by Katie Reus
Zac noted the way she said “my daughter,” not “our.” Interesting. He handed her a water bottle from the refrigerator. “Okay. Tell me more about Neely.” Zac had skimmed the information Skye had given him, but he wanted to be on the same page as Olivia. The more they talked, got to know one another, the better.
She took the Advil with the water then set it on the granite countertop of the center island. Leaning against it, she shoved her hands in her pockets. “Kyle does higher-end robberies. Art, jewelry, stuff like that. Like I told Skye, he only works with crews he knows. He’s really paranoid too, always keeps things compartmentalized until right before the job. So, for example, for the first job we did, I knew that I’d need to break into a specific type of safe, but I didn’t know the actual location until twenty-four hours before. He kept the whole team contained and we had to go dark. No phones or outside communication during that time period.”
“Smart,” Zac murmured.
“Yeah. So…what exactly is your experience in this type of thing? You were in the military, right?”
He nodded. “I was in the Marine Corps. Force Recon. Then I did a lot of contract work after. I’m good at being invisible, at getting into places I don’t belong.” That being an understatement. He didn’t blame her for asking though.
“Can you give me an example?”
He watched her for a long moment then decided to give her information that wasn’t exactly classified because it wasn’t on any books. And screw it, he didn’t work for the government anymore anyway. Besides, he wouldn’t give specifics. “I’ve stolen sensitive information from a consulate on US soil in the middle of the day.” And that wasn’t the toughest job he’d ever pulled either. “With no one the wiser.” Which had been the whole point of that job. If he’d stolen the intel and someone had discovered it, the intel would have become useless.
Her eyes widened. “That’s…seriously dangerous.”
Zac lifted a shoulder.
“Okay, then. You’re clearly ready for whatever Kyle throws at you. Probably a hell of a lot better than me.”
“Maybe. I read some of the information you gave Skye. Rappelling off buildings and breaking into high-end corporate security systems is some serious shit. And now you work freelance for a boutique security company?” One that infiltrated other companies upon request to test security.
She nodded once, her expression wry. “Figured I might as well make money the legal way doing something I’m good at. And I don’t have to jump off buildings anymore to escape.”
Zac leaned against the counter, closely watching her. Hell, it was hard to take his gaze off her anyway. “We need to figure out how long we’ve known each other.”
She nodded and he could practically see the wheels turning in her head. “I’ve been separated from my ex since six months after Valencia was born. To say you and I met not long after that would work, especially if Kyle reached out to my ex. I kinda doubt he did, but just to cover our bases.”
“Why’d you and your ex break up? And what’s his name?” Zac already didn’t like the guy. Didn’t have to know him.
She jolted a little at the question, the reaction subtle. Then she narrowed her gaze at him. “Why?”
“If we’re together, it stands to reason I’d know personal information about you.”
Her shoulders relaxed and she let out a tired laugh. “Oh, right. His name is Heath Price and…if I’m being brutally honest, he left because Valencia is Deaf. He decided we weren’t what he wanted.” There was no bitterness in her voice.
Oh yeah, definitely didn’t like this guy. There were things he wanted to say—and do. Namely hunt down her ex and beat the shit out of him. But he wouldn’t, only because he wasn’t a barbarian and they had more important things to focus on. What kind of man abandoned his child? He felt like an even bigger asshole for the snap judgment he’d made now that he knew Valencia was a single mom who’d left her old life behind. “Okay, so on to us. Why did you break up with me?”
“Why will it be me who did the breaking up?”
Zac stepped a fraction closer, inhaled the subtle vanilla undertones of her perfume. “Because if I’m obsessed with you and dropping everything for you, there’s no way I’d have been the one to leave. Besides, it’s pretty clear no sane man would leave you. And you are definitely out of my league.”
Pink tinged her cheeks as his words set in. She swallowed loudly enough for him to hear. “Thank you, I think.”
