Expose, p.17
Expose, page 17
The other man on the floor released his grasp from my legs and grabbed the switchblade to defend himself.
“I’ll kill you!” Jaxson screamed, slamming his fist into the first man’s face, the guy with bloody fingers. I hadn’t realized how deep I’d bitten down. Seeing the blood made me gag.
Lincoln and Mason tore down the dimly lit stairs with Jaxson, disarming both men, knocking them momentarily unconscious.
I threw myself into Jaxson’s embrace.
Lincoln pulled out a pair of zip ties and secured both attacker’s hands to ensure they were no longer a threat.
Being wrapped in Jaxson’s strong, warm arms made me relax. I rubbed my cheek against his chest and closed my eyes, drinking in his strength.
Lincoln cleared his throat. “Sorry to break up the reunion, but there’s still a bunch of guys out front with Aiden. We need to get out of here, now.”
Lincoln headed up the stairwell first, gun drawn.
“Stay behind me,” Jaxson said, leading me up the stairs. Like his shadow, I clung to him.
The men gave one another signals. He nodded for me to follow.
Each step they took was silent, absent as if they never were here.
Shouts from the basement erupted. The two men downstairs had woken up.
“We need to move, now!” Jaxson grabbed my arm and pulled me to run with him as he led me out the back door and into the forest.
“Where’s your truck?” I’d heard a car door earlier, not long before Jaxson had come down and rescued me.
We kept running through the forest with no end in sight. I glanced over my shoulder. Men in black suits with guns were trailing behind us.
“Way too far.” His hand clutched mine, a lifeline.
He pulled me through the forest.
I wasn’t out of shape. Ordinarily, I could have run miles without a hitch, but I’d been assaulted twice today and survived an accident in an ambulance.
It wasn’t my best day.
He pulled me tight against a tree, his body pressed against mine, protecting me.
Bullets whizzed by our heads. I froze, frightened. The sound of a gunshot rippled through my body, forcing the adrenaline to rear its ugly head.
I trembled but found solace in the warmth of Jaxson’s body pressing me tight against the rough bark.
His embrace was firm, protective, and warm. His touch was strong while his attention was entirely on keeping me safe.
Lincoln found a tree for cover.
Mason did the same.
“We can’t keep running,” Jaxson said. He wasn’t talking to me.
Lincoln, Mason, and Jaxson began firing their weapons at the men in suits with guns.
“Who are they?” They didn’t look like the C.I.A.. They weren’t the same grungy bastard types who had attacked me at the resort or burned down my cabin and abducted me for money.
“Bounty hunters,” Jaxson said.
My hands pulled him closer, willing him to do whatever he needed to do to save me. He wasn’t joking.
These were men on a mission to kill.
“Since when do bounty hunters wear suits?” I tried to make a joke. Probably bad timing as he pressed himself entirely against me, his face in mine, taking cover as bullets rained around us.
His forehead leaned against mine. My fingers tugged at his jacket. I shivered, the coat he loaned me long since discarded.
“You’re freezing, shit.” Jaxson tried making himself as small as possible, not to let his limbs extend from beyond the cover of the tree trunk.
He slipped off his coat and put it around my shoulders. “You need this more than I do.” His eyes twinkled with that charm that only Jaxson had.
He was a hero in every sense of the word.
“You’re going to be cold,” I said, attempting to reason with him why I shouldn’t take his spare coat since I’d already taken possession of his last jacket, and that hadn’t ended well for his clothes.
Lincoln and Mason fired off shots at the men. The sound of gunfire coming at us seemed to diminish. Were the men dead, injured, or out of bullets?
“I’ll be fine,” he scoffed. “Now, stay here. Don’t move.” Jaxson raised his gun again, firing off several more shots before silence ensued.
Was it over?
I trembled against the trunk of the tree, warmer as I slid my arms into his coat but unable to move, too afraid the men played dead.
What if they were waiting for us to move, to sneak out from hiding and shoot me?
