Bodyguard for Christmas

by Carol J. Post

  After a peek out the front window, she opened the door and slipped outside. For the indeterminable future, she was going to be stuck at the house. Colton was even pulling Liam out of day care.

  Jasmine glanced around the yard, then headed down the steps. Brutus plodded toward her. He’d made her a little nervous when she’d first met him, just because of his sheer size. The way he’d lowered his ears and eyed her warily hadn’t helped, either.

  After that initial greeting, he’d moved her from the foe to the friend category. Or more likely, unknown to friend.

  When Brutus reached her, she sat on the top step, which put her face even with his. She scratched his cheeks and neck, and his tail wagged.

  “You like that?”

  In response, the tail wagged harder. She sometimes felt sorry for him, roaming the yard alone. But that was the reason Colton had gotten him—for protection, not as a house pet.

  Brutus bounded off, then returned to lay a partially chewed tennis ball at her feet. She picked it up, hoping the moisture was left over from this morning’s rain rather than dog slobber. When she tossed the ball, Brutus took off after it, catching it in midair.

  Her phone buzzed in her back pocket, notification of an incoming text. She smiled at the name on the screen. Dom was more than a coworker. He was a friend. She had a good relationship with all Burch Security bodyguards, but she’d always felt closest to Dom. He was the big brother she’d never had.

  His text was short—Good time to call?

  She texted back a yes.

  Moments later her ringtone sounded. As soon as she answered, Dom’s voice came through the phone, tough but with an edge of playfulness.

  “How’s the second-best security guard in all of America?”

  She grinned. She was second best because he’d claimed the number one slot a long time ago. “Fine.” She picked up Brutus’s ball and tossed it again. “Enjoying the clean mountain air. This assignment is getting me out of the city.”

  “Good for you. I just finished mine. Boyfriend-turned-blackmailer. The client decided she was tired of paying out. I caught the creep trying to climb in her second-story bedroom window. He got a little surprise.”

  Jasmine’s lips lifted in a wry smile. That surprise probably came in the form of Dom’s fist. He’d always been protective of women, sometimes in an extreme, obsessive way. He’d almost gotten himself in trouble a few times.

  Except for a six-year stint with the Marines, until moving to Atlanta, he’d lived in Massachusetts. Or “Mass,” as he called it. The heavy New England accent just added to his tough-guy persona. He was one of only two men on the planet that she’d trust with her life. The other was Gunn.

  “Don’t know what’s next. How’s yours going?”

  “Not sure. The guy’s a district attorney, has made some enemies. One of them is going after him and his son.”

  “No wife in the picture?”

  “No wife.” Just a handsome, heartbroken father and a little boy who was touching her heart in a way no one else ever had. Oh, to have an assignment like Dom just finished—uncomplicated and unemotional.

  She picked up the ball again. Brutus wasn’t showing any signs of winding down. As he took off after it, a Silverado pickup drew to a stop outside the fence. This time Tanner’s wife, Paige, was with him. Jasmine had met them both at church her first Sunday there, along with several of Colton’s other friends.

  She disconnected the call with Dom, then opened the gate and motioned them inside. When they’d parked, she closed the gate behind them.

  While his wife exited the passenger’s side, Tanner climbed out from behind the wheel. “We went out to eat at ShoeBootie’s with Andi and Bryce. Figured we’d stop by here and check in with you guys on our way home.”

  Jasmine led them toward the house. “Colton will be glad to see you.”

  Tanner stepped onto the deck behind her. “Any more threats?”

  “No. But it’s only been two days.”

  When she swung open the door, Colton shut off the TV. “I thought I heard voices outside.”

  Soon Tanner was positioned on the love seat with his arm around his wife, and Jasmine had taken a seat beside Colton.

  Tanner crossed an ankle over the opposite knee. “I don’t suppose there’ve been any new developments in the case.”

  Colton shook his head. “Not yet.”

