“How’s Montana treating you, Dec?” Theo asked. “Mrs. Scott managed to put some extra pounds on you?”
“She’s certainly trying,” he answered dryly. “Hey, Sarah,” he greeted.
“Please tell me you took all the embarrassing photos of my sister and me out of that room,” I demanded.
He chuckled and shrugged in a rarely seen playful gesture. “Maybe.”
“What’s the word, Dec?” Travis cut in, all business.
“Met with the locals this morning,” Declan explained. “I recounted the conversation Theo and I had with Jessica. I also told them about the restraining order in process, and any gaps they needed me to fill with Evan’s history.” He ran a hand through his dark hair, looking aggravated. “They’re being pretty tight-lipped about the investigation. I’m sensing the Weston name still wields some power in this town.”
I didn’t doubt that.
“I can’t be sure, but these are small town cops. My instinct tells me they’re either being paid off or they’re afraid. Maybe both. I’m concerned that even with how such a violent crime has shaken the town, key evidence could get swept under the rug.”
“Prove his crimes have extended beyond Montana, and we can push for it to go Federal,” Harris put in.
Travis nodded at him in agreement. “The partial print we got off the threat he left on Theo’s Yukon is a start.”
“Not enough,” Theo grumbled in aggravation.
“What if we draw him out?” I held up a hand against Theo’s protest. “Hear me out. What if we orchestrated something to make him act?” I turned to Theo, noting the outrage and fear on his face. “I want to end this—on my terms rather than waiting for him to do something for God knows how long.”
“Too dangerous.” Theo shook his head.
“She’s on to something, though,” Ryan broke in. “We know he’s followed Sarah,” he continued, his eyes sliding over to me. “Rather than make sure she’s got one of us with her as we planned, I say we go incognito and trail her instead so that we can get eyes on him. From there we follow him, figure out where he’s staying, what he’s doing. We may pull up enough intel to take him in. With a lowlife like him, I’m sure there’s more he’s into than just stalking Sarah. If the locals in Montana aren’t going to make a case, we make our own.”
“I like it.” Travis nodded, receiving similar sentiment from Sid and Will. He looked to Theo, who’d remained silent. “If we have her covered with a tail, I think she should be seen alone at least some of the time. It will make it more likely that he shows himself,” Travis reasoned.
Theo clenched his jaw, his eyes hard. Clearly he didn’t like the idea in the slightest.
“We’ll have her back, man. At all times,” Ryan added.
“Fine,” Theo gritted out finally. “I don’t like it, but fine.”
“Where are we at with the former governor?” Travis asked.
“Evan’s dad?” I squeaked in surprise.
“Can’t leave any rock unturned, sweetheart,” Theo explained. “We’ve been tracking his activity, watching his accounts. So far, looks as though he’s clean.”
“Still looks that way.” Declan nodded. “He’s in Europe, and my initial digging hasn’t found any correlation between him and Jessica, or that he’s had recent contact with his son.”
Travis nodded, appeased.
The squeal of my nephew on camera broke some of the tension in the air as his blond head appeared on screen. He jumped into Declan’s lap. “Play, Deccie?”
Deccie?
“In a minute, bud,” Declan’s low voice rumbled as he shifted Owen in his lap in a movement so natural it was clear he’d done it many times before.
“Hi, Ow!” I greeted.
“Auntie Sawah!” he beamed. “Teo!”
“Hi, Ow.” Theo chuckled at his exuberance.
“Owen!” I could hear my sister calling in the distance, a moment before she appeared behind Declan’s chair. “Sorry,” she apologized to Declan in a rush. “He slipped right out from under me.”
Declan looked up at her, and the tenderness in his tone when he spoke had my heart stuttering my chest. “It’s all right. I’ve got him. I’m just about done.”
“Hi Char,” I greeted as she leaned down so her face was on screen.
“Hey. Sorry to interrupt. Call me later,” she asked as she attempted to pry a very resistant Owen from Declan.
