12
C aleb lay on his back, one arm stuffed under his head and the other resting on his stomach. He should be sleeping. He was three missions back-to-back tired. But after talking to Tex and hearing what he’d found, he wasn’t able to sleep without envisioning how she’d been doing her best to keep herself safe.
Rose!
Even though he guessed Rose wasn’t her real name, it was the name she’d given him, and he wouldn’t be lying to anyone, including himself, for thinking it suited her.
He hadn’t asked Tex for her real name, and Tex hadn’t provided him with it. Although he guessed Tex knew it. That man knew freaking everything.
Thank God he’s on our side because the odds would be forever against us if he played for the other team.
He rolled over onto his stomach. Staring at the ceiling was getting him nowhere. Maybe if he buried his nose in the pillow, he’d be able to stop his mind from racing with possibilities, and sleep would catch up to him. He closed his eyes and forced everything out of his mind.
He was just at that point, right before he was about to drop into a deep sleep, where he wasn’t sure if he was awake or dreaming, when a soft sound on the opposite side of the wall ripped his cold, dead heart open and provided it with a freaking emotion. Not just any emotion, hell no, it gave him the desire to comfort. To fix what was wrong in her world.
I’m so screwed.
And I don’t even care.
He threw back the covers and pulled on a pair of shorts. As attracted as he was to her, his need to comfort her was stronger. Knocking on her locked door with his raging hard-on waving under her nose wasn’t what she needed right now.
Down, boy.
He paused outside her door to thump his dick with his fist.
This isn’t the time or the place for you.
He cocked his head to one side and listened for more of the screams which had filtered through to his room.
She’s crying, damn it.
The soft sounds tugged at his heartstrings. He raised his hand, knocked, and waited, listening for a response. “Rose?”
Instead of answering as he’d expected her to do, she cried out again in her sleep. He hovered for a second, unsure of what he should do.
Shit, I told her to lock the door.
Her cries would rip the soul out of the devil himself if he possessed one. He went to the living room in search of his go-bag and the lock-picking kit from the front pocket. She could be mad at him if she needed to be. But sue him if he didn’t want to allow her to suffer alone through the nightmare.
It took him less than a minute to retrieve the tools and unlock her bedroom door. After hearing the click, she quieted. “Rose?” When, once again, his only response was the now soft sounds of weeping, he opened the door and slipped into the room.
“Rose?” He crouched on his haunches next to the bed, his hand hovering near hers. Would he scare her if he touched her? Probably. It broke what was left of his heart to see the big fat tears rolling down her cheeks. “Baby girl, wake up. It’s only a nightmare.” Damn it, his words made her cry harder. He gave into temptation and swore he’d allow her to kick his own ass or ask Kace to do it for him in the morning, because someone would have to forgive him for wanting her to have someone to hold onto. He tugged back the covers and sat on the edge of the bed, smoothing back her hair from her face. “Baby girl, I swear I’m not looking for a damn thing…”
Liar.
“I just want to hug you if you want one.”
She rolled toward him and nuzzled into his elbow before jerking awake. “Wha—” She lifted her eyes to meet his, fear on her face, but she didn’t pull away from him. If anything, she pulled him toward her.
“It was just a dream. It’s okay. You’re at my house. It’s okay.” He’d give anything for her to believe his reassurance. “I’m here. You aren’t alone. I promise. You aren’t wherever your dreams have taken you. I’m not him.” He held his breath, waiting for her to tell him what she wanted him to do.
“Ca—Caleb?”
“Yes, I’m right here. You are not alone.”
She started crying again, and he did the only thing he could think to do: he gathered her into his arms and settled into the bed, holding her close to him. “It’s okay. You aren’t there. It’s just a bad dream.”
“It was horrible.”
Someday, he and Janek were going to have a face-to-face meeting, and he’d kick his fucking ass. Show him what it was like to be the one living in fear. “It’s over. It was just a nightmare.”
“You don’t understand.”
He whispered against her hair as tears soaked his chest. “You are safe here.”
“It’s—” she hiccupped. “It’s not just a nightmare,” she whispered, “it’s part memory, but it changed. Now it’s worse than before.”
