Page 15 of Protected from Malice (Blade and Arrow Shadow Team #1)

“And I’m Cole Mitchell,” Cole says. “Founder of Blade and Arrow Security. It’s nice to meet you, although I wish it were under better circumstances.”

Eden casts a quick glance at me, her uncertainty a visible thing.

It hurts to see her like this; insecure when she’s usually so confident.

Quietly confident, that is—not full of herself, like she could be, given how smart and pretty she is.

She just knows what she wants. What she’s capable of.

And she’s never hesitated to chase after it.

I squeeze her hand under the table and, a moment later, a hint of a smile lifts her lips. “Thank you for meeting with me,” she says. “I know you’re busy, and I really appreciate you taking the time.”

“Of course.” Cole smiles back at her, his solemn expression brightening. “You’re family, Eden.”

She looks confused. “Family?”

“We both served with Indy,” Dante explains. “So that makes him family. Which, by extension, makes you family, too.”

Cole smirks. “And we like Rafe most of the time. So if he asks for our help…”

Dante’s expression sobers as he looks at me. “We would never say no. Not before everything with Erik and Tate, and definitely not now.”

I make a small it’s nothing gesture. And it wasn’t. Not when I had the opportunity to help out some of my closest friends and keep Erik’s future wife safe in the process.

Raising my eyebrows at Cole and Dante, I try to convey a silent message. “It’s just been a long day—a long few days, really—for Eden. That’s all.”

“Of course,” Cole says. “And we can get into more details later. I think the important part for now is arranging for a team to help.”

“I’m not sure if I can afford that,” Eden interrupts.

Cole shakes his head and gives her a reassuring smile. “Cost isn’t an issue, Eden. First off—” He stops. “Well. How much about Blade and Arrow has Rafe told you?”

“Some.” Eden’s gaze slides to me before returning to Cole.

“There are two branches, one in New York and the other in Texas. You guys are all former Special Forces, like Indy and Rafe. And you help people when the police can’t or won’t do it.

Like… when the police say there’s not enough evidence to investigate a crime. Right?”

“That’s a part of it,” he replies. “We all served together at one time or another. The Sleepy Hollow team has seven people on it. The San Antonio team—the Bravo team—has six. And the company does help people who’ve exhausted other options—like you said, maybe the police think there’s not enough evidence.

Maybe they don’t have the money to pay for a private investigator or a bodyguard. ”

“Like my wife, Sarah,” Dante interjects.

“Someone stole her identity. But it wasn’t just an ordinary credit card theft.

It was her entire life. And then things escalated.

” His expression darkens at the memory. “Sarah was attacked. Swatted. It was bad. So we stepped in. Used our resources to find the culprit. Once we did, then we turned them over to the police.”

“We have two kinds of clients,” Cole explains.

“People like Sarah. Like my wife, Maya, who came to us for help years ago. In situations like that we provide everything pro-bono. But we also have paying clients—executives, CEOs, foreign dignitaries—who come to us for event security. Or they want us to upgrade the security on their property. Train their staff.”

Eden nods in understanding. “So you use the money from your high-value clients to cover the costs for the pro-bono ones.”

“Exactly.” Admiration lights Cole’s expression. And dammit, jealousy slices through me, even though he’s been married for close to four years now. “So we wouldn’t charge you, Eden. Even if we were going to treat this like a traditional pro-bono case?—”

I sit forward in my seat. My voice goes rough. Testy. “What do you mean if ? You said you’d help. Did you?—”

Eden squeezes my hand. “It’s okay, Rafe,” she says softly. “I’m sure they’re busy. Even a little help is something.”

Anger buzzes through me. “It’s not okay , Eden?—”

“Rafe.” Cole lifts his hand in a placating gesture. He smiles. “I didn’t say we wouldn’t help. Relax.”

Dante gives me an assessing look. A smirk appears briefly before disappearing.

That asshole knows exactly why I’m so defensive when it comes to Eden. And I can guarantee I’m going to be hearing about it the next time we speak in private.