“I will,” I agreed as Dec passed Owen to my sister.
“We good for now?” Declan asked when he turned back to face the screen.
“We’re good,” Travis confirmed. “We can talk about when you plan on being back in LA another time.”
I saw something flash in Declan’s gaze. Regret? Reluctance?
“Roger that. I’ll check in with any updates,” he replied with a nod a moment before the screen went dark.
“Something tells me Dec isn’t going to be all that enthusiastic about coming home,” Theo mused with a slight grin.
Of that I had little doubt. What I did wonder was if those two would get their heads out of their asses before that happened.
Chapter 19
Travis found me the next afternoon in the gym at headquarters with Emerly. All of us girls had taken to using the massive space when the inclination hit.
“You’re interviewing?” he demanded, the dogs trailing behind him. Theo appeared a moment later, leaning against the doorframe as though preparing for a show.
I paused my movements on the rowing machine and looked up at Trav. “Well, yeah.” I shrugged, confused at the panicked glint in his eye.
I’d had what felt to be a good interview with a small event planning company that morning. Clearly whoever had been my tail had reported back, not that it was a secret.
“You can’t interview.” He shook his head emphatically.
Em muffled a laugh as she came up out of a stretch, while Theo looked on in amusement.
I wrinkled a brow. “Why not?”
“Because I need you to work here,” Travis replied bluntly.
I eyed him in shock. “But Jenna….”
“Jenna sucks.” Theo chortled.
“We all know it,” Travis agreed. “Hell, she knows it. I was just waiting for the right time to convince you to come back. I’ll get down on my knees and fucking beg you to put me out of my misery here. Please come back to work. I’ll expand the scope of your role, increase your pay. Whatever you want.”
I’d never seen Travis plead for anything before.
I licked my lips nervously as I stood up off the rower. “I liked my job,” I began, “but things are different now. We weren’t friends before—or at least not the way we are now. And Theo and I….” I trailed off. “We weren’t together.”
“Yeah we were, baby.” Theo grinned confidently. “You just didn’t want to admit it.”
I rolled my eyes before looking to Travis. “I appreciate the offer. Can I think about it?”
He looked like he wanted to push the issue, but Em cut him off.
“Come on, honey,” she coaxed, taking Trav’s hand. “Let’s give Sarah some space, hmm? You’re coming in a little hot. I’d say recruiting is out for you as a career choice.” She winked over her shoulder as she led him out of the gym.
Theo didn’t hesitate the moment we were alone. “What’s holding you back?” he asked, pushing off from the wall to step into my space.
I bit my lip. “Isn’t that a lot of time to spend together?” A piece of lint on my shorts became particularly interesting as I continued. “Don’t you want your space? Won’t you get sick of me?”
I let out a squeak when I was suddenly airborne. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he propelled me backwards, pressing me into the nearest wall. “Does that feel like I’m going to get sick of you?” he murmured, pressing himself in between my legs.
“Well, no. Not right this second,” I replied, biting back a groan.
“It’s not happening now and it won’
t ever happen,” he stated confidently. “You’re my favorite person in the world.”
I pulled back to look into his earnest face. “That’s such a nice thing to say,” I breathed.
“Don’t know that I’ve ever been described as nice.” He chuckled and shook his head. “I prefer hot, handsome, sexy. Gorgeous works—”
“I get the point,” I interrupted him with a grin.
His gaze grew serious as he regarded me. “Sweetheart, you’re here almost every day anyway. I know you loved your job, and this way I get to spend some extra time with my girl. I think it’s a win-win.”
“I’ll have to tell you what to do.” I lifted a brow.
He shrugged. “You do that anyway.”
“True,” I mused as he dipped down to steal a kiss. “Okay, I’ll do it.”
“Good.” He grinned against my mouth. “Wish like hell we were alone right now.”
“Me too,” I agreed wholeheartedly.
“Later.” He set me back on my feet, the intent clear in his hooded gaze.
A second later I let out a laugh when Travis poked his head back into the gym, brows raised. “So?”
