Page 11

Twelve hours later, Weston was still at Leo’s house. He stood in the kitchen with Leo, Gwendolyn and Jasper, who had finally returned from his search for the stolen camera.

The only one missing was Kayleigh, who was in her second shower of the day. This one hopefully enough to help her to relax and eventually sleep.

Weston hadn’t been able to look away from her face and the bruise coloring her cheek this morning as he’d kissed her. Couldn’t stop pressing his lips to the scrapes on her skin from where she fell.

It could’ve been so much worse. There were plenty of muggings that went wrong and someone didn’t survive. Kayleigh could have died and he would have lost her before he’d really had her.

Realizing how close it was had made Weston reluctant to leave her side. So, he’d kissed her again. And again. And again.

When her stomach growled, they’d both laughed and pulled away enough to get her some food and some more tea.

He’d sat next to her while she ate, not wanting to be separated yet. When she was done, he’d asked her to go through all the details with him again to be sure she hadn’t forgotten or missed something the first time. Then, very gently, had her go through it one more time after that.

He’d been hoping she might remember anything about the perp’s face, but didn’t press when she didn’t. Adrenaline was a crazy thing—it sometimes made certain aspects of an event crystal clear, sometimes blurred it all. Between the adrenaline and the hits she’d taken, she hadn’t gotten a look at a face at all.

It was quite interesting to Weston that Jasper and his men had shown up just in the nick of time to be of absolutely no assistance. That wasn’t an indication of guilt, but the timing was on the suspicious side.

By the time they’d finished the meal and going through everything, it had been after noon. She’d been blinking slowly and obviously needed to rest. He’d sent her up for her shower, then had been more than happy to hold her while they’d both slept for a few hours.

He’d also called his brothers to have them check out the alley. While San Antonio was certainly a big enough city that there was crime, someone getting mugged midmorning in that part of town wasn’t the standard practice.

Beyond that, he’d forced himself to back off. Leo was no longer his boss; Kayleigh wasn’t his client to protect.

He’d still be protecting her, but not because it was a job.

By dinnertime, despite the wonderful nap holding Kayleigh safe in his arms, there was no actionable intel. His brothers hadn’t found anything usable in the alley. He’d heard Jasper was back from the hunt for the camera but didn’t know any details.

He and Kayleigh had a quiet dinner with Gwendolyn. Leo had locked himself in his office and had been on the phone nonstop. Something was up.

Weston had to remind himself it wasn’t his responsibility to know everything that was going on. He was here solely as support for Kayleigh.

But when Leo had invited him into his office to hear the report from Jasper, Weston had quickly agreed.

“What happened?” Leo asked Jasper.

“The tracker was a dead end. It took us to a dumpster a couple blocks from the alley where Kayleigh was attacked. But when we got there, no camera, no mugger. We think they removed the tracker.”

Weston frowned. “Someone removed a nearly undetectable tracker from Kayleigh’s camera and placed it in a dumpster? That’s pretty damned lucky.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, Patterson. The camera wasn’t there when we arrived.” Jasper’s jaw clenched. “You think you could do better?”

Weston didn’t say anything. He wasn’t going to argue with the other man. But it was quite suspicious that the tracker had led to nothing.

“Let’s not worry about the camera.” Leo had been pacing in front of the windows in the office the whole time Jasper gave a report, ignoring the tea Gwendolyn brought in for each of them. “It can be replaced. The tracker didn’t lead to finding who attacked her, so it’s useless. For now, we focus on keeping everyone safe until the merger goes through.”

Weston nodded, studying him. Something had happened in the last few hours to agitate the older man. He didn’t know if it had to do with what Kayleigh had been through or the merger itself.

He kept an eye on Jasper too. Something was not right about him. He would have his brothers do a full rundown on Jasper to make sure Leo hadn’t missed anything during his background check.

“I want to discuss Kayleigh’s safety,” Leo said, glancing out the door like Kayleigh might be eavesdropping. “With the mugging and the attack on the lake house, I want her protected at all times.”

“I’ll take care of it,” Weston said immediately, looking at Kayleigh’s father. “I have somewhere we can go. But you aren’t going to pay me for it.”

“Where?” Jasper asked. “Just running off with her isn’t a good solution.”

