by Nana Malone
"I know you didn't like her—"
“That’s an understatement.”
I put Mayzie in her stroller and strapped her in. “But she’s Mayzie’s mom, or rather, she was. And like her or not, we have to do what’s best for Mayzie. Even if she won’t sleep and refuses to eat anything I give her. Willa is gone, so I need to give Mayzie the best. And right now, apparently, it’s the hot manny.”
Bex’s lip twitched. “So, you noticed he was hot?”
“My eyes are in perfect working order. But I don't even know what to do with a man that hot."
Bex guffawed. "Oh, I know what to do with him. It's going to involve honey, some ice cubes, and handcuffs."
I nearly choked on the coffee I sipped. "Oh my God, I don't even want to know."
She grinned at me. "Are you sure you don't want to know? Because maybe you could use some pointers. You know, get the lead out."
"I do not need to get the lead out."
She rolled her eyes. "Yes, you do. Especially when you were dating Dick."
"Richard." I put my hands over Mayzie impressionable little ears. "Little ears."
"She can't talk yet."
"But this is when she's learning. Formative years." It occurred to me that Bex and I were going to have to clean up our language.
"That’s his name, Dick. He told me to call him Dick. Who says that? Also, he actually is a dick. That’s just the truth. I mean, I've never met a man more threatened by a powerful woman."
I laughed. "I'm hardly powerful. I have no idea how we’re going to pay rent on this place.”
She winced. “About that. The property manager called. It looks like Dick never paid last month’s rent.”
Damn it. "I’ll figure it out."
“I know that’s your motto and everything, but you have to let Adam and me help.”
“You guys are helping. Something has to give. I didn’t even get a chance to think through everything. It all happened so quickly. Then Mayzie landed in my lap. I promise I’ll find a solution.”
Bex checked her watch. "Oops, I’ve got to go. Adam has been on the phones. I know he had some hot dinner date with his girlfriend. Why don't you take the rest of the afternoon off? You don't have any more meetings, and you've been burning the midnight oil if the emails are any indication."
"Well, I have to put that pitching proposal together for Miami Code Machine. I’ll maybe do that from ho—" I stopped myself. Willa’s house wasn’t home.
It is for Mayzie.
“I’ll do it from Willa’s.”
Bex tossed her empty latte cup into the trash can we passed. "Are we just not going to talk about the fact that you actually have a lot of money now? And you can afford to be picky about clients?"
"It's not my money Bex. It’s Mayzie’s. I really don't want it."
She sighed. "Fine, be that way. But you get a stipend to look after Mayzie, and looking after her means looking after yourself too. That might be just what you need to get on your feet."
As I pushed the stroller, I considered what Bex said. I hadn’t even looked over the trust documents yet. My life had been diapers and baby food and adjustments for the last three days.
In that three days, I’d given up my flat because even if I didn’t want the Nob Hill house, it made no sense trying to drag poor Mayzie into a one bedroom flat.
But I needed to make some fast decisions. The current office space was too big for the three of us. It was also more than I could afford.
Adam and I had called each of our remaining clients to pitch them on more work. A few had come through, but not enough to keep us going and pay rent.
One idea that had been rattling around in my head was moving the company to the guest house at Willa’s. It had enough room, and it was just the three of us. Adam and I could take client work and there would be no rent, which meant I could pay my team. Plus, there was the added benefit of being near Mayzie.
I pushed along the pathway headed west toward Prince’s Beach that would cut through the oldest, most touristy part of Old Town. Most of the capital city was extremely modern, the king wanting the islands to be a true comfort destination. But this part of the city was my favorite. It was so full of color and life.
As I walked, I talked to Mayzie. These moments when everything was peaceful and I had sort of figured her out for the day were the perfect moments. They were the brief spans of time when I believed I could do this. That I could keep her happy and take care of her. Unfortunately, they were also the times when I thought of Willa and what she would want me to do with her daughter.
