Page 11 of Blood & Bond (The Bouchers #2)

Rising from the bed, I walked over to the window and pulled the curtains aside just far enough that I could scan the parking lot.

No new cars had pulled in since we’d arrived.

How had we made it so far without being followed?

Had they decided that our family wasn’t worth going after?

It would make sense. They’d already failed to kidnap Beau and Reese, losing four of their soldiers in the process.

Letting the curtain fall back into place, I stretched my arms above my head. I needed to stay focused. Lucy and I had nothing but time ahead of us. Once we were back on my family’s property, we could spend time figuring each other out. Hopefully, naked.

Looking around the room, I spied a phone on the table.

I needed to get in touch with my brothers soon.

It didn’t feel right being completely cut off from them, and they were probably climbing the walls waiting for me to make contact.

I would’ve been if the roles were reversed.

Losing Zeke had been a wake-up call for all of us.

We’d gotten complacent and assumed that all of us would inevitably be okay because we always had been. There had been no way to see it coming, and the blow had been so much worse because of it.

“All done,” Lucy announced as she came out of the bathroom, running her fingers through her damp hair. Reaching up, she combed out the fringe across her forehead and shook her head a little to settle it into place.

“Feel better?” I asked, my voice raspy as I glanced down her body. The night before, she’d slept in her clothes, and I hadn’t had to contend with the skimpy tank top and shorts that she wore as pajamas. My mouth was fucking watering at the sight of her peaked nipples.

“It’s amazing what a cold shower can do,” she said wryly. “You should try it.”

“Funny.” I rose to my feet.

Every molecule of my body was attuned to her. I wouldn’t have been able to look away if I tried. The heat burned beneath my skin.

“I need to check on Charlie,” she said breathily as I moved toward her.

“All right,” I agreed. As I reached her, I lifted my hand and ran one finger gently across her nipple.

“Holy shit,” she hissed, catching my hand as I dropped it. “Do it again.”

I smiled.

That’s when the door to our room swung open, and Charlie hurried into the room.

“Someone’s at my door,” he breathed, his eyes wide and frightened. “Two men. Not the manager.”

“Stay here,” I ordered, striding toward the door that connected our rooms. When I got to his room, I paused next to the door.

It would’ve been easier to hear the two men if Charlie and Lucy hadn’t been whispering to each other, but after a few moments, I’d heard enough of the men’s conversation.

They’d been told to go in quietly, so they’d been hoping that Charlie would just open the door.

While I stood there listening to the idiots, they decided to wait him out.

They figured he’d have to leave the room at some point, and they’d take him then.

No need for a fuss. He’d probably come quietly.

I waited for another minute after they’d walked away from the door before I headed back into the other room. Charlie and Lucy stood side by side just outside the bathroom door.

“Get dressed, baby,” I ordered quietly, nodding to her bag.

“Who are those guys?” Lucy asked as she kneeled down to pull her clothes out.

“Not friends,” I replied simply. “Charlie, go get your bag.”

“They won’t try to get in?”

“No.”

“You’re sure?”

“You think I’d send you back if I thought they would?”

He nodded and hurried away.

“The bogeymen found us, didn’t they?” Lucy asked as she tugged a T-shirt over her pajama top.

“Looks like it.”

“Fuck.”

“They’re idiots.”

“That doesn’t make me feel any better,” she snapped as she shoved her sleep shorts down her hips. They fell to her ankles, and I nearly cursed at the sight of the tiny pair of panties that barely covered anything.

“You know I need to fucking focus, right?” I asked as she twisted and bent to grab a pair of jeans.

Her ass was bare. Fucking hell.

“Oh, please,” she said, stepping into her jeans. “People wear these on public beaches.”

“Someday,” I said, turning to make my way over to the phone. “I’m going to pay you back for this.”

“Oh, I’m scared.” She shivered dramatically as she buttoned her jeans. “Are you going to strip while I’m trying to do my taxes?”

“No, I’m going to spank your ass.”

Lucy’s mouth dropped open in surprise.

“Don’t worry,” I said as I turned back toward the phone. “You’ll like it.”

Beau answered immediately. “Where are you?”

“I’m good,” I said sarcastically as Charlie carried his bag into the room. “And you?”