  Liam climbed over his father to get into Jasmine’s lap. She wrapped him in her arms and gave him a tight squeeze. When she glanced at Colton, conflicting emotions tumbled across his face. The concern she understood. When it came to his son, there was plenty to be concerned about.

  She didn’t understand the warmth. Or maybe she did and didn’t want to acknowledge it. Somehow, it made her want to put distance between them, yet draw closer at the same time.

  But accusation? As if she’d intentionally wormed her way into his son’s heart?

  She gritted her teeth. He’d said he didn’t want his son getting attached to her. But she’d only been doing her job. Well, maybe comforting him during his nightmares fell a little outside of those job responsibilities.

  But how could she deny him what she’d longed for at his age when it was within her power to give?

  He slid from her lap and ran toward the kitchen. When he disappeared into his room, Colton crossed his arms, his gaze shifting to his friend. “The authorities in Atlanta have been working to identify the men responsible for the break-in and attempted kidnapping. I’ve had several conversations with them. My former administrative assistant has, too. We’ve given them the names of everyone we can think of who might want to exact some vengeance. They’re also looking at recently released inmates, seeing if I was involved in any of their cases.”

  Tanner nodded. “From what I hear, Cherokee County is throwing in some of their resources now, too.”

  “Good,” Colton said. “Since that note, Atlanta PD is putting special focus on one defendant in particular. We wrapped up his case the week before Mandy died. At that time, he made some pretty serious threats.”

  “That was seven months ago. Why wait till now to act?”

  “Four weeks after he made his threats, I left for Montana. Then I was back home only a week before coming up here.”

  Tanner pursed his lips. “The reference to you running.”

  “My thoughts exactly. Ransacking my house, trying to take my son, leaving threatening notes that let me know he’s watching—that’s his style. He stalks his victims, making them almost crazy with fear before he finally takes them out.”

  Liam returned to the room holding his stuffed rabbit. This time he made a beeline for Paige, whose face lit with a broad smile. She obviously loved kids. The boy lifted his arms, the rabbit dangling from one hand, and she dragged him onto her lap. When he snuggled against her chest, she rocked him back and forth.

  Colton nodded toward his son. “I’m pulling him out of day care. I think it’ll be easier for Jasmine to protect him if he stays here in the house. But I have to hire a babysitter. Jasmine needs to be free to patrol without distractions.”

  He rose and began to pace. “After my last babysitter ended up bound and gagged in the closet, I’m a little hesitant. I still haven’t come up with a solution.”

  Paige wrapped her hand around one of Liam’s. “I can do it. At least until the next term starts.”

  Tanner stared her down, a tic in his jaw. “Colton knows I’d do almost anything for him, but putting my wife in danger is where I draw the line.”

  Paige shifted her position to face him more fully. “It sounds like the creep is still in the stalking stage.”

  “He tried to kidnap Liam.” Exasperation filled Tanner’s tone.

  “Now Liam has a bodyguard. And in case you’ve forgotten, I can pretty well hold my own.”

  “Two wom—” Tanner cut
himself off midphrase, apparently second-guessing the opinion he was about to express.

  Paige sighed. “Look, it’s only during the day, while Colton is at work. Won’t you guys and Cherokee County be doing some drive-bys anyway?”

  “Occasionally.” Tanner still didn’t look happy. “What about in between times?”

  “There are still two lines of defense—Brutus and Jasmine.”

  “What if someone shoots her?”

  Jasmine lifted her brows.

  “Sorry, but it’s a possibility.”

  “I’ll be wearing Kevlar.”

  She was stating a fact, not taking sides. She wasn’t sure whose side to take in the argument. She tended to agree with Paige, that Perez, or whoever, was still in the stalking stage.

  Colton was right about needing to hire a babysitter. She couldn’t effectively do her job if all her attention was on watching Liam. Paige was as good a choice as anyone. Probably better. Jasmine didn’t know anything about her background, but that statement about being able to hold her own was encouraging.

