Page 15 of Too Guarded to Love (Project VIPER #3)

N ic braced himself for the “but” he was sure would follow Olivia’s surprising ownership of her actions. It didn’t come, just like it hadn’t the first time she’d defended him when she’d suddenly appeared in the doorway.

The bruise she’d caused throbbed like a warning as feminine voices from his past whined like banshees in his brain.

“But I would never do that.”

“But it wasn’t my fault.”

Instead of the “buts” experience had taught him to expect, Olivia cursed at her brother. The insult on Nic’s behalf sounded like a siren’s song he shouldn’t trust.

Olivia accepted a bottle of water from President Bradley with thanks. She tipped it toward Kane. “I knew who Nic was once I saw his arm and didn’t say anything. I was going to and then?—”

Her lips had found their way to his cock right before a bullet slammed into her body.

Kane paced to the end of the room. He stopped next to the American flag in the corner. “You never listen, Livvie. How many times have I told you to stay away from my friends? And why the hell did you go to the beach instead of going to my house or Gran’s? ”

“First, you’ve been sending that ‘stay away from my friends’ message for decades, loud and clear. Second, I’d planned to meet a patient and then drive to you in the morning. Are those explanations good enough for you, little brother?”

Bradley slid next to Edgar. “Aren’t they twins?”

Nic tuned out the insults volleying between Kane and Olivia and eavesdropped on the conversation between the admiral and the president.

Edgar chuckled. “Olivia’s older by a few minutes. She seems to take it to heart.”

“Should we stop them?”

Edgar shook his head. “Give them a few moments to say what they need to before we dig into this mess. Olivia’s not used to being in someone’s crosshairs and Kane needs to let out steam to clear his head.”

Nic nodded his silent agreement. He also needed to clear his head and remember his purpose.

He hadn’t pledged his loyalty to VIPER just to receive a new arm and a leg.

He committed so he could feed his drive to serve and protect the country from foreign and domestic enemies.

But tonight’s enemies hadn’t threatened the nation.

They’d threatened his family. Now Olivia was included in that category, and she kept looking at him like he could save her world.

He would because it was his duty, not because of this infuriating attraction he should have drowned in the ocean before they left the beach. His guarded heart couldn’t accept that the woman who’d already played him once didn’t have an ulterior motive for her sudden defense of his honor.

Crossing to lean against the table again, he searched her face, flushed with anger, as she traded jabs with her brother.

He studied her stiff posture. Replayed every word she’s said since she’d appeared in the doorway.

He couldn’t detect a trace of deceit. Only desire for the woman who’d looked gorgeous in the black sweatpants and a gray T-shirt Patience must have helped her change into.

Shit, now he was jealous of Patience. Not because he wasn’t the one who got to see Olivia naked. Well, maybe a little. His cock twitched at the lie. Okay, a lot, but his irrational envy ran deeper. He wanted to be the one to take care of her, and that scared the hell out of him.

Kane paced back to the doorway and looked down at Olivia. “It’s not like you ever listened to me. Remember Billy Conroy?”

“One time, Kane.” She held up her pointer finger. “One time I went on a date with one of your friends.”

Kane raised an eyebrow. “One time? Really?”

“Okay, maybe two.”

He snorted. “More like half a dozen.”

“It doesn’t matter.” She waved her hand. “You know, I ran into Billy a few months ago. The bump is still on his nose from where you broke it.”

“He deserved it. He convinced you to take Gramps Buick without permission and then got you drunk and arrested.”

“And the charges were dropped.” She dug her fingers into her temples again. “And he didn’t deserve to get hit in the face because I borrowed the Buick and shared Uncle Pat’s moonshine at the bonfire. And Nic didn’t deserve?—”

Kane raised his hand. “Don’t even compare the two situations.”

Olivia looked at Edgar and President Bradley. “Will one of you please tell him to stop acting like a stupid teenager?”

Edgar fixed his gaze on Kane. “You heard your big sister. Enough. Now let’s get back to business.”

Olivia smirked at Kane, as if satisfied she’d gotten him in trouble with his boss.

Nic swallowed a chuckle. A little fight got her adrenaline flowing, and she appreciated good moonshine. Good to know.

No, not good . He shouldn’t care about either of those things, nor should they turn him on.

Edgar pressed a button on a remote. The report from Homeland Security disappeared, but Rachel’s photo remained.

