by Barb Han
Toughing it out had gotten her through grad school. Pushing past the pain had gotten her where she was today.
And a little piece of her wanted Gabriel to be proud of her for sticking it out and not complaining. Was that weird? Kinsley didn’t normally put much stock in other peoples’ opinions of her. But this was Gabriel, a little voice reminded. A piece of her heart cared what he thought about the person she’d become. Knowing that he’d tried to see her, and the lengths others had gone to in order to keep them apart frustrated her.
She would have a serious conversation with her parents about the part they’d played if they were still alive. A freak car accident had taken both of them and she didn’t have it in her heart to hate them for the manipulation.
Kinsley no longer spoke to her former best friend. Funny how she’d believed that she and Lainey would be close forever when she was eighteen. Lainey had moved to California and Kinsley had devoted herself to her studies. Grad school had left little time for relationships. Kinsley rarely had had time for social media even though many in her generation seemed glued to the screen. Kinsley was a book-in-hand person through-and-through. And she’d rather have lunch with one person than comment on the pictures of twenty-five.
A branch poked her foot. She let out a little yelp.
“Are you okay?” Gabriel’s concern was outlined in his hushed tone.
“Yeah. I’m good.” It was obvious that he still cared even after all these years, right? He’d shown up. No matter what else he said or did, he’d made sure she was okay once he heard about the threat to her life. That counted for something, right?
Kinsley had thought about him, too. The way they’d left things unsaid without closure. Granted, she’d spent the first few years angry at him. Once the anger subsided, she’d become curious about his life. What had he ended up doing for his career? Was he married? Did he have kids? A glance at his wedding finger when he’d first blasted his way into her life had answered one of those questions. No ring didn’t mean no kids. He could be divorced. He could just have kids.
A noise to the left shot her blood pressure up. As it was, her heart pounded her ribs and pain throbbed from stepping on a branch. The sharp edges did a number on her right foot, causing her to favor it when she walked.
Another noise sounded and before she knew it Gabriel was tugging her hand, indicating she should get down. She made herself as small as possible as she followed his lead, crawling through the manicured brush.
A crack sounded. And then another. Bullets?
Kinsley’s heart pounded her chest. Before she knew it, Gabriel was on top of her, covering her.
“Stay low.” His calm, steady voice was quiet in a raging storm. “We’ll be fine.”
His cell buzzed and she could feel it pressed against her side.
He covered the screen and checked the message. “We need to move.”
Belly-crawling in the middle of the night with Gabriel Cooper while some random terror group tried to kill her was not something that she could process.
The air was still. The ground was hard. The pain in her foot was almost debilitating. She felt something cold drip down her heel. Blood? She could deny the injury all she wanted for now but it was going to need attention when this was all over.
Kinsley bit down on her bottom lip and forged ahead.
Another message came and Gabriel checked his phone.
“It’s a bobcat. We can go back to the pool house.” He stood and offered a hand up.
Kinsley took it, ignoring the fissions of heat blasting her skin at contact. She tried to take a step on that bad heel and pain caused her knee to buckle.
Gabriel caught her by the elbow. “Steady there. What’s wrong?”
“We were in a hurry and I didn’t have on shoes. I think I cut my heel pretty bad back there.” She took his arm even though she heard him grunt what sounded like frustration.
“Why didn’t you tell me before?” The words came out clipped. His attitude caught her off guard.
“You were busy saving my life. I didn’t think you’d want to hear me complain about my foot.” Yeah, she’d spit the words out in a huff. What did he expect?
Instead of getting frustrated with her he relaxed his hands. “How are we going to work together if we don’t talk to each other? If I don’t know there’s a problem, I can’t be part of the solution.”
Even though his voice was calm she felt the needles in those words.
“I’m tired. I don’t feel like talking.”
Gabriel cursed under his breath. Kinsley shut down on him again. He’d let her go radio silent in the past. Not this time.
“Too bad. We need to.” Damn. He was letting his temper control his actions. He hadn’t done that since he was a teenager.
There was something about being with Kinsley that brought him back to that place in his life. It wasn’t all bad. He’d fallen for her in that place and not one person since. He’d spent most of his time walking around in that naïve bliss called first love that slapped a silly grin on his face even though nothing in his life had come easy.
Being with Kinsley had washed away getting up at four a.m. before school every morning to clean out stalls in an environment that could only best be described as a Lord of the Flies nightmare when he’d arrived. Gabriel had been a skinny but scrappy ten-year-old when he’d been taken in at the Foster Farm. Harlan Dickeys was the sixteen-year-old bully who ran the place.
Harlan had entertained himself by torturing the boys who were younger and weaker than him. One of those boys had been Gabriel. Gabriel had taken the brunt of Harlan’s brutality because Gabriel defended boys who couldn’t stick up for themselves.
The first six months at the Foster Farm had been tough. Gabriel had learned valuable lessons. For one, if he wanted to beat Harlan waking up early was a good start. Gabriel woke half hour before the others, sneaked out of the dormitory-style bedroom and worked out.
