by Mandy Harbin
“They were dating. Of course he has.”
“And now he’s vandalized her car,” he said evenly, not really asking. Hell, if the asshole had the nuts to take a bat to someone’s car, what was stopping him from doing the same to someone’s face? Like his sister’s. How the hell had she gotten in the middle of something like this? “Where are you?”
“Arkansas,” she said slowly. So she was over the state line, meaning she was already over halfway to Mayflower.
“Get your ass here. Now.”
She sighed. “We’re trying. We left a few hours ago. Should be there sometime after lunch.”
“Go to the house. I’ll be there.”
“Hunter—”
“No, Heather. We’ll talk when you and your friend get here. Go straight to the house. Nowhere else. I know how long the drive takes. I mean it. I’ll start driving in your direction if you’re not here by one.”
“Fine.” It almost sounded as if she called him a name as she hung up, but he was too focused on this new development to care about his sister’s petty behavior.
Someone had taken out a car she’d been in? The perp knew where she lived? How well did she know this man? And was she blowing this way out of proportion? Sometimes he didn’t know when it came to her and her dramatic personality.
He pocketed the phone and went back into the meeting room. The guys were talking about some Mustang restore, but quickly quieted and looked to him.
“My sister’s on her way. She might be in trouble,” he hedged.
He’d take care of her. He always would. But whoever this Maya chick was wasn’t his responsibility. She must’ve been an even bigger handful than Heather if she was bringing around this kind of trouble. But his sister was right to call him. She was aware he was capable of fixing things.
Heather knew a little about his other job. She wasn’t completely in the dark about his present life. His past? Yes, but not his current jobs. Which meant she sure as hell understood he had to keep that side of his life private. An unknown houseguest, no matter how short the duration, was unacceptable. If they were in real trouble, he’d help the girl get home, but that would be the extent of his generosity toward her. He had too much at stake.
“What do you need from us?” Bear asked, his stern expression matching the rest of the group. Men who’d grown to be brothers to him. Well, all except Roc. He was a prick.
“Don’t know. She’ll be here in a few hours. I’ll assess what’s going on and get back to you.”
“You do that,” Brody said, clenching his jaw. Hunter knew he was worried just as much about Hunter’s sister as he was any danger she could be bringing with her…and to Xan’s doorstep. Brody was overprotective of his little bunch. Rightly so.
“No worries.” But with his sister, nothing was ever easy. He just hoped this threat wasn’t as serious as she was making it out to be.
Maybe one day he’d finally be able to read her.
Today was not that day.
Chapter Three
“He was mad. I know he was,” Maya said again. She’d been saying it for the last two hours or so, ever since Heather had gotten off the phone with her brother.
Not that her friend had paid much attention to her musings.
“We should’ve had the police contact the dorm rather than leaving a message with the dean,” Maya tried again. “Lindsey would’ve understood the predicament and reassigned our rooms.” Surely she would have. But no, they had to jump in an old car and drive to another bruiser’s house. In another state. Just because Hunter was Heather’s brother didn’t mean he wasn’t a big badass with an attitude problem.
In another state.
Heather smirked and turned up the radio. Gah. Why was that chick so calm when she was about to sweat through her shirt? Literally. Like she needed a shower before she got close to anyone. But she couldn’t worry about hyperactive sweat glands when her thoughts were racing as fast as Heather was driving this car.
She squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to push the negative thoughts from her mind. When she opened them, she watched the green of the trees zip by. Maybe if she wasn’t so stressed out, she could enjoy the road trip. The state was covered in late spring growth, but Maya didn’t have the patience to enjoy anything visual, not when she was worried about meeting Heather’s brother.
And what Jake would do next.
And how her parents would react if they found out she hadn’t told them about her car.
And worried about getting lost on some back road.
In. Another. State.
The radio volume dropped. Maya looked at Heather questioningly. “He’s fine. I know my brother. His bark is worse than his bite.”
“I don’t like barking either.”
Heather rolled her eyes. “I mean, he’s harmless.” She coughed. “If he wants to be,” she said as she looked out the side window.
“What does that mean?” Maya screeched.
She shrugged and faced the road again. “I mean, yes, he’s big and strong. You know that. But, er, there’s something you should know about him.”
“What?”
“He’s in the military. Special ops kinda stuff. I-I haven’t said anything before because he’s not allowed to talk about it. I don’t ask questions. It seems to work. I just wanted you to know so you don’t pry into his business.”
“Oh my god. That information would’ve been useful when we were deciding to go to his house.”
Heather laughed. “No way. If I’d said something earlier, you wouldn’t have come.”
“No kidding. I’ve seen the Military Channel.” It took a special kind of man to even join the military. But those elite groups were apparently filled with an even more specific type—the type that didn’t take crap from anybody. And here she was on her way to his house?
“You watch too much T.V.”
“No, I don’t, and what about him being a mechanic? Did you lie about that to cover it up?” Maya asked, barely realizing she was fisting her hands together.
“No, no. He does work at a garage. But he gets called on missions when he’s needed.”
She felt the blood drain from her face as reality slowly clicked. He was really dangerous. Not some bad boy pretending to be tough. Heather’s brother was a dangerous man. She turned to stare blankly out the windshield.
