There was a pause of silence before Wyatt spoke. “You got it.”
His friend didn’t ask any questions, and Luca was grateful for that.
“See you tomorrow.” Without waiting for a response, Luca hung up and headed back to his place.
He wouldn’t get any more sleep tonight. Not until he knew who his new neighbor was and what or who she was running from.
CHAPTER SEVEN
SIGHING, EVIE SIPPED her morning coffee.
Watching Luca’s chest muscles ripple from across the room had fast become her favorite past time. If she couldn’t touch, she figured she may as well enjoy her view from behind the desk each day. It was quite a job perk.
Setting up the main area for the next class, Luca and Asher looked more like athletics models than business owners. Both were shirtless, both had rock hard muscles, but only one held her gaze.
What drew her to him? It wasn’t just the body of a gladiator or the deepest blue eyes she’d ever seen. There was something more. Something deeper. It pulled her in and made her want to break her no men rule.
It had been a week since she had started working at Marble Protection. A week of Marble Falls, bare chests, and Luca.
The day after she thought she’d seen Troy in her house, she’d returned home to Luca insisting on installing a new security system in the house. She had wanted to refuse based on expense, but he’d said that it would be a perk of working at Marble Protection. The knowledge that she would be that bit safer stopped her from saying anything but thank you.
Picking up a pile of mail, Evie started filtering through it.
As jobs went, this one wasn’t too bad. She hadn’t met Oliver or Kye because they’d been away, but all the guys, apart from Eden, had been friendly and easy to get along with. They always said hi to her as they passed the desk in the morning and were happy to answer any of her million questions as she settled into the job.
Marble Protection ran like a well-oiled machine. All the men shared the roles and helped each other out when needed. It reminded Evie of family.
The thought reminded Evie of her own family, but she squashed it before the sorrow could take hold. Not today.
Raising her eyes again, Luca had his back to her now and the muscles clenched in his shoulders.
“Checking out the muscle?”
Looking up at Lexie, a smile lit her face. A few of Evie’s shifts overlapped with Lexie’s, and Evie was already starting to feel comfortable with the other woman. Evie hadn’t had any girlfriends since high school. Talking to Lexie so often felt nice and took away some of the loneliness.
“I wouldn’t say that too loud, Lexie, they might hear you.”
Shrugging, Lexie leaned her hip against the counter. “So? Let them. They deserve to know that their twelve packs are appreciated.”
Taking another sip of coffee, Evie raised her brows. “Any twelve-pack, in particular, take your fancy?”
Evie was referring to Asher, of course. She’d caught Lexie’s eyes following him a few times, but so far, she hadn’t specifically mentioned him. She’d actually gone out of her way not to mention him.
Lexie narrowed her eyes to Evie. “Nope, I have an appreciation for every hot bod.”
Giving a small chuckle, she saw Lexie’s eyes track Asher again.
“He watches you too, you know,” Evie said softly.
Rolling her eyes, Lexie pushed her hip off the counter. “Like how Luca watches you? I don’t think so.” The sad tone in Lexie’s voice was one Evie hadn’t heard before. Lexie always made a point to be out there and upbeat. “Anyway, I need to pop out to grab some more paper for the printer. Give me a call if you need anything.”
Once it was just Evie again, her eyes popped up to see Asher watching Lexie’s retreating form. Something was definitely going on between those two, she would bet her last dollar on it.
Darting her gaze to find Luca, those razor blue eyes fell on her. A smile pulled across his face as Evie flushed. Giving him a smile in return, she quickly ducked her head.
Man, she was in trouble. She couldn’t even look at the guy without acting like a lovesick teenager.
She’d already spent a large chunk of her morning watching Luca from her living room window. It was a bad habit she’d started. Each morning he’d leave his place at exactly six fifteen for his run and return an hour later. He always returned looking like he could turn around and run another ten miles. Luca, without a shirt, on the move, was quite a sight, just like the one here this morning.
