Page 19 of Being Bold (Tactical Operations & Protection (TOP) Security #1)

A cry of pain burst from her lips as her head connected with the solid floor of frozen water. It stunned her into stillness. She stared up at the twinkling stars while the ache spread throughout her body. Everything hurt, but she couldn’t stay here. The suit would come after her.

Get up, Selene!

Before she could make her body obey her frantic mind, an ominous cracking sound broke the stillness, then her head plunged into the freezing pond.

◆◆◆

Bo

Bo’s eyes searched the darkness for Selene, his actions desperate after hearing her cry out. He’d scoured the edge of the woods but didn’t track any movement through its snowy branches. When he was about to plunge into the foliage, Nugg appeared. Bo sucked in a sharp breath.

I don’t fucking have time for this!

Nugg stood at the edge of the tree line next to a pine, arms crossed over his tan desert fatigues. With a shake of his dark blonde head, he nodded in the opposite direction. “You’re forgetting she’s a civilian, man.”

Bo spun around. Nugg was right. She wouldn’t have gone into the woods.

Adrenaline flushed his veins as he took off running. He made it from one end of the complex to the other in record time. Tagging the suit standing on the ridge above the retaining pond, Bo barely stopped to lift his pistol, taking the guy out. The asshole hadn’t even seen him coming.

“Selene!” he called down to her.

She came up gasping, struggling for a handhold on the cracking ice as he slid down the slope toward her.

Instead of running for cover in the woods like a member of TOP would’ve, she’d headed for the road, which left her exposed.

He cursed himself for not giving her more direction as he skidded to a stop at the edge of the frozen pond.

While he tested the ice, she climbed out of the water, sliding onto her stomach, then collapsing. He took a step, and the ice creaked under his feet.

Shit!

It was too unstable to risk walking on. The last thing he needed was to plunge them both back into the freezing water.

“Selene! Can you roll toward me?” He needed to get her off the thin section so he could reach her without cracking more ice.

She didn’t respond to his shout, and the sight of her body violently trembling pitched his stomach.

Fuck!

He needed a rope. He had one in his truck, but he hated to leave her. Hoping she heard him, he yelled, “Hang on, Selene! I’m getting a rope.”

She didn’t acknowledge him. Fear and anger started to claw at his focus. Shoving the emotions aside, he flew up the slope, through the parking lot, to his pickup. After snagging the length of black climbing rope from the bed, he raced back to the pond.

He tied a loop and tossed it to her. When the rope hit her back, she lifted her head. “Grab it and I’ll pull you away from the edge.”

She blinked at him, looking dazed.

“Come on, ocean-eyes, grab the rope for me.” He tried to keep the worry from his voice, but considering how rough it sounded, he didn’t think he’d succeeded.

He pulled the rope so it lay next to her face and silently begged her to take hold of it. If she didn’t . . . he was going to have to risk crawling toward her.

With what looked like tremendous effort, she reached up and slipped an arm through the loop, hugging it to her chest.

“Good girl,” he murmured, pulling her to safety.

When he’d tugged her onto the thicker ice, he crouched and rolled her over. She whimpered at the movement. Wanting to get them further from the broken edge before more ice decided to give way, he lifted under her arms and dragged her backward up the slope.

Reaching the top, he sprawled out and pulled her to his chest, happy to be against solid ground. Despite the cold, warmth fizzed around his heart at having her safe in his arms. “I’ve got you, ocean-eyes.”

Sitting up, he pushed the hair from her face. Her eyes were closed, her lips blue, and her body shook with cold tremors. If he hadn’t already dispatched the man who’d been after her, he’d have shot him again when he felt the goose egg forming on the back of her head.

Dammit! He’d nearly failed her. Letting her come with them had been a mistake. She was soaked through and holding her was wetting his own clothing.

With another curse, he lifted her limp body. Cradling her against his chest with an arm underneath her legs, he ran toward the truck. They needed dry clothes fast, but they couldn’t stay here. Her apartment wasn’t safe. Whoever those men were, he had no doubt more would be coming.

Acid burned through his gut. The black SUV was gone when he made it to the parking lot, which meant one of those fuckers had gotten away.

Reaching his pickup, he tucked Selene inside and rounded the hood. As soon as he cranked the engine, he blasted the heat. Hoping it warmed up fast, he shut the door and palmed his gun. He’d do a quick circuit of the lot and building to make sure those fuckers were truly gone.

It didn’t take long to find that Yumi had already taken out the trash. The men they’d dispatched were gone, and he saw no trace of more. But someone had gotten away with news that Selene still breathed. Bo was so pissed his hand wanted to shake.

By the time he returned to the truck, he had himself under control. But when he climbed in, Selene’s slumped, shivering form made him fight a wave of panic. It would take too long to get her back to the cabin. He had to get her out of the wet clothes—now.