“At least you know he’s not the type to trash your car,” Heather said softly.
“No,” she said tonelessly. “He’s the type to hide in a bush and slit a man’s throat in the still of the night.”
“Good lord, you do watch too much T.V.” Heather sighed. “He’s a good person. He helps people. That’s all you need to think about, okay?”
All she needed to think about? Nope, not even close.
Maya decided to keep her mouth shut for the last forty-five minutes of the drive. But her brain and her armpits never slowed. She wasn’t ready when they exited the highway, nor when they turned down a narrow road. After another few minutes, Heather maneuvered the car onto a dirt path, a death knell echoing in her mind as they drew closer to the only house in sight.
“We’re here,” Heather unnecessarily announced as she killed the engine.
A shiny motorcycle and a dirty old truck sat under a detached carport. Typical male.
Typical bad boy male.
Her palms began to sweat too. Wasn’t bad enough she was too scared to take off her light sweater in fear of finding sweat stains that’d put a linebacker to shame. She had to show nerves in other bodily places now. Great.
“C’mon.” Heather patted her arm before easing out of the car. Maya didn’t have any choice but to follow her. After grabbing their bags from the truck, they made their way up the porch, but she couldn’t look. She watched her feet as they trekked the last stretch of their trip, knowing there was no turning back.
Maybe this won’t be so bad, she thought frantically as Heather opened the door and went in ahead of her. It wasn’t as if they were staying
for a long time. Just a few days at most. He probably wouldn’t even be here most of the time.
She wasn’t sure if she believed the impromptu pep talk, but she’d clench the straw she’d grasped and not let go.
“Now what the hell’s going on?” a deep voice boomed, and any shred of hope was completely dashed. Crap.
“Good to see you, too, bubba.”
Maya watched as Heather dropped her bag. She gently placed hers on the floor beside Heather’s purple-glittered one.
“Don’t bat your eyes at me, Heather. I’m not Dad.”
“Oh my god, you finally cut your hair. Quit being such a bear and hug me.” Heather moved and Maya mustered the strength to look up.
The air in the room disappeared, sucked away from one look at Hunter Anderson.
Oh, she’d seen photos of him, so she knew he was good-looking, but those images didn’t do him justice. He wasn’t just sexy. The man was downright stunning.
And he was staring right at her.
She wanted to glance away, but she was trapped, held captive by his puppy-dog brown eyes that seemed to contradict his hard body.
“I want to know everything,” he said, and oh my god, that voice…so deep. When he’d spoken, he’d not looked away from her. Was he talking to her or his sister? And why was he not moving? He just stood there while Heather squeezed him into an embrace.
Should she respond? She opened her mouth, not sure what to say, but in that moment, he seemed to unfreeze, wrapping his arms around his sister and hugging her back.
Holy wheat crackers, his arms were freaking huge. They flexed then, riveting her, and any saliva left in Maya’s mouth vanished. She wasn’t sure if it was because she was freaking out by the size or impressed by it. Neither was acceptable. She swallowed a few times to moisten her mouth, but wasn’t having much luck. Her tongue was sandpaper. She’d probably sweated out all of her body’s liquid reserves on the trip here. If she didn’t get a drink soon, she probably wouldn’t be able to speak, which wouldn’t surprise her in the least considering everything she’d been through. Plus, she needed to get a breather away from this man’s penetrating gaze. Which was horrible in and of itself since she’d only been in the same room with him for a matter of seconds. But she needed a minute to herself like right now.
“Er, I need to pee?” What? Why had she said that? Was she bouncing now for the full effect? What was wrong with her? She should’ve asked where the kitchen was so she could get a drink like she really needed. She couldn’t pee right now even if she had to.
Hunter pointed to the side as he let go of Heather. “First door on the right.”
Maya couldn’t say anything else. She didn’t even acknowledge the direction she’d been given with a nod of approval or anything. She darted down the hall and into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. Water from the faucet blasted out and onto her sweater when she turned it on, but she didn’t care. She splashed the cool liquid on her face and drank a few sips from her hand.
It smelled like eggs. She wrinkled her nose and lifted away from the sink to stare at her dripping reflection.
She was really at Heather’s brother’s house. Why had she gone along with this?
The guy was seriously hot. Like holy-cow-he-could-be-a-model hot. Why did he have to be so man-pretty? It should be a crime to look like him. She groaned, hoping the sound of the water covered her. She knew right then she was going to have to stay in there until she pulled herself together, no matter how long it took.
If she could re-do this day, she’d have pulled up her big girl panties and called her parents. Told them everything.
Pleaded with them not to yank her from school.
But she was here now. She’d fled from one bad boy…
And into the den of another.
Hunter watched Maya practically run to the bathroom. She had a nice ass, which pissed him off. He’d already mentally noted how beautiful she was, even after a long—and apparently sweaty—car ride. Her curly hair was wet at the temples, but she showed no other signs of physical discomfort. He could see the panic in her gaze, though, but it only made her more appealing. He didn’t have to know her to see how absolutely breathtaking she was. Not that it mattered. The woman was his sister’s friend and possibly in some trouble. Which meant, she might have put Heather in danger, and that was a big strike against her, no matter how hot she was.