“All clear!” Aiden shouted from where the bullets had been flying from earlier.
“Don’t move,” Jaxson said.
Wordlessly, I nodded. I could handle not moving. I was good at that, especially right now when my body wasn’t cooperating. Even if I wanted to walk, I didn’t think myself capable.
The trunk of the tree held me up. My weight pressed tight. I let my fingers graze over the wood, memorizing every detail, the texture against the pads of my fingertips—anything to take my mind off what had just transpired.
Jaxson poked his head out, his hands on my hips as Mason, Lincoln, and Aiden tracked through the forest back toward the cabin from where the gunshots had gone off.
“All clear,” Mason said.
Jaxson didn’t so much as release his hold or move away like I thought he might. He held me, kept me protected. Was he worried it wasn’t over? Did he think I couldn’t look after myself?
His jaw was tight, square, and clenched. “We left those two goons tied up. It probably won’t be long until they want their revenge. Boys like that don’t appreciate losing.”
“Great,” I muttered under my breath.
“They got their revenge and then some. They need a body bag,” Aiden said, pointing at both men lying in a pool of their own blood on the snow-covered ground.
I shivered.
“It’s over,” Jaxson said. His shoulders relaxed. The tension slipped out of him.
The warmth of the sun began to fade as it set. I wasn’t quite at ease. “Is it?” I whispered.
The men from the resort, the thugs who attacked me earlier in the day, were expecting four million dollars, and I didn’t have a cent.
Jaxson held me tight. His hand latched around mine. We waited outside the front of the cabin, the one where I’d been dragged and nearly raped, for the police to arrive.
I wasn’t looking forward to giving my statement. I didn’t want to relive the trauma over again.
All I wanted was to go home and soak in a warm bath.
Except I didn’t have a bath anymore. Hell, I didn’t have a house anymore.
The police finally came along, taking their sweet time. The Eagle Tactical guys had to answer questions of their own about the incident, as did I.
I didn’t like being separated from them, especially Jaxson, but we were outside and only a few yards away. I could see him, but not being safe in his warm arms made it difficult.
Just as the last statements were given, Declan strolled up in his truck offering us a ride.
I climbed into the backseat sandwiched between Jaxson and Lincoln.
Aiden grabbed the front seat.
Mason cleared his throat.
“Sorry, man, there’s no room,” Lincoln joked with Mason.
“Looks like Mason’s going to sit on Jaxson’s lap,” Aiden grinned.
Jaxson rolled his eyes.
“You’re groaning because you know it’s true,” Aiden said.
Jaxson’s gaze met mine. “You’re going to have to sit on my lap for the ride back to Eagle Tactical.”
“Okay,” I answered a little too quickly. They didn’t notice. Jaxson didn’t budge from his position on the side, and I scooted onto his lap.
Lincoln scooted over, making room for Mason. He jogged around the back of the truck, and Declan started to take off, the door open, messing with him.
“Don’t be an ass!” Mason chased after the truck before Declan softly came to a stroll, making Mason climb in while the vehicle was still moving. Albeit it wasn’t moving fast, I couldn’t hide the grin on my face. He deserved it, just a little.
Mason flung himself into the truck and slammed the door.
“Got everyone?” Declan glanced in the rearview mirror, taking a brief mental headcount before hitting the gas and hightailing it out of there.
The backseat was a little too cozy. I shifted on Jaxson’s lap, my cheeks burning from the heat or his proximity.
All the men of Eagle Tactical were eye candy. To be thrust in the backseat on Jaxson’s lap and practically sandwiched in with Lincoln, wasn’t so bad. Mason was growing on me too. He saved my life, even after I’d been an ass to him. Whether it was well-deserved was still debatable.
“Thanks, you guys,” I whispered, my hands trembling.
Jaxson’s warm, strong embrace wrapped around my waist, his fingers against my hips. Every part of me burned like I was on fire, but my heart ached, conflicted with doubt. He’d left after we’d been intimate without so much as a word goodbye. How could I forgive that transgression?