“So,” Cole continues, “the reason I said it’s not going to be handled the traditional way is because both teams are already committed to other cases. But.” He emphasizes the word. “That does not mean we’re not helping. At all.”

“How are you going to help, then?” I ask.

“Matt and Leo will be investigating,” he replies. “And I’m going to pull in Beth—she’s a friend of ours who lives in San Antonio who’s also a computer genius—to help. Both teams will be on standby if you need backup, as well. But I think the people I’m sending to assist will be plenty.”

Sending new people? People who aren’t part of Blade and Arrow? I don’t like the sound of that.

Irritation tinges my voice. “Who are you sending?”

Cole smiles. “You know them.” He stops. “I could have reassigned some of the members of our teams. But my idea… I think it’s better.

You’ll have five people, including you and Indy, all fully committed to seeing Eden’s case through.

Highly trained men who can protect her. And honestly, I think this will be good for them, too. ”

“Who?”

“Tyler. Ace. Webb.” He looks at Eden. “Rafe knows these guys. They all served at Fort Campbell with us.”

“Tyler served on my team,” Dante says. “He was medically retired a few years ago, but he’s more than capable.

And I agree with Cole. This would be good for Tyler.

” He pauses. “Tyler lost his wife a couple of years ago, and he’s been isolating himself ever since.

I think he needs this. To feel like he has a purpose again. ”

“Webb was a Night Stalker,” Cole adds. “He served with Jackson, who’s part of the Sleepy Hollow team.

Webb’s been working for an adventuring company in the Adirondacks, plus doing some search and rescue.

But he’s restless. Misses being part of a team.

I’d say the same for Ace. He left the Army so he could see his family more often.

Now he’s working for a company in Austin as an unexploded ordnance technician.

It’s not a bad job. But it’s not the same as what he used to do. ”

Dante lifts his chin. “Ace helped us out on a case last year. He’s a tremendous asset. And when I talked to him about coming out to Portland to help, he was all in.”

Cole turns his focus to me. “Does it make sense now? Ace, Webb, Tyler—and Indy, too—they need this. Being part of a team again. Making a difference.” To Eden, he explains, “It’s tough leaving the military, shifting back to civilian life after spending years, decades, even, dedicating your life to helping people. Protecting them.”

Now that I’ve heard everything, I can’t disagree. It does make sense. I’ve shared the same thoughts—missing the teamwork, the camaraderie… I know I’m protecting people by catching fugitives, but it’s not the same as serving day in and out with brothers and sisters I’d trust with my life.

“It does,” I agree. “If we have Indy, Tyler, Ace, Webb, and me… We can investigate here. Get our boots on the ground. Have plenty of manpower to protect Eden.”

“And Tyler’s a whiz with computers,” Dante adds. “So he’ll be a huge help.”

Eden turns to me, her eyes wide and searching. “Do you trust them, Rafe? Obviously Indy… but the others?”

“I do.” I rub my thumb across the back of her hand. “These guys are the real deal. And I think Cole’s right. This could help Tyler. Indy. Bring them back to the land of the living again.”

She swallows hard. Her eyes mist over. “Do you really think this could help Indy? So he won’t be so depressed?”

“Protecting his little sister? Being part of a team? Yes. I think so.”

After a few seconds, Eden looks back at Cole. Her voice shakes a little as she says, “I want the help. The protection. But I want my brother back, too.”

Her emotion brings a lump to my throat. “We’ll help him, too, Brain. Once he’s here—” Pausing, I ask Cole, “Are they definitely coming? Ace, Tyler, and Webb?”

He nods. “I called them last night, right after I talked to you. They’re already on the way.”

“We’ve all got your six,” Dante says. Determination flashes in his eyes.

“Like Cole said. Eden, you’re family. Whatever it takes to make sure you’re safe, we’ll do it.

And if that means dropping everything and hauling ass to Oregon, we will.

But I think with the guys you’ll have with you, you’re going to be just fine. ”

Eden sniffs. Gives Cole and Dante a watery smile. “Thank you. So much.”

