by Melody Anne
Mark laid her on the bed and then stretched out next to her, holding her until the sobs finally started to quiet down. When she was down to just a few hiccups, he pled with her to please tell him what was going on.
“W…we are g…going to have to m…move,” she finally managed to get out between hiccup sobs.
Mark felt as if his whole world had been flipped upside down. “Why would you even think that?” he asked her.
“Trevor isn’t safe,” she managed to gasp out and then handed him the letter that was crushed in her hand.
Mark read through the letter and then read it again to make sure he was really seeing what was there. He still held her close and made sure to gently rub her back but if she would’ve been able to see his eyes, her terror would have tripled.
He was simmering with so much fury it took all the well trained will-power he’d ever developed, not to smash up the entire room. He knew he had to stay calm and strong for her but how dare someone try and threaten his woman?
He’d always heard people talk about seeing red when they lost their temper and had thought it was nothing more than an expression. He now understood the reality of it. His fury was so intense he could actually see a red hue around the corners of his vision.
“It’s okay baby, I promise you this person will never come near you or Trevor,” he said with so much menace in his tone, she actually stopped long enough to look up at him in surprise.
He didn’t want her to see his eyes so he gently tucked her head back down to his shoulder, while he continued stroking her.
“You don’t understand Mark, he knows where I live. He could hurt Trevor trying to get to me,” she said. The tears were finally starting to dry.
“Emily I will repeat to you that I will never let anything happen to you or Trevor. I guarantee this guy won’t touch you,” he stated. He lifted her chin up, looking deeply into her eyes. He’d finally managed to somewhat control his turbulent emotions.
“How can you promise me that?” she asked.
“I was raised to always protect those I love,” he simply stated.
Emily inhaled as she realized what he’d said. She didn’t think he even realized he’d said he loved her. Her heart filled with so much warmth and light, after the total devastation, she felt like it was going to beat right out of her chest.
She snuggled even deeper into Mark’s strong arms and fell asleep, feeling comforted by his embrace and the warmth of his words.
Once Mark knew Emily was sleeping he got up and made a few phone calls. The first one was to an old high school friend, who was a classified military man. If anyone could get some answers into who was stalking Emily, it was Chad.
Chad reassured him he would be there within a couple of days. He would find out what was going on and the guy would never harm either Emily or Trevor. Mark smiled at the tone in his friend’s voice. He knew he’d made the right choice in calling him.
The next call was to his father. Joseph listened as Mark read the letter. “I’ll be right over. I’ll call your brothers,” was all he said, before hanging up the phone.
Mark went back to the bedroom so he could lie next to Emily again. He didn’t want her to wake up alone and panic. He needed to be there for her, to reassure her everything was going to be okay.
Emily woke in Mark’s arms and for a moment forgot all about the letter and the devastation. He was pressed up against her back and his desire for her was obvious. She rubbed against him, automatically stretching and pressing her backside closer to his hardness.
“Seriously woman you’re trying to kill me,” Mark mumbled into her hair, as he kissed her neck and ran his hand gently up her side, to cup her ample breasts. The peaks hardened instantly at his touch and she wiggled, trying to get as close to him as possible.
“That’s the plan,” she purred.
He flipped her over and they made love with a sweetness that was beyond anything she’d ever felt before. She was really starting to feel loved by the wonderful man, who she still couldn’t believe was a part of her life.
“I would much prefer to stay here in bed with you all day but we have guests,” he said to her, as he nibbled on her neck some more.
Suddenly the hours before she’d passed out came flooding back and Emily’s whole body stiffened. She was saddened to be brought back so suddenly to reality.
“It’s okay baby, I called my family and they are here, so we can all come up with a game plan. We are a family and we protect each other.”
“You shouldn’t have bothered them with this. You are safe,” she said perplexed.
Mark stared at her as if she’d lost her mind. “Do you really think either you or Trevor are any less important than me?” he asked her incredulously.
“I just meant your family didn’t have to drop everything because I got some creepy letter,” she tried to explain.
“That letter should be taken seriously and we are going to make sure you are safe,” he told her with finality. He was far too aware letters like that could lead to grave danger. When you grew up as wealthy as he had, things were always taken seriously and he didn’t want her to know how scared he really was.
Emily shrugged, caving in to his demands. “I’m going to shower really fast before heading down.”
“Do you need someone to scrub your back?” he asked with a wink.
“Then neither of us would ever get down there,” she said. She gave him a quick kiss and then firmly shut the bathroom door behind her.
Mark laid on the bed thinking of each moment he spent with her. He loved her strong will and he loved her kindness. He was falling in love with her. It scared the hell out of him but at the same time it felt right.
He finally made his way down the stairs and was surprised to see his entire family. Not only had his dad come with his brothers but their spouses and children too.
“Uncle Mark,” Jasmine yelled and threw her arms around his legs. “You took forever to come down. Daddy said you were comforting Aunt Emily,” she said and put quotation marks around comforting, like her daddy had done. She had no idea what she was saying but Mark glared at his brother anyway.
