Archer

by Debra Kayn

  How a man could take someone full of life, with more spirit in her than the average woman, and try to stomp the goodness out of her was beyond him. What Carson did was a crime, and he’d pay.

  All evening, Kage had stared into her eyes, wanting to find something that would convince him what he felt for her was all in his head. His fascination and attraction overwhelmed him at times, but one look from her, and he knew she was feeling their connection too.

  “How did you get here? Hm?” she cooed to the cat.

  Kage cleared his throat. “Tony brought him over for you.”

  She hugged the cat under her chin and glanced at Kage. Her beautiful brown eyes were leery, so unlike the amused, warm gaze he was used to. “I’m still mad at you, but thanks for letting me have Bluff.”

  “You’ll get over your anger.” He scooped the cat from her, dropped her to the floor, and pulled Jane before him. “We need to talk.”

  “About how you’re going to take me back home?” She glared at him and flipped her hair over her shoulder, getting her bangs out of her face. “Or how you’re going to stop touching me, because honestly, Kage, you’re starting to—”

  “No.” He cupped her face and held her still. “You don’t step out of this house unless I’m with you. If I’m busy, you call Garrett. If Garrett can’t be here, call Tony or Lance. That’s it. I don’t care if Charlene or one of your girlfriends comes by to see you, but you can’t go off with another woman without one of us guys with you.”

  “Kage—”

  “This is not up for debate,” he said. “I want to protect you.”

  “Scott hasn’t even called. Maybe this time I’m really free from him,” she whispered, searching Kage’s eyes for confirmation.

  “Then you’d be lying to yourself.” He brushed his thumb over her cheek. “You’ve had phone calls at your house the last three days.”

  “What?” She covered her mouth.

  “Garrett redirected the phone line to the shop during the day when you’re not working and is fielding all incoming calls.” Kage glanced away. “Scott doesn’t stay on the line long enough for us to trace the call and find out his location, but the messages are clear.”

  She lowered her hand. “What does he say?”

  “He’s threatening you. Nothing specific, but his intent is clear. He always ends the message letting you know he’s coming for you.”

  “I knew he would,” she whispered. “I just wanted more time. I’m not ready to confront him.”

  “And you won’t have to if you listen to me. Scott is growing impatient, and that kind of man is dangerous. I don’t want you anywhere near him when he shows up,” Kage said. “I swear to you, I’ll get the asshole. He won’t hurt you again.”

  “Maybe he’ll give up and drop the idea that I’m his now that he knows I’m not alone,” she whispered.

  Kage wanted to do it, give her the security of knowing that that asshole was out of her life, but that’d be playing roulette with her safety. “He’s definitely out there. I called in a few favors. From what I’ve heard of his recent actions, he’s not giving up easily, or anytime soon.”

  “Favors?” She grabbed his wrists. “You haven’t gone back to your uncle, have you?”

  “No, but I will do whatever I need to keep you safe. That’s a promise.” Kage lowered his voice. “Garrett told me the story you gave him, but I need the truth. Every bit of it.”

  She pulled away. He let her go but followed her into the living room. The Janie he remembered never took shit from anyone. The Janie who stayed cooped in her house, worked nights by herself, and wasn’t causing trouble for all the people around town was hiding something big.

  The woman he knew before she shacked up with that asshole was still inside her. He saw the fire he remembered when she went head to head with her brother. Hell, every man in the bar noticed. Then a curtain fell across her face, and she retreated. He wanted his Janie back.

  He turned on the lamp beside the couch. She paced the floor. He sat down, ready to wait it out.

  “If you don’t want your brother to know everything, it won’t leave this room. I’ll only give him the details necessary to help with the case.” He watched her hesitate before continuing her walk. “I need to know.”

  She stopped. “Why?”

  “Because…” He ran his hands down the thigh of his jeans. “I want to know what I’m working against and what I need to do to shut him down. I need to know how I can bring back the real Janie, not the one who’s pacing in my living room, afraid every time I touch her.”

  She shook her head. “There’s nothing you can do. Nothing anyone can do. He’s untouchable.”

  “Come here.” He patted his leg.

  She crossed her arms. “No.”

  “Jane.”

  She lifted her chin. “Absolutely not.”

  “I’m not giving you a choice, baby. Get over here.” He waited ten seconds, stood, and picked her up.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck despite her previous protests. He took two steps before her body curved against his, and she put her head on his shoulder. His chest warmed, and a possessive urge to never let her go swept through him. He was doing the right thing.

  He wanted to protect her, but he also had to be gentle, given her past. He had no idea what that bastard had put her through, but he knew Janie. Her reaction to him couldn’t lie. She needed him, and he’d be here for her. However long it took for her to realize what they had together.

  Instead of taking her to the couch, he carried her to his bedroom. At the foot of the bed, he stood her on her feet and reached for the waist of her jeans.

  She slapped his hands away. “What are you doing?”

  “You don’t want to talk now, so we’ll wait for the morning.” He unzipped her jeans. “Now we go to sleep.”

  “Kage!” She stepped back, bumped into the mattress, and landed on her back on top of the bed. “God, this can’t be happening.”

