Wait for it.
“I smell fright.”
She shuddered. He laughed with delight.
His thick wet tongue licked downwards to the top snap of her jeans. “I taste terror.”
He moved his hands, his concentration now on her zipper.
“I want to lick your fear.”
Fuck no!
She kicked out with all her might, connecting with his gut.
“Oof.” Neville said as he bent over in pain.
“Bitch,” minion yelled. He headed toward her with his gun raised. Caroline was off the hook, and had minion boy laid out in front of her with one big round-house kick. But Addison could tell she was off balance. She was close to falling on her ass because of her bound hands.
Neville pulled out a knife. He held it at Addison’s thigh.
“I love the femoral artery. You get such a good spray. I especially like twisting the knife. Won’t that be fun Caroline, to watch Addison bleed out here on the floor?”
Caroline stood her ground and stared at Neville.
“Come here Caroline.”
“Don’t. He’ll kill us both.”
Neville dug the knife into her jean covered leg. Addison felt it pierce the skin of her thigh. She tried to stop her body from swaying on the hook.
“Hold it right there,” Liam’s familiar voice was like an angel’s voice, as he stepped into the room. Time stopped. Please God, let them get out of this alive.
Addison did not look up. She didn’t want to move any portion of her body that might cause the knife to go in deeper.
“Paul has a gun trained on you. I have nothing to lose. You’re going to let me go, McAllister, now put down the gun.”
Addison’s head whipped around. Paul had rolled over. He was holding the gun again.
Dammit!
But as soon as Liam held up his gun to begin lowering it to the floor, her brain kicked in. Her man had back up.
Liam placed the gun on the green shag carpet. Neville smiled gleefully. “Paul. Go pick up his gun” he said evenly.
Two shots rang out.
Addison didn’t even flinch. She knew that none of those shots were going to be for Caroline, Liam or herself. She watched as Neville and Paul hit the floor.
“Addison!” Liam launched himself across the room. He had his arms around her, and was lowering her off the hook in moments.
“You know, the cops are going to get suspicious with all of the gut shots today,” Declan said mildly as he looked down at Neville dispassionately.
“That’s gutsy of you to say, since you pulled the trigger,” Laird said as he stepped over Neville to cut the duct tape off Caroline.
“Eeew, did he just say gutsy?” Addison heard Caroline ask.
Addison’s face was welded to Liam’s neck. She hadn’t allowed him to cut off the tape, instead she just circled her bound arms around his shoulders. He smelled so good. She wasn’t ever going to let go of him. Not ever.
Liam shuddered, and she knew it wasn’t laughter. “I’m good. You saved me,” she whispered into his ear.
“You saved yourself,” Conroy said where he was kneeling next to Neville. “Good job with the phone.”
“Will he live?” Caroline asked.
“If we were to call the EMT’s right this second, and they were to make record time, it’s possible,” Conroy said loudly into Neville’s ear. “Then you might live you sick fuck. Do you want to live and spend a few days in prison being everybody’s bitch before they kill you? Or do you want us to let you die a truly painful and horrible death here?”
Liam ducked his head and tugged her arms down. He took out a knife and cut her bindings. She didn’t hear what Neville said when Conroy had asked who his first kill was.
“We’re going outside,” Liam said.
“No, I want to hear this,” Addison protested.
“I want to hear this,” Caroline was saying to Laird.
“I want to die,” Neville said.
“Cooper’s getting ready to call the EMT’s right now. Give me a name.” Conroy’s voice was pure disgust.
“Watch,” Neville gasped.
“Watch what?” Conroy demanded. “What should we be watching?”
The older man moved his left hand to cover his right wrist, where his watch was. “Names.”
“Yeah, give me the name of your first kill. Then we’ll let you die.”
“Conroy, take off his watch,” Addison said excitedly. Conroy didn’t question her, he just took off Neville’s watch. She pulled herself out of Liam’s arms and snatched the watch from Conroy. She looked inside the wristband. Addison squinted, but she could make out that there were names and dates.”
She yanked her iPhone out of her bra and used the light to look at the watch. There is was, the name Catherine Lewis etched in tiny letters on the back. “We have him. He’s engraved the names of his kills here. He wanted them close by. Fucker would have carried around the damned dog tags if he could have.”
“I’ve called the EMT’s.” Cooper said.
“Oh yeah, once people know what he and Stan did, there life in prison will not be long,” Conroy’s grin was feral.
Liam took two steps and pulled her back into his arms. “It’s over.”
Epilogue
Addison looked over at Liam. He took up most of the room in the double bed. For the last five months they’d been sleeping in a California king at home, so sleeping in a double here on the road was a challenge for him because his feet hung over the bottom. But she loved it because they were all smushed together.
She tiptoed around the room and threw on some clothes. They weren’t going to miss breakfast for a fourth day in a row. She was at least bringing something up to the damn room. She padded barefoot down the old hallway to the quaint dining room.
“Hello, Addison,” Mrs. Connelly smiled at her. “You’re actually going to eat some of the food that we provide, are you?”