She's your daughter now.
A fact I didn’t think I’d ever get used to.
Mayzie cooed as I pointed out some of the birds as we passed through Old Town. Constant baby talk was exhausting. I was running out of things to say. I was so glad I had Bex and Adam to talk to, otherwise constant baby babble would make me insane.
The hairs at the back of my neck stood up, and I paused, glancing around. I had that feeling of someone watching me. I hated to admit it to Bex, but I'd had that feeling for a couple of days now, which was silly as we had already discussed the fact that nobody cared about me.
I don't know what made me do it, but I took a left, passing through a row of tucked away shops on a cobbled street that was far too narrow for cars, and I picked up my pace.
But the faster I walked, the more that alarm trailed along the nape of my neck down in my arms and my legs. Before I knew it, my heart hammered, and I was moving quickly. So quickly I was practically running with the stroller.
Why are you running?
Because some part of my lizard brain had registered danger, and I knew that I had to protect the baby. I didn't know how I knew. I just knew.
So I moved my ass faster than it had probably moved in months. I'd let my gym membership lapse because all my time had gone into the company.
I wished I hadn't let that happen, because all those moms with their jogging strollers, those women looked in shape. I was not.
I ducked into a shop and pulled the stroller in with me. The owner frowned at me and rolled her eyes. The stroller was clearly too wide to fit through the aisles of the tiny boutique, but I needed a place to rest and pull out my phone.
I was ready to call the police just in case, but mostly I was hiding out, blending in. Waiting for the big bad boogeyman to announce himself.
But nobody passed, except for people who looked like other shoppers.
Mayzie clapped her hands and pulled at a bright pink top with fur where the boobs would be. Mayzie felt it up and cooed and giggled. Fantastic. And of course, there was drool all over her mouth.
I smiled at the owner and pointed at the blouse. "How much? She just seems to love it."
"It's a hundred and fifteen dollars."
My brows dropped. "What?"
It had sheer sleeves, basic cotton for a bodice, and fur on the boobs. How did it have enough fabric to equal a hundred and fifteen dollars? I took it off the hanger, handed it to Mayzie, and pulled out my credit card.
Mayzie had already drooled all over it, so there wasn't any way I could say I wasn't going to buy it.
Once I'd paid for my impromptu purchase, Mayzie laughed and rubbed at the fur happily.
"I have an awful suspicion you have a terrible sense of fashion."
She didn't answer.
I stepped back out of the boutique and headed back the way we'd come.
When I passed the next alley, someone reached out and grabbed my arm. I opened my mouth to scream, not sure if I should pull Mayzie with me or push her away so that somebody would see her and call the police. But before I could get a sound out, a hand clamped over my mouth. Hard.
I bit the hand and heard the muttered curse behind me. Then the hand was back, but I was already running and held on to the stroller. I had to get more momentum.
The man behind me grabbed again. "Just tell us where it is, and we'll let you go."
Where what wa
s? I tried to remember the self-defense classes my father had insisted I take when I was young. Stomp the instep. I tried that, but I couldn't get leverage. I had the stroller and the diaper bag.
Shit. Instep. Instep. What was instep again?
Top of the foot. Right.
My brain was so unhelpful in these circumstances.
"Tell us where it is."
I opened my mouth and tried to bite him again. That earned me a whack on the back of the head. It wasn't too hard, but still, it hurt enough to startle me. "I don't know what you're talking about."
He leaned forward. "Bite me again, and I swear to God I'm going to take that baby."
I opened my mouth to scream. "Hheeeel—"
The hand clamped back over my mouth again.
I let go of the stroller this time and fought like hell. I slammed my head back. I tried to use my arms to whack him in the nuts, but all I got was upper thigh.
The next thing I knew, the hand over my mouth went slack and then the body behind me was moving back, releasing me.
I grabbed on to Mayzie's stroller and tried to start pushing, but the stupid thing had locked on me. I used my foot to try to pry the lock up. Mayzie, thankfully, had no idea anything was wrong, so she just gurgled.
