by Lila Kane
But that wasn’t in the cards for me. Not right now. Maybe not ever.
Because of that, I was almost glad my boss was a stickler for his wife’s safety and needed me to join them on their honeymoon as her personal bodyguard. I couldn’t stay back at the hotel. Not if Elise was going to be staying in her brother’s suite for two weeks while he was away.
I couldn’t be that close to her without feeling a physical ache. A need for her that was so intense, I’d almost acted on it more than once. I wanted my hands on her so bad, I could hardly control myself. The farther I stayed away from her, the better.
Which was why I was hoping to be down waiting at the car before she ever got here. If I didn’t have to see her, there was less temptation.
On the outside, however, I stayed calm. Mrs. Crane started carrying one of her suitcases to the elevator and Isaac rushed by, grabbing it from her hands. She grinned at him and they shared a moment—one of those moments—where I politely averted my eyes. They were endlessly showing affection for each other. And I didn’t begrudge them their happiness, I just had trouble stuffing down my own longing for that same connection with someone.
No, for that connection with Elise. There were times I thought she felt it too. Where her gaze would linger on mine longer than necessary. Where I’d take her hand to help her from the car and she’d squeeze my fingers. And fuck, I swore when those lips curved in my direction, a spark shot between us. A devilish agenda lit in her eyes.
And then it was gone. Or maybe…maybe I pretended like it’d never existed in the first place. After all, she was my boss’s sister. It was like mixing business with pleasure—and I had no idea how Isaac would take it. Didn’t want to find out.
I had a good thing going here, and Isaac was my friend. I didn’t want to jeopardize it.
Isaac’s phone rang and he answered it, still smiling. “Hey, Elise.”
He listened to her talk while I pretended not to listen. I could hear her musical voice just slightly from where I stood. My gut clenched.
“Logan can pick you up,” Isaac said.
My attention snapped to Isaac’s. I nodded, though that was the last thing I wanted. Being alone with her in the car was…like being alone with her anywhere. There was something in the air, a palpable tension that made it near impossible for me to sit still.
“It’ll make me feel better than you walking,” Isaac continued.
Gia chimed, putting her mouth close to the phone. “Yes, let him. Then we can see you before we go.”
I heard her laughter, and what must have been agreement, because Isaac nodded at me. “All right, I’ll have him leave now.”
Isaac ended the call and turned to me. “She’s at the gallery.”
I frowned. “Sir?”
“Not the one downstairs,” Gia explained. “She went to the one on Rivers Street to show them some of our pieces.”
Isaac turned to her, wrapping his arm around her waist and hauling her close. “I like the sound of that. Our pieces.”
Then they were kissing again. Shit. This was something I was going to have to work on. I’d gotten better at it, finding a fixed spot to stare at while they clung to each other and forgot the outside world existed. But it was still awkward sometimes.
After a moment, I cleared my throat. “Would you like me to bring down some of your luggage as I go?”
Isaac waved him off. “We’ll get it. Just bring Elise back here and we’ll visit with her for a bit before we go.”
I nodded and entered the elevator. I’d let them visit and I’d load the car. I’d wait in the car if I had to so I didn’t have to be around Elise any longer than necessary.
I took the elevator to the parking garage and got into the car, already thinking of polite topics to discuss with Elise if she insisted on talking. I hoped she’d get on the phone with someone and talk the entire drive back. That’d make it easier on both of us.
When I reached the gallery, I didn’t see her on the sidewalk out front. I pulled to the curb but didn’t see her inside the window either. I waited. She was probably finishing something up.
After I didn’t see her for another ten minutes, I stepped outside the car. Then I heard shouting. Just quiet enough that most people on the sidewalk didn’t notice. But I did. I stepped to the side of the building and peered down the alleyway. There was another shout. Any angry one this time.
My gut told me something was wrong. Slowly, I reached inside my jacket for my gun and started down the alleyway.
#
I’d only been waiting for Logan for a few minutes when I saw the man wander down the alleyway. I wouldn’t have thought twice about what he was doing but he wore a dark trench coat in the middle of summer and he kept glancing both ways before he finally vanished. He looked nervous.
I hiked my purse higher on my shoulder and walked to the edge of the building. This was the classiest gallery in the city and almost everyone I saw walking through here wore a business suit or something designer and expensive. No trench coats. Which made me suspicious.
Isaac always used to tell me I was too curious for my own good. He was right, but that didn’t change anything. I still wanted to know what was going on. I still wanted insight into the world and what other people’s lives were like.
Maybe, or especially because, I didn’t always feel like I was living mine. I had the job, the family, the friends. On the outside, my life was enviable.
But I was still missing something. Love.
And the one man I felt the strongest attraction for didn’t want anything to do with me. Logan would hardly look at me when I saw him. He’d avoid eye contact and keep things polite but neutral. Part of me thought he didn’t like me at all. And that would be better, wouldn’t it? But the other part of me thought maybe, just maybe, there were feelings.
Feelings I was too afraid to act upon. Logan worked for my brother. He was also like part of the family. Changing that dynamic was scary, probably irreparable if something went wrong.
