by D. D. Ayres
“I’ve known some reputable men in that line of work.” Yardley said the words tightly, giving Kye a hard look as she crossed the room. She bent and picked up something and put it in Kye’s hand. “Ice pack. Put that on your face.”
Kye shrugged but did as he was told. She was trying to take care of him. He was just too angry to be grateful. “What else should I know about this Prosett guy?”
“I didn’t tell him who I wanted him to protect or where she lived. Once he agreed to do the job, I told him I’d meet him in Richmond, Virginia. He hired the car. I couldn’t exactly use my ID. I gave him directions on a turn-by-turn basis. After we entered the mountains, he suddenly turned off the road and pulled a gun on me. He said there were people in Atlanta who wanted to chat with me. I waited until he was distracted by making a turn and jumped from the car.”
“Moving vehicle?” Yardley sounded shocked.
David’s gaze shifted to her, a tender smile forming on his mouth. “He shot me. I was not going to win by staying in the car.”
“Gutsy move, Doc.” Kye sounded impressed. “How’d you get here?”
“I hitchhiked. After I crossed the highway. I took the gamble that Prosett wouldn’t want to shoot me with witnesses.”
“How did you explain your wound?” Yardley sounded appalled.
“I told the driver I’d broken my arm when my car went into a ditch. I needed to get home so my wife wouldn’t faint when she got a call from the police or hospital. She’s not good in a crisis.”
“He bought that drivel?” Yardley sounded offended for all womankind.
“So how did Prosett find you?”
The doctor looked pained but, again, he didn’t give an inch. “I left my cell phone behind when I bailed. Didn’t know it at the time.” He looked at Yardley. “This is all my fault.”
“Just so you know that.” The icepack muffled Kye’s voice but not his anger. “You might as well have drawn a bull’s-eye on her back.”
Yardley rounded on Kye. “That’s hardly fair or true. Everything David’s done, he’s done to help others. He didn’t have to take on the fake pharms. He could have looked the other way, like I’m sure so many others have.”
“Got it. The doc fronted a worthy cause.” Kye hitched a shoulder and got a twinge in his back for it. He was going to be sore all over in the morning. Not the biggest problem right now. “But maybe you should have thought about how it would affect the people in your life before you dragged Yard into it.”
She shifted against the wall. “I’m standing right here. I can speak for myself.”
Gunner’s gaze sharpened. “She knew nothing. That should have protected her.” His eyes shifted to Yardley, his expression softening. “I had no idea that you would look for me.”
“Then you don’t know Yard.” Kye surged to his feet, tempted to block his view of her with his body. The urge was primitive. “When Yard wants something she goes after it. Nothing gets in her way.”
Her back came away from the wall. “Still here. Talk to me, dammit.”
David spared her a half smile. “What’s why I took her at her word when I asked her to come with me—”
“—You did that?” Kye couldn’t keep the surprise out of his tone. His gaze moved from the bed to Yardley, who refused to meet his eye. “You asked her to go into hiding with you? What did she say?”
“That’s enough!” Yardley swung away from the wall and faced Kye. The look in her eyes had backed down men twice her size. “What I said is none of your damn business, McGarren. You’re sticking your nose in where it doesn’t belong. You think it hurts now? Do it again.”
Kye almost smiled. The old Yard was back online. She’d been so subdued since he’d packed Purdy in the closet, he was beginning to wonder if she was afraid of him. She only knew the laid-back happy-go-lucky Kye. She’d never met him on the job.
“He has a right to know, Yardley.” David shifted his gaze left to Kye. “I never got that far. My time ran out. The feds picked me up and took me into protective custody the next day.” His gaze softened when Yardley turned toward the bed. “You’ll never know how sorry I am I didn’t just ask you then and there.”
Kye’s stomach muscles contracted, hard, as he wondered what her answer would have been. He turned to her, hoping and fearing the answer was written in her expression now.
Her expression said Go to hell. But that was okay. She hadn’t jumped in to say she would have gone with the doc. Kye let out a slow breath in relief.