"Move. Come on, move."
And then there was another voice behind me, low and menacing… and… familiar. I’d been playing it in my head for the last day. "Relax. You're okay. He's not going to hurt you."
I whipped around and used my body to block the stroller, hands up, as if I could do anything.
Jax Reynolds had removed whoever had grabbed me. He'd done something to him, because that guy lay in a heap by the bins, presumably passed out. Shit was he dead? I didn't think he'd kill anyone in broad daylight. Or would he?
"I will scream."
He held his hands up. "Eyes on me. You’re okay. Pull out your phone. Call the police."
I stared at him. "The police? You want me to call the police?"
He nodded slowly. "You're in shock. As you should be. But this gentleman here just tried to grab you off the street in broad daylight. So generally, people call the police."
I frowned. "The police, right." My hands shook. I could barely function. I couldn't put two words together.
He reached out a hand and beckoned with his fingers. "Give it here."
I didn't have any choice. There was no way I could dial.
He dialed the police, and then he murmured our location and that he was a concerned bystander. He didn't give his name before he hung up.
"The police are on their way. Okay?"
I stared at him.
"I need you to nod or something to let me know you understand."
Finally, I was able to move my head up and down.
"Okay. Come on over here. Have a seat."
I obeyed on autopilot. He’d saved me. He had saved me and Mayzie from whoever the hell that was.
I swayed on my feet. He reached for me, and I was going to let him catch me. I really was. But then the stupid stroller started to roll, and when I reached for it, I lost my footing and fell forward, my hands grabbing out for leverage. I caught his belt as his arm reached out to break my fall.
Fat load of good it did me, my face found a good landing place.
In his crotch.
It seemed Jax Reynolds was big... everywhere.
He looked down at me warily with a wide smirk. "Usually women buy me dinner before asking to see the goods, but in your case, I’ll make an exception.”
My face flamed.
I tried to talk, but Lord! My eyes were completely, utterly focused on his massive—
He snapped his fingers in front of my eyes. "Hey, Neela—Ms. Wellbrook. My eyes, they're up here. Give me your hand."
Oh my God. If it was possible to die of mortification, I needed that shit to happen right now.
Come on, gods. Any second now.
Apparently, the gods were not listening because no one smote me, or struck me with lightning, or anything of the sort. I had no choice but to take his hand and let him help me up.
I whipped around and checked for Mayzie. She started to make the uhuh-uhuh sound. I knew that sound by now. Tears were incoming.
* * *
With practiced ease, he reached in, unsnapped Mayzie, and held her close, then maneuvered me to the sidewalk and wrapped an arm around me too, cocooning me.
That small motion chased away the chill and fear.
Jax…
She might be a giant pain in the ass, but my new boss had one hell of an instinct.
“Good job on Neela Wellbrook. Any ID on the twat-buster who tried to jump her?”
Ariel was seated across from me at the glass conference table at Royal Elite. The police had people up at Neela’s new place for the night, but I’d feel a hell of a lot better once we were done and I could get up there.
My brain oh-so-helpfully kept replaying what had happened, as if I needed that visual. I didn’t want to think about what would have happened if I hadn’t been there. I’d heard that guy say he wanted something from her or he was going to take the baby. She hadn’t seemed to know what he wanted.
* * *
“Thanks. It was the right call to stay on her. The guy is a ghost. Not in any database the police have. And he’s not talking.”
She sighed. “I might have my own look at his fingerprints. My last gig taught me to me suspicious of everyone.”
While she spoke, Ariel’s new recruit sized me up.
He was a big guy who moved like he knew what the fuck he was doing, though he had an air to him that seemed easygoing. But there was something in his eyes that said he didn’t fuck with assholes.
Blond, blue-eyed, pretty-boy surfer type. Had he been in the Guard to? I didn’t remember him. I wondered what leverage she’d used to get him here. Given his accent, it was unlikely he had been Guard.
