Best Served Cold

by Rebecca Deel

  “Can you walk or do you need one of us to carry you?”

  She glared at Nate’s teammate. “I’m not an invalid, Kincaid.”

  The medic chuckled. “You’re as pleasant a patient as Nate. Come on. Ibuprofen and a soft drink will ease the aches.” He walked her up the porch stairs and steered her to the couch. “How are the ribs? Nate said you might have cracked a few.”

  “No fractures showed on the x-rays. Hurts to breathe, though.”

  “Ice packs for the pretty lady.” He eased her to the cushion and left.

  Nate and Quinn Gallagher muscled through the door with Nate’s gear, followed by Deke carrying his own bag and one he’d packed for Stella. The only people missing from this party were Josh, Alex, and their wives. She wondered how soon they would arrive. Knowing her friends, not long.

  Stella leaned her head against the couch. Rio returned with a Coke in one hand and medicine in the other. “Down the hatch, sugar. I’ll assemble two ice packs.”

  She sipped the drink. The cold liquid soothed her bruised throat. Seeing herself in the bathroom mirror at the hospital had been a shock. She resembled a battle survivor.

  “Here you go.” Rio gave her a large ice pack wrapped in a towel. “Ribs.” Once she’d settled the pack against her side, he handed her the smaller bag of ice. “Did you lose a tooth from the punch to the jaw?”

  “Loosened a molar.”

  He grunted. “Should be fine in a day or two.” With a gentle touch, Rio turned her head to examine her face. He whistled. “You’ll be colorful for a while.”

  “Tell me about it. I don’t have enough makeup to cover this.” Not to mention the painful prospect of removing the makeup. She prayed Nate meant it when he said he always thought her beautiful. Talk about a challenge to her confidence.

  Rio patted the hand holding the small ice pack. “Put the bag where it will do you good. Fifteen minutes. We’ll keep icing the bruises to reduce the swelling. Sleep when you need to, Stella. We need you on your feet fast, if for no other reason than to keep Nate in line.”

  “I heard that,” Nate groused as he strode into the living room and sat beside Stella.

  “You were meant to, demolition man. You can’t go lone wolf to bring down the man who hurt our lady marshal.”

  He stiffened. “You don’t think I can handle it?”

  Rio scowled. “Did I say that? Our focus is Stella. The creep who hurt her will keep. If he disappears, we’ll find him. He won’t get away with this. If you’re finished posturing, help your girlfriend keep the ice on her face.” The medic stalked off toward the kitchen.

  Nate sighed. “Guess I stuck my foot in my mouth.”

  “I didn’t know Rio had a temper.”

  Her boyfriend smiled as he took over holding the ice. “You haven’t seen him on the battlefield, baby. I wouldn’t want to be in his crosshairs. Our medic is lethal.”

  She blinked, not realizing the mild-mannered medic was that fierce. Maybe she should have. After all, he worked with an elite Delta unit in combat and now was part of Fortress Security, a group which rescued hostages and tracked terrorists. No one soft survived that life. The medic had hidden depths.

  “Ice feel good?”

  “Now that my face and ribs are numb. Rio gave me over-the-counter pain pills, too. I might feel decent soon.”

  “Hungry?”

  “Getting there.”

  “Can you lay on the couch? It will be easier for you to hold the ice in place while I work on dinner.”

  “Nothing hard to chew, Nate.”

  He stilled, his gaze shifting to her jaw. “How bad is the soreness?”

  “Pretty bad,” she admitted. “One of my molars is loose.”

  Nate scowled. Despite his fierce expression, his touch remained gentle. “No problem, sweetheart.” He leaned in and kissed her. “I’ll come for you when dinner is ready.”

  When he started to rise, Stella captured his face between her palms and reacquainted herself with his kisses. He was holding back, afraid to hurt her. Though necessary, it frustrated her. They spent so little time together and with her injuries, Nate had to treat her like spun glass. When would they have time for themselves? Between his career and hers, the minutes were so few.

  Nate eased away from her, his eyes glittering. “We’ll come back to that soon, baby.”

