BarelyBreathing

by Lacey Thorn

  “Yes.”

  “I love you, honey.”

  “I love you too, Daddy.”

  Her dad disconnected and music once more blared. She wasn’t really listening though. She drove on autopilot, her mind sorting through and classifying information. Was she doing the right thing by keeping her dad out of it? He would eventually find out. He’d be pissed for sure that she’d gone elsewhere for help. But she’d deal with it later—if she was still alive to worry about it.

  She would be Vince’s target now. Her exodus would concern him. He’d follow her. She’d left a note for him saying she’d been called away. Hopefully, it would be enough to make him believe she was still stupid to his intentions. She had no doubt he’d be coming after her though. She was too important of a tool for him to lose. She probably had seventy-two hours at most. He’d managed to get inside her computer. Hers. So she knew he could find out where she went.

  She prayed it was enough time to convince Stace and the group she worked for to help her out. Seventy-two hours was plenty of time to lay a trap for the bastard. He wanted to make her dad suffer. She wouldn’t help him. She had done the right thing. He probably expected her to call her dad. Christ, maybe he had planned for her to overhear the conversation hoping she’d do just that.

  Not this time. This time she prayed she’d be pulling Jack Madigan and his group in instead. From her files, he was almost as hard core as her old man. Almost. As far as she was concerned, no one matched her dad.

  Her dad might be concerned she was walking into the lion’s den, but she needed a den of lions. She had a wolf on her tail and wasn’t sure how many others he had with him. She really hoped the lions were willing to help and hungry as hell.

  Chapter Two

  An engagement party. Stace was at a fucking engagement party.

  Shit. Honor hated dressing up. She’d had just enough time to grab a hotel room and change clothes before heading to the party for Ally Samms and Blake Summers. Not exactly how she wanted to meet the people she’d put files together on, but what choice did she have? None. Nada. Zilch. Zero. There wasn’t time to wait for the festivities to be over. Who knew how long before the crazy bastard came after her?

  Honor was banking on his cockiness to buy her some time before he even found the note. Why would she leave when she had a hunk like Vince Towner chasing her? Ego. Men seemed to have it to spare. She laughed. He’d probably choke on his own tongue if he saw her now anyways.

  She cleaned up well. She just didn’t do it often. She really wasn’t a dress-and-heels kind of girl. Her height didn’t need heels but, fuck it, what was the good of dressing up if you didn’t have the shoes? And when would she be around a group of guys again who were tall enough for her to wear stilettos and not be the tallest person in the room?

  She stepped from the Jeep and took a deep breath, then shook her hands out in hopes of diffusing some of the nerves. She pushed the number pad on her door to put her alarm code in then waited for the lights to flash. Call her paranoid but this car was her baby. And at the moment it held her entire life.

  Please don’t let me fall! She repeated the words all the way across the lot to the door. No one stood outside. She couldn’t believe they wouldn’t have security. Not these guys. It was in the blood. No matter the place. Someone somewhere was watching and she had little doubt her arrival had already been reported.

  Honor felt the hair on the back of her neck rise and turned. She was startled for a moment, not expecting to see him. He’d quit several years ago. Out of all the guys who worked for her dad, he’d always been one of her favorites. It had broken her heart when he’d walked away but she’d understood. He was proof that shit got real in actual combat. And people died. Him being here could only mean one thing. Guess she should have known better. No one ever really left Daddy.

  “Well, well, well. Do my eyes deceive me, or is it really Honor Davison under all this glamour? Damn girl! No wonder your daddy keeps you hidden away.”

  “Tyler Andrews. I would say it was a pleasure to see you again, but we both know I’ve never been great at lying.”

  Tyler laughed and pulled her in for a hard hug. Honor felt her eyes get a little wet and blinked rapidly to keep the tears from spilling. It was so good to see him. What was he doing here? It clicked in her head and she pulled back.

  “Fuck. You know the Viking, don’t you? Rangers together? Is this where you’ve been? Are you working with Midnight now?”

  “Going over my file in your head?”

  She just glared at him, arms crossed over her chest.

