by Taylor Lee
Acknowledging the way he’d manhandled her reminded him that the Valley Girl had cried out when she’d hit the ground, and again when he’d Karate chopped her wrist to knock loose her Glock. Christ, the least he could do now was to see if she was hurt. Facing her head on and seeing for the first time the nasty scrape on her soft cheek, Jared huffed a harsh grunt. Sure as hell, she’d have a rockin’ bruise on that alabaster skin by daylight. He also didn’t miss the flash of pain flooding her eyes, or the way she clutched his sleeve to keep her balance when he pulled her toward him.
“Okay, Valley Girl, out with it. Where are you hurt?” Jared reached over and stroked the mark the tree stump had left on the side of her face. “Besides this nasty-ass scrape on your cheek, that is.”
Hailey shoved at his hand and snapped, “Nowhere. I…I’m not hurt…anywhere.” Jerking up her chin, she added, “And even if I was, what’s it to you?”
As she angrily spun away from him, Hailey stumbled and grabbed Jared’s arm to keep from falling.
Jared glared at her as he caught her. Ignoring her rudeness, he focused on the pain radiating in her eyes. He nodded and said carefully, “Well, Sugar, since I feel as though I already know your bodacious body better than I should, and given that I might have played a role in any injuries you sustained, how about you be a good girl and answer my question?”
Putting his hands on her shoulders, Jared tipped up her chin with his thumbs and held her agonized gaze.
“Last time, rookie. Besides your wrist, which I’ll look at in a minute, where does it hurt? Your ankle or your knee?”
Hailey hesitated and pressed her lips together. As if seeing from his implacable frown that he wouldn’t let her go, she stammered, “My…my ankle…hurts.”
Ignoring her surprised yelp, Jared scooped her up in his arms and deposited her on top of a knee high stump. Dropping to a crouch in front of her, he said, “Right or left, rookie?”
Closing her eyes but not quickly enough to keep a tear from escaping, Hailey whispered, “The…the right one.”
Jared studied her for a long minute through narrowed eyes, then reached for her foot.
“Okay, Sugar, let’s see what we’ve got.”
Even before he got her boot off, her anguished wail confirmed that the little rookie had sustained at least a sprained ankle, and from the looks of the way it was swelling over the top of her boot, it was a bad one. Carefully removing the stiff boot, Jared was shocked to see that Hailey’s ankle was swollen at least three times bigger than it should be and already mottled with ugly bruises. Gently exploring the taut skin with his expert fingers, he turned to his brother and telegraphed his conclusion with a nonchalance he was far from feeling.
“Hey, Bro, seems our little Valley Girl has a bitchin’ sprained ankle. How about you make yourself useful and rustle up some of those cold rocks from the lakeshore and a passel of damp leaves to wrap them in.”
Meeting Hailey’s teary gaze and pale, strained expression, Jared did his best to tamp down his rising anger at himself. Holy fuck, he couldn’t begin to imagine how much pain she had been suffering. And he and Jake—make that especially him—had been taunting her about her incompetence in the unfamiliar woods. Christ, he wasn’t sure how he could feel like any more of an insensitive asshole. Fighting to keep from projecting his anger onto her, he asked in as calm a voice as he could muster, “Gotta ask, rookie. Any reason you didn’t tell me, or your commander, if you weren’t speaking to me, that you were in a shitload of pain? Holy hell, Sweetheart, my ankle throbs just looking at this.”
When she shook her head and didn’t answer, Jared carefully secured her trouser leg above her knee, and then elevated her foot on a nearby stump. Taking handfuls of the cold wet leaves that Jake piled beside them, Jared shrouded Hailey’s ankle in nature’s version of an ice pack. Stripping off his jacket, he hauled his long sleeved t-shirt over his head, ignoring the damp cold that hit his bare chest. Ripping the t-shirt into long strips, he chuckled at Hailey’s wide-eyed expression as he shrugged his jacket back on over his naked torso. Acknowledging her surprise, he said with a cocky grin, “You’d be amazed sweetheart, the practical wisdom you acquire when you’re raised in the boonies. These woods have taught my brothers and me more about surviving and thriving than we learned in six years of college plus another six in the military.”
