mac’s help getting out of here.”

  Jake’s heart raced with fear for his friend. If Coop said he’d be okay, Jake believed him. Still, knowing a member of his team was injured—especially on a personal mission like this one—was like a kick to his balls.

  “Mac, get Coop to our bird!”

  “Copy that, boss.”

  “Trev, you got eyes on them?” Jake asked.

  “Affirmative,” Trevor answered immediately. Then, addressing Coop he said, “I’ve got you and Mac covered, Coop. Now suck it up and haul your asses outta here!”

  Jake handed out more orders. “D, Hill...listen up! I need you to keep these assholes on the defensive so I can get Olivia out of here. Hill?”

  “Yeah, boss?”

  “Once Mac and Coop are clear, hit the bastards with everything you got.”

  “Roger that.”

  Almost belatedly, Jake added, “And someone disable their fucking chopper!”

  The gunfire continued. Trusting his team to follow orders, Jake wasted no time pulling Olivia to her feet. He didn’t miss the wince she tried to hide.

  “You okay?” Stupid question, but he had to ask.

  Completely bypassing it, Olivia looked up at him with worried eyes. “One of your guys is hurt?”

  Damn. She would pick up on that. �
��Don’t worry. Coop’s tough.” Jake started moving again, but stopped when her small hand grabbed his forearm.

  “Was he shot? Jake, you know I can help him.”

  The expression on her face told him she was serious. Olivia was willing to do whatever she could to help Coop, even though she’d never met the guy. Even though she was still at risk. Just when he thought he couldn’t love her more...

  “If we can just get to where he is”—she kept on—“then I could at least try to...”

  Jake raised a hand palm-up to stop her and put it to his ear as Mac’s voice came through again.

  “Three tangos headed your way, boss. Damn it! They’re spreading out and coming in hot.”

  He heard the regret in her voice. If Mac had any sort of shot on them, she would have taken it, which meant she either wasn’t in a good position, or she had her hands full with Coop. Probably both.

  “Got it covered,” Jake responded with confidence. “Just get yourselves out of there.” He gave Olivia a quick glance before adding, “If we aren’t at the chopper when the rest of you get there, initiate Plan B.”

  There was hesitation from his team, and Jake understood why. No one liked to rely on a Plan B, but sometimes there just wasn’t any other option. There’d been times they’d been forced to skip right the hell over Plan B and had gone straight to Plan E. Still, he needed to make sure the order had gone through clearly.

  “Alpha Team. Do. You. Copy?”

  Jake waited a beat and was about to repeat the order when Mac and Grant responded with, “Roger that.”

  Derek and Trevor both gave him a quick, “Copy, boss”.

  Coop grunted, “Got it.”

  Trevor added, “Do what you have to do, Jake.”

  Knowing his team had their orders, Jake’s sole focus was now on Olivia’s safety. Glancing back down at her, he saw the fear she was desperately trying to hide. Jake vowed to find a way to erase it, if it was the last thing he did.

  Chapter 6

  Praying Jake couldn’t see how truly terrified she was, Olivia licked her lips and asked, “What’s Plan B?”