Keeping her eyes diverted, Evie focused on the mail. Luca was too easy to like, too easy to fall for, and boy would Evie fall hard for all that was Luca.
“How we doing this morning, sweetheart?” Evie spun, knocking some of the mail to the floor. Had she been too carried away in her thoughts, or had Lexie been right about them moving like ninjas?
“Hey!” Silent for a moment, Evie’s brain scrambled to put a sentence together. “It’s been pretty steady this morning… not too many calls, which is good. The students for your next class arrived about ten minutes ago and are waiting in a back room. I told them you’d get them once you’re ready.”
Luca’s smile reached his eyes. “Perfect, I love starting my day by scaring a group of youth into being good citizens.”
With a wink, he turned to go. Not before bending down to pick up the mail that she’d forgotten about. Placing it in her hand, the brush of his skin against hers caused a trail of goosebumps up her arm. It was electric.
Turning back to the desk, Evie focused on the tasks ahead. As she finished organizing the mail, an envelope that she hadn’t seen before fell out. About to put it in the pile with the rest, something caught her eye.
Evie could just make out the logo on the paper inside the envelope. There was something familiar about it. Where had she seen it before?
Acting on instinct, Evie held the envelope up to the light to get a better look.
“What the hell are you doing?” Startling, Evie spun around, envelope falling from her fingers.
“Eden… I didn’t… I wasn’t sure what the envelope was for.”
He was so close to Evie, she could feel the heat from his skin. She was dwarfed by his size. Trapped between his body and the desk, there was nowhere for Evie to go.
“If it’s not addressed to you and no one told you to open it, then why the fuck are you trying to see what’s in it?”
Squeezing her body closer to the desk, the edge of the wood began to dig into her back. Heart rate picking up, Evie’s breaths become shorter.
“I’m sorry.” Voice small, she tried to stop the panic rising in her chest.
“HUNTER.” Luca’s voice sounded from behind Eden, lifting some of the pressure on her chest.
As Luca pushed himself between them, Evie worked to get her breathing under control. The feel of Luca’s warm back against her front went some way in calming her.
“What the fuck are you doing, man?”
No longer able to see Eden, she could still hear the anger in his voice as he spoke.
“She was trying to read our damn mail.”
Evie cringed as she tried to make herself as small as possible behind Luca. Expecting him to turn accusing eyes on her, she was surprised when Luca remained with his back to her, eyes only for Eden.
“Her name is Evie, use it. And who the fuck cares? What do you think she was going to do with it? I’m going to ask you again, brother, what the fuck are you doing right now?”
There was a moment of tense silence, and just as Evie thought her nerves would snap from what might come next, she heard Eden turn and walk away.
Sagging against the counter, Evie let out a long breath. When Luca turned though Evie tensed.
“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have touched something that wasn’t mine. It isn’t part of my job.”
Luca’s hand raised to Evie’s cheek, and she flinched away. A slight frown touched his brows, but he didn’t voice his thoughts. Pausing for a mom
ent, Luca proceeded to gently place his hand on her cheek.
“Are you okay?”
Luca’s soft voice and gentle touch soothed Evie’s frayed nerves. She hadn’t expected that.
Too surprised to speak, she simply nodded, not even sure her voice would have worked. Luca’s hand was still on her cheek as his thumb began to caress her skin before removing it. Immediately feeling the loss of his warmth, wishing she had the confidence to reach out and place it back, her cheek felt cold where it had just been warm.
“Sorry about Eden. He’s working through some stuff. That’s no excuse for his behavior, but you’re safe here with me.”
Still struggling to find words, she spoke quietly, “Thank you.”
Luca held Evie’s gaze for another minute before slowly moving away.
Breathing out a sigh, she glanced down at her hands, noting how badly they were shaking. Her heart was still beating way too fast. She had come much too close to a panic attack. She had to calm down and fast.
As she stood behind the desk, she practiced some of the slow breathing techniques, trying to push Eden from her mind and focus on Luca’s kind blue eyes. She could still feel Eden’s breath on her face. See the anger in his eyes.