  “First question. I’m assuming the ‘Viking’ is Shep. He’ll get a kick out of the title. I can’t wait to see his face when I tell him.” Tyler laughed and nodded. “We spent some time together in the Rangers. I’ve been in Legacy for a few years now. Turning over a new leaf, so to speak.” He seemed to find his comment exceptionally funny and she tried to calmly wait for his laughter to die down. “I don’t work for Midnight but I did make a point of introducing myself to Jack Madigan when I arrived in town. He offered. I declined.”

  “Did Daddy tell you I was going to be here?”

  “He worries about you. Plus I was here and invited to this party. He knows something’s up, something big. He’s going to dig until he finds out. When he said you’d be going for Stace as soon as you arrived, I figured you’d plan to come here.”

  “So are you my bodyguard or do I need to keep my eyes open for one of the other guys to pop up?”

  “We both know you’ll keep those gorgeous eyes open no matter what I say.”

  She snorted. “I’ve missed your flattery.”

  He grinned. “You’ve missed everything about me and you know it.”

  Honor snorted again. He was right. He was one of the few guys who would and did stand up to her dad. That thought reminded her she didn’t want her dad involved in this. “When you call him back tell him I’m fine. He won’t believe me. Now you can verify you’ve seen me with your own eyes and I’m gorgeous as ever.” She fluttered her eyes at him, playing on his earlier comment.

  He opened his mouth and she immediately shook her head and placed a finger on his lips. “Don’t ask me.”

  “Why not?”

  “I don’t want to lie to a friend.”

  “Are you planning to ask Midnight for help?”

  She nodded. He held her gaze for a long moment and she knew he was deciding if he should call her dad or not. Finally he shrugged his shoulders at her. “If you need anything, you come to me right away. Understood?”

  She smiled. “I will. I’ve missed hearing your voice on the phone. It’s been way too long. How are you?”

  “I’m good, kid.” But his eyes were shadowed and she didn’t believe him. She might have to stick around longer than she planned. Why hadn’t Daddy told her Tyler was here? He had obviously known since Tyler was here checking on her. Daddy wouldn’t let anyone walk away without keeping tabs.

  “So, feel like being my date for the night?”

  “Wow. Are the women here smart enough to see through your playboy smile?”

  “Shhh. They think I’m a nice, respectable guy here.”

  She snickered. “Good lord! You have them snowed.”

  Tyler laughed. “Come on. I promise to do my best to keep you from tripping and going headfirst into the floor.” He trailed his eyes down to her feet and then back up. “Stilettos? What were you thinking?”

  “I like the fucking shoes?”

  “And you might want to tone the language down a bit. Pretend to be a lady.”

  “Fuck you.”

  Tyler laughed. “I’ve missed you, kid.”

  Honor shook her head. She’d missed him too. She had a million questions. But she had other shit to deal with first.

  Tyler held his arm out to her and with a deep breath she took it, wrapping her arm under his and placing her fingers lightly above his elbow. She’d play nice, be social and have him introduce her formally to a few
people. Then take Stace aside somewhere and let her know what the hell was going on. Once they were alone, she’d beg for help. If Stace was on her side then perhaps they could get Midnight to help too.

  “Ready?” Tyler whispered the words close to her ear.

  She nodded. She was as ready as she’d ever be.

  * * * * *

  Griff did his best to seem interested in what the woman was saying to him but if she asked him anything he was screwed. He felt edgy tonight and not in the mood to be at this event. Could have something to do with showing up solo again, when it seemed everyone else was pairing off. Or, more likely, the fact that his mother was here with Roman.

  She stood across the room from Griff, talking to his sister Katie and her husband Ben. Roman was there beside Griff’s mom, his hand on the small of her back. Griff felt his jaw clench and had to look away. He wasn’t sure why he was the one unable to accept his mom’s relationship. Roman was a good guy, a decent guy, and anyone could tell the man worshipped Catherine Daniels.

