Bulletproof Badge

by Angi Morgan

  Garrison shrugged, pulling the cord to close the blinds. He looked around the parking lot that had one teenager walking a dog. Other than that, it was completely quiet. Kenderly looked comfortable. Her skirt had been through the wringer, with lots of bare spots where it had lost the sequins. Her feet looked just as bad.

  “Think your friend has some practical shoes you can borrow?”

  “I’ll check.” She sat forward, then fell backward again. “Right after a nap. I’m wiped out.”

  He secured the second window and curtain. “Sounds like a good idea.”

  “Do you think they’ll find us here?”

  “I didn’t think they’d find us before. There’s no sign anyone followed. But I need to get that car away from here. I don’t trust your old boyfriend.”

  “I don’t trust him, either.” She yawned. “That’s why he was never a boyfriend.” Her eyes were closed by the time she rested her head on the arm of the old couch.

  Garrison opened the fridge and cabinets. It wasn’t his normal junk food, but he could do healthy for a couple of days. They could lie low and wait for Jesse to give them the all-clear. Or the captain could straighten out his involvement. He’d leave the car and take a bus back. No one would notice him on a bus, especially since they were flashing a ten-year-old academy picture of him on the screen. The Rangers must not have released his official white Stetson picture.

  “Do you think your friend has an extra key?” He waited with the freezer open for a response, then looked around the corner. “Kenderly?” He crossed to her, took a blanket from the back of the couch and covered her legs.

  As brave as she’d been since they’d been thrown into each other’s lives, she finally met something she couldn’t handle. Exhaustion. It had taken over and claimed some sleep time. He’d wait half an hour to make sure they were really safe and leave her a note. He could take care of Joey’s stuff on his own.

  * * *

  GARRISON KNOCKED ON the door with one knuckle. It was as quiet as he could manage with plastic grocery bags looped over his arms. If Kenderly was still asleep he’d be lurking in the dark until she could open the lock.

  The flimsy door was jerked wide. He nearly fell through as Kenderly grabbed his new T-shirt sleeve and yanked him inside.

  “You went shopping?”

  “I left a note.”

  “Be back soon. You call that a note?”

  “It took a while to catch a bus.”

  “You can’t blame it on public transportation. We’re really going to have to work on your communication skills, Garrison.” She took a few of the bags, glanced inside and led the way to the kitchen. “I’ve been out of my mind flipping channels to see if there were any reports about your capture.”

  “I brought dinner.”

  “Like I could eat anything after the past three hours.” Kenderly used her hands, expressing her dismay or concern or panic.

  “Three hours? You must have woken up right after I left.”

  Blocking his entrance into the tiny kitchen, she placed her cute little fists on her sequined-covered hips and tilted her chin up to look at him. There was something in her eyes he hadn’t noticed before.

  Fear. During their escape, she’d been in shock. Maybe they’d been running enough that it just hadn’t sunk in until now. But she looked frightened.

  “I would have known how long you’d been gone if you had left the time on your note.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He admitted it to very few people, but he wasn’t great at resolving conflicts. He took them in stride, sidestepped as often as possible, and forgot them immediately. He wanted to sidestep here, but she kept returning directly to the problem...him.

  “Seriously, you tell me never to leave your side. I close my eyes for a few minutes, and you’re gone. I learned one thing, though. I’m glad you came after me when I got out of the car. If I was truly on my own, I’d have no clue what to do.”

  She threw her arms around his waist, smashing her cheek to his chest. He didn’t have to make a decision whether or not to hug her back. His hands were still full of bags.

  “Promise you won’t abandon me. Okay?” she asked softly.

  He flinched and she let go. “I can’t make that promise.”

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to put you on the spot.” She wiped at her eyes.

  He’d seen her frightened, sad, mourning, unconscious and acting like she owned the world. He hadn’t seen this. She’d used the word abandoned. This would have been the perfect time to plug her name and date of birth into a database and see what records were spit out.

  Communication.

  Quickly setting the bags on the floor, he caught her shoulders before she scooted by him. The silky shirt was cool and smooth under his fingers. The roundness of her shoulders fit perfectly in the palm of his hands.

  “I can’t make that promise, Kenderly, because I have to do what’s best for you. Keeping you safe might mean leaving you. But I won’t walk away until I guarantee you’re safe. You can count on me. I can promise you that.”

  “Thanks,” she whispered. “I was just so scared. Maybe if we had some sort of plan... Some way to figure out why all of this happened, I’d feel better.”

  “I really did bring dinner.”

  “I get it. Change the subject before the strange woman can get too emotional.”

  “Naw. I’m just hungry. I’ve been smelling this chicken since I got to the store. I snuck a piece on the bus and just made my stomach growl more.”

  He gathered the sack handles and set them on the counter. The kitchen was a tight fit while they worked together and put away the things he’d bought. The deli fried chicken and sides were opened by Kenderly while he set one sack in the corner. They fixed their plates without Kenderly seeing the sack that held her surprise.

