by Lily London
“He torched your car, so you couldn’t run again. You had a lot of stuff in your car. You’ve been living in it,” I said.
“Yup. I learned a year ago that there’s no point in renting a place right away when I might not be there long. It’s just a waste of money. I thought this town would be different. That maybe I could live here and finally get a home base, work a job that allowed me to be around animals and help. But he found me, and now I need to leave again, start all over.”
That is where she was wrong. She didn’t have to start over again, she didn’t have to leave. Not this time. This time she had five strong and capable men here to protect her. She didn’t have to run, but she did have to decide to stay, and I knew that could be frightening for someone that had been in this cycle for years. But Damien was clearly not going to stop chasing her. Abusive ex-boyfriends usually did one of two things. They either accepted that they’d lost their victim and found a new one. Or they hunted their victim down and killed them. Damien was in the second category. Letting Haley leave Tranquility Bay would only result in her death. Whether I cared about her or not, I still couldn’t allow her to face that fate alone. The fact that I did care about her meant I’d do whatever I could to make sure she didn’t leave.
“You can’t leave Haley. He won’t stop hunting you until you are dead. If he was going to give up on you, he wouldn’t have chased after you the first time. This is a game to him, just another way to abuse you, control you. You leave. and he will eventually kill you. The safest place for you to be is here.”
“And put the others and the horses at risk I can’t do that.”
“The horses will be fine. The others have been to war multiple times. One asshole is nothing to them. They will be fine, and they will be pissed that this has been happening to you. They are all good and honorable men, and they will protect you. I will safeguard you from him. But we can’t do anything until you are finally ready to fight yourself. It will only work if you are ready to take your life back.”
“I don’t want my life back. I want a better life than what I used to have. I don’t want to leave. I like the town, and I like working here. I’m tired of running, but I don’t want to put anyone at risk.”
I could tell she was really torn. She wanted to be safe. She wanted a real-life, something I had a feeling she’d never truly had, but at the same time, she was worried that someone would be hurt because of her. I could respect that, I could appreciate her concern for my guys, but we didn’t go to war to back off when a woman was being hunted down by an asshole. We didn’t go to war, risk our lives, to go running scared from one obviously mentally depraved man. If I told them that they needed to let her leave so we could be kept safe, I’d get my ass kicked, and then they would be hunting her down to bring her back.
“You’ve been around these guys for a month now. Long enough for you to know that they are not going to let you go out and fend for yourself against this man. Let us help you. Let us worry about your safety. It’s what we did for a living. It was our passion. We will keep you safe and stop him. All you have to do is let us help you.”
I needed her to accept our help. I needed her to see that she wasn’t alone, despite a lifetime of being without a support system. She had people in her corner now, good strong men that would be there for her. She had us, she had me, she had her own army at her disposal, and we would stop this. I could see the conflict all over her face, but underneath it all was hope. It was when I saw that hope that I knew she would agree to stay. She had hope probably for the first time in her life that she could just be herself and grow. Hope that she didn’t have to hide anymore.
“Ok.” She simply agreed.
I grabbed a pad of paper and a pen and handed it to her as I spoke. “I need you to write down everything you know about him and the phone number he’s been messaging you with. Be sure to include what he looks like.”
Haley gave a nod and started to write. I headed up to my guest bedroom to get it ready for her. I wasn’t going to let her stay anywhere but here with me. I would be able to keep her safe and make sure she had the space needed to start healing from this. Afterward, I’d need to meet with the others and let them know what is going on, so they were properly prepared. We all had guns with us, so I wasn’t worried about protection. They needed to know, though, so they were properly ready for what could come up. I could have Reed run Damien’s name and find out what he could on him. Reed used to work Army intelligence and still knew his way around a computer.
With the guest bedroom set up, I headed back downstairs to see that Haley had written down what I asked.
“Now what?” She asked sliding the pad with a full page of information, toward me.
“Now you need sleep. I got my guest bedroom set up with clean sheets for you.”
“You want me to stay here?” She asked, surprised.
“Well, your car is a no go. And you could crash in the bunkhouse with the guys, but I figured you would be more comfortable sleeping here.” I moved closer to her and held my hand out for her to take. I was glad when she did, and I pulled her closer to me as I continued. “Plus, I get to see you more, and I really like that part.”
“You sure about that now that you know the baggage I come with?”
“Very sure. I have my own baggage too, you know. You don’t get overwhelmed by mine; I can handle yours.” I placed my hand on the side of her face, and I couldn’t help but notice how beautiful she was. “He won’t ever touch you again. I promise you.”
I meant every word of it too. He would never lay a hand on her again. Haley leaned in and placed her lips against mine. I easily returned her kiss but made sure to keep it simple. I couldn’t let myself get distracted tonight. There would be a time for everything that kiss promised, and I had every intention of blowing her mind when that time came. Tonight, I had other things I needed to focus on to keep everyone safe. I pulled back after a moment and ran my hand through her hair.