Yardley moved to the bed and brushed the hair back from David’s brow. “You’re exhausted. We’ll talk later, privately. Right now, we have decisions to make.”
Kye realized the conversation had just moved on without him. He was the third wheel in a lovers’ quarrel. Something hard and heavy was solidifying in his chest. He’d been outmaneuvered. It sparked his competitive spirit.
He lifted Lily from his lap and approached the bed. Oleg turned to face him, ever on the alert.
Kye didn’t as much as glance at him. “Great plan, Gunnar. But you didn’t stop to think that maybe the bad guys already knew about Yard because she was looking for you. Maybe they’ve been watching her all along, waiting for her to uncover your whereabouts? Perhaps her inquiries were what was protecting her? They couldn’t do anything to her without bringing the feds down on them.”
David rallied, anger shining in his feverish eyes. “Easy for you to say. I didn’t know who to trust. That’s why I came myself.”
Abandoning Lily, Kye leaned his fists on the bed and said in a low but menacing voice, “Right now I’m all that’s standing between you and Yard, and some very bad people. That’s why you’re going to trust me.”
Yardley turned her head to glare at him over her shoulder. But he noticed something else in her eyes, a dark tide of fear rising. It acted like a splash of ice water over him. He didn’t want her frightened. He wanted her safe.
He stood up and focused on his would-be rival. He was sweating, feverish, and clearly in pain. He felt the urge to lay a reassuring hand on the man himself. Getting him medical help had just become goal numero uno.
“I’m calling the sheriff. And I don’t give a flying fuck who in this room thinks that’s a bad idea. Purdy didn’t know we were on to him. But he might have called for backup after he lost Gunnar. That person will come looking for Purdy if he doesn’t hear from him.”
Yardley nodded. “I agree. We need to do something with Purdy and I don’t need to tell a doctor that he’s in need of medical attention.”
David didn’t argue, just stared at Yardley in a way that made Kye want to smash his face.
Instead, Kye turned and walked out.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Yardley followed Kye out into the living room. He was pacing with Lily right by his side, who was taking hurried steps to keep up with his long stride. He looked awful. Blood still dribbled from one nostril. His face was swollen and red in places. His eyes were bloodshot. And his poor nose. It hurt to look at it. He needed medical attention, too. This was her fault. She should never have let him cross her threshold yesterday.
He glanced at her, looked as if he was about to say something, thought better of it, and continued pacing.
“I know you’re upset, Kye.”
“Upset isn’t even in the neighborhood.” He paused and ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up at all angles. “I just had to take down a professional killer with a coffeepot. A goddamn coffeepot!”
Yardley forced herself not to relive all the fear she’d felt for him when she’d heard Purdy cry out and then the thud of bodies hitting the floor. She’d slammed out of the bedroom and gone straight for Oleg’s kennel. If she hadn’t been afraid Oleg might mistakenly bite Kye, she would simply have set him free. Precious seconds were lost attaching his leash, but she needed to control the situation.
Looking at Kye now, still so angry she’d swear she could see little puffs of steam rising from him, sent a flood of gratitude
and affection and concern rushing over her. She wanted to thank him for protecting her and David. Wanted to say how much it pained her to know that she was the reason his beautiful face was a mess. But she knew he was in no mood to accept anything from her.
She’d seen how he looked at her when she’d touched David. She’d felt like Delilah must have felt after shearing Samson. The horror and shame of what she’d done to an undeserving man. A man whose bed she’d shared. She’d betrayed them both, and herself. And she didn’t know how to climb back from a single second of it.
Because, deep inside where she supposed most people never wanted to look at themselves, she didn’t regret any of it. She’d fallen for David. Yet she didn’t regret climbing into Kye’s bed when she thought David was past tense in her life.
If only Georgie were here to talk with. Far from being unable to feel too little for a man, she was suddenly brimming with so many emotions she couldn’t sort them out. As much as she liked David, it took only a kiss from Kye to plunge her back a dozen years and an emotional lifetime ago to when she believed she was in love.