  The TV was muted. It didn’t take much to decipher what the report was stating. National headlines about two women being executed by a Texas Ranger and his stylist accomplice.

  “Want me to turn it off?”

  “Does your friend have cable? Is there a movie or something?” he asked to take her mind off the news.

  She pointed the remote, and the screen went blank. Guess that decided what they were watching. Sure, they needed to talk. He got it. He had been hoping for a moment to not do anything. Just a few minutes to decompress.

  First day with the Rangers more than one of the men had told him to enjoy the days when nothing happened. He’d been in law enforcement long enough to realize that truth on his own.

  You couldn’t drive forever. You had to stop to refuel. He also realized that Kenderly needed him to—dang it—communicate. At least he could eat at the same time.

  “What did you do with Joey’s car?”

  “Left it in a parking lot, took a bus five miles away, went to the store, ate a piece of chicken on the return bus, then knocked on the door. That’s it. I didn’t talk with anyone or get noticed. I didn’t make eye contact with the deli person. I even went through the self-checkout to avoid another person seeing my face.”

  She pushed her mac and cheese around her plate.

  “I thought everybody liked green beans and macaroni. Eat up.”

  “I’m not too hungry.”

  He shrugged. “Eat or don’t eat. It’ll be there when you’re ready.” He was on his second piece—third if he counted the appetizer on the bus.

  Kenderly dropped her fork and sank into the couch cushions, pulling the blanket up to her chin. It was clear that she was attempting to be patient. If it had been him, he’d be pacing the floor demanding answers. He knew what she wanted to ask but didn’t know to ask.

  “There were a lot of patrol cops and Texas Highway Patrol.” He swallowed his last bite and wiped his hands. “Joey might not have reported the car stolen
, but I still don’t trust him.”

  “Agreed and I understand why you didn’t wait for me to wake up. But you reminded me this morning not to leave your side. So it seemed strange to me. I panicked and had no clue what to do if something did happen to you.”

  “Sorry ’bout that. If we’re separated, you call Jesse. You can trust him. After these accusations, he knows not to turn you over to the police.” He needed to make certain nothing happened. They needed a plan, and he needed time to think of one. “It was better to leave you here. They’re looking for a couple and ignored a guy without a car buying groceries.”

  “Well, no one’s busting down the door, so I guess you’re right.”

  He laughed. He couldn’t help it since she was so matter-of-fact about it. He’d taken great pains to guarantee no one followed and busted down the door.

  “I don’t see what’s so funny about me being frightened to death. Or that someone’s trying to kill me. Or that we’re both wanted for murder. There’s just not anything funny about it at all, in my opinion.”

  “I didn’t mean—let’s forget it and chill. How about that movie?”

  Kenderly popped up from the old couch quicker than toast from a toaster. She shoved her fingers into her hair, sort of with a low, irksome long “ugh,” followed by a short “ow.” Her arm was bent at an awkward angle.

  “Dang it, my ring’s stuck.” She yanked a couple of more times. It was stuck and getting worse.

  “Come back over here and I can help.”

  “No.” She tugged some more.

  “Don’t be a spoilsport.” When she didn’t budge, he stood and crossed the room with a couple of steps. “Hold on or you’ll tear it out by the roots.” He gently worked the tangled strands free. “I could have sworn that your hair was longer yesterday.”

  “Hair extensions.”

  He smoothed the multicolored blond strands. “It made you look different.”

  She covered her face. “I feel weird without my regular makeup on.”

  “I think you look better. Not that you didn’t before. I mean... Hell, I think you’re just as pretty without it.”

  “Thanks. I think.” She rolled her eyes.

  Not good, man. He opened his mouth to try to take his foot out, but she stopped him.

  “I’ll accept it as a compliment.” She disappeared around the corner and came back with a yeast roll. “I know I look different. That’s why I do it.”

  “I’ll never get why a woman wants to look that different. Now, someone on the run using a disguise makes perfect—”

  She whipped around, her mouth dropping open to match his.

  “Do you think?”

  “Could you?”

  They spoke together.

  “I’m sure Rose has everything I need here.” Kenderly took lids off of boxes of supplies stacked against the kitchen wall. “What are you thinking? Would it be too obvious if we dyed our hair dark? Would they be looking for us like that? Do they teach you to expect changed appearances in Ranger school?”

  Garrison let her chatter away with ideas and questions. She assumed they’d be running. It was a natural progression. But for him, it was natural to investigate. With a couple of calls he could find out where the captain’s car had ended up. Or if it might still be on the street.

  If it had been towed, it wouldn’t surprise anybody if Mrs. Oaks showed up to drive it home. Looking at how excited Kenderly was, he knew she could pull this off. Easy. They could retrieve the jewelry box and maybe a major clue to help solve the murders.

  And if she gets caught? Is that a risk worth taking?

  Chapter Ten

  “You’re nuts. Completely and totally nuts. There’s no way I’m going to walk into a police station that might be full of men who report to Paul Tenoreno. No way. No. You don’t trust them. Why should I?”