“You and I are going to finish where we left off, but not tonight. Right now, you need rest, to sleep in an actual bed for a change. I have to check in with the guys really quick, but I won’t be gone long. There’s a bathroom attached to the guest bedroom as well, so feel free to take a bath if you want.”
“Thank-you for doing this.” Haley said.
“It’s no problem. I won’t be long.”
Haley gave a nod and she moved back, and I guided her up the stairs to show her the room. Then I headed to my room and opened my bedside table drawer. I pulled out my nine-millimeter gun and tucked it into the back of my jeans before I headed out.
CHAPTER 6
HALEY
Iwas sitting in the office the next morning trying to focus on what needed to be done, but my mind kept going back to last night. I never intended for any of this to happen and now that it had, I felt like crap. The very last thing I wanted was to bring this drama to Derek’s doorstep. I had no idea what I was supposed to do or what the game plan was. Derek didn’t cover that with me. He was up earlier than I was this morning, needing to get the horses organized for the new stable build. He left a note letting me know that he was out on the farm and would be at the office later to speak with me about the adoption day. I still couldn’t believe that I was not going to need to run this time. Part of me was excited at the prospect of being able to stay, and the other part of me was terrified at what could happen to the men or animals here. I didn’t want any of them hurt or triggered with everything that was going on. Derek seemed confident that they could handle it. I was just hoping that was the case.
The door opening had my heart fluttering that Derek was coming in, but it sank when I saw that it was Clay with Roxy not far behind him. I had never been nervous around Clay before, but I found myself slightly unsure of being around him. I could see something in his eyes that I had never seen before, anger. I just didn’t know if he was angry with me or the situation. Clay came around the desk and sat down in one of the chairs we had back there. I
could see a slight flash of pain in his eyes. I knew he was still struggling with his prosthetic and the pain from his injuries. I wanted to ask if he was okay, but I learned within the very first day of working here that only Derek was allowed to ask him that.
“I’m sorry about last night, about everything that I brought to your door,” I said.
“You didn’t bring it to our door. He did. You don’t have anything to apologize for. The guys and us have the situation under control. Reed already found everything we need to know on Damien and with the right motivation, we can get him to make a fatal mistake. Guys like him are easy for guys like us. It’s not why I’m here.”
I couldn’t help but be shocked. Not by his words, but how many he spoke. For the past month Clay had maybe said five words to me. Every time I said hello, he would give me a nod. Clay was a man of few words, especially if you weren’t Derek addressing him.
“Why are you here? Babysitting duty?” I tried to joke, but it honestly wouldn’t surprise me.
“The only person I babysit is my sister.”
“You have a sister?”
“I do, Mylie. She’s twenty-two and lives in a hospital back home. She’s been in a coma for a year now, and we have no idea when she’ll wake up. When I got back, I was too consumed with my own problems that I didn’t really go to visit her. The next time I did, she was in a coma. Her boyfriend had been abusing her for a year. He beat her senseless one night because he thought she was looking at another man. I could have stopped it, but I was too busy being stuck in my own world that I didn’t even see her issues. I didn’t even answer the hundreds of calls she made. I can’t stop thinking that if I’d answered just one of them, then maybe she would be living her life right now.”
The raw pain in his voice was suffocating. I couldn’t believe he had been going through all of that at the same time as dealing with returning from war and his injuries. He obviously blamed himself. I didn’t know his sister, but if I was her, I wouldn’t blame him. I would probably yell at him and tell him how stupid he was for blaming himself.
“That’s stupid, blaming yourself, that’s ridiculous. She’d probably tell you the same thing.”
Clay gave a soft chuckle. “You are probably right about that. My point, if you have been thinking about running, don’t. You will only get badly injured or worse. We will handle Damien, and then you can live your life without looking over your shoulder. Don’t make the same mistake that Mylie did.”
Clay got up and headed out, leaving me alone with my thoughts. I knew what he said was right. That, running would only prolong everything, so why did I feel like I needed to get out of here? Maybe I had been running for so long that now it seemed like the only option. I mean, I had five men, all ex-military, that were willing to help me stop this. I should be happy that it could all be over, not feeling like I was waiting for it all to go wrong. Only I was waiting for it all to go wrong. I was holding my breath waiting for something to happen that would force me to flee, only this time I’d have to be doing it on a bus. What I needed to do was enjoy whatever time I had left, and maybe the world would finally throw me a bone.
***
It was just after five when Derek finally arrived back at his place. I had been off work for two hours and I hadn’t seen him all day. I was doing my best not to think about what that could mean. I figured the least I could do was make dinner for him, and I was really hoping he wouldn’t mind me raiding his kitchen. Derek gave me a warm smile as he walked into the kitchen, and it eased my worries.
“Hey, I hope you don’t mind that I cooked your dinner.”
“I don’t mind at all. You are a very lovely sight to see after a long day.” Derek said, as he moved over to me and gave me a warm kiss.
I loved how a simple kiss could make me feel so cared for and wanted. It was far too short for my liking.