Ariel finished typing something into her laptop then glanced up, catching us eyeing each other.
“Jax, Trace Lawson. Trace, Jax Reynolds.”
We both nodded at each other as we tried to determine pecking order on the team.
I leaned forward. "Okay, if we’re going back tonight, I need to know the plan."
Ariel pulled the open the schematics for Neela Wellbrook’s home on the large screen in the office. "How many men do you think you'll need?"
"I’m not sure yet. For now, I'll keep the current gate staff. It's just the two rotational guards. I looked up the company that provides the guards, and they seem above board. No problems. If you can dig into Neela Wellbrook's background to see if there is anyone that would want to hurt her, that would be helpful."
"I'm already on it. So far, she's squeaky clean. There was an ex. A recent ex, from what I can tell, but he's mostly just a douche bag. His name, if you can believe it, is Richard Dickson."
I lifted my brows. "Dick Dickson?"
Ariel snorted a laugh. "I know, right? That's just the icing on the cake."
Trace shook his head and chuckled. “That’s the douchiest name I’ve ever heard.”
" I need to meet this wanker."
Ariel continued. "From the looks of it, he’s just an average guy. He and Neela used to work together, and it ended badly. Some kind of power struggle over the company.”
Trace took the file on Dick Dickson. “So basically, prime suspect number one?”
Ariel shook her head. “Normally, yes. But in this case, it doesn’t seem like it. Neela is a cryptanalyst. Her company is a consultancy firm that helps companies and government organizations safeguard and protect themselves with high level encryptions.”
I frowned. “So she’s a hacker like you?”
Ariel grinned. “Sweetheart, I’m so much more than a hacker. I look real nice with a gun too.”
Trace chuckled.
“But Neela’s more than a hacker.”
I shook my head. “Give me the kindergarten rendition.”
“Think code br
eaker. Super smart, number-theory kind of shit. If she had a lock, you wouldn’t be able to get inside unless she wanted you to.”
I whistled low. “So, chances are she has a lock somewhere someone wants to pick?”
Ariel shrugged. “I don’t know yet.” She pulled up another file. “This one is the file on Willa MacKenzie. She was an art dealer and the reason for all that loot little Mayzie has come in to. Some of her clients have been… let’s just say questionable. We probably start here.”
I frowned. “Why don’t we hit all the angles. Pretty boy can take the boyfriend. You pull double duty with your superior hacker skills to figure out who from Willa’s past might think they have something coming to them. I’ll take Neela and the kid and poke around the house. I’ll have access. She told me she’s moving the company to the guesthouse on the property, so everyone will be contained.”
Ariel lifted a brow, and I had to remind myself to keep my comments to myself. I needed this gig. And as much as it rankled, I was not in charge here. Trace also gave me a questioning look.
Ariel’s smile was beatific, but it didn’t fool me for a second. “You’re the expert now?”
“I’m just saying. The eejit who grabbed her kept asking for it. Something specific. We can’t rule any threats out at this point.”
“Lucky for you, you’re right. And if you’d let me finish, I would have made the assignments.”
Fuck. “Sorry. Used to being on my own.”
Trace eyed me. “Not a team player then?”
I ignored him. I needed to remember why I was here. The mermaid princess currently held my future in her hands. I needed to chill. “Sorry.”
Ariel studied me. "You okay with the client? You want the newbie to take her?"
The fuck I did. “Nah, I’m good. Besides, the kid has already fallen for my charm.”
Trace snorted then. “That’s only because she hasn’t met me yet.”
Ariel rolled her eyes. “I'm going to do a little tunneling for dirt. See if anything suspicious comes up."
I nodded. "So basic shift rotation."
She nodded. "That’s the eventual plan. I’ve got two more leads I need to chase down. For now, Trace, you’ll be on research for the next day or so. I’ll do what I can from the road."