“Isn’t my niece a little bit young for you to be teaching bad habits?” Mark asked Lucas.
“Hey I was just telling her what a good comforter you are,” Lucas goaded him.
“Quit your fighting, we have things to discuss and people to beat the crap out of,” Alex said.
“Language Alex,” Jessica scolded him.
“Sorry, Honey,” Alex said sheepishly.
“I called Chad. He’ll be here in a couple days. I’m not sure where he’s flying from but it must be far away,” Mark informed them.
“I’m glad to hear he’s coming in to help out,” Joseph added, with relief evident.
“Me too,” Mark said. He was already feeling better about Emily’s safety just having his family in the room. There was no way anyone would get to her with his brothers there.
“We’re staying here until this gets solved,” Lucas said. The rest of the people in the room all nodded their heads in agreement.
“I’ve already prepared the rooms,” Edward added, as he set out some drinks and snacks.
Mark blinked several times as his eyes began to sting. He couldn’t imagine life without his family. He truly felt sorry for those millions of people who didn’t have the same support system.
He was grateful he had more money than he could possibly ever spend but he would give up every last dime before he would give up one member of his family. He realized that included Emily and Trevor as well.
Mark poured himself a double shot of whiskey and enjoyed the burning sensation as it slid down his throat and burned its way to his gut.
“Thank you guys, we’ll get this solved immediately,” he said to everyone.
Emily walked into the room just then and her eyes widened at the large crowd before her. She didn’t have time to say anything though because Jessica and Amy ran up to her an
d wrapped her in a group hug. “We are so sorry someone is trying to scare you,” Amy said. “We’ll never let anything happen to you,” Jessica added.
The three women stood together. They wiped a few tears and then quickly laughed, feeling secure as a unit. They’d already formed a bond stronger than most sisters. The guys crept back from them as if they were contagious. They didn’t know how to deal with women emotions.
“Women,” Alex whispered.
“Yeah, I know,” Lucas said.
“I don’t get them,” Mark added.
“Seriously, guys kill the problem while girls are always crying but that’s why we have to be there to protect them,” Joseph piped in.
All four men shook their heads in unison while heading to the barn to start discussing safety measures on the property. They didn’t have a clue one person was watching them the entire time. One person they would’ve never even thought about suspecting.
Chapter Six
The next couple of days flew by with no more incidents. No one let Emily get out of their sight. She was beginning to feel a bit claustrophobic. She had been staying almost nightly in Mark’s room, so he moved all her things in there, making it more permanent.
Mark explained it was safer for her to stay with him and with all the extra house guests they needed her room anyway. She was scared it was going to affect Trevor but he didn’t even seem to notice anything was unusual about the situation.
Mark and Emily made love each night and her worry seemed to fade away into nothingness. She knew beyond a shadow of a doubt she was in love with Mark and if he were to grow bored with her, she would fall to pieces. She was in the very situation she’d tried so hard to avoid.
How could she not love him when he was so caring about her and treated her son like he was his own? The rest of his family treated her and Trevor as if they were a part of their family as well. She choked up the first time Jasmine called her aunt Emily but was starting to get used to it. She found she really liked how it sounded.
She was sitting out on the back deck, when a huge guy with short dark hair and aviator glasses stepped out the door. The man was built like a Sherman tank. She wouldn’t want to be on his bad side, she decided quickly.
“Chad, you made it,” Mark exclaimed, as he came around the corner.
“Sorry I couldn’t get here sooner,” Chad replied and then the two men headed into the house. Emily had heard about Mark’s longtime friend. She decided they must put something special in the food around this area because all the men seemed to be far too sexy for any normal person’s good.
“Okay Chad I want the guys to think you’re a new hire. Luckily you’ve been out of the country long enough only my foreman knows who you are and I already filled him in on what’s going on, so he won’t say a word. You’re going to get far more information if the guys think you are one of them. I’m sorry you’re going to have to sleep in the bunk house,” he added with an evil grin.
“Yeah, you look sorry about that,” Chad said. “Good thing I’ve slept in much worse places.”
“Yeah, I kind of wish it was a little rougher out there,” Mark continued.
“You’re a peach. Well I better get changed. I want to check things out right away. The sooner we make sure your Emily’s safe, the sooner everyone can relax.”
“I appreciate you dropping everything to do this. She’s the one, Chad. I’ve never felt this way about another woman,” Mark said to his friend.
“I knew the second we spoke on the phone she was the one,” Chad told him, before heading off to change into some less conspicuous clothing. He was going to have a hard enough time blending in with his size and demeanor but add the clothes he was currently wearing and the man looked like the military man he was.
Chad changed quickly and headed down to the bunkhouses where the ranch foreman was. He was alert to everything around him. He noticed the men working on the fence off to his right and the guy to his left feeding the horses. He wasn’t an easy man to sneak around. He would catch this stalker in a matter of days if not hours.