  When Tanner and Paige left a short time later, Liam climbed back onto Jasmine’s lap. Colton patted his son’s back.

  “Okay, buddy, it’s nap time.”

  Liam wrapped his little arms around her waist and squeezed. “No.”

  “How about if Miss Jasmine puts you to bed?”

  He was silent for several moments, as if thinking about his answer. “’Kay.”

  Colton helped her to her feet, Liam still wrapped around her. After laying him on his side in his bed, she positioned the rabbit in his arms, then rubbed his back for several moments. “Sleep good.”

  His thumb slipped into his mouth, and she straightened. Colton stood leaning against the chest of drawers next to the door, arms crossed. His posture said restrained, maybe even a little defensive.

  But that was not what his eyes said. His gaze was warm, filled with admiration. Something else, too. As if he was looking at her, not simply as his son’s protector. But as a woman.

  She swallowed hard. She was seeing what she wanted to see. She’d found Colton attractive right from the start. Cade, too, since their looks were identical. But Colton’s depth and seriousness appealed to her far more than Cade’s flippancy.

  Her eyes shifted to the framed portrait sitting atop the dresser. The perfect happy family—successful husband and father, beautiful wife and mother, sweet child, the product of their love.

  She didn’t belong in that picture. Even with Mandy gone, that empty slot was one she could never hope to fill.

  She strode toward the door. When her gaze met Colton’s, whatever she thought she’d seen was gone.

  “I’m going outside.” This time she’d stay out for a while, throwing the ball for Brutus, circling the yard however many times she had to. Whatever it took, she’d crush the feelings Colton stirred in her and end this longing for something she could never have.

  She stepped onto the deck, again envious of Dom’s easy assignment. But no matter how difficult this one was turning out to be on a personal level, something told her she was exactly what Liam needed at this point in his life.

  As far as Liam’s handsome father, she didn’t know what he needed.

  But she was pretty sure she didn’t have it.

  SIX

  A terrified scream pierced the quiet.

  Colton clawed his way to consciousness. The shriek that had jarred him awake wasn’t the first. There’d been at least one other. It hovered in the back of his mind, like the remnant of a dream.

  He sprang from the bed and darted into the living room. Why hadn’t he come instantly awake? He certainly wasn’t letting down his guard.

  Or maybe he was, on a subconscious level. Maybe after six months of middle-of-the-night screams, having someone else to ease the burden was working its way into his psyche. Knowing Jasmine never let down her guard, he was slowly letting down his, at least in sleep.

  When he shot through Liam’s open door, Jasmine was sitting in the rocking chair, already holding him. Brutus lay nearby. Yesterday morning’s rain had ushered in a cold front. With temperatures expected to dip near freezing, Colton hadn’t had the heart to leave him outside.

  He knelt in front of the chair to cup his son’s head. Except for some quiet whimpers, he was still. “You okay, buddy?”

  Liam drew in a shuddering breath through his nose, not willing to give up the security of his thumb. His free arm was stretched along Jasmine’s side.

  When Colton had first met her, he’d pegged her as not the motherly type. He’d obviously been wrong.

  He glanced behind him to check the digital clock on the dresser—5:12. His own alarm would be going off in another forty-five minutes. It wouldn’t be worth trying to go back to sleep. “Sorry about the short night.”

  “No problem. I was awake anyway.” Her voice was a soft murmur.

  He matched her tone. Liam seemed to be going back to sleep. “You’ve said that before.”

  “I sleep in bursts. I’ve never required a lot.”

  Maybe she didn’t, but she probably needed more than she got. She’d likely just conditioned her body to function well in a continuously sleep-deprived state.

  “You should try to work in another burst before daylight.”

  She gave him a half smile. “I might do that.”

  He’d get ready for work, have his quiet time, then whip up some breakfast. He wasn’t a great cook, but he made some mean scrambled eggs. And he could usually manage toast without burning it.

  He leaned back to sit on the floor, giving his knees a break. “I appreciate what you’re doing for him. You’re really good with him.”