  Her lips curved. Chef Nate was very skilled at kissing. She slowly reclined on the couch and shifted the ice into position. Eyes closed, she thought through the attack again. What was it about this guy that was so familiar? She didn’t remember a scent aside from fabric softener, so no cologne to pinpoint. The words were spoken in a rough whisper that prevented her from recognizing his voice.

  Maybe it was the way his body moved. Controlled. Skilled. Trained. Law enforcement. Military, maybe. Didn’t help much, considering she knew many cops and military or former military personnel. She thought about the military angle. This guy didn’t move with Nate’s economy of motion. Then again, her boyfriend was among the best trained Special Forces operatives in the world. Were his movements a product of specialized training?

  With a minimum of moans, Stella dug her phone from her pocket and texted Cal. If she had to guess, she’d say the perp was law enforcement or had been at one time. And didn’t that make her feel good. One of her fellow cops might have turned on her.

  Cal sent a return message. A neighbor reported a dark-colored car peeling out of the parking lot around the time of her assault and the MNPD was searching for surveillance cameras in the area, hoping to see a license plate.

  “How are you, Stel?” Deke crouched beside the sofa. “Do you need anything?”

  “Rio plied me with meds, Coke, and ice packs. I’m not feeling much of anything at the moment. I’ve been thinking about the attack, Deke. I think he’s a cop.”

  Her partner’s face hardened. “You sure?”

  “He’s trained. I thought he might be military, but he doesn’t move like Nate or the rest of Durango.”

  Deke smiled. “No one moves like them, Stel.”

  “I think he is or was in law enforcement. He countered every defensive move like he knew exactly what I was going to do.”

  “That doesn’t make me happy.”

  “Me, either. I think somebody carrying a badge tried to kill me.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Nate stirred a huge pot of creamy chicken soup. The carrots and celery swirled around the egg noodles in a kaleidoscope of color. Small chunks of chicken rolled in the bubbling, fragrant liquid.

  He opened the oven door and checked on his rolls. The scent of yeast bread emanated from the oven. Perfect. Lightly browned on top. He grabbed a potholder and removed the baking sheet from the heat. With a few practiced moves, he transferred the bread to the waiting basket and covered it.

  He strode into the living room to see Deke on the floor, speaking in low tones with Stella.

  The marshal smiled. “Please tell me dinner’s ready. You’re killing us with all those great smells.”

  Nate chuckled. “It’s ready.” He helped Stella to her feet. “Want to eat in here or the kitchen, sweetheart?”

  “Breakfast bar. What smells so good?”

  “Chicken soup and rolls. I have green tea ready for you as well.”

  “That’s it. I’m keeping you, Nate Armstrong.”

  He dropped a light kiss on her mouth. “Baby, if I’d known that was all it took to win your heart, I’d have fed you three meals a day for the last two months.”

  “Sweet talker.”

  Nope, just gut-wrenchingly honest. He was crazy about Stella Grayson. “Come on. I have dessert waiting.”

  “Oh, Nate. You’re spoiling me.”

  “I’m taking care of you.” Something he planned to do for the foreseeable future. Bone-deep satisfaction accompanied everything he did for his lady.

  Once she settled on a barstool, he called Quinn and Rio. He filled Stella’s bowl, placed it on a plate along with a roll. />
  At Stella’s first bite, she sighed. “Nate, this is wonderful.”

  He smiled. Oh, yeah. Feeding Stella was a permanent priority. After filling her glass with ice, he poured green tea laced with jasmine and orange and slid the drink across the counter.

  She sipped. “Perfect.”

  “Hey,” Quinn said. “You better have something besides green tea for the rest of us. Green tea is not a manly drink.”

  Nate snorted. “Your legs aren’t broken. Juice, water, soft drinks, and sports drinks are in the refrigerator.”

  “Why does she get the special treatment?”

  “She’s prettier than you. Deal with it.”

  Though Quinn glared at Nate, he turned and winked at Stella. “You’ll take pity on me, won’t you, Stella?”

  “Not today, buddy. Try me tomorrow.”

  With a mock devastated sigh, he trudged across the kitchen and grabbed drinks for himself, Rio and Deke. “You can pour your own, bomb boy.”