Troy used to do that too. In the later months, the towering would often be followed by his fist or some other form of abuse. Evie had learned to make herself as small and quiet as possible.
A shiver raced down Evie’s spine, and she turned her back on the gym and closed her eyes.
“The past cannot touch me. It cannot hurt me. I am safe.”
Evie whispered the old mantra a couple of times before she turned around. After a moment, the trembling had turned into a slight shake in her hands.
Good. That would fade soon enough.
Glancing up at the gym floor, Evie caught Luca’s eyes on her from across the room. Their gazes locked. There was no way he could have heard that, but he had a primal look on his face. A look that claimed her and made her feel stripped bare.
Evie was still holding his gaze when a shout came from the group of teenagers.
“Fuck off, Jasper, you weren’t supposed to really punch me, asshole.”
The kid, who looked more like a grown man, grabbed the guy opposite him, shoving his body against the wall
“Can’t handle it?” The guy against the wall, who must be Jasper, then threw his chest against the other kid. In the blink of an eye, a punch was thrown, and the two were on the ground.
The punch came out of nowhere. Evie dropped to the ground, hitting it hard.
“You think you can fucking leave me, bitch?” Reaching up, she touched the warm blood trickling from her head, fear clouding her mind. As she tried to open her eyes, her vision blurred, and bile started to work its way up her throat. “You will not leave. You won’t even THINK about leaving me! You’re mine! You hear me?”
Before she could push herself up, a hand gripped her hair, ripping it from her skull. The pain radiated through her head like a hammer.
“Get this into your head, whore, you are mine forever. If you ever try to leave me, I will kill you.”
The heat of his breath mixed in with the warmth of blood on the back of her neck. They were the last things Evie felt before he shoved her head against the ground.
“Evie?” Glancing up, Evie could just make out Luca’s concerned face. He was close. She vaguely recognized that her breathing was too fast. Turning her head, everything looked blurry. Like an out of focus camera.
Was Luca really here? But Troy had just been here. If he was here, she had to get out.
Closing her eyes, Evie still felt Troy’s breath on her neck and his hand gripping her hair. She scrunched her eyes tighter. She had to get him out of her head.
When a hand reached out to touch her, she took a furious step backward, hitting the desk.
“Don’t touch me,” she heard the hysteria in her own voice but couldn’t quite grasp reality.
“It’s okay, Evie. You’re safe. Remember?”
Was she? She had just heard Troy. Had just felt him. Evie could still taste the blood from where he’d hit her.
The shaking in her hands increased. As the hand in front of her reached out for her again, she tried to fling herself back but was stopped by a desk.
“Please,” Evie begged. “Just leave me alone.”
Closing her eyes, the sight of Troy’s hate-filled eyes stared back at her.
Oh god, she hated it when he got that look in his eyes. Some nights she was sure he was going to kill her. Some nights, she wanted him to kill her.
Two strong hands suddenly gripped her arms, keeping her where she was. A scream escaped Evie’s throat as terror seized her. Covering her head with her hands, she begged for peace.
“Get away from me. Please. Just leave me alone.” She couldn’t go through it again. She wouldn’t survive.
Confusion swirled through her mind. Troy’s hands were gentle, but she couldn’t trust them. Troy wasn’t gentle anymore. Not since he’d returned.
“You’re safe, honey.” The whispered words just reached her ears. They couldn’t be real but she wanted to trust them so badly. She craved for the words to be true. How was she safe with Troy here, though? Even if he wasn’t here, he was alive, and that alone meant she wasn’t safe. She hadn’t been safe for a long time.
The air was no longer making it to her lungs, and she struggled to keep the panic from suffocating her. If she passed out, he would kill her.
“Breathe.”
She tried to listen to the gentle voice. Oh god, she tried, but there wasn’t enough air. Her lungs wouldn’t cooperate. She tried pulling breaths in, desperate to get the oxygen into her body, but it wasn’t enough.