  “I don’t mind. He’s an easy kid to love.” She closed her eyes and placed a soft kiss on the top of his head.

  Colton’s heart swelled. Watching Jasmine play a motherly role, treating Liam with such tenderness, did funny things to his insides. He was still having a hard time reconciling the tough ex-MP who put him on the floor in Gunter Burch’s office with the gentle woman whose presence was bringing such healing to his son.

  God had brought her into their lives. When Colton had walked into Burch Security, he’d known what he wanted—a burly monster of a guy no one would mess with. Instead, God gave him five-foot-two-inch Jasmine, tough as nails but with an unexpected gentleness, sympathetic with their struggles because she’d had plenty of her own.

  When Jasmine opened her eyes, her gaze locked with his and held. Something he couldn’t put a name to passed between them. He’d seen it yesterday, too, when they’d put Liam down for his nap—a hint that she might need them as much as they needed her. Then she’d looked away, walked from the room and escaped outside.

  She continued her gentle rocking motion. “You’re an amazing father. I know it’s got to be tough.”

  He nodded. He wouldn’t try to downplay what he’d been through. Trying to keep his son from retreating completely while drowning in his own grief. Struggling to be both father and mother and feeling he was failing miserably at both.

  Since she’d come, some of that overwhelming burden had lifted. Now her expressive brown eyes tugged at him. Encouragement and respect swam in their depths, along with the same sense of longing he’d briefly witnessed during those rare unguarded moments.

  “I sense that you’ve been through your own traumas. I can see it in your eyes.”

  She shrugged, her eyes shifting sideways. “Everyone has their burdens to bear.”

  “And some burdens are especially heavy.”

  She pulled her lower lip between her teeth. For several moments, the only sound was the gentle creak of the rocking chair. When she finally spoke, she didn’t look at him. “His name was Zach, one of the few guys I ever loved.”

  Silence stretched between them again. “We were stationed together in Afghanis
tan. It was early in the morning. Everyone was getting ready to start their day. Someone shouted ‘Incoming.’ Then total chaos. Zach was hit. He died in my arms.”

  Colton rested a hand on her knee. “I’m sorry.”

  She shrugged again. “I think Liam’s asleep.”

  Colton wasn’t surprised at the abrupt subject change. “I’ll put him back in bed.”

  When he tried to lift Liam from her lap, the boy pulled his thumb from his mouth. That arm joined the other to partially circle Jasmine’s body, and he tightened his hold.

  “Mommy.”

  The single word was barely audible. But it left Colton with the sensation that someone had thrown a bucket of ice water in his face.

  Jasmine’s reaction was the same. Her lips parted, and her brows drew together. He might have even seen panic flash in her eyes.

  Colton turned away, trying to rein in his emotions. Maybe Liam was remembering his mother, pretending that was who held him. Or maybe he’d already made the substitution in his mind. If the latter, memories of Mandy would quickly fade. Maybe they would anyway.

  His gaze locked on the framed eight-by-ten photograph atop the dresser. It sat in shadow, barely touched by the soft glow of the night-light.

  But he didn’t need light to see the picture clearly in his mind. It had been taken at Christmastime a year ago, the last professional one they’d had done. Mandy was hugging a laughing Liam, her eyes shining with love and joy.

  She’d loved their son more than life itself. Colton couldn’t let Liam forget her. He had to help him hang on to her memory as long as possible. He just didn’t know how.

  There was rustling behind him as Jasmine rose and a soft creak when she placed Liam in his bed.

  Colton swallowed hard and spoke without turning around. “I’ll wake you up well before I have to leave.”

  Even as he spoke the words, he knew he wouldn’t have to. No matter how rough the night, Jasmine never slept past sunup.

  He left the room and returned to his own. He was having to rely on Bryce for a ride to work. But tonight he’d have his vehicle back. Curtis Home & Auto Glass had the windshield and window replacements scheduled for today.