“It’s definitely a compliment,” he murmured, his gaze falling to her lips. When had he gotten even closer to her? All he could do was focus on Olivia, the nervous way she cleared her throat, then bit her full bottom lip. For such a slender woman she had curves in all the right places.
“Maybe things got too intense for us, so I ended things?” Her words came out raspy, a little unsteady.
Then he remembered he’d asked a question. He cleared his throat and met her gaze. “That works.” He took another step closer. “But I didn’t want to let go. Never got over you. So when you came to see me, I couldn’t say no.” Before he realized he’d moved, he cupped her cheek with his hand. Hated how callused his fingers were against her soft skin, but he also couldn’t pull away.
She didn’t pull away either. Just stared up at him with a little bit of shock and a lot of…curiosity. Maybe some lust too. He couldn’t tell and didn’t want to read into anything. Still, he couldn’t seem to drop his hand.
Her breathing grew shallower as she stared at him and when she nervously licked her lips, he groaned. Because apparently he had no self-control anymore. What the ever loving fuck was wrong with him? He wasn’t thinking with his head, that was the damn problem. Women were trouble and the whole happy-ever-after thing Mary Grace and Mercer, and Skye and Colt had? Not for him. And Olivia wasn’t the type of woman to have a fling with. Even knowing that, he couldn’t pull his hand back, couldn’t force himself to step away.
Until Gage stepped into the room—and loudly cleared his throat.
Dropping his hand even as Olivia moved back from him, putting a solid foot of distance between them in a second, he turned to find Gage in the doorway.
“Neely just texted you,” Gage said, all business.
“What?” Olivia patted her front pocket and pulled out her cell. A look of self-recrimination crossed her delicate features as she swiped her fingers across the screen. “He wants to meet me tomorrow.”
“It’s at the same hotel I tracked him to in Miami,” Gage said, obviously having read the text with whatever program he used to hack shit. “So it looks as if you two are definitely going to have to meet him. I’m still running the information I have on Neely and I think it’s his real name. But you were right, his digital footprint is very small. I’ve got a few threads I’m pulling at to locate potential places Martina might be.”
“When do we need to leave?” she asked.
Zac noticed she seemed to be avoiding his gaze completely as she focused solely on Gage.
“I’ll leave that up to Savage. Meeting’s at ten a.m.”
Olivia looked at Zac, her eyebrows raised. They should leave right then, get settled in Miami. If they were driving they would have to leave immediately since it would take eight hours at least with traffic. But since they’d be flying… “Soon. But get your stuff together.”
“I’ve got to tell Valencia that I’m leaving. I need time to explain things to her. And I want to get her settled in.” She definitely wasn’t asking, her expression fierce.
He’d definitely judged her wrong. It was clear she cared about her daughter and that this whole thing was killing her. Well he was going to make sure she came out of this okay and that they got her friend back. And he was going to seriously hurt the man who’d put her in this situation in the first place. “Yeah. Go get your girl. We’ll leave once she’s asleep tonight.”
It would mean they’d arrive, have time to get a few hours of shuteye at whatever safe house they ended up at, then head
to the hotel.
After the back door shut behind her, he turned to Gage—to find his friend watching him with far too much curiosity. “What?”
Gage shook his head. “Nothing. Nothing at all, man.”
“I need to get my gear together,” Zac muttered.
“I figured. I’m already getting my gear ready for you guys. Skye’s going to stay here for the kid, but Brooks, Leighton and I will be your backup. I’m already getting a safe house prepped for us.”
“The job might not even be in Miami.”
“I know. But I’m getting it ready regardless. And Brooks’s plane is gassed up and ready to go. Your girl will have time with her daughter.”
She’s not my girl. “Sounds good.”
But part of him wanted her to be.
Chapter 5
—Parenthood is fucking hard.—
How long will you be gone? Valencia’s boot-clad feet swung back and forth as she looked at Olivia, her expression serious. A bright moon hung high in the sky, shimmering on the huge pool a few feet away.
