by Lisa Childs
No. She’d been face-to-face with him as he had tried to choke the life from her. And she hadn’t recognized anything in his eyes but madness. He was crazy.
But he wasn’t here. He wouldn’t be able to get to her in this condo like he had in the hospital. He wouldn’t be able to hurt her here.
“I didn’t think I could feel safe,” she said, “not with him still out there.” And she knew that he was. If Manny had shot him, he wouldn’t have been as strong as he’d been in the hospital. No. If he was injured, it wasn’t badly—not enough to stop him—probably only enough to make him more determined to hurt Manny and her. She shivered.
“We’ll get him,” he assured her, and he sounded as determined as the stalker had been. So she couldn’t doubt that he would get him. Eventually.
She just wondered at what cost. How many of the other bodyguards might be hurt because of her? And how badly would Manny get hurt?
This was the job he had chosen, though. The life he wanted to live. One of danger. One in which it was better for him to be single, because if he ever had a family, there would probably be a day when he wouldn’t be able to return to his wife and kids. Teddie had already been abandoned once, before she’d ever been born. She didn’t want to risk that again.
His phone vibrated inside his jeans pocket, drawing her attention to his butt. The man was too damn good-looking. It wasn’t fair. But even if she took the risk and fell for him, she had no guarantee he would return her feelings. She needed to remember that he was just doing his job. That was all she was to him—an assignment.
He pulled out the phone and glanced at the text on the screen. “Cooper wants to see me,” he said.
“Cooper?”
“Cooper Payne,” he said. “My boss.”
“Oh, that’s right.” Cooper was the one she’d talked to when she’d hired the Payne Protection Agency. She waited for Manny to press a button and make a call.
But instead he headed toward the door.
And panic struck, stealing the breath from her still-achy lungs. “Where are you going?”
“I have to go in to the office,” he said. His brow furrowed slightly. He repeated slowly, “Cooper wants to see me.”
“Can’t he come here?” she asked.
Manny shook his head. “I don’t think he can say what he wants to say to me in front of a client.”
“What?” she asked, indignant on his behalf. “Do you think he’s going to yell at you?”
He snorted. “Well, yeah...”
“Why?”
“Because I have it coming,” he said. “You could have died last night—more than once.”
“But I didn’t,” she said. “Because of you. You saved my life.” He’d done that by more than just protecting her from the stalker. He’d saved her life when they’d made love because she’d felt something besides fear again.
She knew it was a bad idea. But she wanted to feel like that again. She wanted passion and pleasure without worrying about the consequences, without worrying about her heart getting broken.
He must have seen it in her face—the desire, the need—because he backed toward the door. And this time he was the one who looked scared. “Teddie...”
She was used to working for what she wanted. And she wanted Manny. She followed him until he stopped, his back pressed against that steel door. Then she pressed herself against him, stretching up his body to kiss his lips.
His breath escaped in a groan and her name. “Teddie...” Then he kissed her back.
And she felt it again, the passion that drove her wild. She tugged at his clothes, desperate to be close to him like they’d been that night. Skin to skin.
But he caught her shoulders and gently pushed her back. “Teddie, I—I can’t do this.”
Passion had already warmed her face, but now it burned with embarrassment. “I—I’m sorry...”
What was it about this man that made her lose all common sense and control? She had never thrown herself at anyone before him. But then, she’d never wanted anyone the way she wanted Jordan Mannes.
She stepped back from him and stared down at the floor, unable to meet his gaze. Maybe despite all of her denials she had become one of those spoiled celebrities used to getting her own way. Because she sure as hell couldn’t handle this rejection.
It caused a pang in her chest that had nothing to do with panic or fear. Or maybe it had everything to do with that—because she was scared of what she was beginning to feel for a man who’d made it clear he had no intention of ever having a relationship with anyone.
She heard something strike the door and glanced up to see his palm pressed against it. Then he growled, “Damn it...” and whirled away from the door.
Seconds later he swept her up in his arms and carried her across the living room and through the doorway into another room. When she bounced down onto a mattress, she realized it was a bed.
“Damn you,” he cursed her as he stripped off his holster and then his clothes.
Maybe she should have been insulted, but a giggle slipped out. He looked so angry, but she knew why. He had lost control. And for a man like him, a man who piloted his own planes, control was everything.
He wouldn’t lose it if she didn’t affect him in the same way he affected her. And damn, how he affected her. Wanting to be as naked as he was, she quickly stripped off all of her own clothes, tossing them down beside the bed.
His pupils dilated so his eyes were nearly black with desire. “I promised myself I wouldn’t let you distract me again,” he said. “The last time...” He shuddered.
“That wasn’t your fault,” she said. “The stalker would have set that fire anyway.” Even if they hadn’t been in bed together.
But he shook his head. “Not if I’d been keeping lookout instead of...”
“Dane was keeping lookout,” she reminded him. “And now there are others outside, watching the condo.” She repeated his words back to him. “I’m safe here.”
