Wait, had he unknowingly agreed with Reed? Connor furrowed his brow and half-heartily complied, extending his fist.
“Actually, my guys let Kenzie leave without following her,” Ty said, reaching out for his own fist bump. “Had they been able to talk her down, my life wouldn’t have gotten so out of hand. I think this is a great idea!”
“She’s not a prisoner,” Cole said, looking over at Ty like he was insane.
“No, she’s not, but she has to take more precautions. There’re crazy people out there. The people I hire need to look out for her, follow her, keep her safe. It needs to be instinct, second nature. Has Julia told you about her deal?” Ty asked Connor.
“Yeah.”
“That’s more frequent now. People are bold as fuck. We need better training. Real-time sounds great,” Ty said, his grin growing as he turned to Reed. “Let’s get this started. Find out what’ll it’ll cost to get this up and going. I’ll pass it on. I know I could get Con some clients.”
Reed nodded then reached inside his suit jacket for his phone. He typed, using his thumbs, and Connor’s focus narrowed in on that. How did he manage to do that and get the words to come out right? When he slid the phone back in his jacket, he returned his attention to Connor. Didn’t say a word, just stared.
“I guess it wouldn’t hurt to map it out, see if it’s doable. I don’t want to take your money. Maybe I can start it with what I have.”
“It’s not a gift or a loan. You’d make me rich, but something that substantial needs funds to be done properly,” Reed said.
“You already are rich,” Connor pointed out.
“And I didn’t do it by investing unwisely,” Reed said condescendingly.
“Mr. Willis, your table’s ready.” Sada interrupted their discussion.
Connor looked over at Cole who seemed to be salivating at the sight of the manager. Man, his buddy had it bad for her. Any other time he’d be giving Cole so much shit for no other reason than payback. But a quick glance at Sada showed that she seemed to be completely unaffected by the desire Cole so obviously had. Sada held the same smile she always did for anyone she spoke to.
Since his own gaze never strayed too far from Julie, his eyes went back there. None of the three women had budged from their huddle, oblivious to everything but their conversation. Connor slid off his chair and went for her. Reed’s offer should interest him more; his financial future needed to be his top priority, but it just wasn’t. That landed with Julie. He ran a palm down her back, and thought of how he’d stood to the side, holding her purse, while she’d signed autographs and posed for pictures when they’d first arrived. That would be his life if they managed to stay together through everything headed their way.
Julie looked up at him startled, then all three sets of eyes landed on him. Kenzie’s cheeks turned a bright shade of red, and Julie definitely gave him a look like she’d been caught with her hand in the cookie jar.
“Did you hear that?” Julie asked.
“No, but maybe I should have,” Connor said as he scanned their faces and registered Lara’s bright red cheeks.
“No,” Julie said, shaking her head, giving one of her sincere laughs that eased all his struggles. She slid off her chair, reaching for the back where her purse hung. “Not at all. That would give you all the power in our relationship.”
“Okay, you get a break since I’m not power hungry. They’ve called us for dinner,” Connor said, reaching for her elbow when she stumbled a bit.
“I think they make their very cherry martinis stronger than Cache,” Julie said, reaching for her drink. Connor helped Lara off her stool, making sure she was steady on those ridiculously high heels. He stayed by Lara, holding her arm only because he couldn’t see how she balanced her small frame and very pregnant belly on what had to be five-inch heels.
He kept an eye on Julie who only walked a step or two ahead of him. She laughed at something Ty said. This moment with all of his friends together and Julie fitting in with his crew was, technically, what he’d wanted when he’d thought about their future. Yet now, as it played out in front of him, it somehow reinforced their differences more than brought them together. Since she became the Julia Holly the world knew and loved, the obstacles between them had grown bigger in his mind. No matter how many times he’d instructed himself this afternoon to remember she was the woman he fell in love with, her public image messed with his head. As if they were on some cosmic wavelength, Julie turned back toward him, then stopped, waiting for him and Lara to catch up. Like this afternoon, she seemed to sense his reservations. Julie wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed. He did the same, and that simple touch gave him everything he needed in that moment.
“He’s not paying any attention to me, is he?” Lara said beside them.
Julie bent forward to look around him, a twinkle in her eyes. “He’s got very selective hearing,” she said and lifted to kiss him on the cheek.
He hadn’t heard a word Lara said. Couldn’t even come up with it in his head. Luckily Reed stepped in and relieved him of his hold on Lara before anything else could be said.
~~~
“Thank you for being so easy to get along with,” Julie said, resting her head on Connor’s shoulder. It was late. The patch of road they were on was virtually empty, all except them and Bruno in the car following.
“What were y’all talking about when I walked up to the table tonight?” he asked, letting each mile lull him as he stared at the dark road through the truck’s windshield.
Julie lifted her head and looked at his face before lowering it again. He had no idea what that meant, but after a minute more, she finally spoke. “You. Sex. Things like that.”
“Y’all were talking about sex at the restaurant?” he asked incredulously, turning his head, trying to see her better to gauge if she told the truth or tried for shock value.
“Of course. We were quiet, no one heard, and don’t pretend that guys don’t do that.”
