Page 14 of Too Guarded to Love (Project VIPER #3)

E very set of eyes in the conference room fixated on Nic. He didn’t flinch under the scrutiny.

The corners of Edgar’s lips curled under his mustache. “What do you mean you might know something about tonight’s attacks?”

Nic pushed off the conference table and straightened. “It’s just a theory, and I hope I’m way off base, but…”

He pulled in a deep breath. His shoulder and hip ached like it was about to rain, but it was dry as a desert in the room.

Everything at headquarters was regulated, from the temperature to the heightened security.

Nothing in Nic’s body felt regulated, though.

Especially the guilt seeping through his pores.

“The day I lost my arm and leg, a female reporter was traveling with us on a routine maneuver. We were ambushed by a group of mercenaries. She died in the attack.”

And he’d almost died trying to save a liar.

“Four of my team survived that day—me, Will, Brian, and Joe. Seventeen months ago, Will’s wife was killed in a drive-by shooting. Six months ago, Brian’s wife was killed when her car went over a cliff. Three days ago, Joe’s sister, Stella, was found on the beach with her throat slit.”

He looked around the room. They all knew about the deaths and how the last one hit him especially hard because he’d known Joe since his West Point days, but nobody interrupted him or asked questions.

“The drive-by shooting was considered collateral damage in a high-crime area. The car over the cliff was ruled a hit-and-run in the rain. But the attack on Stella was blatant murder.”

He waited a heartbeat for the grim picture he’d painted to sink in before he continued. Swallowing, he braced himself to voice what he should have asked for help with days ago.

“I think someone is avenging the reporter’s death by taking out the women we love. Since I was the ranking officer, they may be saving me for last.”

Kane’s boyish features turned stone cold. “And you think whoever is behind these killings thought you were in love with my sister after only knowing her for what, less than an hour, and decided to take her out to punish you?”

The summary of Nic’s fear slammed into his gut like a V-Strike. “I know it sounds far-fetched, but it’s one of the possibilities that we need to explore.”

Kane crumpled the can he held in his fist as he sat in a chair. “Explore what? That my sister may have been shot because you had suspicions and didn’t tell anyone?”

Nic sighed. It didn’t release any of the guilt in his chest. “We also have to consider Gran could have been targeted because she’s the closest thing I have to a parent.”

“And Scarlett, Beth, and Tessa are the closest thing you have to sisters.” Chris snapped his head to Ryan. “Are they secure?”

“Surveillance shows they’re still stuck in traffic in New Jersey. Hudson reported in two minutes ago that Beth and Scarlett are asleep, and that Tessa is cranky because the baby won’t settle down.”

Nic’s heart rate dialed down a notch. The people he considered family were safe. He stole a glance at Chris and Kane. The tense set of their jaws matched the tension in the room. They’d all rest easier once Hudson delivered the precious cargo to headquarters.

Regret bubbled in Nic’s throat like a rancid batch of moonshine. “I should have asked for help sooner, and I’m sorry. I didn’t want to waste anyone’s time or resources on just a hunch, especially since I didn’t think I had anyone in my life who the alleged killer would go after.”

Ryan stepped to the head of the sleek silver table and pressed a button underneath.

At the far end of the long room, a screen the size of the wall rolled down.

A section of the table slid back. A technology console rose as Ryan sat in a plush black leather chair.

“I know Stella’s brother is a good friend, but did you have a connection with any of the other women besides serving with their significant others? ”

“No.”

Chris rounded the conference table. “I see what you’re getting at. Each death appears to be a buildup. Not bothering to make the last one look like an accident is a clear message.”

Linc sat in a chair next to Chris and rocked back. “A fucked-up message.”

Nic leaned against the doorframe, too keyed up to sit, but too exhausted to stand straight any longer.

“After Stella’s body was found three days ago, I began connecting the dots.

I did my own research to see if I could find anybody in the reporter’s life who might want to avenge her death and came up short. ”

Ryan looked up from the technology console. “The reporter was Rachel Matthews with Capitol News Media, correct?”

“Yes.” Hearing her name sickened Nic’s stomach. “Getting intel for a story on Middle Eastern drug trafficking wasn’t the only reason she embedded herself in our unit.” And in my bed. “She was there to do business.”

Ryan tapped his keyboard. A report from Homeland Security appeared on the screen detailing evidence uncovered after her death that tied her to a drug-smuggling ring.