  He watched out of the corner of his eye as Roman bent to kiss her. Almost immediately, his jaw was back to clenching again. Every time he saw them together he thought of his dad and how he should be the one with her. Griff remembered his promise to watch over his mother, the one he’d given his dad just before his dad died. His mom thought Griff was mad at her and maybe he had been at first. Mostly because he’d never thought of her with another man. Never really thought of her as anything other than his mother. He was trying to be okay with it. It just hurt, as if he’d betrayed the trust his dad had put in him. Stupid, he knew, but still how it felt.

  He nodded his head at the woman still talking and let his gaze scan the room. All his friends and family in one place. Everyone smiling and laughing. It was good to see. His gaze snagged on Shep’s pal Tyler Andrews as he walked in with a freaking supermodel on his arm. She was gorgeous. Tall. Had to be over six feet as she was level with Tyler and Griff knew he was a good six-feet-three-inches.

  Then there was her mane of hair. It was like liquid sand, or with all the shades of blonde and light brown maybe more like a tawny lion’s mane. It fell in waves down her back and some spilled over her shoulder. She was toned and tanned, definitely a woman who worked out. He could see the sleek muscles from where he stood. You didn’t get those without work.

  He nodded again as the woman’s chatter ceased.

  “You will!” The woman’s squeal brought his focus back to her. “Thanks so much. I’ll let them know you’ll come in and help out.”

  She scampered off and Chetan snickered behind him.

  “Tell me I didn’t just agree to something I’m going to regret.”

  “Depends on what you find regrettable,” Chetan answered in typical Chetan fashion.

  “Just tell me, please.”

  “You’ll be donating some time at the boys’ club, mentoring.”

  “Oh, I can handle that.”

  “There. No regrets needed then.”

  “I saw Tyler Andrews arrived a few minutes ago.”

  Chetan nodded but his smirk let Griff know he’d been caught staring.

  “Do you know who his date is?”

  “Trouble,” Chetan murmured. “With a capital T.”

  “You know her?”

  “Enough.”

  “What the hell does that mean?”

  Chetan just looked at him and shook his head. “It means look all you want but don’t even think about touching. Your golden tongue won‘t work on her and you don’t want to take on the baggage she brings with her.” With that cryptic advice, Chetan walked off.

  Griff stood where he was and watched Tyler move the woman around the room, stopping here and there to chat with others for a minute.

  Movement caught his eyes and he saw Jack break away from a group and head straight toward the couple. He didn’t look happy. This could be really interesting. Griff headed that direction as well. He timed it so he was just behind the couple when Jack stopped in front of them. He angled himself so he could see her face. Damn, she was gorgeous.

  “Miss Davison,” Jack addressed the woman with Tyler. “No computers to hack tonight? Decide to crash our little party?”

  “It is a lovely party.” She smiled and Griff felt it all the way to his groin. Was there anything that wasn’t sexy about the woman?

  Jack sighed. “Your dad called a bit ago. Told me you might be headed this way, planning to see Stace.”

  “She’s a close personal friend.”

  “He also said it would take a hell of a catastrophe to move your ass out of the cabin you call home.”

  “I do love my home.”

  Jack’s gaze narrowed on the woman and Griff knew Jack was losing his patience. It made him grin. “You’re not planning on bringing any trouble with you here tonight, are you?”

  “Definitely wasn’t on my agenda.” There was something in her voice though that gave the impression something was following her. Something that might appear tonight.

  “I’d hate to have you escorted from the building.” Griff knew Jack would if he felt as if his family would be put in danger. He worshipped his wife, his daughter Moira and his new granddaughter. He would move heaven and earth to keep them safe.

  “I’d hate to stop you.”

  “Now, now—” Tyler tried to speak but Jack interrupted him.

  “Your father warned me you could be a pain in the ass.”

  She didn’t look happy with his comment. “I’ll just find Stace then and get out of your hair.”

  “Honor.” Tyler shook his head. “I will call your dad.”

  “Don’t.” Her voice pleaded with Tyler. “I can’t have him involved in this one. Not this time.”

  Jack uttered a nasty word under his breath. “I had a bad feeling you were bringing trouble the moment your dad called me.”

