Page 7 of Waiting for Him (Trident Security #3)

Chapter Five

B oomer awoke to the smell of coffee, and he glanced at the alarm clock next to his bed.

Oh -eight-thirty. He sat up before the events of the prior evening assaulted him, and he groaned.

It hadn’t been a dream. Kat was out in his kitchen, at this very moment, making coffee.

Tossing his covers off, he got up, headed to the master bath, and took care of business.

Then he grabbed a clean T -shirt and sweatpants from his dresser and put them on over the boxer briefs he’d slept in.

As he strode down the hallway, he noticed her bedroom door was shut, but it didn’t register in his mind before he entered the kitchen and stopped short.

Fuck ! How the hell could he have forgotten he had plans this morning?

Easily . The excuse must still be asleep down the hall.

Well , at least it was only his father standing in his kitchen.

He had driven up from Sarasota to go four-wheeling with Boomer today.

Whoever was now keeping watch outside the condo, Jake or Devon , wouldn’t have stopped Rick Michaelson from entering.

The man had the same training as their entire team with a few more years of experience, and was one of the few people outside of Trident Security he could trust with Katerina’s life. “ Hi , Pop .”

His dad turned and stepped out of the way, allowing Boomer to shuffle forward and make his own cup of coffee. “ Hey , you slept in late today. I take it we’re not going four-wheeling. Want to tell me what’s going on and why Reverend is watching your place?”

“ Noticed him, huh?”

“ Almost missed if you’re worried about it. Just happened to recognize his truck. Now , why is he there?”

He wasn’t worried that his father spotted Jake on surveillance.

Like the rest of Boomer’s team, there was little his father missed.

Being vigilant had been drilled into him and the others during their time as Navy SEALs .

The younger Michaelson shrugged as he grabbed a mug from the cabinet above his Keurig and prepped the machine before hitting start.

He turned around and leaned against the counter while crossing his arms and ankles. “ Something happened, Pop , and I have no idea how to sugarcoat it, so I’m just going to say it.”

Rick’s eyes narrowed, but he waited for his son, who’d paused to weigh his words, to continue. “ I had an appointment with a new client scheduled for last night at the office. Boss -man was with me. Pop ... Katerina Maier walked in the door.”

As Rick paled, his eyes grew wide, and he sat down in the closest chair, almost missing it and ending up on the floor. “ Holy shit. How ?”

Boomer grabbed his now-brewed mug of coffee and sat opposite the older man. “ Two words— Witness Protection .”

He filled his dad in on the story she’d told them. He’d just finished when the lady in question came into the kitchen and stopped when she spotted the familiar face she hadn’t seen in twelve years.

Rick stood with his mouth open for a moment before he recovered. “ Katerina ... wow, it really is you. I mean, I knew Ben was telling me the truth, but it’s like seeing a ghost.”

Boomer watched as his dad did what he, himself, had yet to do.

The older man opened his arms, and Kat walked right into them, letting him hug her.

He couldn’t hear what Rick was saying to her in a low soothing voice, but he saw her nod her head a few times in silence.

She was wearing a T -shirt and pajama pants, and both were too big on her.

He would have to make sure she put back on some of the weight she must have recently lost. With everything going on, it didn’t surprise him, but one of the things a good Dom did was take care of his submissive’s safety and well-being.

Fuck ! He had to stop thinking like a Dom and just be the operative and former SEAL he’d trained to be. She wasn’t his submissive. She was a woman from his past who needed his help. Nothing more. Yeah , jackass. Keep telling yourself that.

The embrace between the two lasted about a minute before they both stepped back. Kat blushed as she looked over at Boomer and then back to his dad. “ Hi , Mr . Michaelson . You ... uh, look great.”

Obviously , knowing the woman wasn’t sure what to say to him after all these years, Rick pulled out a chair for her. “ I think you’re old enough to call me Rick if you want. And you’re a sight for sore eyes too. Let me get you a cup of coffee.”

She nodded and took the seat he offered. “ Thanks , Mr . Mi — I mean, Rick . With a little milk, if Benny has some, please.”

He backed up, not taking his eyes off her until his butt hit the counter, and Boomer knew how he felt. It was as if they looked away, she would disappear. Finally , he turned to the coffee machine and prepared a mug for her. “ So , where do we go from here? How do we keep Kat safe?”

Boomer took a deep breath and let it out.

“ Well , Ian called Keon to get us ID for her along with a death certificate.” The ID they could’ve gotten from one of their contacts who was a master forger, but the certificate was a little harder because of the raised stamp authenticating it.

Besides , they were better off having documents officially forged by the FBI .

“ He’s also getting us the file on Volkov .

We should be able to head to Norfolk tonight and be at the bank early tomorrow morning.

” He shrugged. “ Where we go from there depends on what’s in the box. ”

Handing Katerina her coffee with milk, Rick nodded his agreement. “ I’ll go with you.”

“ No , you won’t.”

Boomer’s dad narrowed his eyes at him. “ What do you mean ