Christmas Guardian

by Delores Fossen

  Jordan wasn’t surprised. Dexter wouldn’t have plainly stated something like that in notes that could be found. Or stolen.

  “I’ll keep working,” she insisted.

  “Maybe after a nap?”

  She blinked. And he caught the gist of her surprise. She no doubt wondered if he was inviting her to his bed. As good as that sounded—and it sounded damn good—it couldn’t happen right now.

  “This morning I called Burke, Cody, Desmond and Strahan. I have a two o’clock video conference set up with them.” And that meant he could expect to hear from them any minute.

  “Desmond?” she questioned. “I understand why you’d want to talk to the others, but why him?”

  Jordan shrugged. “He was here minutes before the explosion.”

  She took a sip of coffee and peered at him over the rim of the cup. “And his motive?”

  “Maybe the same as Cody’s? Money that they think they could get from the antidote. Or the reward. Ten million is a lot of cash, and it has to be a serious temptation.”

  “But these are men you trained. You know them.”

  “Yeah, I do.” That’s why he had to at least consider they could do something like this. “There are parts of the job that require some, well, moral flexibility. That character trait that made them good agents might not keep them loyal to me.”

  She stared at him. Then sighed. “I was stunned when Dexter betrayed me so I understand.”

  The house phone rang before Jordan could say anything. He glanced at the caller ID. “Raymond Myers?”

  Kinley sprang from her seat. “That’s Brenna Martel’s attorney.” She grabbed the phone and answered it. Jordan put it on speaker.

  “Ms. Ford, my client wanted me to contact you right away.”

  “Yes. Thank you. I left a message for her at the prison.” Kinley stood soldier straight and stared at the phone.

  “She got the message. And she does indeed have notes about the research project you both worked on. I have those notes, and several days ago, Brenna had instructed me to give a copy to Mr. Burke Dennison.”

  “Burke?” Kinley questioned.

  Jordan silently cursed. Now, why hadn’t Burke mentioned it? Jordan didn’t have to guess why. Burke had likely been on this from the start.

  Kinley scowled. “Mr. Myers, those notes are critical. You could say a matter of life and death.”

  “Yes. Brenna indicated that.” He paused. “She instructed me to offer you a deal. She’s authorized me to fax you copies if you’ll agree to be a character witness at her upcoming trial.”

  The idea of that turned Jordan’s stomach. Brenna had kidnapped Kinley, and he didn’t want Kinley to have to endure something like vouching for the woman.

  “I’ll do it,” Kinley told the attorney.

  Jordan was certain he was scowling, too, but there was nothing he could do about it. He would have done the same thing because those notes could help them keep Gus safe.

  “Good. The notes are in a safety deposit box. I’ll leave now and fax them directly from there. You should have them within the hour.”

  “Thank you.” Kinley reached down, clicked the end call button. “Once I have them, I can compare them to Dexter’s and mine,” she told Jordan.

  Yes, and work hours and hours to try to figure out which formula was real and which were decoys. “Maybe I can help once this video conference is done.”

  She thanked him for the offer, sipped her coffee and looked a million miles away. Jordan understood that look. Despite all the other things they had to resolve, she was still thinking about Gus.

  And that gave Jordan an idea of what he could get her for Christmas.

  The phone on the communications console rang, and Jordan knew that was his cue. “Burke and the others are obviously ready.”

  He turned on the video feed, but he didn’t make it two way just yet. He wanted a moment to study the scene. All four men were in the Sentron command center. None looked happy about having their Christmas interrupted like this. Tough. Jordan wanted answers, and he didn’t care how much they were inconvenienced. Of course, one of them was no doubt there with the hopes of finding the missing antidote.

  But which one?

  Or was that the reason they were there?

  “You should probably try to take a nap,” Jordan suggested to her.

  “Right. As if I’d miss this.”

  He was afraid she would say that. He certainly would have stayed put if she’d been the one telling him to take a nap. This conversation was critical, and Jordan decided it was a good time to place as many cards as he could on the table.

  He hit the transmit-feed button so that the four men could see Kinley and him. “Now, which one of you tried to have Kinley kidnapped last night?” Jordan started.

  Silence.

  Not exactly the reaction he’d hoped for. He’d thought that Cody and Desmond would at least deny it.

  “Well?” Jordan prompted.

  “I’m insulted you’d ask that of me,” Cody finally responded. Desmond echoed the same.

  “I didn’t,” Strahan almost cheerfully volunteered. “I think Anderson Walker was acting alone. I believe he wanted all that reward money for himself. He got greedy.”

  Maybe. Jordan prayed that were true since it would mean none of these four was a danger. But he couldn’t risk thinking that way.

  “Burke,” Jordan said, looking at the man. “Any reason you didn’t tell us that Brenna Martel had given you her research notes?”

  Burke shrugged. “That was a private business arrangement and not nearly as helpful as you might think. Without Dexter Sheppard’s notes, I’m one-third in the dark.” He tossed a stony glance at Strahan, who had those notes but had obviously chosen not to share them with Burke.

  So, if Strahan didn’t have Brenna’s notes and Burke didn’t have Dexter’s, then that meant they each had two-thirds of the picture. Soon, within the hour maybe, Kinley and he would have all three sets. However, Jordan didn’t intend to share that bit of information with anyone just yet.

  “There’s a lot of distrust in this room,” Strahan continued. “I have a suggestion. You tell these two wannabe rich guys to take a hike.” He tipped his head first to Cody, then to Desmond. “Burke and I are the wronged investors here.”

  “But anyone can collect the reward for finding the antidote,” Desmond pointed out.

  Which, of course, gave him motive.

  “You’d risk Kinley’s life for a reward?” Jordan asked.

  Desmond shrugged. “Her life doesn’t have to be risked to find the antidote.”

  “No, but it sure as hell has been.” So had Gus’s. “Plus, there’s the matter of Shelly’s death.”

  Desmond shrugged again. “I didn’t even know about the antidote back then.”

  Cody still stayed silent.

  “As I was saying,” Strahan continued, “let’s get Cody and Desmond out of here. Other than greed over that reward, they don’t have anything to bring to this equation. Then, Burke, the two of you and I will pour through all three sets of notes together. We’ll learn the truth, and none of us here are afraid of the truth, are we?”

  That put a knot in Jordan’s stomach. He turned a notepad so that Kinley could see it, and he wrote, “Did Dexter say anything in those notes about you being pregnant?”

  She didn’t have much of a reaction, other than a trembling hand when she wrote. “Maybe. I’ve been working on decrypting the formulas. I haven’t tried to figure out the rest of it.”

  Hell. Jordan should have anticipated this.

  “Burke, are you in on this offer?” Jordan asked.

  Burke shoved his hands in the pockets of his perfectly tailored suit. “Yes. With one condition. Only Strahan and I will collect the profits from this. Cody and Desmond are nothing more than former employees to me. They’ve both been given their notice and won’t be returning in the new year.”

  So, Burke had fired them, even though Burke had given his w
ord that he’d keep on all the key staff when he assumed ownership of Sentron. That explained some of the tension he saw on Cody and Desmond’s faces.

  And maybe something else.

  Maybe Burke hadn’t fired them after all, and this was merely a ploy to use whatever means necessary to find that antidote.

  “You shouldn’t have sold Sentron,” Cody accused, staring right into the camera and therefore right at Jordan. “Early retirement? You’re not the retiring kind, Jordan. And if you wanted a break, you could have temporarily put me in charge.” He looked away, cursed. “Instead, you sold me—all of us—to the highest bidder. To a man who cares nothing about Sentron except for how much money it can make him. Now Desmond and I are out of a job.”

  He’d sold Sentron because of Gus. Because Jordan had wanted every penny in case they had to hide out indefinitely. But he couldn’t say that to Cody or Desmond. He couldn’t make them understand.