Should I forgive him?
He saved my life. I owed him my life, but did I owe him my heart?
“All in a day’s work,” Mason said. He gave me a faint smile. Did he no longer hate me? That had to be good news, especially if I saw Jaxson again.
Conflicted was the understatement of the century. Everything about Jaxson was perfect, but I was a mess. He deserved better, someone who made him happy.
He had a daughter, and then there was Emma.
The guys laughed and joked on the rest of the ride back to Eagle Tactical. I sat quietly, lost in my thoughts and the heat of the moment between Jaxson and myself. His lap was warm, comfortable, his embrace even more magical.
I whimpered, disappointed when we arrived, and I needed to climb out of the truck. I had thought no one heard me, but Jaxson raised an inquisitive eyebrow.
I shut my lips fast and glanced away, humiliated.
The guys all piled out of the truck.
“I need a ride to my vehicle,” Lincoln said.
“Ariella and I need a ride back to my house,” Jaxson said, already deciding that I was going with him.
I wasn’t sure where I was going or what would happen next. I didn’t have a house. Everything had burned in the disaster. I still had a date with thugs who wanted four million dollars that I’d missed and a cell phone that had been smashed in the fight at the resort.
My life was a mess.
“Lincoln, I’ll give you a ride if you’re buying me dinner,” Aiden joked.
“Fine. Never a dull moment or a day off,” Lincoln said.
Declan hurried over toward Jaxson and me. He shoved his hand into his coat pocket, retrieving a smartphone. “A small present. You can thank Jaxson later,” Declan said with a wink. He handed me the phone. My mouth practically hit the floor.
“What are you—I don’t understand,” I said. My fingers grazed over the crystal screen. It appeared brand new. There were no scratches or scuffs, pristine condition. It was better than my flip phone.
“When you mentioned your cell phone had been destroyed earlier, I texted and asked him to set you up with a new phone. He also made sure that no one else can trace your whereabouts. Other than us,” Jaxson said. He laughed.
I wasn’t sure if he was joking or not. I didn’t care. “Thank you,” I said to both men. They’d saved my life. If they wanted to implant a tracker on me or put one in my phone, I was at their mercy. I owed them.
Declan gestured at the phone in my hand. “We tied it to your recent phone plan. It’s already active, and anyone who needs to get ahold of you will be able to.”
Mason hurried over to us. “Do you still need a ride home?”
Jaxson pulled me tighter against him. The wind outside whipped through the air, stinging my cheeks, but his proximity warmed me. “Yes, we both could use a ride back to my place.”
I shuffled my feet and shoved my hands into my coat pockets. Jaxson’s scent surrounded me, especially on his coat. He had to be freezing, but he hid it rather well. Did he always pretend to be the tough guy?
“Follow me,” Mason said, hurrying to his truck.
Jaxson grabbed my arm, linking ours together as he walked me to Mason’s truck and opened the back door for me.
I slid into the backseat, the leather chilly against my bottom, forcing an unwanted shiver. I had no home to return to, but if Jaxson insisted I go back with him, I would not say no.
I didn’t want to be alone. Not until I knew I wasn’t in any further danger.
Jaxson shut the door for me and climbed into the front seat. Mason started the truck and pulled out of the lot.
“Drop off Ariella at my house, then I want to make a stop, just you and me,” Jaxson said.
Where did they plan to go after dropping me off? I relaxed in the backseat, staring out the window as we headed up the mountain pass. I pulled the new phone from my pocket, my finger scrolling through the contents he’d been able to retrieve off the cloud, including my contacts.
I had several missed calls and a few text messages from Emma asking me where I was and if everything was okay. I’d call her back tonight when I had a few minutes alone.
I checked my voice messages, my stomach in knots when I heard my boss, Bridget Sanders from the Blue Sky Resort, fire me. “Shit.”
“What’s that?” Mason asked. He glanced at me in the rearview mirror.