Too quickly, white dots started appearing behind her eyes. She was losing consciousness.
Evie prayed that if she woke up, the sweet voice that told her she was safe would still be there. Too soon the world went black.
CHAPTER EIGHT
LUCA WANTED TO strangle someone.
Could no one in this place keep their emotions in check? First Eden blowing up about that damn letter, then those kids going at each other. It was like a damn high school at Marble today.
Gently placing Evie on the office couch, Luca pushed her hair to the side. Keeping his back to the room, he knew the guys were filtering in and that Lexie had just returned to cover the front desk.
Concern filled Luca. Evie’s face was pale. Too pale. Tuning into her heart rate, he was relieved to hear that it had slowed back to an almost normal pace.
When the fight had broken out in the gym, he had heard a whimper come from Evie. When he had focused his attention on her, he’d first noticed her pale complexion followed by her quick breaths.
Luca had wanted to help her. It had become obvious real quick that physically, she may have been at Marble Protection, but mentally she was somewhere else entirely.
Luca had seen even the toughest of men have panic attacks. Their eyes would glaze over and reality was no longer a factor.
There had been ghosts in Evie’s eyes. There were moments out there where he thought she recognized him, but then she would zone out again, retreat to that other place.
Coming back to the present, Luca turned back to his Navy SEAL brothers. These men were his family, and he needed their support right now.
“Any idea what just happened?” Luca shifted his focus to Mason’s question.
“She doesn’t cope well with violence. She was already a bit shaken from Eden’s little interrogation earlier.” Clenching his fists, Luca’s rage boiled at the memory of Eden standing over Evie. He was damn lucky Luca hadn’t beaten his ass. He needed to back off before Luca lost his shit. She was not the enemy, and Eden needed to get that through his thick skull.
“She shouldn’t have been trying to see what was in our mail.” Eden’s apathy on the matter fueled Luca’s anger.
“She’s not one of the people we’re searching for, Hunter. Stop acting li
ke she is.”
Pushing off the wall, waves of violent energy flowed from Eden. “She’s hiding something, and you’re bringing her right into our backyard.”
Not hesitating, Luca moved toward Eden, strategically placing his body between him and Evie. “How could she be a threat to us? She’s a five-foot-four girl who has done absolutely nothing to tell us she’s our enemy. You scared she’s going to take you down, Hunter?”
Eden’s body vibrated from fury. “If she’s connected to them, then her being here is a threat to all of us.”
There was a moment of silence in the room. Did the rest of the team think the same thing?
“She’s not part of Project Arma,” Luca said the words with absolute certainty. “You think I would bring someone in who’s a threat to us? Who the fuck do you think I am?”
“I think you’re a guy who’s thinking with the wrong part of his anatomy, brother.”
Struggling to keep his rage in check. Luca had never hit one of his brothers out of anger, but at that moment, Luca was tempted.
“I know you’ve been through a lot, Hunter, but you better check what you’re saying right the fuck now.”
Before Eden could respond, Asher stepped in between them.
“Let’s cut the verbal sparring for the moment. Rocket trusts her, Hunter, let’s give him the benefit of the doubt until we have something to prove otherwise.”
For an instant, Luca thought Eden wasn’t going to budge. The fury in his eyes would make the ordinary man quiver. Luca stood firm, unfazed by Eden’s display of anger. Then Eden turned away.
Maintaining his gaze on Eden’s back, regret filtered through him. In all the trainings, missions, and life and death situations, they had never questioned each other’s judgment about a woman before. What was in Eden’s past had really done a number on him.
Asher spoke up from the back of the room. “Still nothing more to report on her background check?”
Wyatt sank into the chair behind the desk. “Honestly, man, not a damn thing. Like I said last week, there’s nothing to make us suspect anything. Graduated from high school eight years ago. Lived with her parents until the age of twenty-three when she rented her own place. Worked in sales until moving here. Seems squeaky clean to me.”
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