“And you know—” Cole catches my eye, his gaze heavy with meaning. “I’ve been thinking about expanding. Maybe out to the West Coast. So…” His lips quirk. “Who knows?”

From there, the call wraps up fairly quickly. I promise to call Cole back once the rest of the guys—the team —arrives and we’ve had our first meeting. And he doesn’t press Eden to recap everything again, instead saying, “I’m sure you’ll go over all the details when you meet. Send me a report then.”

None of us miss how Eden sags in relief once he says it. Because as strong as she is—and fuck, is she strong—even she’s dangerously close to reaching her limit. Plus the stress of Indy coming and knowing she has to tell him everything…

I wish I could magically fix this for her.

I know I can’t. Just like I couldn’t fix things and give Indy his arm back again. Or make it so the years of harassment Rhiannon experienced never happened.

I couldn’t go back in time and save Mandy.

But.

I can do something.

I can protect Eden now.

I can support her.

I can hug her whenever she wants, even if it’s the worst kind of torture, holding her as a friend and nothing more.

And I can try, in some small way, to make her feel better.

That’s why, once we end the call, I turn to Eden and say, “I’ve decided. We need to eat. Now.”

She blinks at me, undoubtedly startled by my abrupt change of topic. “I’m not really hungry, Rafe. I had one of those honeybuns, anyway…”

“Nope.” I stand, taking her hand and pulling her up with me. “A stale vending-machine honeybun is not food.”

“It is,” she persists. Her chin gets that stubborn, arguing jut I’ve always loved. The one she gets when she thinks someone’s wrong and wants to politely yet firmly explain why. “It has calories. Carbohydrates. Fat. I think it might have even had a gram or two of protein.”

My hand still wrapped around hers, I lead her into the small kitchenette at the rear of the room.

With my free hand, I start rummaging through the cabinets, pulling out plates and utensils and even a small frying pan.

I set everything out on the counter and say, “We’re cooking something. An actual meal.”

Eden casts a skeptical look around the kitchen. “We don’t have any ingredients, Rafe. Just some bags of chips and water.”

“We don’t have ingredients right now,” I correct. “But we will.”

I slide my phone from my pocket and dial the number for the front desk, then ask them to transfer me to room service.

Once I’m connected, I ask them to send up a carton of eggs, uncooked bacon, half a dozen slices of toast, fresh fruit, and a couple of avocados, along with several more pans of different sizes.

Once I hang up, Eden asks with a hint of a smile, “Isn’t room service supposed to cook the food for you?”

“Typically.” I push a rogue curl away from her forehead. “But not this time. This time, we’re cooking brunch together. Then we’re going to eat it in front of the TV while we watch the rest of the frog jumping episode. And if we have time, we’ll move on to the episode about the yo-yo competitions.”

Eden studies me for a moment. Thoughts work in her eyes. “When you say we’re cooking, you mean you, right? Because I think we both know I’m not much of a cook.”

“I’ll cook. You’ll be my sous chef.” Though most people wouldn’t expect it from me, I like cooking. It’s relaxing. And the end result is infinitely better than heating up bland frozen dinners, which is what a lot of my single friends do.

She takes a step closer. Her head tilts back so she can meet my gaze. “Can we make extra cheesy eggs? With ketchup?”

“With ketchup?” I give her a look of mock disgust. “I still don’t know how you can stand that.”

Her tiny smile expands. “I like it. So, can we?”

As I look at her sweet face, with those gorgeous blue eyes glued to mine and her cheeks pinking up with hopeful pleasure, my heart flips. Squeezes. Slams hard in my chest.

Ah, fuck.

I know I shouldn’t feel like this.

It’s the wrong time. The wrong place. Shit. I’m the wrong person .

“Yes,” I tell her. “Of course we can.”

And then.

She steps into me.

Loops her arms around my waist.

Her head rests on my chest, her soft curls brushing my chin.

My arms come around her automatically.

Desperately.

Like she’s more important than breathing.

“Thank you,” Eden says softly, “for everything.”

I know I’m not right for her. Not now. Not ever.

But, fuck.

I wish I was.