My cheeks burned. Jaxson wasn’t happy when I’d cursed in front of Izzie. It was a nasty habit I had trouble breaking.
“I just got fired from my job.” I deleted the message and shut off the screen for my phone, pushing the button on the side to put it into silent mode. I didn’t want to hear from anyone else. My mood turned sour.
“I can’t believe they fired you,” Jaxson said.
Mason’s gaze met mine again, his focus back on the road a moment later. “Wait. They likely don’t know what happened, that you were kidnapped and unable to get to work. You can’t fault them for being in the dark. I’m sure if you talk with your boss, you can have your old job back.”
I didn’t even care about that stupid place or the job. The money was crap pay, but it was employment. “Doubtful. They fired me because, according to them, I lied on my resume since I didn’t disclose my married name or my previous employer.” I ran my fingers through my unkempt hair, tugging at the strands with a groan. “In her words, I’m too much of a liability.”
Mason and Jaxson exchanged a silent glance.
“It never ends,” I seethed. My fingers dug into the leather seat. As if that was the worst of my problems. “Those men will be looking for their money.” I’d never made the drop at sundown.
Jaxson shifted in the passenger seat and turned around to face me. “You’re under our protection. We plan on making that clear.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Jaxson
My blood boiled from hearing that Ariella had been fired from the resort.
She was too good for them, overqualified to be cleaning toilets and changing bed sheets.
“I’m under your protection?” Ariella’s soft whisper caught in her throat. I almost couldn’t hear her, but I strained to listen to every word.
“Of course.” Didn’t she realize how much she meant to me already? I cared deeply for a woman who held a closet of secrets. Would she ever let me inside?
Declan had texted Lincoln and me the information he’d pulled from the resort. The surveillance he acquired had taken no time to identify the two men who had attacked Ariella at the resort.
They were commonly referred to as ‘off-gridders’ living on the outskirts of town together in a commune.
I knew a few of them through my work with Eagle Tactical. They were usually harmless, feared authority, and were reclusive individuals who avoided anyone who wasn’t one of them.
In the simplest of terms, they were shady.
Why had they gone after Ariella?
Had they been victims in the Ponzi scheme as well?
We still didn’t have all the answers, and while it looked like her ex-husband may not have been rightfully convicted, the evidence still pointed to him.
Had the C.I.A. set him up? Had they intended to set up Ariella as well, and she’d got away with a decent lawyer?
Mason turned down the road for my house. “I’m going to walk her inside,” I said. Mason left the engine running as I hopped out from the truck the moment he pulled to a standstill.
I opened the back door of the truck for Ariella and offered her my hand. Her eyes fell on the snow and slush as she climbed out of the truck.
I held her close and could smell the smoke from the fire on her clothes and skin. It tickled my nose. I probably needed a shower too.
“Come on inside.” I ushered her to my front door, unlocked the deadbolt, disarmed the alarm, and led her inside.
She slipped off her winter boots first and then my jacket, handing it to me. “Thank you for this,” she said.
The energy I’d harbored had me forgetting how cold it had been outside, how my fingers were numb. I slipped on the coat, smelling a mix of her womanly scent and smoke mingled together.
Skylar hurried down the stairs and stopped midway, her hand hovering on the railing. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes. Thank you for keeping an eye on Izzie. Ariella will be staying with us.” I didn’t elaborate for how long. It wasn’t something we’d discussed, but the obvious fact her house was a pile of ash showed it wouldn’t be a few short days. “Can you show her to my bedroom for a fresh change of clothes? She may want to shower and get cleaned up. I’m sure you’re familiar with where the linens are located.”
Skylar had stayed over enough times that she knew her way around my house.
“I’ll show her around,” Skylar said.
“Thank you,” Ariella said. With quiet steps, she approached the bottom stair and turned around, glancing over her shoulder at me. “I’ll be here when you get back.”
“I expect nothing less. I’ll set the alarm. Don’t open the door for anyone, is that understood?”
“Yes,” they both said in unison.