“I didn’t see you all day. I hope you weren’t avoiding me.” I said.
“Not at all. We received the permits for the new stable, so I’ve been out there getting everything ready and meeting with the builder. We should be able to start building it in the next few days.”
“That’s great. How many more horses will you be able to board?”
“Twelve more, and later I can build another stable once we get used to the increase. I’ll have to hire a few more hands. The current bunkhouse has ten bedrooms, so eventually I’ll need to build another bunkhouse.”
“How big do you want the ranch to be?”
“I’m not sure. As long as we are profitable and it’s working, then I’ll keep adding until we run out of the land. Dinner smells amazing, but I need a shower first. Maybe you’d like to join me.”
“Help you reach all of those hard to reach spots?” I asked with a flirty smirk.
“It’s always better to have some help.” He winked.
“Well, how could I refuse a man in need?”
I had no idea what was going to happen within the next few days or weeks, but I knew one thing. Tonight, I was going to enjoy myself and not worry about what would come after. Derek took my hand, and we headed up the stairs to his bathroom. Once we were in the room, Derek pushed me up against the bathroom door and kissed me. I eagerly kissed him back as if it might be my last with him. We had been building up to this moment, and now I just wanted to rip his clothes off and devour him right here, right now.
Derek apparently felt the same way because it didn’t take long for him to remove my shirt. I followed suit, and I could just vaguely hear his gun hitting the counter. It should have bothered me, but it gave me a surge of safety. Our breathing was heavy as we stripped off each other’s pants. Our hands roamed all over each other as Derek turned the shower on, making sure the water was hot before we both got in, never breaking apart. The warm water hitting my back only added to the heat within my body. I had never wanted a man as much as I needed Derek. As I roamed my hands freely over his big strong chest and his sexy six pack abs, I could feel the scars that marked him. Some women would have been turned off by them, but not me. They told the story of a warrior. Of a man that went to war and survived everything that was thrown at him. Derek was a warrior, and I couldn’t have been more turned on by him.
Derek’s hands over my body left a trail of fire in their wake, a fire that was quickly spreading to my core. He held me tight and kissed all over my breasts, licked and sucked on my breasts and nipples with passion as I moaned in pleasure. He gave each of my nipples a light squeeze, pulling a moan from me, as he continued to move his hands further down south. We were interrupted at this part last time, and I wanted nothing more than to feel his fingers within me. I could finally feel Derek’s finger ran along the inside of my core.
“Oh Der.” I moaned.
I could feel his hardness against me, and I knew he wanted me as desperately as I wanted him. I moved my own hand down to his member, and I was rewarded with a groan. Neither one of us was going to last long at this rate. Still, it didn’t stop Derek from inserting his finger within my core. I tried to spread my legs more, to get a better stance within the shower to give him better access. It didn’t give me much support in the slippery shower, but it did allow Derek to have just the right angle of entry to my core to make me never want this moment to end.
“Damn, you are so tight and hot. I need to be in you.” Derek groaned.
“Hell, yes.” I moaned.
Derek removed his finger and moved his hands down to my ass, lifting me up. I easily wrapped my legs around his hips, and with one slow thrust he was buried inside of me. I couldn’t contain the deep moan that seemed to echo around us. It had been so long since I had been with a man, and never had I been with one like this. My whole body quaked with my need for him. I couldn’t get enough of him. His slow thrusts began to pick up, and I knew he was being consumed just as much as I was.
Our bodies felt like they were one and I never wanted it to end. I couldn’t remember the last time I had ever felt this amazing; I honestly didn’t th
ink I ever had. I could feel my release building and I knew he was right along with me. As his movements became more frantic all I could do was hold on and enjoy the ride. Our moans were echoing all around us, and it only fueled our arousal. A sudden burst of spots in front of my eyes forced me to close my eyes as my release hit. I gave a soft scream as I felt my core pulsing, my whole-body tingling with pleasure. My release pushed Derek over the edge, and he joined me in bliss.
Derek placed his forehead against mine as we both fought to catch our breath. My body shook from the exertion and pleasure that was still rocking through me. I could feel Derek pulsing still, and I knew he was experiencing his own high at the moment. I had no idea what was going to be my long-term outlook with this man, but I did know there was going to be more of this tonight. Tonight, he was going to be all mine, and I was going to be all his to explore and devour.
CHAPTER 7
DEREK
Lying here in my bed with Haley curled up against my chest felt amazing, so right. I had no idea what would take place in the future between us, but for now, I was going to enjoy every second of this time together. She had long since fallen asleep, and I knew I needed rest, but I couldn’t stop thinking about her ex. Reed had discovered some disturbing information on Damien. He went by another name eight years ago living out in California, and he was a suspect in his girlfriend’s murder. There had been numerous 9-1-1 calls for a domestic disturbance, but no charges were ever filed. He then moved out to Washington where he somehow managed to become a foster parent and picked his next victim. We now knew what hotel he was staying in from his credit card charges.