When I heard another shout, I straightened. Arguing ensued and I bit my lip. This wasn’t just a frustrated discussion. Something was really going wrong here.
I came upon a Dumpster and stepped behind it, afraid the man in the trench coat would see me eavesdropping. There were other voices down the alleyway. Two or three, maybe. Deep voices—angry voices. I peered around the side of the Dumpster and saw two other men.
When I saw the gun, my heart leaped. One of them was pointing a gun at the guy in the trench coat.
“Do you have our money?” he asked.
The guy in the trench coat held his hands up defensively. “One more day. You said I had one more day.”
“We also saw your plane ticket. Were you trying to skip out on us?”
“No. I swear I wasn’t. This was something I was planning on before. My wife—”
“Who cares!” the guy with the gun shouted. “You owe this money and it’s time to pay up.”
The man in the trench coat walked back a few steps, his hands still in the air. “One more day and I swear I’ll have it.”
“I think you’ve run out of time Johnny,” the man with the gun said.
“No, wait. I—”
The gunshot came out of nowhere. I could barely hear it, but I still heard the whooshing sound and saw the man with the trench coat fall backward. I slapped a hand over my mouth when I saw the blood. I couldn’t help the gasp that escaped, and then my eyes widened when the man with the gun looked my way.
I took an involuntary step back, nearly stumbling over my own feet, only knowing that I needed to get out of here.
Shit!
The instant both men looked my way, my brain screamed at me to run. I whipped around, and when I slammed into someone, I nearly screamed.
“Shh—Elise—”
“Logan!”
I saw the gun first, his phone second, and had no time to question anything before he jerked me behind the Dumpster again and stepped in front of me.
My hands shook as I gripped his jacket, needing to hold onto something. I’d just seen someone shot. And the blood—oh, God—I’d seen blood all over the pavement.
Logan peered from around the Dumpster, then muttered something under his breath.
“What?” I whispered. “Are they still there?”
“They must have seen me. They went in the other direction. Fuck.” He put his phone back to his ear and started giving instructions to the person on the other end.
Words lodged in my throat. What was I supposed to do?
“Is he okay?” I asked, probably too low for Logan to hear. There was a man lying on the ground less than twenty feet from us, and he could be dying.
He could already be dead.
I tried to step around Logan, but he pressed the phone between his shoulder and his ear so he could grip my arm. “What are you doing?”
I pointed down the alleyway, trying to get him to understand. He said something else into the phone before hanging up.
“Is he still down there?” I asked. “They shot him, Logan—”
“I saw that. You have to stay here.”
“But—what if he needs our help? Are we safe now?”
If the men saw Logan and they’d run, they had to be long gone by now.
Logan peered around the Dumpster, holding his gun at his shoulder. When I tried to peer around him, he gripped my arm again.
But I spotted the man on the ground and tried to pull free. “We have to do something. Logan—”
“Do not go over there. An ambulance is on its way, and so are the police.”
“But—”
“Damn it, Elise. Do what I say. You need to stay safe.” I was shocked into silence at the snap in his voice. His fingers squeezed my arm gently this time. “Please. Listen to me for now so I can make sure you’re safe.”
So I did what he said and waited for the police to arrive.
CHAPTER TWO
When we finally arrived back at Mr. Crane’s place, Elise had sunk into a worrisome silence. I knew she wasn’t accustomed to seeing that kind of violence and hoped it hadn’t traumatized her more than I’d expected. I had no idea what the hell she’d been doing in the alleyway in the first place, but questioning her about that right now didn’t seem like the right move.
Isaac was at the elevator instantly. He pulled Elise into a hug and she went willingly, her shoulders drooping.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
Gia joined him on the other side, the same worry in her eyes.
“I’m okay,” Elise said, nodding. “Just…” She glanced at me, as if for backup. “He shot him.”
I didn’t miss the flash of anger in Isaac’s eyes or the clench of his jaw. I felt the same way. If I could have protected Elise from seeing that, I would have.
“What do you need?” Gia asked Elise. “A drink? A hot bath—”
“Aren’t you supposed to be leaving?” Elise checked her watch. “Your honeymoon.”
“That’s not important right now,” Gia said. She took Isaac’s hand briefly. “I’m sorry.”
“You’re right. Let’s deal with this first.”
Elise opened her mouth to argue, but Gia put her arm around Elise and steered her to the couch. “Sit for a minute and I’ll get you a drink.”
Isaac met my eyes, and I got the message immediately.
“We’ll be right back,” Isaac said.
I joined him in the office, trying to keep professional, though I already knew exactly where I wanted this conversation to go.
“How much did she see?” Isaac asked immediately.
“Most of it. She told the police everything. She got a good look at their faces.” My gut clenched. “She saw them shoot the guy, straight in the chest. Watched him bleed.”
“Shit.” Isaac walked to the window, staring out over the city. “They better have everyone on staff out there looking for those fuckers.”
“They have her information and mine so we’ll hear immediately if anything changes. In the meantime…”
“She needs to stay here. She needs to be safe.”
I nodded, relieved. That was exactly what needed to happen. Who knew how much those guys had seen. The best way to keep her safe was to have her stay here, with protection, until the cops caught the criminals.