“You’re safe here with me.” He’s going to find fucker and rip him limb from limb. He’d enjoy every damn second of it too. He shifted them on the bed so he could reach the bottle of water he placed on the bedside table while she was in the shower and poured some from the bottle into a glass. “Sip this, baby girl. You sound hoarse.” There was no way he was telling her he suspected she was hoarse from screaming. It was enough that he knew it. She sat up, and he adjusted the pillows behind them. She sipped the water when he put it to her lips.
“Thank you,” she whispered. Her eyes filled with something he couldn’t describe.
She settled against him again, and he didn’t care if it was wrong or if he had crossed some line or other that he didn’t know about. He hugged her close to him, smoothing his hand down her back. “I’m here. I’m here.” Every time she sniffled, it clawed at him. He was a protector to his soul, damn it, he wanted to fix this for her if she’d let him. “Do you want me to stay with you?”
“I don’t know.”
He didn’t blame her for being unsure. She’d been through so much, that she wasn’t freaking out every time he touched her was a freaking miracle he was grateful to have.
“I don’t want to dream and be afraid of you.”
Is she worried about me?
Damn woman.
He grumbled to himself in his head. “I promise I’ll know it’s not me you are afraid of. Maybe if I stay in your dreams, you’ll know you don’t have to fight alone.”
She thought about it for a moment and nodded, her cheek rubbing just over his heart. “Okay.”
“Baby girl, I’ll be right here.” If only he could do as he’d offered and fight the demons in her dreams for her. “I’ll hold you until you wake. If you need me, I’ll be right here.”
Distracted by her fingers playing with the hairs on his chest, she murmured something he didn’t quite make out. But as he closed his eyes, he figured it didn’t matter quite so much. “Sleep, baby girl, I got you.”
Bang. Bang. Bang.
He woke with his heart almost pounding out of his chest. Who the fuck was hammering on his front door like they were a freaking cop with a warrant? He growled in annoyance when Rose jerked away and scrambled to the other side of the bed, as far away from him as she could get.
“What’s happening?”
“Somebody’s gonna get their ass kicked, that’s what’s happening.” He managed to keep the rage out of his voice. She was already freaked out enough. “Stay here. I’ll see who it is.”
Bang. Bang. Bang.
He could barely make out the sound of his phone ringing in the other room. “It’s probably one of the guys. I’ll be right back; don’t move.”
“Okay.”
He double-timed it out of her room and into the living room. Stopping long enough to grab a weapon from the case behind the couch, he double-checked it was loaded before going to the window. He pulled back the curtain and scanned the parking lot. Three blacked-out trucks and one dark gray pickup he recognized as his own told him he was probably safe to check the peephole on the door without exposing himself to the potential danger of a bullet through the door.
He put his eye to the glass and sighed, then slid back the deadbolts and the chains on the door. “What the hell, Kace?” He allowed his brother in and was nearly trampled by the rest of Alpha and Bravo teams, except for Draven, who was on his honeymoon by now, as they followed hot on his heels. “Stay here, and don’t break shit,” he ordered. “I’m going to let Rose know it’s only you guys.”
“You better have coffee,” Tate muttered. “My head is killing me.”
“Make it yourself. You know where everything is.” He stopped halfway down to the room and went back to them. “Do not fucking scare her. She’s had nightmares.” He ignored the narrowed eyes and confused looks.
“Casanova has fallen.”
“Someone mentioned that shit last night,” he tossed over his shoulder in a harsh whisper. They could think what they liked. Protecting Rose and making sure she was safe and comfortable took priority over any discomfort he might feel as the butt of any of their jokes. He remembered to knock on her door and to pause outside it rather than just walking right in. “Rose?”
“Come in.”
“It’s the guys. I don’t know what they want yet, but you can go back to sleep.” He already knew she wouldn’t sleep again as she was shaking her head before he was finished speaking.
“I—” She tugged at her t-shirt. “Umm, I’ll just stay here.”
“You are perfect just as you are.” She looked like she needed a hug, and he gave it to her. She rubbed his chin on the top of her head, and she snuggled into his chest. He freaking loved how she did that. “Not one of them will say a word about you wearing my clothes.” They wouldn’t if they knew what was good for them. But he was totally loving that she was covered by something which belonged to him.
“What do you think will happen?”