Weston wasn’t about to tell either man. But especially not Jasper. “She’ll be safer if nobody knows.”

“That’s not going to work.” Jasper’s neck reddened. “I’m the head of security and I need to know where she is at all times.”

“It’s not up to you.” Weston turned to Leo. “It’s not up to you either. This conversation needs to happen with Kayleigh.”

He didn’t want her to ever again feel like he was keeping secrets about her safety.

“Of course it does.” Gwendolyn offered all three men a smile, an attempt at peacekeeping. “But Jasper not knowing where she is could make it difficult to do his job. Whether she likes it or not, he was hired to protect the Delacruz family, and Kayleigh is a huge part of that.”

“Kayleigh is a grown woman.” Weston crossed his arms over his chest. “She’s intelligent and has great instincts. Let her make her own choices.”

She was also wary of Jasper. But was that because the man was overbearing and power hungry or because she didn’t think he was trustworthy?

Weston saw a flash of movement at the door just before Kayleigh stepped in. She was dressed comfortably in worn jeans and a cozy sweatshirt. Her damp hair was loose around her shoulders, gathering on the backpack she wore.

She looked beautiful and fierce as she stared down her father. “I’m going with Weston. He’s the best choice to keep me safe.” She patted her backpack as she met Weston’s eyes. “I’ve got everything I need and I’m ready when you are.”

Hearing that she trusted him was a balm to his nerves, and as she came over to stand next to him, her closeness soothed him more. She was alive. She was safe.

He would make sure it stayed that way.

“No.” Jasper crossed his huge arms over his chest.

“I’m not asking your permission, Jasper. Weston’s right. I can make my own choices.” Kayleigh turned to Leo. “I need protection, fine. Weston can do that.”

“I agree,” Leo said. “But I think separating may not be a good idea. There are things I need to explain about—”

A shrill alarm broke off his argument. Everyone froze, looking at each other, trying to determine what was going on. Weston grabbed Kayleigh’s arm and pulled her closer.

Jasper snatched the walkie-talkie from his belt. “Report.”

A few seconds later, multiple grainy voices filled the room, talking on top of each other. Weston couldn’t make out a lot of what they were saying but one word he definitely understood.

Fire .

Jasper snatched a tablet off the desk and pulled up the security feed.

“Sir, we’ve got a fire in the east section of the house.”

Weston took Kayleigh’s hand. The east section of the house was near her bedroom.

“What caused it?” Leo asked.

Jasper rushed to the door. “I’ll let you know as soon as I—”

An explosion rocked the room and the windows shattered around the office. Weston spun, wrapping himself around Kayleigh, lowering them both to the floor.

They could hear more explosions and shattering windows all over the property.

They were under attack.

Jasper rushed over to Leo and Gwendolyn and pulled them away from the windows. Reports were screeching from his radio now.

Leo turned to Gwendolyn. “Get all the staff out of the house.”

The older woman looked around at them nervously, twisting her hands like she didn’t want to go. “But, sir, what about—”

“We’ll get out. Jasper, go with her. Do it now!”

Jasper looked like he also wanted to argue, but Leo had already turned away, moving low and quickly toward Weston and Kayleigh.

“Dad, we can’t stay here,” Kayleigh said, still under Weston’s arm. “We need to get out too.”

More explosions, and now smoke was filling the hall beyond the door.

“Can you get her out?” Leo asked Weston.

Kayleigh shook her head. “No way. We’re not leaving without you.”

Leo cupped his daughter’s cheeks. “I’ll leave, I promise. But I need you to go first. Like you said, Weston will keep you safe. Once I know no one can get to you, I’ll do what I need to do.”

Kayleigh’s safety was more important to Leo than his own. Weston didn’t know why, but he would make sure she was protected.

She stared at him, shocked and scared. She’d already had a rough day and he hated it was getting worse. But he was damned well going to get her out.

“Okay,” she whispered.

Beside them, Leo deflated, as if hearing her agree had taken the weight of the world off his back. “Good. Thank you.”

Gunfire joined the commotion. This was definitely an attack.

“Do you have a plan?” Leo asked.

Weston crept to the door, keeping Kayleigh pinned to his side. “They’ve blocked everything off, so the garage is the easiest way out, but getting in a car is exactly what they want. So, I’m going to get her out of here by foot.”