Hoping that his explanation didn’t make her feel more inadequate than his earlier taunts had, Jared focused on bandaging her wounded ankle. With the improvised bindings he’d made from his shirt, he wrapped her swollen foot as tightly as he could to reduce the swelling without stopping the circulation. With the last of the t-shirt strips, to further support her ankle he splinted it between two branches that Jake had whittled to size with his K-Bar. As he ministered to her, Jared kept a careful eye on Hailey’s physical and emotional reactions, knowing from her stoic responses that her searing pain had to be taking a toll. Sharing a glance with his brother confirmed that they both knew the little rookie was close to losing it. To shock, if not to pain.
Rising to his feet, he held up his hand to stop Jake when his older brother reached down to pick up his wounded officer.
Shaking his head, Jared said, “Not so fast, Bro. You’re the big bad commander here. You lead the way. I’ll pull up the rear and be the packhorse transporting this delectable cargo.”
Jake frowned, then seeing that Jared wouldn’t be deterred, nodded in agreement.
Jared squatted beside Hailey and stroked her porcelain cheek, trying to ignore the pain that had darkened her sky blue eyes to a troubled cobalt color.
“Listen up, Sweetheart. The last thing you should do with a sprain like the one you have is put weight on it. For that reason, that medical reason, I am going to carry you back to the road.”
Hailey frowned and shook her head “No, please, I don’t want you to carry me. Now that you put a splint on my leg, I can walk. I…I’m sure I can.”
Jared forced himself to smile rather than yell at her the way he was tempted to. For Christ’s sake, between him and Jake, they could have reduced the swelling in her ankle dramatically if the little rookie had bothered to tell them that she was hurt. Huffing a sigh, he admitted that his lusty and abrasive actions to date hadn’t exactly been conducive to convince the rookie to ask for help. Choking back a harsh response, he said instead, “C’mon, Cover Girl. How about I kneel down here in front of you and you climb up on my back and hold on tight?”
When it looked like she would continue to resist, Jared’s patience snapped. Trying to squash the edge in his voice he said with a grim smile, “The alternative, Sugar, is that I toss you over my shoulder like a duffel bag and carry you with your head hanging down my back and your ass in the air.” He added with a grating laugh, “Come to think of it, that’s one hell of an alternative. Hmmm. I’m thinking access to that curvy butt of yours could make our trek back to the road a hell of a lot more interesting—at least for me.”
Hailey’s pale cheeks flushed bright red and she bit down on her bottom lip. A second later she tipped up her chin and glared at him, her cerulean eyes flashing with anger. With a dismissive snort she tossed her head and prepared to climb up on his back.
Jared covered his amusement at her irritation and nodded tersely.
“Good decision, rookie. Although I have a feeling that at some point in the near future I’m gonna be paddling that classy ass of yours, if for no other reason than to teach you how to ask for help when you need it.”
Ignoring her shocked gasp, Jared knelt in front of Hailey to allow his brother to lift her onto his back. He wrapped her good leg around his waist and hooked her splinted leg over his elbow to support her ankle. Five minutes into their journey Jared admitted the last thing he needed was more access to her ass than he already had. What with her curvy bottom securely resting in his large interlaced hands, her arms hugging his neck and her full breasts pressing against his back, it was all he could do to contain the iron-hard erection strainin
g his jeans. His simmering anger at her refusal to ask for help only served to raise the temperature on his libido from hot to scalding. It didn’t help that Hailey’s occasional whispery moan and what Jared could swear was tell-tale dampness between her legs, and her unmistakably erect nipples palpable through his leather jacket, confirmed that the little rookie was as involuntarily turned on as he was. He shook his head. Damn, adrenalin was a bitch. Especially the way it played havoc with hormones.
As they carefully picked their way down the murky path, Jared decided it was a damn good thing the moon had chosen to bury itself behind the impenetrable clouds. He knew from long experience that Jake wouldn’t be able to keep from remarking on Jared’s obviously aroused state. As it was, his brother’s occasional snicker confirmed that the random slivers of moonlight strafing the path were more than adequate to publicly reveal Jared’s prominent reaction to the little blonde rookie who’d turned his night and potentially his life upside down.