He wasn’t a cocky man, he was just incredibly confident. He’d been in the military for almost twenty years and those years had taught him well. There were few people in his life he would drop everything for. Mark happened to be one of those select men.
If it hadn’t been for Mark and his family, his life would have turned out significantly different. They had believed in him and helped him get out of the horrible circumstances he’d been in, to make a success out of his life.
Chad shook off the distracting thoughts and stepped through the bunk house’s doors. He spotted the foreman right away, along with a couple of other ranch hands sitting down at a table.
He walked up to the men with his usual confidence and introduced himself.
“Hi I’m Chad, Mark hired me and said to come on down here to get set up,” Chad said, while sticking out his hand.
The men eyed him warily, as if sizing up a new cow. The foreman finally stood and Chad was impressed with the man’s acting skills. A normal observer would never know they knew each other.
“Good to meet you Chad, I’m Bob, the foreman here,” he said and clasped his hand.
“Good to meet you as well.”
“Why don’t you get settled in today and get the lay of the land. You can begin work tomorrow,” Bob said, giving Chad the time he needed in order to scope out the area and do some snooping through the hands things.
Once the other men headed back out to do their work, Chad and Bob sat down and discussed things. Bob promised to keep the men away from the bunkhouse between three and five. Chad headed out to survey the grounds.
He didn’t see anything suspicious right off but he didn’t have much time and would have to do a more thorough search the next day. He really wanted to go through the hands rooms. He was far more likely to find suspicious items there.
At three on the dot he slipped back into the bunkhouse, without anyone seeing him and began searching through the men’s belongings.
“It’s time to get out of here for a while. The guys can take care of the kids. I’m in desperate need of a pedicure,” Jessica said to Emily and Amy.
“Ooh great thinking Jess, I’ll let Lucas know and be ready to leave in twenty minutes. I just want to change,” Amy said and then dashed off towards her room.
“That does sound nice. I hate to leave Trevor with everything going on though,” Emily added.
“He’ll be fine. No one can get through our men,” Jessica reassured her.
Emily really loved to think of Mark as her man. She wasn’t really sure where they stood but so far things seemed to be just about as perfect as they could get. Well, as perfect as things could be while she was being stalked by some unknown psycho.
“You’re right, of course. I’ll go change and be down quickly,” Emily conceded and ran up to change.
“Be careful and don’t stay gone to long,” Mark said to Emily. He knew he would be worried about her while she was out. He also knew she needed some time away from the house. Her nerves were fried.
“Try not to max out the charge cards,” Lucas teased them.
“I’m sorry but we cannot make any promises,” Amy told her husband with a wink. Lucas smiled as they headed out the doors. Amy was so much more confident from the woman he’d met years ago. She was still far too frugal but she finally felt like an equal in the marriage. He’d drummed into her head money was nothing without love and she finally felt she could go out with the girls, without having to justify every little purchase. He was relieved about it.
“I love that woman,” Lucas said as the three women disappeared down the driveway.
“Ditto, Brother,” Alex said.
“I’m right there with you,” Mark added. Both brothers turned to smile at Mark. They were happy he seemed to have found the one. The fact she came with an instant family was an added bonus.
“I can’t believe how hard we all fought to hold on to our bac
helorhood. What the hell were we thinking?” Alex asked.
“Seriously,” Lucas agreed.
“I thought falling in love with just one woman would be the end of me but watching you guys with your wives and how happy they’ve made you over the years has really put a longing in me for something more. I’ve felt like there was something missing. I still was determined not to get married but since Emily has stepped into my life I can’t seem to think of anything else,” Mark said.
“At least we found our own women without Dad’s meddling,” Lucas said.
The three men laughed at what they perceived as their independence. Joseph happened to be around the corner and heard his three sons talking. He laughed to himself. Someday he would tell them the truth, or maybe not.
“Oh my gosh, this feels so good,” Emily exclaimed, as the woman rubbed some lightly scented lotion into her feet.
“Seriously I think I have died and gone to heaven,” Amy purred, as her feet were sitting in the hot, bubbly, scented water.
“I’m never leaving,” Jessica added, as her toe nails were being painted a deep shade of red.
The three girls were being pampered in luxuriously comfortable chairs and talking about anything and everything.
“I love being a mother but it’s so nice to get away and have some time with my two best friends,” Amy said.
“Agreed,” both Jessica and Emily said.
After they finished with their pedicures and manicures, they walked through the huge Seattle Mall. “I’m in need of some sexy lingerie,” Amy said.
“Great thinking, let’s go to Victoria Secret,” Jessica said.
The two women coerced Emily into buying a couple of outfits that made her blush, even as they sat on the display rack. All three women walked out of the store with new lingerie, lotions and perfume.
“I can’t wait to try this on for Lucas tonight. He’s going to go crazy,” Amy said with confidence.