Leo’s gaze was concerned but he agreed. “Okay.”

“We’re going to go toward the fire.” Weston looked at Kayleigh and clutched her hand. “Into the wilderness area behind the house.”

Leo reached over and hugged Kayleigh. “Be careful. I love you. I’ll get my team to make a distraction so you’re sure to get out.”

“Be safe,” she said, hugging him tight.

“You too.” Leo squeezed her once more and let her go, pushing her back to Weston. “Get her out of here.”

Weston grabbed Kayleigh again and the two snuck into the back hallway. They pressed themselves to the shadows, using the chaos all around them to their advantage. Multiple guards were rushing toward Leo’s office, so he’d at least have protection.

Staying close together, it wasn’t long before they made it to the other side of the house where the fire raged. No one had spotted them.

Weston was surprised to see how much damage the flames had already done. Paintings were shredding into ash by the second, expensive wallpaper peeling from the walls. Even away from the direct flames, where they were, the floor tiles cracked from the heat.

Beside him, Kayleigh choked as she looked at the destruction of her childhood home. He grabbed her shirt and pulled it up over her nose, doing the same with his own.

He pointed to a little side door, thankful he still remembered so much of the house from when they were kids. “We’re going through that door. Once we’re outside, get ready to run. We’ll have to jump the back fence.”

The property butted up against the Hill Country State Natural Area—no houses, few roads, definitely their best direction for escape.

“Ready?” Weston asked. They were going to have to run through the fire to get out.

She squeezed his hand and nodded. Her trust meant everything to him.

Focusing again, he nicked a throw blanket from a nearby chair and wrapped it around his hand, moving Kayleigh so that she was farthest from the flames as they approached the door. The air was scorching, making his skin tighten. He reached for the doorknob, feeling the heat through the blanket, but it didn’t have time to burn him. Once the door was open, he pushed Kayleigh through and followed, rushing them outside.

Away from the oppressive heat of the fire, the light breeze felt like heaven. They both lowered their shirts off their noses and took a few deep breaths.

Behind them was the sound of more windows breaking and things crashing. He grabbed her hand once more and pulled her toward the back fence, keeping to the shadows. If they were spotted, they’d be in trouble.

Her backpack got stuck as they climbed the fence, so he took it off her back and put it on his own before helping her the rest of the way up and over. He climbed right behind her and jumped to the ground.

They sprinted to the cover of the low trees and then deeper into the surrounding wilderness. If the people attacking were truly trying to get their hands on Kayleigh—no doubt to control Leo—it wouldn’t take them long to figure out he and Kayleigh had headed in this direction.

They needed to be long gone before that happened.

Kayleigh ran with Weston like a trouper, staying right beside him despite the punishing pace he set. They weren’t nearly as far into the wilderness as he would’ve liked before his instincts had him stopping and pulling her against a tree.

He covered her mouth with his hand, but quickly let go when he saw terror flash in her eyes dimly lit from the moon. He put his finger over his lips in a signal to remain quiet and she nodded.

He closed his eyes briefly, letting his other senses take over. He didn’t hear anything.

At all.

The silence was just as much of a giveaway that there was a problem as bad guys barreling through yelling. More so, because it meant whoever was chasing them was smart enough not to announce it.

A snapping branch to the north snagged his attention. There was definitely at least one person out there. Kayleigh’s eyes got wider. She’d heard it too.

A second rustling sound in the opposite direction alerted them to a second adversary.

Weston leaned close to Kayleigh’s ear. He spoke in a low tone, knowing that wouldn’t carry as far as a whisper. “Remember the grove?”

She nodded. It was a couple miles off the property, but they had gone there a few times with Henry as kids. The trees were bigger there, they’d have more places to hide.

“Stay with me. Step where I do.”

She nodded again.

He took her hand, pulling them both into crouches. He moved quickly, aiming for spots of soft wood and moss to cover the sound of their steps. Behind him, Kayleigh did as he’d asked: stepped where he stepped, grabbed where he grabbed.

He knew she had to be scared—it was dark, there was thunder in the distance, and people were chasing them. But she held it together.

And he was going to do whatever he had to do to keep her safe.