Months passed before he was able to land a decent punch on Harlan. It had taken years before Gabriel had grown strong enough to gain the occasional upper hand. Gabriel couldn’t allow himself to be disheartened then and he sure as hell didn’t allow it now.
All he’d allowed himself to focus on was the progress he’d made and the strength he’d gained. Like everything in life, there’d been a tipping point when Harlan wasn’t the strongest in the dorm anymore, Gabriel was. It had taken years to make that flip happen.
It would’ve been easy for Gabriel to punish his abuser. Gabriel had taken the high ground. He’d been clear that, under no uncertain terms, Harlan was not to touch another boy in the dorm. The other kids had rallied around Gabriel by then and he’d learned a valuable lesson in the strength in numbers.
From that moment on he’d also learned the value of a good leader. Harlan had eventually relented and stopped challenging Gabriel. The older kid slinked into the background the summer before his senior year. It had taken a minute because, hell, Gabriel was far from perfect. But he didn’t leave Harlan there alone to lick his wounds.
Rather than gloat, Gabriel had offered Harlan friendship—a friendship that was still alive today. In fact, if Gabriel was in a bad spot and needed help Harlan would be the first to step up.
Living at the Foster Farm had been hell. Instead of letting that life break Gabriel he’d chosen to use it to become stronger. The boys had developed a bond that made them seem like a gang and they sure as hell had gotten into their fair share of conflicts. No matter what else happened they had each other’s backs.
That code had caused them to develop somewhat of a reputation in town for stirring up trouble. One Kinsley’s father didn’t appreciate associated with his little girl.
Gabriel opened the back door to the pool house and let her walk inside first. He closed and locked the door behind him.
“I don’t like being here. It makes us vulnerable and—”
“What about all the security? What would we have done without someone to tell us what
was going on outside?” Her cobalt blue eyes blinked up at him and he was keenly aware of how glittery they’d been earlier. The fear had returned now and that was a gut punch. Gabriel wanted to provide a safety net for her. He couldn’t give that to her fourteen years ago. Damn the past for rearing its ugly head and making him feel like that inadequate juvenile again.
“The more people who are aware of our whereabouts, the more dangerous it is for you.” It was true.
“What are you saying?” It was obvious that her brain was still trying to reconcile a world of guns and sneaking around and terror. Sure, she knew it from a distance, from the news, like most people. Having it show up at her door aimed at her was a different story altogether.
“We’re better if we stay off the grid completely,” he clarified.
“Are you talking about going somewhere with like just the two of us?” There was a whole heap of shock and trepidation in her tone.
He nodded. “Unless you’re afraid of being alone with me.”
“Why would I be?” Her answer came fast, too fast, and she sounded defensive. That generally meant the opposite was true.
She could trust him. He didn’t go where he wasn’t invited. Ever.
There was no way he was bringing up that kiss. It was probably because part of him was still hoping for another. Stupid? Yeah. Tell that to his hands—hands that wanted to reach out and touch her, comfort her. Tell that to his mind—his mind wanted to think there could be something ‘in the moment’ between them. Tell that to his lips—his lips wanted to press against hers again and feel that feeling of the world disappearing and him finally being home.
Being anywhere near her proved a challenge to his self-control when she gave him signals—signals that normally lead to an amazing night of no-strings-attached sex.
With Kinsley, it wouldn’t be that simple and he knew that deep down. There’d be no walking away without someone getting hurt. He’d licked wounds long enough to know
“Good. We should leave after I make a phone call,” he said.
“How will we get past the people watching, Gabriel?” His name had never sounded better rolling off another person’s tongue.
He smirked at her question and didn’t bother to hide the fact that he was offended.
“Simple. I’m the best at my job.”
Chapter 8
Gabriel fished out his cell and called his old friend, Bear. He’d alerted Bear to the call by using a special code in a text before making the call.
“What’s up, bro?” Bear picked up on the first ring.
“I need a favor.” There was no time to catch up. That could wait.
“Done. What do you need?” Bear was one of a handful of people who would understand a call like this—a favor with no questions asked.
“I need a new safehouse and I have to find it on my own. In order to do that, I need a lift out of a hot situation. I have a high-value target and a Russian on my ass.”
“Damn.” Bear knew exactly what that meant.
“I can send a chopper. Do you have coordinates?”
Gabriel rattled them off.
“I’ve got you covered,” Bear said. No one, aside from the person planning the mission, ever knew the full plan until it unfolded but there was a standard protocol of using multiple vehicles to move an asset. “And I’ll send a team.”
One vehicle would contain the asset and take a last-minute turn down an unexpected path in order to throw off anyone who could be watching or have set up snipers.
Snipers could be the most difficult to detect. One of those could hide in the darnedest place. Patience won those battles.
The driver wouldn’t be in on the secret. Not even he would know which vehicle the asset would be carried inside.
“I appreciate everything, bro,” Gabriel said.
“I know you do. I’ll have you covered in…” he paused a few seconds, “twenty-three minutes. Can you hold that long?”
