Page 7 of Burn Bag (Owens Protective Services #31)

“Um…yeah, I think that’s it.”

“Right, well, that should really narrow it down. And…” He clicked a button and a single profile popped up. She wasn’t too bad looking.

“That’s it?”

“Dude, I followed your list. Here’s the one woman in the world you’ll be able to tolerate. Now, if she’s not good enough, we can add a few of your stipulations back in and see what pops.”

“No, this is good.” I studied the profile and the more I saw her, the more I liked her. Blonde, blue eyes, short, small feet, loves to bake and cook, hates guns, doesn’t wear makeup… “I think you found her.”

Relief washed through me as I stared at my future bride. “This is good. Where is she?”

“Uh…Missouri.”

I nodded, wondering what it would take to convince her to move to Kansas. “Any family?”

“None whatsoever.”

“That’s even better. Maybe she’ll be cool with a small wedding.”

“Sure. Sounds like you have it all figured out. So, when are you gonna see her?”

“Well, I should probably introduce myself online first. Maybe lay out some of the basics.”

“I can do that.” He started typing and I glared at him when the message scrolled across the screen. “Desperately seeking a wife.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

“Well, that’s you, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, but you don’t have to make me look so pathetic.”

“Again, you’re finding your wife by weeding out every woman who might not fit the profile. I think we’re past pathetic and into a whole new territory.”

He might have a point, but that didn’t mean I had to like it. “Fine, send her a message. Let her know I’d love to meet her in person. Oh, and make sure she knows I’m not a psycho.”

He rolled his eyes and started typing. “Sure, I’ll put that right under the fact that you play with guns for fun.”

I didn’t like his attitude, but I wasn’t going to harp on him too much. He was helping me, after all. By this time next year, I could be happily married with a kid on the way. Everything about this was looking up.

“Oh, she’s on,” he said in surprise.

I jumped to my feet and stared at the message that appeared on the screen. It’s nice to meet you, but I think you’re too far away.

“Tell her I’ll pay for relocation costs.”

“For what? You haven’t even met the woman. ”

I turned to him and grinned. “Trust me, this is my future wife.”

“Dude, you don’t even know her name.”

That was true. I hadn’t actually paid any attention to it. “Okay, what’s her name?”

“Emily.”

I thought it over and grinned. “Emily. That’s a good name. Strong, but not too strong. Nothing weird or exotic. I like it.”

He sighed heavily, kicking his feet up on the table. “I can’t believe I’m letting you do this.”

“You’re not letting me do anything. I’m a grown man.”

“Yes, and you’re about to make a lethal mistake.”

“Am not. This is gonna be good.”

“Like hell it will,” he grumbled. “Mark my words, you will come to regret this.”

“Look, you built the algorithm. What could possibly go wrong?”

He shot to his feet and strode toward the door. “Oh, no. I’m not falling for this shit.”

I stepped in his path to stop him from leaving. “Hang on?—”

“No, you hang on. I see how this is going. When this all goes south, it’s my neck on the line. That’s it! I’ll be dead and everyone will say, Well, he should have known this would end badly . And they’d be right because right now, this is really going to end badly.”

“It will not. I swear to God.” I had no way to convince him, so I pulled a line out of my ass and went with it. “I’m gonna build a fire with her.”

He rolled his eyes with a sigh. “Not you, too.”

“I swear. Nothing will happen until the kindling is set and the fire is roaring.”

I was totally lying. I fully intended to contact this woman and set the date as soon as possible. I was tired of waiting around for life to happen.

“You swear it?”

“On my father’s grave.”

He and I were never close anyway .

He eyed me warily for a moment before finally giving in. “Fine. Let’s get to work.”

“That’s what I’m talking about. Hello, future Mrs. Kavanaugh!”

“What if she doesn’t show?”

“Relax,” Dash sighed, sitting across from me at the coffee house in Kansas City. “She’ll show.”

I checked my watch again, wondering why it was taking her so long to get here. I had come all the way from OPS to Kansas City to meet her, yet she couldn’t be on time.

“Mark this down,” I told Dash, already irritated with her tardiness. “This is a strike against her for being late.”

He rolled his eyes and opened the notebook, putting one strike against her. “I can’t believe I’m actually participating in this.”

“Believe it. I’m telling you, if she’s the one, this is going to be the most successful relationship you’ve ever seen.”

His eyebrows shot up as he stared at me. “You know I’m married, right?”

“And?”

“Happily married.”

“You also met your woman in a tornado and refused to admit you liked her.”

“Not refused. I didn’t tell her. I got the sign.”

I rolled my eyes at him. “You didn’t get the sign. You had crossed signals. There’s a difference.”

“No difference,” he snapped, getting to his feet. “She clearly told me to back off.”

“And she says you clearly told her you weren’t interested in a relationship with her!”

“Bah! Like that could ever be true! You were there. You saw the chemistry between us.”

Here we go.

“Every time we were in the room together, it was like fireworks. She sat on my lap at night. She snuggled me in bed. I mean, who could possibly think we didn’t belong together?”

“You, you big jackass! She was living with you the whole fucking time, sleeping in your bed, and you didn’t make a move!”