  “I’m sure he felt he was doing the right thing. I apologize for him. He tends to be overprotective when it comes to me.” Griff could tell she was nervous. He had to restrain himself from stepping forward to offer his help in whatever situation she was in.

  “You want to keep him out of whatever mess you’ve gotten yourself into?” Jack seemed to be searching inside her skin with his penetrating gaze. “I can see fear hovering around you. But this isn’t the place to talk. You come see me in the morning.”

  Honor’s gaze narrowed. “Perhaps you should look again. I’ve never feared anything in my life.”

  “Hell. You’re definitely trouble. With a capital T.”

  Tyler snickered and Griff took note of how Jack’s words echoed Chetan’s. He’d have to ask Shep and see if he knew anything about her. Shep would be the one to tell what he knew.

  “You were in my system for over two minutes.”

  “Two minutes forty-five seconds.” She seemed awful proud of that fact. Griff remembered Roman and Chetan discussing a security breach. Roman had contained it and Jack had made a few phone calls and said everything was under control. She had been the one? Damn, he really wanted to know more about her now.

  “I just wanted to make sure Stace was safe.” She shrugged.

  Griff watched Jack stare at her. The woman didn’t back down an inch and she never dropped her gaze from Jack’s. He knew grown men who couldn’t do that.

  “You were told to leave Midnight, Inc. alone. I take offense to someone putting together files on me and my men. No matter whom they call family.”

  She glared. “So you’re the one who used the daddy card?”

  “Respect for your dad is the only reason you aren’t behind bars right now. Hacking into secure files is illegal and dangerous.”

  “No kidding.” Guilt with a mix of fear briefly flickered on her face and Jack voiced the question that surfaced in Griff’s mind.

  “Hell. Whose records have you been digging in now? Who did you play around with and piss off?”

  “Play around with? I don’t play around at what I do. I’m damn good as you saw firsthand.
”

  Jack turned to Tyler. “Did Zach ask you to keep an eye on her?”

  Tyler nodded and Honor sighed.

  “I can’t have my dad involved in this.” Honor’s gaze bounced back and forth between Tyler and Jack. “I’ll leave right now. Stace doesn’t even need to know I was here. Just leave my dad out of it. Please.” Uttering that one word seemed to cost her a lot. If Griff could see it, then he knew Jack would as well.

  “I can’t let you just leave.” Tyler shook his head at her. “I’m involved now whether you like it or not. If you run, I’ll have no choice but to call your dad.”

  “Fuck.” Her whispered word seemed to wrap around Griff. Yeah, that’s exactly what he’d like to do with her. Damn, he’d never had it this bad before. And definitely not this quickly.

  “You don’t need to leave. Let me make some excuses and we’ll head over to my office and chat. Tyler can come with us.”

  “No offense, but I’d rather Tyler not be involved.”

  “What?” Tyler didn’t look happy at all.

  “You walked away. Stay gone, Tyler.”

  Tyler looked at her for a long moment. “I won’t tell your dad if that’s what you’re afraid of.”

  Honor smiled at him and Griff felt a flash of jealousy when she cupped the other man’s face with her hands. “I can’t take the risk.”

  “Damn it, Honor.”

  “Just trust me. Please. If not me, then Mr. Madigan. I’m sure he’ll inform my dad if he feels the need to.”

  Tyler didn’t look happy but when Jack nodded in agreement there was little the other man could do. “I want your promise you’ll come to me if you need to.”

  Honor nodded and leaned up to kiss Tyler on the cheek. Was there something going on between the two of them? Were they involved? Griff sincerely hoped not.

  “I’m staying at a local hotel. Stace hasn’t seen me yet. I’ll just leave before she does. Enjoy your party, Mr. Madigan. I’ll come see you first thing in the morning.”

  “Is that safe?”

  “I should have a head start.”

  “How long?”

  “Two days. Three tops.”

  “No hotels. Too risky, too hard to guard.” Jack turned and speared Griff with his gaze. “Griff, stop hovering and get your ass up here. Honor, this is Griff Daniels. He works for me.”