  Nate dished dinner for the rest of them and sat beside Stella at the breakfast bar. Pleased to see she’d eaten more than half, he dug into his own meal. His teammates and Deke needed a heartier meal tomorrow. Roast with potatoes and fresh green beans sounded great.

  Once Stella finished her meal, he brought her chocolate mousse.

  “I hope there’s enough for the rest of us,” Rio said. “Otherwise, we might swipe Stella’s when your back is turned.”

  “In the refrigerator.”

  “Good grief,” Deke said after a bite of the mousse. “Does Nate cook like this for you all the time?”

  “Pretty much,” Quinn answered. “He feeds our bodyguard trainees at Personal Security International. We spend twelve hours a day with them, so we eat at least two meals a day, sometimes more, depending on the training routine.”

  “It’s amazing you’re as thin as you are,” the marshal muttered.

  “We train with the bodyguards,” Rio said. “We also train by ourselves for Fortress ops. We burn everything Nate feeds us and more.”

  Stella nudged Deke. “You should ask Nate to give your wife pointers in the kitchen.”

  “Unfortunately, that would require too much time and patience.”

  When Stella finished the last bite of mousse, she pushed the dessert cup away. “That was fabulous.”

  “Nate,” Rio said. “It’s pleasant outside. Stella might enjoy spending time on the porch. We’ll clean the kitchen.”

  “Would you like to sit outside for a while, sweetheart?”

  She nodded, her cheeks flushed.

  “I’ll bring a pillow to cushion your back.” Nate signaled Quinn to accompany Stella to the porch while he grabbed a pillow and a light blanket he’d noticed as he dropped off his Go bag in his room.

  “We’ll talk about Nate’s more infamous adventures.” The spotter helped Stella off the stool and walked outside with her.

  Nate clapped Rio on the shoulder. “Thanks for doing KP.”

  “No problem. She needs time with you, Nate. Got a feeling the attack shook her confidence.”

  “She’ll bounce back,” Deke said. “Nothing brings Stella down for long.”

  One of the many things Nate admired about her. Yeah, it took her a while to process events, but once she did, she moved forward. She was one of the strongest people he knew.

  He took the stairs two at a time, seized his pillow and the throw at the foot of his bed. Outside, Quinn leaned against the railing as he shared one of Nate’s more ridiculous exploits on one of their ops. So he’d screamed like a girl. That boar was huge and angry. Stella’s grin made his embarrassment worthwhile. He’d hated the devastation in her eyes over the death of her boss and the shock of being defeated in her own home.

  Quinn stood. “If you want more of Nate’s deep, dark secrets, let me know, Stella. I have more stories like that one to share.”

  “Way to stand up for me, bro,” Nate muttered as he passed.

  “Just doing my duty.”

  Stella waited in front of the porch swing. “A blanket, too. You’ll spoil me.”

  “That’s the plan.” He positioned the pillow against the swing’s back and draped the throw over one of the arm rests. “Nice and easy, sweetheart.” Once she leaned against the pillow, he grabbed the throw and laid it across her legs. Sitting beside her, Nate settled his arm across her shoulders.

  “This is nice,” she murmured, resting her head against his shoulder. “I could get used to this.”

  Nate pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “Me, too.”

  They sat in silence for a few minutes, a cool breeze ruffling Stella’s hair, the swing moving back and forth with gentle motions as Nate stroked her arm. He wished they lived closer to each other. He loved spending time with her. The ever present tension always disappeared when he was with her. Doing the simplest things with her made him happy.

  “Nate?”

  “Hmm.”

  “I’ve been going over the attack in my mind.”

  He paused mid-stroke. “And?”

  “You and the rest of Durango move a certain way. You kind of glide, an economy of motion. Is that typical of military personnel?”

  “For Special Forces.”

  “So it’s not standard training.”

  “No.”

  She sighed. “I was afraid of that.”

  Nate’s hand fisted. “Your attacker was military trained?” If this man had been in black ops, Stella was lucky to be alive.

  “I think he is or was law enforcement trained.”