  He grinned down at her, pulled his shirt over his head, and tossed it to the side. “If we’re not talking, we’re going to bed.”

  She scrambled into a sitting position. “Fine. I’ll go—”

  He laid his finger on her lips, stopping the argument. She blinked up at him, and in that moment he saw the complete trust she’d given him. The look that kept him on the right path, aiming for the prize of being worthy of her if he stayed true to himself.

  She wasn’t scared or running away from what was happening between them. She simply waited for him to make the first move. He swept his thumb across her lower lip. Her mouth opened naturally, accepting his touch. His balls ached to take her right to the mattress and settle himself between her legs, but he was going to do right by her if it killed him.

  “You’re not going anywhere. I want you in my bed. We both need our rest, okay?” He stepped back, bent at the waist, and began unlacing his boots. “Your bags are in the corner. You can have the bathroom first. I took a shower at the garage, so take as long as you need.”

  “I’m not sleeping with you. I’ll stay in your spare bedroom.” She stood.

  “Can’t. No bed.” He pried off his boot with his toe. “Before you ask, you’re not sleeping on the couch either.”

  She stared at him bug-eyed. Bluff walked into the room, rubbed against Kage’s socks, and then leaped onto the bed. Kage straightened and chuckled. The cat circled the bedspread, happy to plop onto her side and lie down for a nap.

  “Take notes.” He motioned behind her. “Look at Bluff. She wants to sleep with me.”

  “I’m not sleeping with you. You had your chance, and you tossed it away.” She marched past him, picked up her bag, and disappeared into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. “And my toothbrush better be in here, or I’m going home,” she yelled through the door.

  He removed his phone from his jeans pocket as he walked barefooted out of the room. His phone downloaded his messages, while he shut off the lights throughout the house an
d took one more look around. His house was situated on two acres on the edge of town. Enough property to afford him some privacy, and easy to tell if someone approached the house and keep Jane safe.

  His cell vibrated on his way down the hall, heading toward his bedroom. He stopped and read the screen. The police reports he asked for—he quickly scanned the documents. Fuck.

  He pivoted and went back and double-checked all locks and windows. He even reset the alarm by the front door that secured the entrances to make sure it operated perfectly. There was no room for mistakes.

  Once he was satisfied he’d done everything he could, he returned to the bedroom, not surprised to find Jane still shut inside the bathroom. He flipped off the light, stripped out of his jeans, leaving on his boxers, and climbed into bed. Prepared to wait her out, he lay on his back, hands clasped behind his head.

  The police reports burned inside his mind. She hadn’t told Garrett the truth.

  The door clicked, and Bluff meowed beside him. He picked the cat up and set her on his stomach, stroking her long fur.

  A few moments later, the mattress dipped, and Jane lay down wordlessly, staying to the edge of her side of the bed. He exhaled quietly, relieved that she was over her snit and had stopped trying to fight him at every turn.

  He set the cat beside him on the bed, rolled toward Jane, and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her back against his front. “Shh, I just want to hold you. I’d never do anything to hurt you.”

  Rigid and barely breathing, Jane remained quiet. It took at least a half hour for her body to relax.

  His fingers sprawled on her stomach. “Janie?”

  “Hm?”

  “Do you remember what happened to my dad after my mom overdosed?” He inhaled the citrus aroma from her hair before kissing the back of her head.

  She half turned, and he could feel her gaze on him in the dark. “Yeah.”

  Brent Archer was spending the last five years of a twenty-year sentence in the state penitentiary. Not only had his father been caught selling a large amount of heroin, he was linked to two deaths caused by the cut of drugs he sold to others.

  His father’s brother, Darrell, a well-known drug lord, took off for California afterward, scot-free, taking his drug runners with him. Kage inhaled deeply. Everyone in town knew his past, and he’d fought hard to prove he was nothing like his only living relatives.

  The desire to prove everyone wrong, that he would not end up in prison or deal dope out of dark corners, drove him to keep to himself. He wanted no speculations, no angry ex-girlfriends, no scandal wrapped around his name. He’d set the bar high and intended to keep it that way.

  Every woman he’d ever slept with or took out on a date never lived up to the one person he wanted and couldn’t have. The other women lacked a quality he always held out for and never found. It wasn’t hard to see the truth of what that something was when he was with Jane. Around her, he could be himself. She understood where he came from and accepted him no matter what.

  There were never questions he avoided or fear in her eyes. She trusted him, respected him without asking anything in return. When his uncle came back a few years after his father was sent away, Jane and the guys still accepted Kage. Everyone else crossed the sidewalk if they saw him coming or looked at him as if he were dealing drugs right in front of them.

  The doubts were always there.

  Today, his uncle ran the biggest underground drug trade on the West Coast. But Kage was no longer a kid. After his father’s incarceration, he’d gone to live with the Dentons, the local bank owner and his wife, who took foster kids in on occasion. They raised him from the age of twelve until he was eighteen. An older couple when they took him into their home, they both had died over the last four years, after living good lives. Without their intervention and support, who knew how he would’ve turned out?

  He laid his hand on Jane’s stomach.

  “Kage…” She covered his hand with hers. “We don’t need to talk about this.”