“Shit, that woman was dirty.” Linc whistled through his teeth.

Nic’s shoulder and hip flared with phantom pain. If only he’d seen the filth under her facade.

Kane looked away from the screen and turned a murderous look to Nic. “You think this woman is responsible for what happened to Olivia and Gran?”

“If someone from Rachel’s life is seeking revenge, targeting Gran makes sense, since I don’t have any family. As for Olivia, I mentioned before that there might be another possible explanation.”

Edgar looked at Nic. “Share what you told me in the debrief.”

“I went for a jog by the beach after Stella’s funeral.” He detailed when he left and when and where he’d come upon Olivia and her flat tire. “I saw the whole incident go down. I’m sure the sedan deliberately swerved into her lane.”

Chris rubbed the ink on his back. “Maybe a first and failed attempt to harm her?”

“No. Neither of them was going fast enough to do much damage. She had quick reflexes and hit a parking meter.”

Kane tapped a finger on his own chest. “That’s cause I taught her to drive. I thought I’d also taught her to stay away from players like you. Apparently, I failed.”

Nic didn’t bother telling Kane his sister had been the player. She would likely never own up to her role in the disastrous night. No other woman had ever taken responsibility for wreaking havoc with his world. Why should Olivia?

Edgar pointed to President Bradley. “We’d like to finish up our pool game sometime tonight, so stick to the topic.”

President Bradley clasped Nic’s shoulder as he passed him on his way to the en suite restroom. “Take your time, son. Edgar can wait to lose for a little while longer.”

Nic nodded his thanks as a Secret Service agent checked the restroom ahead of the president. As the door closed behind the commander in chief, Nic detailed Joe’s appearance and their plan to call a tow truck. “And then I met Olivia in the bungalow and we, uh…”

Kane shot from his chair. “You’d better not finish that sentence if you want to be able to walk out of here.”

Nic held up his hands, surrendering to a crime he hadn’t committed.

“You indicated in your report that you pushed Olivia out of the way when you saw the red dot sight on the screen door.”

Pushed her off my cock. He didn’t dare glance at Kane and bless Edgar for not making him reiterate those details. “Yes. I saw the threat and reacted.”

Kane stepped within inches of Nic. “So I’m supposed to thank you for taking advantage of my sister?”

A feminine huff sounded from the doorway. “He wasn’t taking advantage of me.”

Olivia glared at her brother from the threshold of the conference room. It took all her strength not to lean on Patience, or better yet, one of the stoic guys in the black suits guarding the room like sentries.

Kane stormed around the longest conference table she’d ever seen. A harsh glare from the recessed lights above the gleaming tabletop hurt her eyes. The bank of computers at the far end could likely land a mission on Mars.

“What the hell are you doing out of bed?” Kane turned his wrath on Patience. “And why did you bring her here?”

Patience shrugged. “She wants answers about what happened, and she deserves them. I’ll leave you boys to give them to her.”

“Take her back to bed. She’s just been shot for fuck’s sake.”

“I’m the doctor in this family, remember?” Olivia cradled her injured arm against her chest, her anger at her brother outweighing her discomfort. “I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not. I know what it feels like to be shot. And I felt that weird twin thing that I hate, where we feel each other’s pain. It hurt like a motherfucker, and I wasn’t the one hit.” He rubbed his shoulder. “Don’t tell me you’re fine.”

No, she wasn’t, and she couldn’t bullshit her brother. “You’re right, I’m not fine. This has been the strangest, scariest night of my life, but I need to know what’s going on. Patience told me Gran was poisoned and is in a coma.”

Tears welled in her eyes. She willed them not to fall as a hand gently gripped her elbow. She knew without looking who it belonged to. The scent of sea and strength, and forbidden pleasure that felt right, called to her like a song she couldn’t get out of her head.

Nic guided her to a chair just inside the door. “Sit.”

She followed his command. As she settled herself into the soft black leather, she caught his gaze, still as dark and sexy as the night. Lightning flashed through her veins and reflected in his eyes. Yup, the connection was still there.

Damn did that complicate an already twisted situation. Worse, the only person who might be able to help make sense of what was happening between her and Nic was unconscious for the foreseeable future .

Kane stepped in front of her. “Get back to bed so you’re safe.”