“I don’t do that.”
“You’re not most guys,” she shot back.
Hmm. That was a real good answer. Now the curiosity of what she thought of him in the bedroom and how he’d compared to Kenzie’s and Lara’s experiences piqued his interest. He just wasn’t certain how to ask that question.
Luckily, his girl took pity on him. Julie pushed her palm onto his thigh to lift enough to kiss his cheek and whisper breathy words against his ear. “I won. My guy’s the best in the sack.”
Connor grinned at her words, but kept his eyes focused on the road. The hand resting on his leg squeezed and slid between his thighs at the same time the gas light dinged, drawing his attention to the almost-empty tank. Damn, they were at least forty miles from his parents’ house. Taking a deep breath, he berated himself for several long seconds. He should have checked that before they’d ever left the house this morning and certainly as they left the restaurant. They needed fuel to make it home. Even the hand grazing his hard dick didn’t help his anger directed toward himself. Connor started looking around, trying to remember where there might be a gas station on this unpopulated stretch of county road.
In a sudden turn of the wheel, Connor exited. If he remembered correctly, there was a small gas station off this side road or at least there used to be one. He checked his mirror and saw Bruno made the exit too. Connor took the right at the junction, drove the three or four miles out of his way, and found the small service station exactly where he’d remembered. It was late, or rather early in the morning, the area dimly lit and unattended, and Connor scanned the station. No one looked to be hanging around.
He took the turn, pulling to the pumps. They appeared automated and perhaps a little outdated, but in working order. He chose the first one and Bruno pulled in right behind him.
“Stay here,” he said to Julie, lifting the gearshift to park before cutting the ignition. She didn’t look like she planned to budge. He took the keys to stop the dinging from his open door. As he got out,
he shoved the keys in his front pocket, and then reached for his wallet. Bruno came forward between the truck and the pump.
“I gotta pee,” Bruno said at the tailgate.
“I’ll watch her,” Connor said, digging for his credit card while in front of the gas pump. He pushed the credit card through the slot, put his wallet back in his back pocket, and waited for the machine to ask for his zip code. When he got the green light, he pulled the pump from its cradle. Connor pushed it in the gas tank and gripped the latch while thinking about how much he liked spending time with Julie. The quiet of the night let his mind wander over the evening’s events.
It was remarkable how much she eased his natural state of anxiety. By the time dinner was done, he’d completely relaxed, all because of her gentle way of handling him.
Suddenly, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. The silence of the night had changed and instinct took over. Connor slightly bent his head to absorb the scene around him, pull in details he’d need without engaging any potential threat just yet. He took a deep breath, slowly exhaling as the hint of a shadow crossed the truck bed. On impulse, he clicked the lever in place for automatic filling, and with his left hand covered by the shadows from the light, Connor carefully reached to his belt, unclicking the sheath and soundlessly removing the blade he always kept there. He palmed the handle, using his thumbnail to release the safety. Using the pad of his thumb, he slowly and quietly extended the blade. With only a minimal turn of his head, Connor spotted the gleam of a gun barrel from across the truck bed.
Motherfucker.
“Sure is a nice ride.” A deeply southern drawl came from a couple of feet away, lurking in the shadows behind him. With efficient movements, Connor glanced over his shoulder to assess the man rounding the gas pump. Connor didn’t say a word as he took in the steady hand holding a Glock aimed right at his chest.
From the corner of his eyes, he saw the second guy stood closer to the tailgate, a shotgun aimed his way with a slight tremble in his hold. Connor focused on the guy coming up beside him. The confident one. Probably the ringleader. He’d be a much bigger threat, but clearly not too bright as he stepped closer, then closer still.
“On the juice there ’roid-head?” the one closest to him taunted.
Connor stayed silent. Two on one. Okay, those were good odds.
“I wish I had a fancy ride like that. Oh wait… I’ll just take yours. Give me the keys.” The guy stepped closer, gun pointed directly at his chest. He extended his other hand, motioning for Connor to hand over his keys. The other guy moved closer to the passenger side of the cab. Apparently the one closest to him thought the knife he held against his thigh was his keys.
“They’re in the truck,” he answered and took a step toward the cab. If he could get his hands on his pistol underneath his seat, this would be over in a matter of seconds. At the very least, he could hold them off until Bruno came up from behind.
“Lookie here. There’s somethin’ pretty sittin’ inside, Ray-Ray.” Mr. Unconfident sure changed his tune. He could hear the lust-filled sneer in the guy’s excited voice.
Fuck that.
“Connor?” Julie said nervously from inside the cab.
“Hang tight, babe,” he said loud enough for her to hear.
The ringleader got bolder and more redneck as he started to crowd Connor.
“She’ll be comin’ with us. Step back or I’ll blow your fuckin’ head off,” he growled. Still, he wasn’t the one that held most of Connor’s attention. The one leering at Julie, opening the passenger side door, reaching a hand inside concerned him more.
“She’s a pretty one, Ray-Ray. She’ll do just fine.”