“I’ll make it work.” The pair exchanged goodbyes. The other thing Gabriel needed to do was update Jaden. Daniel was on his honeymoon by now and Gabriel had no plans to involve his buddy. He’d seen the look in Daniel’s eyes when the news came down about the hit. Daniel was a good man. Walking away from an assignment like this was difficult for him. Gabriel had seen it in his friend’s eyes.
Gabriel stepped onto a loose board. It creaked. He noticed that the kitchen rug was a couple of inches to the right of where it was when they’d left. The reason he knew was because the sun had lightened the area around the rug. This was dark, pure. No sunlight had hit this rim.
He waved his arms in order to get Kinsley’s attention.
She froze. Good. Kinsley had always been inside her own head, a thinker. She didn’t need to overthink this—this was a no-brainer. She needed to follow his lead. There could be anything underneath that floorboard, including a bomb.
Gabriel released a string of curses underneath his breath. He put his hand up, palm out to indicate that Kinsley should not move. At the very least someone had been inside the house while they were out. That bugged him more than he wanted to admit. It also made him wonder if one of his people had turned on him. After one of their female agents had done that very thing, he had to consider every possibility.
Gabriel surveyed the area in case someone was still inside.
He surmised that no one was in the main living room/kitchen area. They could deal with a threat in the next room. He palmed his Glock and motioned for Kinsley to get behind him.
Once she was safely tucked to the rear, he took a step forward with his weapon leading the way. If anyone came out of the bedroom all he had to do was squeeze the trigger. He put the partial wall in between him and the door. The wall would slow a bullet down.
A creak-like noise sounded from the bedroom.
Gabriel measured his breathing. He could literally hear and feel Kinsley’s erratic breathing from behind him. It was a typical stress response for a civilian. As remarkable as she was in every other sense of the word, she was not used to dealing with the rush of adrenaline that came with feeling like a shooter had set his sights on her.
Comforting her would have to wait.
He motioned for her to slowly back toward the door.
A couple of scenarios ran through his mind. Everything about this set up felt like a trap. If they went out the way they came in there could be someone waiting. An ambush. A sniper. Staying inside the pool house wasn’t an option. Especially if someone was in the next room. Or a bomb had been planted. The last situation, the animal could have been a rouse to distract him.
Something felt familiar about this whole setup.
And then it dawned on him why.
This was exactly the way Asa Krill’s people would flush him out. They were known for setting bombs in houses where someone had been identified. He’d known it was only a matter of time before they found him, but he thought he’d covered himself better than this.
Gabriel eased back a couple of steps, careful to walk clear of the rug. That could be wired. Hell, almost anything inside the house could be. The back door was safe because they’d come in that way.
And if this was a setup that could mean men waited just outside. He clicked off the light in the kitchen and dimmed the porch light. His cell vibrated inside his pocket. He checked the screen. Jaden would have to wait.
Gabriel would call his friend as soon as he was clear. A few more steps and he’d be at the door. Outside, anyone could be waiting.
Turning his back to the room was out of the question. And that’s when he first heard the whop-whop-whop of a chopper. This situation was about to get real. He fired off a quick text to Bear—a change of plans.
He motioned for Kinsley to get down. He dropped to squatting position. He pushed up enough to check outside the window, careful not to expose any more of himself than he had to.
His cell vibrated again.
Frustrated, he palmed it. Jaden’s name came up again. This time, Gabri
el read the message. The chopper sounded like it was overhead now. A figure emerged from the bedroom. The wrong end of a barrel pointed at Gabriel and Kinsley.
Gabriel opened the back door, grabbed Kinsley and charged toward the steel basket. The rapid cracks of gunfire split the night air as he dove into the carrier and tucked Kinsley underneath him. This wasn’t the time to notice how soft her creamy skin was or for the kiss that could never happen again to pop into his mind. He’d enjoyed great sex with a whole lot of women but no one felt as right in his arms as Kinsley had and the two of them had only ever kissed.
Shots were being fired from down below, pinging off the steel cage. Gabriel pulled the lid over top of them, plunging the two of them into blackness.
He could feel her trembling underneath him. His arms were shaking, too, because he was using them to keep his weight from crushing her and the chopper was lifting them at a fast clip. Given bullets were flying, Gabriel didn’t blame the pilot one bit for getting them up and out of there.
He wanted to offer words of encouragement to Kinsley, to say something that would help her calm down. But what could he say?
This ambush was on him.
Kinsley stayed curled in a ball until she was certain the chopper was on solid ground and they were far away from the pool house.
She was grateful that Gabriel hadn’t asked her if she was all right. Honestly? What would she have said? No…she was totally freaking out. That would’ve been the honest answer. What good would it have done to verbalize it?
A peek of light came through when the cover was opened. Curled on her side in a ball with a man the size of Gabriel on top of her—granted, he’d been careful not to crush her—while bullets sailed past her head wasn’t the time to remind Gabriel that she was claustrophobic. Besides, in that moment, there was no other place she wanted to be than secured near Gabriel.
“I’m sorry,” Gabriel said as he helped her out of the basket. Surprisingly, it didn’t resemble a coffin as she feared it might have.