“Start talking,” he said, drawing his attention away from the direction Maya had gone.
“What made you decide to finally do it?” she asked, reaching for his shorter hair.
He jerked back. “Now, Heather.”
“I told you on the phone that we—”
Hunter sliced his hand through the air. He didn’t want the information pieced out to him. She’d done that already on the phone, but he wanted every detail. “From the beginning.”
He pulled her toward the couch and nudged her until she sat.
“Fine,” Heather sighed, and started the tale of what had happened last night. Hunter gritted his teeth and tried to focus on the facts. And not the ones relating to his sister going to a bar to pick up dudes. Yes, she was legally an adult, but he still had a hard time seeing her that way.
“So you went out, got drunk, planned on driving back to your room inebriated, walked across a dark parking lot, alone, in the middle of the night, and possibly stumbled onto a crime in the making with the bad guys still lurking around. Did I get that right?” he asked. His voice raised with each word. Shit, were his ears red? They felt like they were on fire.
Heather shrunk back a little. “Well, when you say it like that, it sounds bad.”
“It is bad. Jesus, what were you thinking? You could have been raped, stabbed, killed.”
“You’re blowing it out of proportion.”
“Really? Because you’re the one who felt the need to drive for hours to get away from the guy.” He shook his head and looked away. “This is why I didn’t want you going to school out of state,” he muttered. And especially not in Texas. Though he couldn’t add that little part. At least Dallas wasn’t near El Paso.
“Oh, please. You needed me tucked away someplace safe while you go rescue kidnap victims and stuff. Don’t turn this around on me,” Heather snapped.
“Shhh, your friend can’t know about that,” he whispered heatedly.
Heather smiled and cocked her head to the side. “Don’t worry. I took care of it.”
Hunter shut his eyes slowly, searching for patience and finding little. “How did you manage to do that?”
“I told her you were in the military. You know, special ops. That you go out on missions. Which you do, so it was the perfect explanation.”
“You lied and told her I was in the military?”
“Yes.”
He stared at her incredulously. “And just what did you tell her I do for them?”
She shrugged. “I didn’t. I told her, because of that, not to ask about your job and stuff. It was private, and we don’t even talk about it.” She smiled. “See, it works because if something comes up and you have to leave before we do, there’s no explaining that has to happen. And if we’re all just sitting around, she won’t accidentally bring up something she’s not supposed to.”
So now his sister was lying about him. Lying. No, she couldn’t tell anybody about the work he did for the government and the private sector, but that didn’t mean she had to make shit up. Whatever happened to letting someone know when something wasn’t their business? It should’ve been as simple as that.
But now he had to pretend to be something he wasn’t.
“Just what branch of military did you tell her?”
Heather frowned. “I didn’t specify. You’re in one that does special ops, though.”
“Fuck, they all do one way or another. I’ve never been in the damn military. How am I supposed to know how to act around her?” He stood and towered over Heather. “Never mind. Doesn’t matter,” he said slowly.
“’Cause she’s not staying.”
Heather jumped up. “Yes, she is. We drove a long way to get away from that bozo Jake. As soon as he’s apprehended, we can go back. It won’t take them long. It’s not like he’s hiding somewhere. He’s too arrogant for that.”
“You cannot be that naive.” No one could be that clueless. “Heather, the cops have to do an investigation. Sure, they could question that boy, but if he doesn’t confess, they won’t have anything to hold him on. They’d have to wait for results on all the tests they conducted. That shit takes time. It’s not like CSI.”
“And you said I watch too much T.V.,” Maya said from behind them. Hunter turned, zeroing his gaze on her as she stood in the entryway of the hall.
“How much did you hear?” Jesus, if she heard about the military lie, he’d have to figure out how to fix it and fast. Otherwise, he’d have to let the guys know. Damn Heather and her trying to help. She should’ve kept her mouth shut.
“From the part where you said I can’t stay.”
Heather socked him in the shoulder, but the tightening in his chest hurt more. God, he hated that sad look in Maya’s eyes. He hated even more that he cared at all.
“We’re sticking together,” Heather said. “If you go, I go.”
Hunter glared at his sister. The hell she was, but he knew better than to say it like that. “You’re not helping.” When he looked toward Maya again, she’d walked closer to them. “It’s nothing personal. I don’t mind making some calls and finding out what’s going on. If it’s serious, I’ll get you on the first plane to your parents’ house.”
“Bubba—”
“No, Heather,” he said, cutting his gaze to her.
“Hunter, we’re sticking together.”
He growled low and slow as he thought quickly, but no answers came to mind fast enough. The only thing he could decide on was that he was the one in the room who needed help now. Placating his sister and her hot friend wasn’t going to get them anywhere anytime soon.
“I’m going to talk to some friends. You two stay put.” He grabbed his motorcycle keys, hoping the cool air would ease his anger, and fired off a text to Bear to warn him and the guys he needed to see them. Just what he needed—another meeting. He marched toward the door as he shoved his phone in his pocket.
