Page 41 of Justified Fear

She shook her head.His frown told her he didn’t believe her.He opened his mouth, but he was interrupted by Marvin Gaye’sLet’s Get It On, telling her that her mother was calling him.

“Hold that thought.”He answered the phone.“Love, we’re about to head back.”

His expression turned even more grim as he listened to her mother.

“We’ll be there as soon as we can.”Alarm lanced through her as he hung up the phone.

“What?”

“Your grandmother is in the hospital.”

Ryan had foughttraffic all the way home to his rental in Ewa.When he’d first arrived in Hawai’i, he had rented a small apartment in Ko’ Olina, not sure if he should put down roots like a house.It hadn’t been ideal for Maya.She needed space, even if it was a small yard.He had ignored the connection he felt the moment he and Maya had arrived.He had come here to heal, a suggestion from his mother, the therapist.Of course, now she was irritated that he hadn’t moved back to California.

He had thought about buying a house, but this rental in Ewa Beach had come up.It wasn’t big, and the traffic could be a bitch, but for the moment, he was happy with his choice.The rent was low, there was a beach a couple of blocks away, and the small backyard was just big enough for Maya.

They slipped into the house.Ryan turned off the alarm and immediately led Maya to the back door.After being cooped up in the truck on the way home, he knew she needed to run off some of her restless energy.

Ryan let the door close behind her, and he was thinking about a beer when his phone vibrated.He frowned.It was after eight at night, so he knew that it wasn’t his family—unless it was an emergency.When he saw the name, he frowned.

“Hello.”

“Morrison,” Riki’s deep voice filled his ears.

“Yes, sir.”

“I have a problem.”

Worry had his entire body seemingly freeze up.“Is something wrong with Keely?”

“No.She’s hiding things from me, but what else is new?”

What the hell?

“You don’t have children?”

“No, sir.”

“You’ll understand what I’m talking about when you do.Anyway, my mother is in the hospital.We have to head back to Texas tonight, but I’m worried about leaving KeeKee behind.”

“Did you increase her security?”

“Yes.Dillon came over and upgraded all of the alarms and added a few more cameras.I just don’t like leaving her alone.”

“I can understand that.”

There was a long pause as he wondered if the other man understood the depths of his interest in Keely.Of course he did.Anyone with a pulse would want the woman.

“All those questions brought back all the bad memories of that time, and now I feel I need to be in Texas.”

“Would you feel better if we had a team member there?”

The sigh he heard over the phone was filled with relief.

“Is that a problem?”

“No.I’ll just let my captain know.When are you heading out?”

“Our pilot is getting the plane ready.”And right there was another reason he and Keely would never work.She came from a family with their own damned jet.