I don’t know. She couldn’t lie, even if she wanted to. Olivia might not always be able to tell the full truth, but she wasn’t going to lie to her daughter. Not unless absolutely necessary. If this wasn’t important, I wouldn’t be leaving. She’d never left her daughter anywhere before, other than Martina’s house for sleepovers. This was going to be hard for both of them.
A long sigh. I know.
Aunt Skye and Uncle Colt will be here. And Mary Grace said she’d be over all the time with the baby. That earned her a small smile.
Mia’s so cute… Why are you leaving? Turned in her seat on the oversized, cushioned bench, all Valencia’s focus was on Olivia.
I…can’t tell you everything.
Grown-up stuff?
Yes. It’s important though. That’s what I can tell you. And, I’ll be able to Skype with you while I’m gone. And…I bet Skye will let you have ice cream for breakfast every morning. Definitely not her most shining parenting moment, but who cared? Olivia was leaving her daughter at a new place without her. If Valencia wanted freaking ice cream every morning, she was going to get it.
Valencia’s eyes widened. It must be really important…and I won’t eat ice cream for breakfast. Not every day anyway.
Laughing, she pulled her daughter into her lap. “I got so lucky with you, kiddo,” she said, switching to using her voice.
“I know.”
Olivia laughed even harder as she kissed the top of Valencia’s head. As she pulled back, she blinked as Zac Savage—a man she thought of simply as Savage because of his fierce demeanor—appeared as if out of thin air.
He nodded politely at the two of them, the brightly lit Olympic-sized pool and fountain his backdrop. I wanted to let you both know that dinner is almost ready. He used ASL, taking Olivia off guard. Skye had taken to it like she seemed to with everything—quickly and expertly. ASL was a completely different language so mastering it quickly was rare. The others were learning, but neither Olivia nor her daughter had met Savage until today.
“Hey! You know ASL!” Valencia jumped off her lap and looked up at Savage. I’m Valencia, she said, signing.
He crouched down so they were at eye level—earning some points—and nodded. I’m Zac. I learned ASL when I was a teenager. And I know ASL because my brother was Deaf.
Was? Valencia asked, her head tilting slightly to the side, her braids sliding with the movement.
He died. Two simple words said with a perfectly neutral expression, but there was a hint of buried pain there.
That’s sad, Valencia said even as Olivia murmured the same. Reaching out, her daughter, with her big, soft heart, gently patted his shoulder.
Looking uncomfortable, he cleared his throat. Would you prefer I sign, or do you prefer that I use my voice instead?
Okay, more points for asking her daughter. He might have been a jerk earlier, but he was treating Valencia well. Maybe he wasn’t so bad.
Valencia looked at Olivia quickly, then back at Savage and dropped her hands. “I like to use both. My speech therapist says I need to practice both talking out loud and ASL.” She sounded like such a little grown-up.
A low, rumbling sound came from him and it took a moment for Olivia to realize he was laughing. He looked softer, more approachable when he relaxed like that. His entire expression changed, the way his lips curved up and his eyes creased, he was…handsome. “That seems sensible.”
“I know. My mommy says that I’m almost always sensible. I have an old soul.”
Olivia started to smile at her daughter’s words, when Savage looked over at her. He pinned her with his green eyes and for the briefest moment there was a raw heat simmering right beneath the surface.
It was so quick, that little flash, then it was gone, replaced by pure neutrality. Maybe she’d imagined it. But she didn’t think so. Not after that unexpected spark between them in the kitchen earlier. She still felt guilty about that. As she’d been staring into his eyes everything else had ceased to exist for those few moments. Martina, everything. She was ashamed she’d been thinking… Well, whatever she’d been thinking and feeling while a woman she loved was being held hostage.
“After dinner we need to talk,” he said to her, his voice low.