  And by doing so, he’d made enemies of them.

  “I’m sorry,” Jordan said, hoping it conveyed his sincerity.

  Judging from the agents’ expressions, it didn’t.

  Later, after this was over, he could do more to make amends. Right now, though, he had enough to deal with, and saying anything could endanger Gus.

  “Kinley and I will get back to you with our decision,” Jordan announced.

  He didn’t give them time to object. He cut the feed so they couldn’t see or hear Kinley and him. However, Jordan continued to observe the four. Nothing was said, probably because they knew he’d still be watching and listening. But the glances they gave each other were not ones of trust. One by one, the men filed out and Jordan cut the feed completely.

  “So, Cody and Desmond do have motive,” Kinley commented.

  Yeah. All four did, and it came down to money. The worst motive because it was hard to reason with greed.

  Still, Jordan couldn’t totally surrender to the idea that Cody was pissed off enough at him to go after Kinley. Of course, Cody technically wasn’t trying to hurt her if he only wanted to collect the reward.

  However, that didn’t mean he wasn’t endangering her by trying to get to the truth. Desmond, too.

  “I need to see about putting some pressure on Anderson Walker to reveal the identity of the person who hired him,” Jordan said, more to himself than her. He reached for the phone, but he heard the beep from the fax machine. A moment later, a page started to feed through.

  Kinley hurried to the machine. “Brenna’s notes,” she explained.

  Good. So the lawyer and Brenna had come through after all. Now he prayed that Kinley would be able to use them to find out the formula to the antidote.

  Kinley gathered the pages as the machine spit them out. “She used the same format as Dexter,” she observed. “Different encryption, though.”

  Which would make things harder.

  “I’m pretty sure this encryption is a list of formulas,” Kinley continued. “But only about twenty. I can compare these to Dexter’s and narrow down which formulas are strong possibilities.”

  With her attention riveted to the notes, she blindly made her way back to her chair, and rather than take her eyes off the pages, she groped for the seat and then dropped down into it.

  He’d leave her to the formula, especially since he had more calls to make. First, about putting some pressure on Anderson to name his boss. Then he needed to do some digging into Cody’s and Desmond’s latest activities to see exactly how much of a threat they were.

  Oh, and he still wanted that Christmas present for Kinley.

  Jordan headed for his bedroom so he could get to work.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The correct formula had to be there, somewhere in the combined notes. Kinley was sure of it. But it seemed to be just out of her reach.

  What was the problem?

  Why couldn’t she make any of the formulas work?

  She grabbed her mug, because she needed another hit of caffeine, only to realize it was empty again. She’d lost count of how many times Jordan had filled it for her. Lost count of just how much coffee she’d consumed in the past twenty-four hours, but she knew it was enough to make her feel all raw and jittery.

  She stood to go into the kitchen and fill it herself, but the phone on the console rang. She glanced at the caller ID screen.

  It was Cal Rico.

  Just like that, Kinley’s heart jumped to her throat, and she grabbed the phone so she could answer it. “Cal, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing,” he answered just as quickly. “Jordan said I should call you at midnight.”

  Midnight? Her gaze flew to the clock on the bottom of the laptop screen. It was indeed that late. She had no idea where the time had gone.

  “I’m supposed to give you your Christmas present,” Cal told her.

  “What Christmas present?” But an answer wasn’t necessary because the image popped onto one of the screens mounted on the wall.

  Gus.

  There he was, sleeping peacefully in a crib. Just seeing that precious face made her smile. And yes, her eyes misted up with tears. Her son was safe. He wasn’t in the middle of a nightmare.

  “This is a preview,” Cal explained. “In about eight hours we’re opening gifts, and you can watch every minute of it.”

  “Thank you,” she managed to say.

  “No. You need to thank Jordan. He’s the one who set all of this up.”

  Of course. Who else?