She looked around the empty dining room. “Wait a minute, are you telling me that none of your guests eat your breakfast?”
“I have four couples staying here right now. I made a breakfast that could be reheated, because I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be seeing any of you this morning,” the older lady winked. “But if you hold on, I’ll put together a tray for you to take to Liam.”
“That would be fantastic.”
Addison grabbed a piece of banana nut bread off the sideboard and buttered it, then took it to the table while Mrs. Connelly bustled into the kitchen of the old bed and breakfast.
She’d had her phone off all day yesterday so it was time to take a peek and see what she’d missed. She was surprised when it turned out to only be a voicemail from Caroline and a text from Brody.
She listened to Caroline’s voicemail and grinned. Apparently, Laird was still giving her fits and Declan was pulling out all stops to recruit her for McAllister Enterprises.
Declan had come clean a bit more to both her and Caroline about what his company was all about. It was more than just high-end security. For the most part, Addison felt pretty good about what they did. As her father often said, look at people’s actions, do they use their powers for good? McAllister Enterprises could only be proven to use their powers for good. The kind of work they did during floods, fires, and other natural disasters were amazing. But still…
Neville’s suicide in prison was pretty straightforward and to be expected, but Stan’s murder by a fellow inmate still seemed suspicious to her. The department of corrections felt it was an open and shut case. But, Addison was always going to remember Conroy’s vow that Stan would pay for recruiting those women to be killed. And then the man had ended up stabbed to death.
“Addison, does Liam like tea or coffee?” Mrs. Connelly asked as she popped her head out of the kitchen.
“He’s former Navy,” Addison answered.
“Coffee it is,” the woman said as she dipped back into the kitchen.
Addison picked up the phone a
nd called Caroline. “So, are you going to take their job offer?”
“Probably. The only sticking point is Laird.”
“How is he a sticking point?”
“I’ll have to work with him all the time?” Caroline’s voice rose up at the end.
“Ignore him.” Addison got up and grabbed a couple of strawberries to put on her plate.
“A six-foot-three red-headed giant? I don’t think so. He’s such a protective bastard. Do you know that he actually flew out to Colorado to meet Heather Reading’s latest boyfriend? He didn’t approve of him, so he followed him and somehow caught the guy driving while under the influence and sicced the cops on him. Heather was pissed.”
“Bet her parents were grateful.”
“He’s out of control.”
“All of the guys are the same way. Have you talked to Allie? Declan’s wife?”
“No,” Caroline said.
“Heather didn’t stand a chance, but you could join the support group that Allie set up with her friend, K.C.,” Addison suggested.
“Is that the one that Conroy is all hot and heavy about?”
Addison took another bite of her banana bread. “Uh-huh. K.C. hasn’t let Conroy run her over, and you won’t let Laird run you over, either. It’ll be fine.”
Caroline sighed. “That’s what Stacy said, too. The problem is, I’m not sure I want to ignore him.”
“How’s Stacy doing?” Addison asked.
“She has her good days and bad days. The amputee support group that she’s hooked in with seems to be helping.” Then Caroline giggled.
“What’s funny about that?”
“She sure is drinking a lot of coffee with one of the guys there. His name is Smoke.”
“Smoke? Seriously?”
“He lost his arm during a motorcycle accident. He belongs to a motorcycle club.”
Addison started giggling, too.
“Here’s your basket,” Mrs. Connelly said as she came out of the kitchen.
“A baby, imagine that,” Liam mused. He’d watched Addison get teary eyed on the phone with Brody as he told her his news. Now they were just sitting back against the pillows, their breakfast feast surrounding them on the bed.
Liam touched her hair that lay against the pillow. He loved the silky black strands. It was so beautiful. So was her skin. Her eyes. There wasn’t anything about her that he didn’t think was beautiful. Nothing about her that he didn’t love.
“I’m stunned about the baby,” Addison said. “When they got married last month, Jamie told me that they were planning on waiting for at least two years to start a family.”
“Brody told me that he wanted to start a family immediately,” Liam said.
“Really?”
Liam nodded. He didn’t tell her it was because of the narrow miss that Addison had had. She wouldn’t want to know that her son had changed his life because of something that had happened to her, but Liam understood it. Brody had gone through a lot of loss in his life. He wanted all of his people and all of his happy in one place and one time. That was why he took a job in Virginia, so he could have it all together.
“You’re going to make a fantastic grandmother,” Liam said.
“You’re going to make a fantastic grandfather.” Addison said.
“Do you really think so? Do you trust me?” he asked.
“Liam!” She scrambled up on her knees. “How can you even ask that? Absolutely I trust you. We’re past that.”
He looked into her beautiful eyes, so filled with love, and yes, trust. What had he ever done to deserve this woman?
“Baby, you’re the best man I know. I trust you not only with my life, but with my heart. My soul.”
He shuddered as he traced the line of her face with his eyes, and got out of bed. He grabbed his jeans.
“Ooooh, goody. A condom.”
“Is that all you think about, woman? Sex?”
“You’re the one getting a condom,” she teased.