But he shook his head again as he stared down at her lying naked on the bed. “You’re not safe at all, Teddie Plummer. You’re the most dangerous woman I’ve ever met.” Then he followed her down onto the mattress, pressing his hard, tense body against hers.
She touched him everywhere, skimming her hands over his rippling muscles. As she touched him, he touched her—first just lips to lips. He kissed her gently, then more passionately, his tongue sliding into her mouth.
She ached for him to fill her, so she rubbed her hips against his straining erection. He groaned into her mouth. But he didn’t take her with the fury she needed him to. Instead he moved his mouth down her body. He kissed her breasts, teasing the nipples with his lips and then his tongue.
She cried out as sensations raced through her. How could the man make her come just by touching her breasts?
“You are so damn responsive,” he murmured.
But it wasn’t enough. She needed all of him. She moved her hands between them, over his chest and washboard stomach to his erection. But he pulled back before she could stroke her fingers down the length of him.
Then she heard the tear of plastic as he ripped open a condom packet. This time he let her take it from him and roll it over his shaft. Her hand trembled as his flesh rippled beneath her fingers. She had never wanted anyone more than she wanted him. So she pushed him back on the bed and straddled him, sliding him inside her.
Like before, he filled that emptiness and eased that ache inside her. But as she moved, the tension increased, driving her out of her mind as release just eluded her.
He groaned and grasped her hips in his big hands. He moved her so that he slid a little deeper. She arched and cried out as sensations raced through her. But it still wasn’t enough. She needed more.
His hands skimmed up from her hips to her breasts. He teased her nipples as he thrust up f
rom the mattress. They moved in a frenzy.
Teddie felt as if she was losing her mind. She was so close to madness. Tension coiled tightly inside her, from her nipples to her core. Then her body convulsed, and she shuddered as she came.
He thrust his hips up and groaned, joining her in ecstasy. Panting for breath, he murmured again, “Damn you...”
She smiled, too satiated to be offended. She lifted herself off him and collapsed onto the bed in a tangle of sheets and limp limbs. She felt the mattress shift as he got up. Figuring he’d come back and wrap her in his arms like he had the night of the fire, she closed her eyes and waited for him. And drifted off to sleep.
* * *
Manny avoided the rearview mirror. He couldn’t risk catching a glimpse of himself. He was too disgusted. Not only had he given in once again to his desire for the client, but he had also left her lying alone in bed after giving in to that desire. Of course, she wasn’t completely alone. Payne Protection bodyguards surrounded the condo.
Cooper had called in reinforcements from Logan’s team and from his brother Parker’s. Parker’s former vice cops with their thick beards and rough appearances fit in well in the abandoned industrial area of River City where the condo had been converted from an old warehouse. Nobody would suspect them of being hired security, just like their former targets hadn’t suspected they were cops. And Logan’s team had the most experienced of the bodyguards—the ones who’d saved the most lives already.
With all that protection, nobody would get to Teddie.
But she had gotten to Manny in a way nobody else ever had—which proved his judgment was every bit as bad as that of the other Mannes men. Not that Teddie would ever ask him to commit a crime.
But his desire for her had affected what had always been most important to him: his commitment to a mission. He had never let himself get distracted before. Despite his sometimes big mouth, he had never been a risk to the success of a mission before, either.
He had already nearly failed this mission when Dane had been hurt, when the cabin had burned and when the stalker had gotten to Teddie in the hospital. He had promised her mother, and himself, that he would keep her safe until he caught her stalker.
He understood now that she would be safer without him near her. Because his desire for her distracted him.
Cooper was no doubt going to remove him from the assignment. And this time Manny would not argue with his boss. It would be safer for Teddie and for him if someone else protected her.
But he wouldn’t break his promise to her mother. He would make certain that she stayed safe—with other bodyguards—and he would make damn sure her stalker was caught.
Metal crunched, and his head snapped forward as someone struck the rear of the Payne Protection SUV he drove. He glanced to the rearview mirror that he had been avoiding. Maybe someone had just accidentally struck him. Maybe, in his reluctance to face his boss, he hadn’t been driving the speed limit. But when he looked into the mirror, he could see the driver of the truck—and the man was wearing a ski mask very much like the one Manny had found at the stalker’s campsite.
He cursed and pressed hard on the accelerator. But the truck engine revved as the driver sped up to close the distance between them again. The bumpers connected, and this time Manny was ready for the impact. It barely jostled him.
He jerked the wheel, taking a sharp turn. The truck nearly missed it, jumping the curb and going over the sidewalk to follow him. A street vendor’s cart flew, debris hitting the truck windshield. But still the truck kept coming.
As determined as the stalker had been to get to Teddie, he seemed just as determined to get to Manny now. Manny reached for his cell, but the pocket where he always kept it was empty. He’d left his phone at the condo, so he couldn’t call for backup. He would have to take out the stalker on his own.
Or die trying...
* * *
Nikki Payne had always envied her mother’s special ability to just know things. And probably one of the things she’d resented most when her illegitimate brother Nick came to town was that he had that same special ability. And he wasn’t even Penny Payne’s son.