He tugged off his coat, the damp flannel underneath, and climbed into the backseat, pulling Selene with him, so he’d have more room to strip her down.

“Bo?” Her question was a whispered groan when he’d gotten her reclined on the bench seat.

“We’ve got to get your wet stuff off.” He pulled her heavy coat down her shoulders, and her eyelids fluttered.

“I’m co-o-ld.”

“I know. I’m sorry. This’ll help,” he soothed as he tossed the coat in the foot of the truck, then tugged the sopping hoodie over her head. He noted with disappointment that she’d retrieved her underwear from the dryer, not that it wasn’t pretty. A pale, lacy bra covered her breasts.

She shivered again, and he stopped ogling her to yank the drenched sweatpants down her legs.

Next, he went to work on her waterlogged boots.

He struggled with the laces—she’d double-knotted them.

When he’d gotten them undone, he tugged the shoes off.

Feeling water sloshing inside, he opened the door and upended them onto the snow-covered asphalt.

Selene whimpered when the cold air hit her bare skin. He’d left her with only her bra and panties. Cursing, he slammed the door. After tossing her boots down, he hugged her to his chest, letting his skin warm hers.

He flinched at the temperature of her body.

It felt like hugging an ice cube. Her hair was damp, which didn’t help.

Feeling for the door’s side pocket, his fingers connected with a blousing strap.

The short elastic band with a tiny hook on each end was a leftover from his Navy days.

Then, he’d used them to secure his trousers to the top of his boots, but now, it was all he had for a makeshift hair tie.

He hooked the end of it in his mouth. With Selene’s weight lying against him, he used both hands to gather her short black hair into a knot. When he had it contained, he used the blousing strap to tie it up. At least now it wouldn’t drip water onto her chilled skin.

He accidentally grazed the bump on the back of her head, and she whimpered. “I’m sorry, ocean-eyes,” he mumbled.

Avoiding the bump, he gently brushed his lips over the scab on her left side where the bullet had grazed her. The bandage had come off in the pond, and he winced, knowing they’d have to clean it out again. If the cut on his chest were any indication, it would burn like a motherfucker.

A growl built in his throat. He’d fucked up and she’d almost died—again.

Not only had he sent her into danger, but he’d let one of those men live.

Yumi had taken out one in Selene’s apartment.

He’d put a bullet in two more, but they’d let the fourth slip away.

If they worked for Dao, it was safe to assume he’d know Selene was alive by now.

Another way he’d messed up. Bo closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the seat. He hoped Yumi made it out and that she actually showed up at the cabin. Because losing the tech she’d downloaded would be the sewage-scented frosting on this shit cake he’d been served.

Selene’s hand lifted to lie on his stomach, and she snuggled into him with a soft sigh. When his body flushed with warmth, he hugged her tighter and wished he could hold her like this when it wasn’t a life-or-death situation. But that wasn’t in the cards for him.

Despite knowing he didn’t deserve her, he wanted her. And not only for sex, but this cuddling or whatever the fuck they were doing. He’d never just . . . lain with a woman before, and it was . . . nice.

Nice? It felt a whole hell of a lot better than nice. Like maybe his future wasn’t as bleak as he thought. And wasn’t that a frightening fucking possibility?

Bo gulped and noticed her trembling had finally stopped. He gently eased her back, cupping her cheek with his palm. Flickering shadows highlighted the contours of her face, making her eyes glow as she stared up at him.

He traced the tiny mole by her eyebrow. “We have to get out of here. I need you to be strong for me. Can you do that?”

“Yes.”

“That’s my girl,” he murmured, surprising himself.

She wasn’t his anything. Clearing his throat, he pushed her away.

“There’s a blanket in the back.” He opened the door and stepped into the frigid night before he did something stupid like kiss her again.

The shock of the cold air was a slap to the face. One he deserved.

Grumbling under his breath, he snagged the blanket from the lockbox in the bed of his truck. Opening the door, he tossed it at Selene, then climbed into the driver’s seat. “You can come up here for the vents if you want.”

Without a word, she climbed into the passenger seat, holding the blanket tight around her shoulders. “Thank you.”

That phrase was a knife cut, tearing through his skin with a hiss of pain. He’d nearly gotten her killed. He deserved many things, but her gratitude wasn’t one of them. It made him growl, “You don’t have anything to thank me for.”

Her reply calmed the angry beast beating out a tempo in his blood. “I’m too tired to argue with you.”

Way to be an asshole, Bo.

He glanced over at her as he pulled out of the parking lot. She’d curled into a ball, leaning her head against the door. “Rest. I’ll wake you when we get to the cabin.”

Turning away, he frowned at the snowy landscape that filled the windshield. They still had to ride back to the cabin on the sled. How would he manage that without any clothes for her to wear?