The rush of self-knowledge that she could feel this way surprised and exhilarated her. But was it real?
She took a step toward him, but the heightened wariness in his gaze stopped her short. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry, Kye. About everything. Law and I should never have brought you into this. This isn’t your fight.”
He blinked, seemingly surprised by her words. “That doesn’t matter. I’m staying with you until this is over. And, just so you know, I don’t like losing.”
She nodded, touched by words that weren’t exactly lover-like but so Kye. “Your poor face.”
He looked down at his shirt, which was soaked with his blood. Wincing, he grabbed the back of it and pulled it up. “Do you think you can get some tape on my nose that will stop some of the bleeding? My face hurts like a sumbitch.”
She nodded, mouth going a little dry as his muscle-molded abs then pecs came into view. By the time his shoulders were on display she couldn’t have spit if her life depended on it. She averted her eyes. “I’ll get my first-aid kit.”
“Hold up.” She turned back as he reached into his backpack and pulled out a white wife-beater. Hate the name. Just hate it. But it looked, yeah, really good on him as he tugged it down over his too-tempting male torso.
He came toward her, hands going out to frame her shoulders. “I’m going to protect you, Yard. I promise. To do that, we need to get Gunnar to a hospital and law enforcement on our side. Where’s Purdy’s gun?”
She pulled it out of a pocket of her cargo pants.
He looked at it, noting the cartridge was full. “You have a gun?”
“I have K-9 protection.” She glanced down at Oleg, who was practically sitting on her boots. “What do I need a gun for?”
“To protect both of you. You do own one?”
“Of course. But I don’t like guns.”
“You don’t have to make out with it. How many do you have in the house?”
“One. Handgun.”
“Ammo?”
“Somewhere.”
“Seriously?”
“I work with dogs. Oleg can protect me from anyone breaking in.”
“Oleg can’t take down a bullet.” He held up Purdy’s gun as exhibit A.
Yardley folded her arms across her chest. “I don’t think I could shoot someone.”
Kye gave her a shrewd look. “You tried to take out Stokes with a hammer.”
“That was different. I wasn’t trying to kill him. Just make him stop.”
“Purdy already shot Dr. Gunnar. If he’d been hurting your doctor friend or Oleg and you’d been armed, you don’t think you’d have used it?”
“Maybe. The butt end. To save them.” She stared at him before giving in to the most reluctant shrug he’d ever seen. “Or you.”
Kye went still. She didn’t have to say that. But she was looking at him in a way that, for a few seconds, took away the pain of his face. He mattered to her.
The moment spun on, gone as quickly as it was captured, as she spoke again. “But I’d rather not have that option.”
“At least you’re honest.” He shrugged. “Get your gun.”
“After what I just said?”
“It’s for the doc. And to be clear, it works better with bullets. So find them.”
She hesitated. “Do you really think someone else is out there looking for David?”
“We’re talking illegal drugs. That means production, sellers, dealers, all with a shitload of money on the table. Then there’s you.” He gave her a slow smile. “Anyone else you pissed off lately?”
She smiled back. “Besides you?”
He grinned. “We’re good.”
Kye reached up to feel his nose, a ploy to keep her from reading the truth in his gaze. They were more than good. He was bleeding for her and would keep bleeding until he had fought through whatever was required to get her to safety.
She must have seen something because she reached out and touched his cheek. And then she leaned in and kissed him just behind the ear. “Poor nose,” she whispered against his ear. “Let me get some gauze and tape. I’ll be right back.”
Kye watched her go. He was an adult. He could handle just about anything that came his way. He knew a person didn’t get what he wanted simply because he wanted it. Or even deserved it. Relationships took two. But if he didn’t win Yard, he wasn’t sure what survival was going to look like.
Right now he needed her strong and ready to fight back. Any other conflicting emotion would only weaken her. That meant protecting her, even from himself.