Emerly appeared at his side a moment later with an eye roll. “I tried to contain him, I really did.”
I nodded with a grin as Theo wrapped an arm around me, pulling me in close. “I’ll come back. Even if your recruiting skills are shit.”
“Damn, I thought you’d make him suffer a little bit longer.” Theo snickered.
Em let out a squeal of delight and rushed over to wrap me in a hug.
Travis shot Theo a glare before his gaze turned to me. “I’m really fucking glad to hear that. Welcome back to the team, though in some ways it feels like you never left.”
I felt that way, too. Being back in LA with Theo and the team had been about as natural as it could be. “When do you want me to start?” I wondered.
“Well, since Jenna hasn’t even gotten back from her two-hour lunch, I was thinking of just telling her not to bother,” Travis grumbled. “Can you start tomorrow?”
“We have plans tomorrow,” Theo surprised me by saying. “It’s the end of the week now anyway. How about Monday?”
“Fine,” Travis agreed. “It’ll be great to have you back, Sarah.”
“It’ll be great to be back.” I smiled, turning to Theo as Trav and Em made their way back to the main office. “What plans?”
“With everything going on, I wanted to get us away for a few days. I booked us a hotel in Santa Barbara. And I thought maybe we could stop in and visit with my mom on the way back. She’s dying to meet you. I’ve held her off as long as I can.” His expression grew something close to anxious. “That okay with you?”
I could tell this mattered to him, and though I was slightly nervous by the prospect, I nodded readily. “I’m excited to meet her.”
“She’ll love you,” he murmured, dropping a kiss to my temple.
“I hope so,” I replied as a mischievous grin played across my lips. “Plus, this is my chance for payback. I’m going to have her whip out every embarrassing photo of you she has.”
Theo groaned. “Maybe this wasn’t the best idea.”
I grinned. “On the contrary, I think it’s the best idea you’ve ever had.”
Chapter 20
The soft kiss of the sun warmed me all over as I lay by the pool of our hotel the next day. We’d driven down that morning and I’d promptly changed into my bathing suit, forgoing the run Theo was currently on. He’d left me under the watchful eye of a behemoth of a man that did some sort of security in the area. I hadn’t asked questions, determined to relax instead. The weather was perfect and with the gulls crying overhead and the soft sound of the surf in the distance, I was truly relaxed for the first time in days.
“You keep looking at my girl and we’re gonna have words.” Theo’s growl cracked through the air like a whip, breaking my relaxation.
I cracked an eye open to find my man, shirtless and sweaty from his run, scowling at a man sitting to my right.
The man quickly looked down at his book as I raised a brow at Theo. “Little much, don’t you think?”
“The only thing little is that suit. Christ, Sarah,” he groaned. “You can’t go around wearing shit like that without me around.”
I looked down at the perfectly reasonable white two-piece I was wearing. “Babe, it’s a bikini. It’s not even that revealing.”
“It’s revealing enough,” he grumbled. “Where’s that one-piece you packed?”
I bit back a laugh. “You mean the Speedo I wear for lap swimming that you shoved into my bag as we were leaving? That one?”
He scowled. “Yes, that one.”
I dropped my head back to the chaise lounge and closed my eyes. “I’m not wearing that. Why don’t you come join me? It’s perfect out here,” I coaxed.
“In a minute,” he replied, muttering to himself about a private cabana as he stalked off toward one of the pool attendants.
I’d started to drift off when I was lifted into familiar arms. I let out a shriek in protest as Theo stalked toward an unknown destination.
“You are being so ridiculous,” I sputtered as he deposited me in a cabana toward the back of the pool area, complete with drapes he was already pulling shut. “Babe, I want to get some sun,” I protested.
“This is much better.” He sighed, dropping down beside me to his back, his arm thrown behind his head.
“You are such a caveman,” I complained.
He grinned devilishly as he rolled on top of me, pressing in between my thighs. “There are certain benefits to being in private,” he pointed out, dipping to pull my bikini-covered nipple into his mouth.