“I am safe, thanks to Nic.” She eyed her savior as he sat on the edge of the table. “From the little Patience told me, it sounds like he saved my life.”

Kane speared his fingers into his hair and squeezed the roots. “Are you kidding me? Someone apparently has a vendetta against him, and he got you caught up in it.”

Vendetta? She bit the inside of her cheek as images of men in suits with guns who hunted down people who’d disrespected them flashed in her mind. “I don’t think I’m caught up in some vendetta against Nic. I haven’t known him long enough to get caught up in anything.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Nic raising his eyebrows, as if calling bullshit on her statement. She couldn’t argue. There’d been plenty of time to get caught up in a whole lot of something, but it wasn’t a vendetta.

She twisted her fingers around the hem of her shirt. “I flew here from DC to talk to you about something weird…well, disturbing that’s been going on in Atlanta.”

The tall, lanky older man standing at the head of the table, who looked like the star of a classic Western flick, cleared his throat.

Olivia stiffened at the authority he exuded with just that sound.

“Dr. Darren, I’m Admiral Edgar. Let’s back up and make some introductions.”

A door opened in the back of the room as if the action was part of a script, and why wouldn’t it be? Tonight was a chapter from a novel with twists and turns she never saw coming. A tall man with gray hair stepped over the threshold. She leaned forward in her seat and squinted.

Was that the…

President Bradley jerked up his head. “Oh, hello. You must be Kane’s sister. Nice to meet you.”

Olivia shook her head as she rose from her chair. She tilted to the side, half from exhaustion, half from the shock of the president’s appearance.

Nic shot from his perch on the table to steady her.

The connection sizzled underneath his hand on her forearm.

Did he feel it too? She swore something akin to the electricity she felt earlier flashed in his gaze, but what did she know?

She’d thought she’d felt something for Jonathan, and she’d been so wrong.

“I’m sorry, Mr. President. I didn’t mean to be rude. I was just surprised when…” She let Nic settle her into the chair as she recalled Kane mentioning that VIPER’s director was close friends with the president. “Tonight has been a lot.”

“Yes, it has. I’m glad you’re okay. And try not to worry about your grandmother. Ava is as stubborn as they come. She’d make a helluva general.”

“Yes, she would.” Right now, Olivia just needed Gran to be conscious. She looked to the tall, ruggedly handsome man with the intense blue gaze she recognized as Lieutenant Commander Christopher Daviani. “Nice to finally meet VIPER’s Navy SEAL.”

“Likewise.”

She let herself admire the size of his biceps before she turned her attention to the lankier, but no less muscled, of the group. “And you must be Major Lincoln Taylor. I hear you think your cousin’s moonshine is better than my uncle Pat’s.”

Linc laughed. “That’s because it is.”

Olivia smiled at the fighter pilot with glacier-blue eyes and blond hair so pale it looked like sunlit snow. While she’d never been to Alaska, she imagined the severe planes of his face matched his wild homeland.

Kane motioned to a man in a collared shirt and tie at the head of the table who sat behind the computer console. “That’s Ryan, our security officer.”

Ryan offered a clipped “hello” as he stroked his neat goatee, but didn’t look away from his screen.

Olivia studied the thirty-something man with the wavy blond hair and sharp eyes.

If Kane hadn’t told her President Bradley’s great-nephew was part of the VIPER team, she would have recognized the resemblance on her own.

The president swallowed a sip of coffee and grinned. “Olivia, please note that Ryan used to know how to use words to greet a lady. Now he’s just as intense as the rest of the crew.”

Ryan looked up. “Sorry. I was finishing running a program.”

She smiled. “No worries.” While Ryan was the only one in the room in a tie besides the Secret Service agents, the outline of lean muscle under his dress shirt suggested he was capable of unethical measures, and not just at the computer.

And the way he held himself erect, like the others in the room, and straightened even more at his uncle’s offhanded praise, indicated a military background.

Thanks to growing up with a father in the armed forces and a brother destined to follow in his dad’s footsteps, she’d honed the ability to spot a military man with just a glance.

“And that one…” Kane glanced at Nic and huffed. “The one who claims he didn’t know who you were, already introduced himself.”

She pressed her fingertips into her temples. “Will you stop being a pain in my ass for once in your life? Didn’t you hear me the first time? Nic didn’t do anything wrong. I did.”