Out of options, Connor took a breath and allowed his training to take over. With a single exhale, Connor lunged forward, grabbing Ringleader’s wrist on the hand that held the gun. With his momentum established, he swiftly rammed the blade in his other hand directly into the guy’s chest cavity. It sank easily through the skin as Connor gave an abrupt twist to the guy’s wrist and lifted the gun a fraction higher.
The angle of the barrel wasn’t pretty, and the cracking of bones guaranteed he’d broken the wrist and quite possibly a finger as he slid his fingertip over the man’s to press the trigger. His whole focus remained on the guy who stood between Julie and the open passenger side door of his truck, fear and shock etched on his ugly face as he tried to figure out how they’d lost the upper hand.
The awkward shot hit the mark dead on. The nice tidy hole in Mr. Unconfident’s forehead jerked his head backward with such force that he shattered the passenger door window of his truck.
Connor inhaled, his eyes still trained on the target, assessing the threat level.
Julie’s scream pierced the utter silence in his brain not even a second later, drawing him out of his zone, back into real time.
Connor blinked as the sounds of both bodies hitting the ground happened almost simultaneously. His head jerked to see Bruno running toward him, weapon drawn toward the one on Julie’s side of the truck. Connor registered that, scanned for any further threat before he bent on one knee, checked the guy’s pulse and found nothing. At the same time, he reached for his knife, then stopped. He was a civilian now. The authorities would deal with that.
Connor rose as Bruno stood, holstering his weapon back underneath his arm. Connor met his stare. Julie was clawing out of the front of the cab on the driver’s side, a little hysterical, and he automatically went for her, pulling her against his body. Just like in the field, he held all emotion at bay as he looked down at her frantic face.
“Are you hurt?” he asked in clipped tones.
“Are you?” she screamed, her hands roaming down his chest and back up, looking for injury.
“Julie, are you hurt?” Connor asked again. After a combat scenario like this, he was always super-sensitive to his surroundings. Even as he stared down at Julie, he tracked Bruno coming around the hood of his truck, toward them.
“No, he barely touched me. Are you?” she asked frantically.
“No.” Her arms wrapped around his waist, her body plastering against his side.
Bruno was there beside them, pulling out his phone. “I’ll call it in.”
“Hang on. Not yet.” He gripped Julie’s biceps, pulling her arms from around him as he handed her to Bruno, all against her will. “Watch her. Stay with her. Lock her in your car.” He quickly decided she was safest inside there. With her octopus-worthy arms reaching for him, he controlled her movements as he stepped away.
“Where are you going? Let me go with you,” she begged desperately.
“Stay here. I’ve got to call my commander first. I need you to stay here, lock the doors so I don’t have to worry about you.” Bruno physically held her back as he headed toward the small booth in the center of the parking lot. It wasn’t big, nothing more than a place to collect money, probably only open during daytime hours.
“I’m getting the security tape in case it’s on a timed-rewrite sequence and calling my commander. He’ll call the police. Leave everything like it is.” It didn’t take but a few minutes for him to break into the booth. It took minutes longer to secure the video. The whole time, he spoke with his phone to his ear, succinctly filling his commander in.
“Stay put, McDaniel.”
“The woman I’m with is famous. It would be better to keep this out of the press,” he said, re-locking the door to the booth as he exited the building.
“Noted. Stay on the line. I’ll be back with further instruction.” Connor took a deep breath and went for the truck, hovering by the tailgate. His gaze stayed fixed on Julie’s frantic face as she stared at him through the front window. Bruno patrolled the outside of the car every few minutes, his gaze scanning Connor before he’d look away. A pit formed in his stomach. He’d done the right thing. If Julie hadn’t been inside the truck, he’d probably have chosen to try disarming them, but he couldn’t risk her, and they most definitely planned to take her with
them if he’d failed to gain control of the situation. He’d done the right thing. So why did the dread intensify as he stared at Julie?
~~~
Nine sheriffs’ patrol cars seemed a little excessive, but Connor stood where they’d instructed and watched the workings of local law enforcement play out in front of him. He looked down at his wristwatch. He’d been out there for two hours. His gaze shifted to Bruno’s vehicle where Julie sat in the front seat. He could see her clearly. She looked exhausted, beat down, and perhaps still a little frightened. He hated that, and he hated being forced to stay away from her while the officers worked the scene. His pissed off levels were skyrocketing. Connor clenched his jaw, crossing his arms tighter over his chest, and stood there, seething.
Honestly, the idea of joining law enforcement looked a little less appealing at this moment.
“We’re to let you go, but you need to stay close.”
Connor shifted his gaze to the officer who’d come in to the right of him, standing a few feet away. Just like all the officers, this young guy looked edgy dealing with him. Connor didn’t wait or respond; he headed straight toward Bruno’s car. Halfway to the car, Julie’s head turned his way, and she watched him walk all the way to her. Julie didn’t move as he opened the door and bent at the knee, crouching down beside her.
“Are you okay?” he asked, reaching to take her hands resting in her lap. She didn’t clasp his back, but didn’t pull away either.
“I’m ready to go home.” Her sad eyes seemed a bit hollow, causing his worry to spike.
Mission Happy (A Texas Desires Novel Book 3) Page 23