“Actually, I did. Remember? That’s how she got pregnant.”

“By accident! Neither of you actually thought you’d had sex! Geez, it was pathetic as hell!”

“Hey, am I sitting over here criticizing you for meeting a woman you intend to marry in two days?”

“Yes! That’s all you’ve fucking done from the moment I started doing this!”

“That’s because it’s insane!”

A woman in a green apron walked over, her face flushed as she approached. “I’m sorry, but could you keep it down? You’re disturbing the other customers.”

“Sorry,” I muttered, taking my seat again.

“Look,” Dash leaned in as the woman walked away. “Just calm the fuck down. You’re getting all worked up, and that is not the way to meet this woman in person, okay?”

I nodded, taking a deep breath just as the bell over the door tinkled. Spinning around, I jumped to my feet as the woman of my dreams walked through the door. With long blonde hair cascading over her shoulders, she glanced around looking for me.

And time stood still.

She was a fucking dream. Those pictures hadn’t done her justice—not one fucking bit. I swallowed hard, trying not to swallow my tongue as she turned and smiled at me. Her eyes lit up, but it was those fucking bright blue eyes that really got to me. It was like a punch to the gut.

“Emily,” I croaked, wiping my hands on my pants. “Hey. I’m Bradford Kavanaugh.”

I held out my hand, wrapping my large one around her petite fingers. Holy hell, it was a miracle. It had actually worked. She was here and she was amazing.

“Bradford,” she said shyly .

“Just Brad or Kavanaugh,” I quickly corrected. “Uh…please, take a seat.”

I pulled out a chair for her, noting the way Dash looked just as surprised at her ethereal beauty as I was. She really was magnificent.

I told you so, I mouthed as I took my own seat.

I smirked at him just before I turned to Emily and studied her beautiful face. How could a woman like this possibly need to go online to find a husband?

“So, tell me about yourself.”

“Uh…” Her eyes flicked to Dash for an uncomfortable moment.

“Don’t worry about him. He’s the one who set up this algorithm online for me.”

“He…what?” she asked in confusion.

“It’s a long story. Basically, he helped me find the woman of my dreams. I have to say, you’re even more beautiful than your picture.”

“Thank you,” she said, a blush staining her cheeks.

“So, tell me about yourself.”

“Um…other than what you found in the profile…I have a crazy roommate. Um…my parents are dead, so they won’t bother us. And…I like horses.”

Simple and to the point. I liked that. “Cool. Uh…well, I work in security and we have our own compound where we all live?—”

“I’m sorry. When you say you work in security, what does that mean?”

“Oh, bodyguard, install security systems, and various other things,” I said, skipping over the more dangerous aspects. I didn’t want to scare her off right away.

“Bodyguard,” she said, her eyebrows shooting up in surprise. “Okay. Um…so, are you gone often?”

“We’re on a rotation. So, once we get back from a job, we have time off. But don’t worry, most jobs last less than a few weeks.”

She nodded, but didn’t seem too thrilled about that part.

“But as I said, we’re a big community, and all the other women there have their own jobs or hobbies. They all hang out and have a good time. It really is a good place to be.”

She nodded again, looking less certain, but not out of the game yet. “So, it’s a small town?”

“Yeah, it’s pretty small, but it’s charming.”

I hoped that described the place well enough. Honestly, I didn’t know that much about the town. Other than the bar, it wasn’t like I spent a lot of time there. I stuck to my compound and my friends, and that’s the way I liked it.

“So, any questions for me?”

“I’m sure I have a ton, but my mind is drawing a blank right now. What about me?”

“Uh…sure.” I nodded, unable to see past her beauty. That was it for me. All I needed to know. But somehow, I thought she was desperate for me to ask her something. “What’s your favorite thing to bake?”

“Cake,” she said instantly. “I love making cake.”

The smile on her face said it all. “Well, that’s really all I need to know. Interview over!”

“Uh—”

“If it’s alright with you, I’d like to get this moving as quickly as possible. How’s a week from Saturday sound?”

“For what?”

“For the wedding,” I chuckled, hoping she would be as enthusiastic as I was.

“Oh, right! Um…That’s a little over a week away…I think I could do that.”

“Great. And what about your friends?”

“Um…it might be best to tell them afterward.”

“Whatever you want to do,” I grinned, slapping my hands together in excitement. “Now, should we seal the deal with a kiss?”

“Uh…”

I tugged her to her feet and pulled her into my arms, laying one hell of a kiss on her lips. It was not life-altering like I’d hoped for, but that might take some time. After all, we were rushing things.

Stepping back, I smiled at her. This was going to be amazing.

I handed her a card with all my pertinent information on it.

“We should go ahead and get the marriage license now.” Then I realized that would need to be taken care of in Kansas.

“On second thought, I’ll take care of it.

All that’s required of you is to show up and marry me! ”

She nodded with a smile, but she looked like a frightened kitten. Taking her hand in mine again, I tried to be reassuring. “Trust me on this. It’s gonna be perfect. We’re going to be very happy together. I know it.”

She blew out a breath and sighed. “I’m just getting nervous.”

“Well, don’t be. Things are going to be great. Trust me.”