  “A cop.” Raw fury knotted his gut. Someone who’d sworn to uphold the law had turned on her?

  “He knew and countered my defensive moves, but he didn’t move like Durango.”

  The betrayal from one of her own must be devastating. Alex, Durango’s sniper, had been betrayed by someone he loved a few weeks earlier and pain still haunted his gaze in quiet moments. “I’m sorry, baby.”

  “So am I,” she whispered. “At least we have a place to start.”

  “We’ll find him.”

  “May I borrow your computer?”

  “Tomorrow, okay? I can tell your head still hurts. You’ll think more clearly in the morning. This guy’s not going anywhere.”

  “We have to find him before the trail goes cold.”

  “If you push now, you’ll slow your recovery. A few more hours won’t make any difference to the hunt, but it will to your health.”

  She sighed. “Do you have to be so logical?”

  “I can squeeze out a few tears if it will make you feel better.”

  Stella laughed, then groaned, holding her hand against her ribs. “Stop that, you wretch. It hurts to laugh.”

  “Sorry. Did anything else seem familiar about the attacker?”

  “Not so far. I keep thinking about what he said to me. I work cases all the time, some witness protection, some protection details for judges. There are any number of avenues this investigation could take.”

  “You’ve been working on a special assignment.”

  She lifted her head from his shoulder. “How did you know?”

  “I caught the hesitation in one of your answers to Taylor’s questions while you were at the hospital. Was Deke working the assignment with you?”

  “I didn’t think we had spent enough time together for you to know me that well. To answer your question, yes, we were working a special assignment together. What made you suspect he was part of it?”

  “Your worry for his family.”

  “I don’t want anything to happen to Deke’s wife or twin daughters. It’s bad enough we lost Ty. But Deke and I have been together for years.”

  “His family is safe, sweetheart.”

  “How do we know? If the man who killed Ty is a cop, he’ll have access to information on me and Deke.” Her eyes widened. “Oh, Nate. You are as much a target as Deke’s family. You should go back to Otter Creek. You’re in danger.”

  He cupped her chin in his hand, his
touch gentle. “Baby, I’m not leaving you. Every time I go on an op, I’m in more danger than I am from a rogue cop.”

  “I couldn’t handle losing you, too.” Her voice sounded choked.

  “You won’t.”

  “You can’t guarantee that.”

  “Stella, I could get hit by a car crossing the street even in a sleepy town like Otter Creek. Life doesn’t come with guarantees. All we can do is our best. Besides, I couldn’t handle losing you, either. So I guess we’re even in that department. Our career choices aren’t the safest. We do our best to prepare and deal with whatever comes. We’ll watch each other’s backs on this hunt.”

  “Do you know how special you are, Nate Armstrong?”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Other men I dated couldn’t handle my career demands long term and dumped me.”

  He scowled. “I don’t want to hear about any of the men you dated.”

  “You have nothing to worry about.”

  “I’m not worried, sweetheart. Those relationships are in your past. There’s only me now.” And if he had anything to do with it, there would always be just him. He was not letting Stella slip through his fingers without a fight.

  Nate leaned down and took her mouth in a series of long, soft kisses, reminding himself to keep it light because of her injuries. Time enough later for more intense kisses. He eased away, smiled at the dazed look in her eyes. “Are you ready to go inside?”

  “Not yet. Do you mind?”

  “I’ll take more minutes with you anytime.”

  “A little longer, then.” Stella leaned against him, her face pressed against his neck.

  Nate resumed his soft strokes down her arm. The woman in his arms sighed in contentment. Before too many minutes passed, her breathing evened out and her body went limp. A smile curved his mouth. For a woman who insisted she wasn’t exhausted, she’d fallen asleep fast.

  He glanced at his watch, decided to give her and himself another few minutes before he took her inside. Their time together was never long enough. While he maintained the swing’s motion, Nate considered what she’d told him. His girl had been working a special assignment, one she’d yet to tell him about. He could tap the computer techs at Fortress to uncover her investigation, but he wanted her to trust him enough to tell him. When Stella snuggled closer to his side, Nate curled his other arm around her waist, his touch light.