She was back in a flash. “Take a seat.” She pointed to the sofa. He perched on the arm. “This might hurt a bit but it will stop the bleeding.” She began cleaning his nose with antibacterial wash.
He should have been planning a strategy to get them to safety. Instead, he teased himself with the sight of her, how she smelled, how she felt each time she brushed against him. If this were twelve hours earlier, he’d have busied himself peeling the layers of her clothing off her as she tended to him. He’d have taken handfuls of her breasts and held them up so that he could lick at her nipples until she groaned with pleasure. Only now, he was about to groan, and it wasn’t from pain.
He made himself focus. She was a little pale, eyes revealing the fear she tried to tap down, her left leg wiggling like an ad for restless leg syndrome. She was vulnerable. A protective arm, a little squeeze, a kiss on the forehead. Maybe just a little more body contact—
He spread his legs so that she could get closer, only to suck in a breath as she unknowingly pressed her hip against his arousal. He shifted, giving her more access as she worked on his face. He was nowhere near do-gooder status. Nope. Not even a little.
Within a few minutes, she’d dried the blood and added antibiotic, then gently pushed rolled gauze pads up each nostril. He swore under his breath more than once but didn’t stop her until he was taped up to hold them in place. Only then did he move.
“Thank you.” He sounded like he had a bad cold but he didn’t care. His hands came up with the intention of framing her waist. It was stupid. She wouldn’t like it. But he just really needed to touch.
“What are we doing?” David was back in the doorway, looking more and more like a zombified version of a handsome man.
Yardley spun around, startled by the sight of him. “You shouldn’t be up.”
“We’re getting you medical help.” Kye’s gaze switched to Yardley, his hands rising to touch his bandaged face. “Thanks. Now find Gunnar a coat, get some blankets, and dress for warmth yourself.”
He was up and moving toward the door, his SAR coat snagged up on the way. “The roads aren’t plowed in this area, I’m guessing. There’s the possibility we could get stuck but we need to get out of here.”
“I’ll drive.” Yard was moving toward a closet. “My Jeep’s four-wheel drive.”
Kye came up bes
ide her. “Are you sure?”
She turned to him. Her gaze was absolutely clear, direct and solid with confidence. “I know the roads and I’ve driven in conditions worse than today’s.”
Kye smiled for the first time since he’d first spied Gunnar. “Yes, ma’am. Get us ready to roll. I’ll be right back.”
He thrust his arms in his SAR jacket then reached for a pair of leashes, called both dogs to his side, and tethered them. A moment later man and dogs were out the door.
* * *
Kye checked the availability of the compact Smith & Wesson in his pocket before stepping off the porch into the soft snow. The night was eerily bright with the salting of small flakes sifting out of the sky. The clouds, some lit by urban centers hours away, reflected light down onto the white world below, making everything unusually bright. With the ground sparkling before him, Kye could see farther than he might have on a night with a full moon.
The pleasure of the beauty of the moment lasted about as long as it took him to notice footprints being rapidly filled in by those relentless flakes. Some of them were coming toward the house. But others led away. Purdy had come but he had not left. Who did the others belong to?
Kye grabbed back the leashes as his K-9s would have charged forward to relieve themselves. “Lily, come.” The toller bounded back toward him, yipping for the sheer pleasure of being out-of-doors. Oleg glanced back, curious about the toller’s actions. Kye reached down and petted his partner. He did not want to give away the fact he was on to their secret visitor. But sweat popped out on his upper lip and trickled down his back. Whoever was out there was probably watching him. And the big white cross on his back might as well have been a bull’s-eye. His main hope, since he hadn’t been shot yet, was that the man was waiting out there to see if his cover was blown. “Search.” He didn’t know the Czech word for search but hoped that Oleg would pick up on Lily’s posture and follow suit.
The toller lifted her head and sniffed the air. She turned her face slowly one way and then the other. Oleg, at the far end of his long lead, paused, looked back, and then his whole body came to attention. At the moment Lily caught a scent, Oleg seemed to fix on something in the distant line of trees.