Beau laughed.

“We’re in Montana.”

“You’re making good time.”

“Time’s up,” I replied flatly.

“Shit.”

“How soon can you get here?”

“Couple of hours,” Beau said. I could hear him moving through the house as his breathing changed.

“That’ll work.”

“Can you meet us at the closest airport?”

I looked over at Charlie and Lucy, who were watching me intently, both of them pale.

“No.”

“Got it. We’ll come to you. How many?”

“Two that I know of.”

“So…double that.”

“At least. I heard them talking about waiting Charlie out so they could keep things quiet, so I don’t think they’ll try to make entry. With luck, we’ll have until morning.”

“When have you had any luck?” he asked dryly. “Are you armed?”

Striding over to the backpack I’d carried all over Europe and back, I stuffed my hand inside and pulled out my always reliable Glock 19.

“One full magazine.”

“Fuck.”

“Probably all I’d need.”

Beau chuckled, then quieted when I described exactly where the motel was and which room we were in.

I fucking hated sitting on my ass and waiting for them to come bail me out, but I wasn’t stupid enough to try to get Lucy and Charlie out on my own.

It wasn’t worth the risk. I just hoped that whoever was with those idiots at the door didn’t convince them to come for Charlie while he was sleeping.

“Sit tight. We’ll be in the air in half an hour, tops,” Beau said quietly.

“Will do.”

I hung up the phone and turned to face the siblings.

“I know how to shoot,” Lucy announced bravely, straightening her shoulders. “I dated a cop for like ten minutes.”

“Good to know,” I replied, glancing at Charlie.

“Don’t dismiss me.”

I looked back to find her glaring at me. “I’m not.”

“Yes, you are.”

“I’m glad to know that you can handle a weapon.” Even if I had my doubts. “But we have exactly one pistol, and it’s mine.”

“Oh,” Lucy replied, her shoulders slumping. “Right.”

“We just need to be patient, baby,” I said calmly. “Cavalry is on its way.”

“They just want me,” Charlie said quietly. “I could just?—”

“Don’t finish that sentence,” I ordered as Lucy’s expression fell. “My brothers will be here in a few hours to fly us home. Just have to sit tight.”

Time passed so fucking slow. I’d been in tight spots plenty of times before—I’d been leading a unit for Vampire Command for nearly a hundred years—but this time was different.

I wasn’t surrounded by trained members of my unit or even my brothers.

I was holed up with the woman I’d die happily to protect and the man who’d given my brother a reason to live before he’d been killed.

The stakes were infinitely higher, and we were fucking blind inside that room.

I paced back and forth, trying not to stare at my watch.

Charlie and Lucy sat on the floor near the bathroom.

There were two beds and a nightstand between them and the door, and it still didn’t feel like enough.

I closed and locked the door between Charlie’s room and ours as an extra barrier, but it would only take seconds for them to realize where he was if they made entry and didn’t find him inside.

None of us slept.

Lucy used the bathroom three times, mumbling that she was a nervous pee-er . If the situation hadn’t been so stressful, I would’ve laughed. Both she and Charlie had put their shoes back on and held their bags at their sides in case we needed to move quickly.

Charlie had run his hands through his hair so many times that it stood straight up like he’d been electrocuted, but he was fully present.

For the time being, he’d checked back in.

I knew it was because Lucy was in danger, not because he was worried for himself, but I didn’t care about the reason.

It was a lot easier to keep someone safe when they were actively trying to help.

Around five o’clock that morning, something shifted outside.

“Stay low,” I ordered, meeting Lucy’s gaze.

She and Charlie huddled together, their knees pulled to their chests.

The sound of carefully placed footsteps sounded along the sidewalk outside our room. There were four pairs. No voices.

Standing in the center of the room, where I could see both points of entry, I checked the magazine in my Glock one last time and then slowly and quietly pulled back the slide.

Lucy let out a shuddery breath behind me.

“Ulf,” a familiar voice called. “My mate will castrate you if you shoot.”

Relief made my head feel light as I strode toward the exit door.

“It’s all right,” I said, looking over my shoulder at Lucy.

Her eyes were wide and dark with fear, but we didn’t have time for me to reassure her.

I’d barely gotten the door open before the cavalry pushed their way inside.