  “You won’t go into the station. If the cops have the car, there’s no way they’d let us inside the vehicle. It’ll be evidence. No, odds are the car was towed and is at an impound lot. We’d need cash to pay the fee.”

  Kenderly had tried reasoning with Garrison. She’d presented what she thought was a solid debate about how she wasn’t trained for undercover work or even pretending to be married for half an hour. He—in all his arrogant, self-confident glory—had said she could do it. Just like that, he’d turned her simple makeover into a secret agent plastic mask that would hide them from the world.

  “I can’t do the level of work you’re expecting. They’ll see right through it. If we get caught, it’ll be all my fault.”

  Garrison sat backward in the little chair from the dinette. This time the smile on his face was at her—what he’d called an overreaction. Not once but at least twice.

  Infuriating was putting it mildly. And now he was just smiling. Not saying a word and just smiling.

  “How can I argue with you if you won’t say anything?” She put it out there, but she didn’t really hope for an argument. She prayed he’d change his plans.

  “I think you were doing okay there by yourself. Don’t mind me at all.”

  Kenderly walked around the table, nervous as the caged white tiger she’d seen at the zoo when she was a kid. “Why don’t I put makeup on you and you be Captain Oaks’s wife? You’re the one with all the experience.”

  He burst out laughing. “Not in heels,” he managed to get out between heehaws. “I’ve never been undercover in heels.”

  “Oh good grief. You truly are serious about me doing this.”

  He stood and followed her to the couch. They were in close quarters, so she sat immediately, sinking on to the broken-down cushions. At least she was farther from him than if she’d remained standing. She was either going to grab his face between her hands and shake some sense into him or shower his face with kisses, thanking him for saving her life multiple times.

  And how would she manage that? She slipped her fingers over her lips at the thought. No! She would not kiss him out of the blue like her body wanted to.

  Not in a million years. Not innocently or passionately. He’d interpret the gesture as an invitation. It was the genuine laughter. He’d looked so real and relaxed and sexy. “No, no and no again.”

  “Hey, take it easy. I understand you’re scared. There’s no real reason to even think about it. The towing company for that part of Austin is closed, and I can’t verify where the car is until the morning. So just relax.” He dropped to the couch, remote in hand, finally flipping channels searching for that movie he wanted to watch.

  Kenderly remained quiet, but not for the reasons he’d suggested. She needed some deep breaths and a few moments to catch her runaway thoughts. Why did she want to kiss him a half hour after believing he’d abandoned her? It didn’t make sense. But of course, none of the past two days made much sense to her.

  Garrison Travis was totally all wrong for her. They knew nothing about each other and probably would never have even met if he hadn’t saved her life. She was grateful he had. And tremendously grateful that he hadn’t just dropped her off to be dealt with by the police until he knew the entire story.

  Danger. Vulnerability. Trying to solve the mystery. And if she allowed herself to think that way, excitement had brought them together. A relationship couldn’t be built on adrenaline.

  So, no. Kissing him wasn’t an option or something she actually desired. Not really. She was exhausted. Her mind was just going down a familiar path while in the company of a handsome man. Even if she hadn’t been in a man’s company for a very long time. It didn’t make a difference.

  Then why were her insides doing a little dance? Okay, a very big dance. She drew in another deep breath, holding a throw pillow against her chest. Desire took over. The need to scoot across the cushions and have strong arms engulf her in their protection was tremendous.
She curled her feet in the space between them and used the pillow for her head.

  “You don’t have to watch this. You could get a shower if you want. I’ll take the couch tonight. You can take your friend’s bed.”

  It would get her out of the room. Away from temptation.

  Without a word, she hurried from his close proximity and locked herself in the bathroom.

  Sweet, sweet Thelma...she was in big time trouble.

  * * *

  AS SOON AS Kenderly left the room, Garrison remembered the surprises he’d brought from the store for her. Too late. He heard the shower and wasn’t about to interrupt. He gathered the sack he’d dropped out of her sight and decided to put her things on the bed.

  Pink, pink and twenty more shades of pink. The bedroom was covered in it and trimmed in more of it. Right down to a pink scarf with roses and beads covering the lamp shade. He clicked the switch, turning the bedside lamp on and then another to shut off the bright light from overhead.

  Then he put the clothes he’d bought on the silky spread. Kenderly was correct that her friend had everything handy to change their appearances. There were a couple of wigs on the dresser, other hairpieces—they looked like long braids—pinned to a bulletin board, and some sort of makeup sat on every available inch of a mirrored table.

  His plan would work if Kenderly let him coach her through a couple of techniques. If the car had been impounded, though, that was a different animal altogether. It wouldn’t do any good to get inside the car. Everything would have already been taken and logged as evidence. If the car had just been towed, there’d be nothing to it. Just sweet-talk the attendant to get her purse out. No prob.

  Maybe he could change her mind over an omelet. He fingered the short curly black wig on the Styrofoam head. The hair felt real to his untrained touch. It would look real to anyone watching. No one would suspect that she was Kenderly Tyler.

  The shower cut off. Time for him to retreat to the couch before his witness went all weird on him again.