Chapter 2
Jared waited while Solly raised the cargo door of the police van then rested Hailey’s backside on the edge of the loading deck. Keeping her injured leg extended in front of her he carefully slid her into the back of the van. Scrambling up beside her he grabbed a stored tarp and wrapped it around her legs and hips. Elevating her injured foot on a weapons kit, he folded a smaller tarp into a makeshift pillow and tucked it behind her head.
Grunting softly, he stroked her cheek. “That should keep you warm and as comfortable as I can make you until they get you into some dry clothes. And shove a few dozen ibuprofens down your throat.” He slid out of the van and met her questioning gaze. Flicking his fingers in a careless salute he said with an impudent grin, “Catch you later, Valley Girl.”
He added with a mock frown as he prepared to close the cargo door, “And stay out of trouble, little rookie, you hear?”
Hailey leaned against the backseat of the van and listened to the men’s voices through the open window, struggling to come to grips with her impossible situation. Except for the agonizing pain in her ankle she wouldn’t have believed the events of the last three hours were real. How could she? They were truly unbelievable as well as inconceivably embarrassing. To recap, on her first mission with the Duluth PD she’d managed to: lose her squad; blow the cover of her commander’s undercover agent; possibly irreparably destroying the overall mission; be assaulted by said agent who happened to be her commander’s brother; and not incidentally—to respond to said undercover agent’s sexual advances. It was that last component that had Hailey squirming with mortification and praying that the vivid memories tormenting her were her amped up brain’s idea of a hideous joke.
Unfortunately the sound of Jared’s deep voice and earthy chuckle confirmed that her humiliation was real. No, there was nothing imaginary about the tall, dark-haired man standing scant feet away. Saved by the barrier of the van between them, Hailey allowed herself to remember her assaulter grinning at her before he shut the cargo door. God, was it possible that he truly was that gorgeous? Ruggedly handsome didn’t begin to describe him. She slammed her eyes shut trying to erase the image of the powerful man—but there was no way her sex-sodden brain would allow her to dismiss the brilliant picture ravaging her psyche.
She shouldn’t have been surprised that he was beyond gorgeous. Look at his brother for God’s sake. All of the women at the DPD, from the hardened female homicide detectives to the starry eyed interns in accounting, lusted after Lt. Jake Justice, their commander. How could they not? The top cop in the biggest police department in Minnesota, except for the ones in the Twin Cities, was every woman’s fantasy he-man. If that fantasy happened to include a muscular, six foot plus frame, black curly hair, slate gray eyes and a 1,000 watt smile. Hailey admitted that she hadn’t been immune to her commander’s many charms. But given Lt. Justice’s professional bearing and the respectful distance he maintained between himself and his admiring flock of breathless females, Hailey kept her fantasies where they belonged—in her imagination.
But not even in her imagination, active as it was, could Hailey have conceived of the fantasy come to life—in the form of the commander’s “baby” brother, Agent Jared Justice. Nope, the outrageous man who had spent at least ten minutes assaulting her in the most insulting yet tantalizing ways imaginable was the equivalent of his older brother, only more so. He was as tall as the Lieutenant and definitely as muscular, and he shared his brother’s drop dead good looks. But, Agent Justice went one better. In short, the devilishly handsome, emerald-eyed charmer was every woman’s wicked dream and her mother’s worst nightmare, the bad-boy come to life.
It wasn’t until Jared had put his hands on her shoulders and forced her to look at him, insisting that she tell him where she was hurt, that Hailey had done more than glance at the man. How could she given that most of their short acquaintance took place with her lying on the ground with the powerful man stretched out on top of her? Until he insisted she look at him the most that Hailey knew was that the scary stranger was exceedingly strong, had a compelling voice, wickedly roving hands, and without a doubt, an erection the likes of which she had never felt. And that in their brief encounter he’d aroused her more than she’d ever been aroused in her life.