“I don’t know. But they’ll tell me what they think should happen when I go out there.”
“When we go out there,” she corrected him softly. “Don’t decide for me. I need you not to do that.”
He nodded. He understood her reasons. Sometime over the last twenty-four hours, she’d become important to him. “I promise we won’t do anything without discussing it with you first.”
She eyed him warily as if she didn’t quite believe him, but the best he could do right now was give her his word. As long as she wasn’t in danger, he’d keep it. The second she was, all bets and promises were off.
“Okay.” She blew out a slow breath, then nodded. “I’m ready to hear what they have to say.”
As they walked to the living room, it stunned him to realize that she might be ready to face his team. He wasn’t so sure he wanted other unattached men around her yet. But keeping her to himself wasn’t possible. Her safety took priority over this possessiveness he was struggling to control.
“Morning,” Kacey said, pointing to some suitcases on the floor near the front door. “I brought your stuff. The girls figured you’d feel better if you had your own things.”
Caleb bit back the growl that rumbled almost silently in his chest when Rose gave his brother a warm smile. He should have noticed those cases and brought them with him to the bedroom. That he hadn’t seen them, never mind brought them to her, only reinforced for him that this was not a mission where he could afford to work alone. Rose’s safety needed more than him because, somehow, she was a distraction who’d stolen his focus.
Are you mad about it?
Hell no. No, I’m not.
He snagged two mugs from the mug tree on the counter. “Rose, do you want coffee, tea, or something different?”
“Coffee, please.”
He filled her mug and jerked his chin toward the sugar and milk. “Help yourself.” Turning back to the bread box, he removed the loaf to get to the pecan and maple syrup pasties he’d hidden behind it. After putting them on a plate, he put them on the table in front of her.
“Thank you.”
Caleb winked and slapped at Kacey’s hand as he reached for a pastry. “If you want some, make them yourself. You’re the damn chef.”
“I’m on vaycay,” Kacey whined. “Cooking isn’t happening until my butt goes home to the ranch.”
“Umm, ranch?”
“Yeah.” He figured now was as good a time as any to mention the only plan he’d been able to come up with in the hours he’d stayed awake watching her sleep. “Remember your wish for the middle of nowhere?”
“Maybe.” She spoke around a mouthful of pastry. “Last night is kind of a blur.”
“I can grant that wish if you want to go.” Crap, he’d made it sound like it was a done deal. “Well, I can talk to Nemesis about granting your wish to disappear into the middle of nowhere. It just so happens that’s where his ranch is.
“But if Janek finds me…”
He didn’t want her to talk herself out of it before he’d had time to lay it out for his boss. “It’s a domestic flight.” That was worth mentioning. “There’s no need for IDs or passports.” It might not exactly be legal, but he’d smuggle her onto the damn plane if he had to.
“Having me there might put everyone in danger.”
“Bullshit.” Well, maybe not total bullshit, but minimal bullshit. “We’re operators, baby girl. If Jackwad Janek wants to bring war to our front door, then we’ll be fucking waiting, and if he wants to take you from us, then he better bring his damn a-game, because you are mine to protect.”
“Possessive much there, brother?”
The asshole didn’t have to look so damn smug when he was teasing him. Caleb made a mental note to mess with something in his kitchen later, just for shits and giggles. “Shut it, Kace.”
Kacey held up his hands and nodded. “I’ll back your play.” He leaned against the counter and crossed his legs at the ankles. “I don’t see how Janek or whatever the hell his name is could find her. Especially if we can sneak her onto the plane without anyone seeing her.”
Caleb squatted next to Rose’s chair. “What do you think, Rosey-Posey? Want to come to the wilds of Montana with me?”
She chewed on the corner of her lip for a second before she nodded. “But I’ll only go if your boss says it’s okay.”
Dalton would say it was okay, or he’d be looking for two new operators because he’d walk straight out of Nemesis Inc. if he had to, and he knew his brother would be stepping on his heels all the way.
“And,” Rose continued, “you promise me that the second my being there puts even a cow in danger, that you let me leave without a fight.”
He glanced down so she wouldn’t see the lie in his gaze. There wasn’t a hope in hell he was letting her leave. If danger stalked her all the way to the ranch, then he’d be there to meet it head-on. “Deal.”