I joined Isaac at the window, staring at the same city that used to frighten him, understanding more now how he wanted to keep all those he cared about safe inside. He’d seen his fiancé die at the hands of two muggers and had almost given up on the world. He never left his high rise and barely spoke with anyone from the outside. Anyone but his sister, Elise. And then he’d found Gia and fallen in love. She’d helped him move forward, and now…damn it, Logan didn’t want to see that fucked with.
“We’ll cancel the trip,” Isaac said.
“No, you will not.”
We both turned around to find Elise standing in the doorway. She lifted her chin, and I could tell she was trying to be brave. Trying to do the right thing. I could also see how pale her cheeks were.
“You can’t cancel your trip,” Elise said. “You deserve it and so does Gia.”
“Elise—”
Isaac frowned. “I swear, this is not the time to argue with me.”
“This isn’t the time to argue with me. I’ll be royally pissed off if you don’t go, and you can’t do that to Gia. You need this time with her, and you need time to yourself.” Elise crossed her arms. “I’ll argue with you about this all afternoon until you leave.”
Isaac ran a hand through his hair with a huff. “I can’t leave you here.”
“In your place? Safe all the way up here?” She shrugged. “I’ll stay in a few days, order those BLTs I love from the restaurant downstairs and watch a few sappy movies. Everything will be fine. Then I can get back to work—”
“No.” I glanced swiftly at Isaac when both he and Elise looked sharply at me. “Sorry, but that’s not a good idea. Not until we know you’re safe.”
Isaac nodded. “He’s right. You can’t leave.”
“I can’t…” Elise lifted her hands. “I can’t stay in here forever. I’m sorry, Isaac but I have work to do and…”
I saw her struggle. She was trying not to offend Isaac, because her brother had locked himself up here away from the world after he’d gone through his own tragedy. But right now, she was being as stubborn as Gia had. She couldn’t leave the hotel until she was safe.
Elise put her hands on her hips. “Tell you what. If you don’t go on this trip, I’m leaving here right now.”
Stubborn to a fault. When I met Isaac’s eyes, I could tell we were both thinking the same thing. I gave him a nod.
“Okay,” Isaac agreed. “Logan will stay here with you. But if we go, you’re not to leave this suite.”
“For a few days,” she said.
“Until they catch those motherfuckers. Do you understand?”
“I’m not a little kid,” Elise said.
Isaac walked to her. “It’s a compromise. I do my end, you do yours. Or else we’re not going.”
I saw how quickly she gave in. She just wanted to see her brother happy, and she’d sacrifice just about anything to make that happen. She hugged Isaac and said goodbye and embraced Gia as well at the elevator.
It was my duty to stay here with Elise and make sure she was safe, but it wasn’t until Isaac was gone that I truly realized what I’d gotten myself into.
From here on out, Elise and I were trapped here together.
#
I’d only planned on staying at Isaac’s suite a few days while I searched for my own place. As much as I enjoyed staying in the hotel, I liked to have something different, more like a home. I was going to look for a place while he was gone, but right now, I didn’t have many options.
Not with Logan here, keeping an eye on me like a watchdog.
But I had to admit, right now I was grateful he’d stay
ed. The only person I trusted as much as Isaac was Logan. Even with the tension I sometimes felt between us, I knew he cared. In fact, sometimes I thought he more than cared.
To help myself relax, I took a hot bath and tried not to replay the scene of the man getting shot over and over in my mind. But every time I closed my eyes, that’s what appeared. The man falling to the ground.
And we’d found out shortly after that he’d died.
When I stepped out of the tub, I was so distracted, I knocked my foot into my wine glass that had been sitting on the edge. It was empty but the glass flew to the floor, shattering into dozens of pieces.
I heard Logan’s quick footsteps and barely had a chance to wrap a towel around me before he was barging into the room.
His eyes were wide, hand reaching for his gun. “What happened? Are you okay?”
“It’s just the glass—I accidentally knocked it over.”
He eyed the floor and then relaxed when he saw I was telling the truth. “Are you hurt?”
“No.”
“Good. Stay there.”
He vanished before I could argue. I was mostly naked, water still dripping from my body, and he wanted me to stay here? No way.
I stepped out of the tub, careful to avoid the pieces I could see. Logan returned with a broom and dustpan and shook his head.
“What the hell? Elise—I mean, Ms. Cra—”
“Don’t you dare call me that. How many times have I told you to call me Elise? I’m not your boss, and you barely know me or seem to care to know me,” I snapped. “So don’t.”
Once the words were out of my mouth, I realized what I’d said and froze. Logan’s eyes locked on mine for a long moment before they dropped to the floor.
“That’s not entirely accurate,” he said quietly. “I’ll help you.”
I blinked. “What?”
His feet crunched on a few pieces of glass as he crossed the floor and scooped me off my feet. “I don’t want you to get cut.”
I was so surprised by the action, I couldn’t say anything as he walked me to my room and set me inside the doorway. And I swear his eyes dipped to my towel, traced my shoulders, before flashing back up to my face.