Even now the memory of what he had done and said to her and the way that she had responded to him, shocked and exhilarated her. Feeling her cheeks heat and her stomach clench she acknowledged that the worst part was that he’d known how she’d responded to his sexy overtures. How could he not, considering that she hadn’t been able to keep from moaning! Good God, it was bad enough that she’d never be able to look him in the eyes again without blushing. She could only hope that he hadn’t known that his advances had made her nipples harden and her panties wet. But given where he’d put his fingers.…
Hailey had been so caught up in her machinations that she wasn’t aware that the van had left what she was now calling the ‘scene of the crime’ and arrived at their destination. To her surprise and relief, it was Sgt. Solberg, accompanied by her boss, Lt. Justice, who opened the cargo door. Peering into the streetlight lit night Hailey saw that they had parked in front of the Justice family home. When she first arrived in Duluth, a pleasant woman from the HR department had given her the newcomer’s city tour. Betty Zigmanski insisted that one of the “must see” attractions in the charming city located on the shores of Lake Superior, one of the five Great Lakes, was the historic mansion on the hill, known simply as the Justice Mansion.
“We decided that it was best to bring you here, Hailey, rather than to the station. We need to debrief Agent Justice and now that you know his identity, you need to be in that briefing.”
From the frown on Lt. Justice’s face and his curt tone, Hailey knew that her escapade had not done her any favors in her commander’s eyes. Rather his unusually somber expression and tense body language confirmed that she had gone down in his estimation, likely irreparably. When she started to haul herself out of the van, Lt. Justice put up his hand and stopped her. Ignoring her insistence that she could walk, Lt. Justice nodded to Sgt. Solberg.
“Take her upstairs, Solly, to the lounge. I called ahead and instructed Margarite to dig up some dry clothes for her. When she’s changed, bring her back down to the library.”
“Copy that, Lieutenant.”
The big man scooped her up in his arms and headed toward the extraordinary house at the end of the cobblestone path. Once inside, Solly trotted up a winding staircase. From her helpless perch in Solly’s enveloping grip, Hailey forced herself to pay attention to the remarkable architecture of the famous turn-of-the-century Queen Anne mansion. Awed by the impressive art and architectural features, Hailey forgot for a brief moment why she was here and allowed herself to marvel at the historic masterpiece.
Sgt. Solberg entered what looked like a large sitting room, then walked across the carpeted expanse to a door that opened to a bathroom. Once inside the surprisingly modern bathroom, Hailey saw a stack of clothes on the c
ounter. Solly carefully stood her on her feet and pointed to the clothes.
“How about it, Officer, you think you can get out of those wet duds into these dry ones? Although from the looks of ’em they will be at least five sizes too big.”
The embarrassed expression on his flushed face as he looked her up and down, confirmed that the last thing he wanted to do was to help her undress.
Hailey managed a short laugh. “Don’t worry, Solly. I’m glad to get out of these clothes and I definitely can dress myself.”
After he assured her that he would be right outside the door, Hailey desperately eyed the toilet across the marble floor. Clinging to the edge of the counter she gingerly made her way to the commode. When she reached it she shoved her damp trousers to her knees and gratefully sunk onto the toilet seat. After she relieved herself she began the arduous task of getting rid of the rest of her wet clothes. Grateful for the stack of fluffy towels on the edge of the sink, Hailey dried her shaking body. She didn’t have to look in the mirror to know that her chilled body was covered with goose bumps, but she wasn’t prepared for how pale she was. Staring at her stark white reflection marred by ugly scrapes and bruises, it was no wonder Solly thought she couldn’t dress herself. Good God she looked like a survivor of a desperate mission gone bad, which considering what had happened tonight, she was.
In a crazy way it helped that the sweat shirt and sweat pants some kind person had laid out for her were at least five sizes too big. She managed to get the pants over her swollen ankle and finished dressing. Shrugging at her reflection, she acknowledged that only a hot bath and a soft bed would begin to relieve the tension that was rampant on her pale face. Hopping carefully to the door she called out to let Solly know she was ready. In seconds he was at the door reaching for her. When she wasn’t able to stifle her pained cry when he scooped her up in his arms, he was aghast.