“Let’s go under the assumption that Olivia and Ava were targeted by someone tied to the deceased reporter.

Ava makes sense because she and Nic have a relationship, but how does Olivia fit into this? ”

Nic forced his brain into business mode. “I have two theories. First, someone was watching me, thought Olivia was important in my life, and added her to the hit list. Second, she wasn’t targeted because of me, after all.”

“Hit list?” Olivia whispered.

Edgar offered a brief explanation of who Rachel was and what they suspected. “Don’t worry, you’re safe here at headquarters.”

“I know. Thank you.” She shook her head and laughed. “How could I not be safe with bionic men and the Secret Service standing guard?”

A smile tipped the side of Nic’s lips as he admired the rosy color that blossomed in her cheeks when she got snarky.

Kane cursed. “Who else besides the alleged person avenging the reporter who died on your watch would be after my sister?”

The truth cut deep into Nic’s flesh and sliced his heart. It didn’t matter that Rachel had been deceitful and dirty. She had died under his protection. “There’s another scenario I mentioned earlier that we haven’t discussed yet. If you would stop arguing with your sister, I can explain.”

Olivia held up her hand. “I’ll explain about the bizarre crap going on in my life, thank you very much.

Well, at least the unusual parts before I got shot.

” She turned to Kane. “That’s what I flew in to talk to you and your buddies about.

There have been some weird things happening at work.

And I think…I know it sounds like I’m losing my mind, but I think someone’s been watching me. ”

A dark chill zipped down Nic’s spine. He’d been right. She had been afraid of something. “Explain.”

Olivia studied Nic’s deep, unwavering gaze, as if its dark, brilliant depths could hypnotize her into sharing her most intimate thoughts.

Jesus, she’d already done that at the beach, hadn’t she?

She really needed to talk to Gran. How was she supposed to know if this spark she couldn’t deny between her and Nic was the real thing?

Unlike her brother, who yelled at her like he was years older instead of minutes younger, Nic had been attentive, yet distant, since she’d walked into a military movie complete with bionic heroes and a cameo by the president.

The charms on her bracelet jingled as she rubbed her temple.

She must have hit her head when she fell to even entertain the idea that Gran’s sixth sense about couples and soulmates held any validity.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to fall head over heels for a man who loved her completely and unconditionally.

She wanted it badly. She’d grown up with two parents who weren’t whole when the other wasn’t near.

But she didn’t believe fate predestined who she would give her heart to. That was up to her.

Nic was supposed to be the playboy of the team. She’d had a glimpse of the Casanova at the beach. She wanted it now. Wanted him to flirt with her and make her heart race with that sexy-ass accent .

Jonathan had never made it race like that. Nobody had.

But a guy like Nic? He was the last kind she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, but he was the kind she wanted to experience, if only once, even if her choice had been impulsive.

Kane stomped in front of her. “Why didn’t you tell me about the stuff happening in Atlanta?”

“I didn’t think much of it at first. It was just a weird feeling that I was being followed. And then I wanted to figure it out on my own when I realized someone might be messing with me.”

“Well, you’re not on your own now, so start from the beginning.”

Her stomach pitched in protest. She didn’t want to start anywhere.

For the last few minutes, she’d been picking fights with Kane to avoid being under everyone’s scrutiny.

She’d left her hometown and relocated to Atlanta because having every move analyzed and gossiped about by her neighbors, and not just the ones on her road but miles away, got old real fast. Now she was under the microscope of not just her brother, but a Navy admiral and the president of the freaking United States.

Except this time, she wouldn’t have to wait for the community grapevine to relay the information back to her family.

She sighed, caught between a bunch of men who were harder than rocks and wouldn’t let her out of this place until she explained. “The feeling that someone was watching me started six months ago. And last month, I allegedly started making mistakes at the hospital.”

Kane puffed out his chest. “She’s an orthopedic surgeon.”

Her heart softened at the pride in his voice. He may be a pain in the ass, but he was her biggest cheerleader.

“Yes, I work at Southern Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. I specialize in sports medicine. A few weeks ago, things I couldn’t explain but I know weren’t my fault started happening, like missed appointments and errors in documentation.

I did not make those mistakes. I’m sure of it.

I think someone hacked into the hospital’s network to make me look incompetent. ”