For some reason his words sounded ominous, but that was just her overworked brain. He probably wanted to talk about the game plan. They’d have to leave soon, by car she guessed. It would take all night and then some to get to Miami. She wouldn’t be fresh or relaxed for the meeting but there was no way around it. She needed another hour with her daughter and to go over some legal stuff with Skye. Ugh. She wasn’t looking forward to that. But it was one more thing to get out of the way before going to Miami. She desperately wanted to save Martina but if the worst happened and Olivia didn’t make it back, she needed to know that Valencia would be taken care of.
* * *
With dinner over and Valencia with Mary Grace and the baby in Brooks’s giant movie room—yes, there was a freaking movie theater-style room in this place—Olivia knew it was time to get the thing she was dreading over with. “Skye, I need to talk to you alone. You and Colt both,” she said over the now empty dinner table.
Mercer, Gage and Brooks were talking around the island, all drinking beers, but moved as soon as Skye said, “Everyone out. And tell my sexy husband to get his ass in here.”
“You realize this is my house.” Brooks’s voice was dry, just a hint of humor in the quiet cowboy’s words.
“I do realize that.” Skye smiled sweetly, making him laugh.
“All right, I’ll go hunt down your man. I think he’s with Savage. You need him too?”
Hearing Savage’s name had heat rushing to Olivia’s cheeks and she inwardly cursed her reaction as she told Brooks no. She needed to get this over with. So what if he had that whole sexy, bad boy vibe going on? He wasn’t her type and she was simply working with him to save her friend. That was it.
“Gage sent a text from your phone telling Neely that you wouldn’t do anything for him until you’ve spoken to Martina personally—via Skype or some other chat method,” Skye said once they were alone.
“Good.” Getting to see Martina through a live feed would at least let her gauge if she’d been hurt. Neely had a bad reputation for a reason. Right now she was forcing herself to compartmentalize and not focus on what could be happening to Martina.
Colt strode into the kitchen, still wearing jeans and the same dusty shirt from earlier. “Savage is geared up and ready to go. The plane is ready too.”
At dinner Skye had mentioned the plane, which made Olivia feel a little better about their travel time. Apparently Brooks had a private plane. Or his father did. Whoever it belonged to, a private plane was no joke. “That’s great… Listen, this has nothing to do with what we’re walking into. Not directly, anyway. Would you mind sitting?” She stood even as she asked it. She felt a slight twinge of pain in her ribs, but ignored it. What
she had to say was huge and she could barely sit still. Because if they said no, she wasn’t sure what she’d do.
Colt nodded, his movements economical as he slid onto the bench seat of the long, farmhouse-style table, next to his wife. Tall and muscular, but not bulked down with muscle, he seemed just as strong and capable as everyone else who worked for them. His green eyes turned her way, giving her all his focus.
Shoving her hands into her pockets, Olivia decided to just go for blunt. They had limited time and there was only one way to say this anyway. “If something happens to me, I need to know that Valencia will be okay. I have a life insurance policy that will take care of her, but I won’t risk her going into a shitty system—or with any of my family. Martina is listed as Valencia’s guardian in my will, but if something happens to me, it’s likely Martina will be gone too, and…” She cleared her throat. God, thinking about this sucked, but she had to do it. “Anyway, I know this is beyond huge, but I want to ask you and Colt to take care of her if I die. I trust you and I know you’d make sure she was cared for and happy.” She’d known Skye since college, and other than the women she knew through Valencia’s school and her next door neighbors, Skye was one of her only true friends.
Both of them stared at her, their expressions unreadable. They were like statues for an impossibly long moment. Oh hell, maybe she shouldn’t have—
“We’ll do it,” Colt said even as Skye nodded.
Maybe the two of them had a psychic link, because it was clear Skye was in perfect agreement. “You’re going to come out of this fine, but yes, we’ll be her guardians if it comes to it.”
Olivia sucked in a breath as the invisible band around her chest loosened. At least now going into this mess she could be assured that Valencia would have people to take care of her. Not that she wanted to die. Hell no. She wanted to see her little girl grow up, to become the incredible woman Olivia knew she’d one day be. But this eased something inside her.