Well, he was now, because Penny had a way of adopting everyone she met. But Nikki had always wished she could just know things, too.
As she watched her brother Cooper grapple with his new ability, she wasn’t so envious anymore. At the head of the conference table, he looked tense and miserable and scared.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Manny’s late,” he said.
“He left late,” she reminded him. From his post outside the condo door, Cole had let the boss know when Manny had finally exited the safe house.
It had taken him a while to leave Teddie. Nikki was actually a little surprised and disappointed that he had. She’d thought he was falling for the supermodel.
Maybe that was why he’d left. He was running scared from his feelings for Teddie. Nikki understood that fear very well.
Not too long ago she had run from her feelings for his friend Lars. But she hadn’t been able to run fast or far enough to escape love, and she suspected neither would Manny.
Under the conference room table, she reached for her fiancé, sliding her hand over his muscular thigh. Lars glanced over at her, his pale blue eyes bright with desire and love.
She wasn’t afraid anymore. She trusted Lars more than anyone else in the world, even her mother. He was a man of honor and integrity, and worthy of her trust.
From what she’d learned about Teddie Plummer, she appeared to be worthy of Manny’s trust, as well. Nikki had found no reason for anyone to target the supermodel, who was believed to be as beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside.
Which meant their suspect could be anyone...
After her plan had failed, Nikki had worked hard to redeem herself. Using the photos, she’d managed to compile a list of possible suspects. But she didn’t think that was the only reason Cooper had called this meeting.
He cursed.
“What is it?” she asked.
“I just have a bad feeling,” he murmured, confirming her suspicion that he was getting premonitions just like their mother did. And it was obviously making him miserable. “I think something has happened to Manny.”
Lars snorted. “Yeah, he’s falling for a supermodel.”
Cooper shook his head. “No, I think...” He cursed again and picked up his cell phone. He punched a contact and the sound of ringing emanated from his speaker.
But Manny didn’t answer the call. The hello that echoed throughout the conference room was, albeit throaty and faint, feminine.
“Miss Plummer?” Cooper asked.
“Y-yes,” she replied. She sounded disoriented, like she had just awakened. Had she been sleeping alone?
“Sorry,” he said. “I was trying to reach Manny.”
She hesitated for a moment as if she was looking for him before she murmured, “He’s not here. He must have forgotten his phone.”
Nikki and Lars exchanged a pointed glance. Manny had forgotten his cell phone in the bedroom? She hadn’t been wrong about the attraction she’d noticed between the supermodel and her bodyguard. She wasn’t surprised that they’d acted on that attraction. There was something about being in danger that was almost like an aphrodisiac. Lucky for her, she and Lars were bodyguards.
“That’s fine,” Cooper said.
But Teddie must have realized it wasn’t because her voice was sharp when she asked, “Isn’t he there with you?”
“No...”
“Then where is he?”
And finally Nikki felt it, too. Her brother’s bad feeling overwhelmed her. Something had happened to Manny. The stalker must have realized he was never going to get to Teddie unless he got rid of her overprotective bodyguard first.
“We’ll find him,” Coo
per assured their client. But he didn’t sound hopeful.
And Nikki knew why. Her brother didn’t expect to find his friend alive.
Chapter 17
As a model, Teddie was used to quick changes of clothes. But she had never dressed as quickly as she had after Cooper Payne had disconnected his call to Manny’s cell phone. Her hands trembled around the phone. It must have fallen out of his pocket when he’d pulled off his clothes.
So he was out there. Alone. Without a phone.
And he hadn’t arrived yet at the Payne Protection Agency. Cooper must have been worried about Manny. Why else would he have called?
And now Teddie was worried. She ran out of the bedroom, across the hardwood floor of the open living area to that steel door. She pulled at the knob, but it didn’t turn. There was no lock on the handle, just a panel next to the door.
She needed a code to open the door?
Just a short while ago she had felt safe inside the condo. But that had been when Manny was inside it with her. Now she felt trapped. Panic pressing on her lungs, she pounded on the door and called, “Let me out!”
Her throat hurt as she yelled. The smoke from the fire and the stalker strangling her had done damage. But she didn’t care. She yelled louder, her voice cracking with pain and panic. “Let me out!”
The knob rattled before it turned and the door opened. But it wasn’t Manny standing on the other side like she had hoped. Cole Bentler stared down at her, his blue eyes wide with surprise. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
“You tell me,” she said. “Where’s Manny?”
“Cooper called him to a meeting.”
She held out Manny’s cell phone. “Cooper called here because Manny hasn’t shown up.”
Cole sucked in a breath. If he’d been standing guard at the door, he knew when Manny had left. And he knew how long it would take to get to the Payne Protection office. “Is this Manny’s phone?” he asked.
She nodded as heat rushed toward her face. “He must have dropped it.”
Cole probably suspected how. But all she saw on his face was concern for his friend. Unless he was concerned about Manny getting involved with her.