  He swallowed. “I want you to know, if it comes down to it, I’ll contact my uncle. If we need him to get rid of Scott, I will call him.”

  Darrell Archer had enough power and wealth to get things done without a trace. No one would have to know Kage had been involved. He wasn’t taking any chances where Jane was concerned.

  “You can’t.” She pushed up and moved a stray hair from over his eyes. “I know what that would do to you.”

  He blew out his breath. “I’ve read the police reports.”

  She turned away from him. “God, Kage, don’t tell my brother. Please don’t tell him. He’s been through so much with Dad, and—”

  “Tell me. Tell me it wasn’t as bad as it sounded in the report. That he didn’t break your fucking ribs and shove a pistol in your mouth.” She eased up into a sitting position. “Tell me that motherfucker didn’t do something else that you left out of the police report.”

  “Drop it, please,” she whispered.

  “I can’t do that, baby.” His chest tightened. “Let me know what we’re up against. Did he hurt you any other time?”

  She eventually nodded. He squeezed his eyes closed before he answered. “How long did this go on?”

  “The last year and a half. Before that, he just made sure he knew whatever I was doing. He had his goons watching me all the time. I was careful. I did everything right, so he wouldn’t get upset.” Her head turned. “I did everything right,” she whispered.

  “You did good, baby. You survived,” he said.

  “Did I? Because right now, knowing you found out what I allowed him to do to me feels a lot like I died the moment I left home to go live with Scott. I never wanted anyone to know, especially you. I knew how much you hated your family for what they put you through. I was afraid you’d hate—”

  “Shh.” He laid his chin on the top of her head and hugged her tight. “Never. You’re here now. Nothing else is going to happen to you.”

  She trembled. “I’m afraid.”

  “No one will ever lay a hand on you again. I promise,” he said.

  She shook her head. “I’m not scared for me but for you. For Garrett. For anyone who stands in Scott’s way when he comes for me. And he will come. He always does. But this time I’m not going back.”

  He knew when he’d first read the statement, something was missing. He couldn’t believe she’d endured this kind of pain for so long. Rage swept through him. He’d heard enough.

  He lay his head down on the pillow beside her, keeping his arm around her. “Sleep now. We’ll go forward tomorrow.”

  A few minutes later, she latched her fingers over his hand. “Kage?”

  “Yeah?”

  “What’s going on between us?”

  “Exactly what you think is happening,” he said. “I want you. You want me. I will have you…but not tonight. When it happens, I’ll have my Janie back. But I need you to come to me on your own. I won’t rush you, but know once you do come to me, there will be no turning back.”

  She didn’t say anything else, and it took her body a long time to relax. It was much later when he could tell she’d finally fallen asleep. Not long afterward, Jane whined in her slumber. He held her tighter, smoothing her hair back from her face. He pressed his lips to her skin, wishing he could erase the pain of what she’d gone through. If only he’d known the truth of what Scott was capable of or suspected the terror she was facing alone. He would’ve put a stop to her abuse and killed the bastard before he could lay another hand on her.

  Bluff climbed up on the curve of her hip, and he lazily rubbed the cat between the ears and listened to her purr. He stayed awake most of the night, wishing they were together for a different reason, while imagining the many ways to kill Scott Carson.

  Chapter Four

  The last page slid through the fax machine as the phone rang. She glanced over her shoulder, waiting for the document to finish. Most of the shop’s calls came through on the other line, for Lance conc
erning agency business.

  She had no idea how busy the private investigating part of Beaumont Body Shop had grown. Garrett kept his client’s jobs secret from her. She only knew enough to have some idea what his days and nights were like or where he was going to be on a certain job. She’d gained a new respect for the boys, but it also had led to more worry on her part.

  She’d seen each of them leave at odd hours and couldn’t miss the pistol strapped under a coat or tucked in at the back of their waists, a serious, almost fierce expression on their faces. Their job was dangerous, and they took it seriously.

  At those times, she preferred to practice denial that they were putting their lives on the line. She returned to the desk. The phone rang again. Line 6 meant she needed to answer, because it was usually customers with accounting questions or wanting to bring in a job for the garage.

  She clicked on the speaker. “Beaumont Body Shop, how can I help you?”

  “You done for the day?” Kage obviously didn’t believe in saying hey when he called.

  “Why?” She shut off the computer.

  “Yes or no?”

  She shook her head, not ready to face going home with him. When she was working and alone, she had a firmer grip on her life. Around him, she seemed to forget what she was here to do—learn to survive on her own. Even though she’d slept better the last three nights in bed with him than she had in the last several years, she still wanted to be able to depend on herself.

  “Maybe.” She grinned, continuing the banter of teasing him into a better mood. He’d gone deathly quiet after his meeting with the boys this morning, and it’d taken her three trips into the garage afterward to bring him out of his stoic mood.

  He chuckled. “When you’re through, meet me in the weight room.”

  “I don’t do weights.” She laughed. “I have to check on Bluff and I want to do a load of wash. I’ll go see if Garrett can drive me back to your house…unless you want to bring Bluff back to me and let me sleep in my own bed, which is much more comfortable than yours and has a big fluffy comforter.”