  Jordan knew how much she missed Gus. And that made her remember how much she cared for Jordan. He was indeed a special man to remember something like this with all the craziness going on in their lives.

  “Eight hours,” Cal reminded her. “All the cameras are already set up. Merry Christmas, Kinley.”

  She wished Cal the same, thanked him again and clicked off the feed and the call. The emotion hit her almost immediately. Maybe it was the fatigue, her gratitude for the perfect gift or the leftover emotion from her earlier encounter with Jordan. The reasons didn’t seem to matter at the moment. She got up and made her way through the house.

  And toward Jordan.

  She walked through the house, and the corridor, and she stopped in the doorway, hoping this was a good idea. After all, she was here in Jordan’s bedroom, and it was obvious why she was there. She intended to pick up where they’d left off in his office.

  Jordan wasn’t aware of her sanity check or doubt. He lay in bed. He was facedown, his arms outstretched, as if pure exhaustion had caused him to land that way. The pearl-colored sheet came up to his waist and outlined that lean, muscled body.

  He was naked, his clothes discarded on the floor.

  She understood the beauty of those massive windows then. The milky moonlight poured through the crystal-clear glass and onto him. He was a picture all right. And she understood something else in that moment.

  That she’d never wanted a man the way she wanted him.

  Kinley peeled off her skirt and top. She did the same with her underwear. She dropped the items on the floor, and before she could change her mind, she walked across the room toward him. She threw back the covers and slid in next to him.

  He was warm. Solid. All man. And his scent went straight through her.

  Jordan reached out, hauled her to him, shifting his body so that she was beneath him.

  “What took you so long?” he drawled, sounding both sleepy and alert at the same time.

  Doubts assaulted her. And fear. Kinley didn’t think she could bear another broken heart. But that wasn’t what she said to him. “I’m here now.”

  Jordan looked down at her. He then slipped his hand into her hair and leaned in. His mouth touched hers. So gently. Soft. Lingering. The slow, easy kiss surprised her. She expected him to take her with the same fury that he did everything else in life, but this was a different kind of lovemaking. Even when he deepened the kiss, and his tongue touched hers, everything was unhurried.

  Her blood turned to fire.


  He controlled the tempo. The angle of the kiss. Everything. And she didn’t care. Kinley let herself be swept away.

  He kissed his way down her body, his mouth lighting fires along the way. He didn’t hurry. Definitely didn’t shortchange her with those body kisses. He made his way back up to her face.

  Kinley wrapped her legs around him, forced him closer. But Jordan still didn’t give in to the crazy frenzy that he’d built inside her.

  As if he had all the time in the world, he took a condom from his nightstand and put it on. He returned to her and gave her more of those steamy kisses.

  He entered her slowly. Kinley felt every inch of him. And then he stopped. She saw it then. The need in his eyes. The intensity was simmering beneath the surface and ready to break free.

  “I shouldn’t need you this much,” he mumbled.

  “I know the feeling,” she mumbled back.

  He didn’t give her a lingering look. Nor any more kisses.

  He caught her hands, pinning them to the bed. He moved. Not gently now. He took her because he’d finally lost all control. Because he had to have her now.

  Kinley wanted him like this. Wanted him a little crazy. But more than that, she just wanted him now.

  She lifted her hips, matching those fierce thrusts. She took all of him and let those thrusts take her to the edge.

  “Jordan,” she said.

  He said her name as well, repeating it with each of those frantic strokes.

  Kinley came first, and even though the passion completely claimed her for those moments, she still managed to focus and see Jordan’s face.

  Like her, he lost control.

  He gathered her into his arms, drew her close to him and went over the edge.

  JORDAN EASED OUT of the bed, careful that he didn’t wake Kinley.

  It was only 4:00 a.m. Still hours away from the time Gus would be opening his presents. Then, he’d wake her so they could share the moment together.

  She was obviously exhausted because she’d fallen asleep almost immediately after they’d had sex. Which meant they hadn’t talked.

  That was a good thing.