I bit back a moan, shifting beneath him, trying to soothe the ache he’d incited.
“Sshh, baby,” he admonished quietly as he shifted down my body, pulling my bottoms to the side and delivering a long, leisurely lick.
I shifted restlessly, biting my lip hard against making a sound as he increased his efforts. He ripped my bottoms off a second before his hands shot out to hold my inner thighs in place. Losing the ability to move turned me on even more as his tongue and teeth danced over my sensitive core.
Whether it was the fact we were in public or just the pure skill Theo exhibited, he had me on the brink within moments, sending me over the edge soon after with a muted cry.
He moved slightly, resting his head on my belly as I stroked his hair. “Did that make up for losing the sun?” he asked with a grin, propping his chin against my belly.
I looked down at him with a blissed-out grin. “Yeah, it really did. But you’re still a caveman,” I added.
“I can live with that.” He shrugged.
How had I known he’d say that?
****
“How much more do we need than that? That has to be enough—isn’t it?” Theo’s insistence from the other room had me pausing midzip as I got dressed for dinner that night.
The romantic restaurant right on the beach we’d seen on our walk a few hours ago was suddenly far from my mind as I stepped out of the bathroom with a concerned frown.
Theo paced the room, his phone to his ear. “Well call them in then, dammit,” he growled. “Yeah, a few hours. Sounds good.”
“What was that about?” I asked quietly when he’d hung up.
His countenance softened when he caught my worried expression. “Everything is fine,” he was quick to assure me. “That was Greer,” he explained, referring to Ryan. “In a way it’s good news. It only took a week of tailing that fucker for us to have enough evidence to go the Feds with. At least, that’s what we think. Travis and Harris are reviewing it now and are going to check back with me.”
“Has he hurt anyone?” I managed to ask, feeling mildly ill.
“It looks like he roughed up a prostitute,” Theo admitted. “Ryan feels like shit about it—he was parked outside, and since she went into the motel room under her own volition, he had no reason to susp
ect foul play. It was only after when she emerged that he saw what had happened.”
‘That’s terrible,” I breathed.
“Aside from that, he’s bought a fair amount of drugs, driven under the influence plenty, and in general has proven to be an overall shit human being, but none of that will get us anywhere with the Feds. It’s the proof of violence that will hopefully have them taking a closer look at Jessica’s death. The prostitute said she’s willing to talk on the record, which is a stroke of luck. She says he’s done it with other girls.”
“Shit.” I sighed, sitting heavily on the edge of the bed.
“We’re gonna get this asshole, babe,” Theo swore, sitting down beside me and reaching for my hand.
“I know.” I nodded.
“You look beautiful,” he murmured, his fingers trailing over my bare back where I still had yet to zip up my dress. “Let’s not let this ruin our night.”
“No.” I shook my head emphatically. “We won’t. Let me just finish up and we’ll go.”
His gaze tracked my movements as I stood up, headed for the bathroom. He’d been so thoughtful to take me away for the weekend. I knew he was worried about me, that he wanted me to be happy. I zipped up my dress and swiped lipstick across my lips, determined to channel the earlier relaxation I’d felt by the pool. I knew my man wanted to see me smile, and he deserved that. Hell, so did I.
Less than an hour later, as we sat outside at the restaurant that boasted spectacular beachside seating, I sipped my delicious wine, forcing my earlier unease to the back of my mind. Gone but not forgotten.
Theo sat across from me, looking handsome in a dark blue button-up shirt rolled to the elbows and black slacks.
The sun was dipping low in the sky, spreading rose-gold beauty over the sandy beach as the distant squeals of two little girls sounded from the water’s edge. Their parents were watching with warm smiles as the girls raced from the incoming waves, only to race back once the ocean retreated.
“You want one of those someday?” I surprised myself by asking him, my eyes still trained to the girls as their blond curls swept around their faces in joyful disarray.
Collide (Talon Security Series Book 3) Page 13