Liam grabbed the ring out of the ring box from his jeans.
“I want to be a grandparent beside you, Addison,” Liam said solemnly.
She sat up straighter.
“Hey, what’s this about? You will be,” she promised.
“I asked Brody for permission to marry you. Now I would like to ask you if you will accept my proposal.” He held out a diamond ring surrounded by blue sapphires, happy that his hand was steady.
“Silver and blue. It’s us,” she whispered reverently.
He smiled softly. “That’s what I thought, too. I was hoping that you would see it as a symbol of us together. We were always meant to be together from that very first day I kidnapped you. I just took too long to see it.”
“No, you didn’t,” she cried, as she wrapped her arms around his neck. “You didn’t, Liam. This is the life we were supposed to have together. This is it.”
“But—”
“No buts. Liam, I don’t know if things would have worked out the way they have if we had stayed together all those years ago. All I know is that I couldn’t be any happier than I am in this moment, here with you now. You hang the moon in my sky. You’re going to be the grandfather to my grandchild. My life is perfect because of you.”
Her eyes sparkled with tears.
Liam knew he was loved.
I hope you enjoyed SEAL at Sunrise. Click here to find out more about the Silver SEALs Series. Below is an excerpt from SEAL Strong by Cat Johnson
SEAL Strong by Cat Johnson
Silas was about to head back down when his cell buzzed.
He pulled it out with one hand, while reaching for the doorknob with the other. When he saw Maggie’s name on the text alert he smiled and dropped his hand from the knob.
After he unlocked the phone and saw her words, that smile faded quickly.
SHOOTER IN THE BALLROOM
What the fuck?
He looked around the room, instinct having him searching for a gun that wasn’t there.
Had he misinterpreted her message? No. He couldn’t have. There was no other explanation for what she’d written.
They were under attack and he was unarmed. But not completely. He lunged for the closet where he’d tossed his backpack.
Inside he had everything he was legally allowed to travel with and might conceivably need. Flashlight. Lock pick. Tactical rope. A short fixed blade knife that would be in compliance with TSA rules. A multi-tool. First aid kit. NVGs—not the real good night vision goggles he’d used in the teams, but good enough.
If he’d been in tactical pants he would have stuffed everything into the pockets. But he was in a fucking suit and didn’t want to take the time to change, so he grabbed the backpack, zipped it shut and threw the strap over his shoulder.
He’d already taken his clothes and toiletries out so the pack was empty of everything except his stripped down kit. It wasn’t what he was used to going into a mission with, but it would have to do.
Hell, he’d find a security guard and relieve the man of his weapon if he had to. He had no doubt it would be of more use in his own trained, combat-experienced hands than in the control of whoever the hotel hired.
His key card was already in his pocket, in case he needed to get back inside quick. He was armed with everything he had in his possession at the moment, but the one thing he needed and didn’t have was information.
He didn’t want to risk Maggie’s life by asking her for details. She’d managed to slip out a single text without the shooter noticing but he wasn’t sure that would remain the case.
That Chavez hadn’t also texted told him the situation might be bad down there. With no time to waste, he typed in three words, then added three more before he hit send.
On my way. I love you.
As he shoved the cell into his pocket, he didn’t let himself think those might be the last words she ever got from him.
Slowly he opened the door and peered into the hall. He pulled the door open wider and leaned
out, looking first left and then right.
Seeing it was clear, he ran for the emergency stairs. He couldn’t risk standing there like a fool with nothing but a knife and a backpack if the elevator doors opened onto one of the shooters.
How many attackers were there? Maggie’s text had been singular, not plural, but he wasn’t going to rely on that.
Very aware he hadn’t felt another text alert come through from her, he ran faster, leaping over the last three steps at each landing rather than taking them one at a time.
Finally he was at the door that would open onto the ballroom level.
He doubted the attackers, if there were more than one, had someone watching the emergency stairs. The stairwell was too far from the elevators and the ballroom entrance. He knew because he’d swung by to check out the layout on his way down to breakfast this morning.
Silas grabbed the doorknob and eased open the stairwell door, pressing his eye to the crack. He saw a kid dressed in a white apron running toward him.
As far as he could see the kid was young and unarmed. Probably kitchen help. Maybe a busboy.
Silas flattened himself against the wall and waited. When the door opened he reached out and hauled the kid back against him with one hand covering his mouth and the other twisting his arm behind him.
The kid struggled for a second then went still.
“Do you speak English?” he asked.
The kid nodded.
“I’m going to ease my hand away from your mouth. If you scream I’m going to break your neck. Understand?”
After a pause, the kid dipped his head once.
“Good.” Silas moved his hand and hooked his elbow around the kid’s neck, applying just enough pressure to scare him, but not so much he couldn’t talk or breathe. “Tell me what’s happening in the ballroom.”
“There are men with guns.”
“How did you see them?” he asked.
“I was supposed to go inside and check the water and glasses. I opened the door. I saw one man with a gun. I heard the other shouting at the people.”
SEAL at Sunrise (Silver SEALs Book 12) Page 16
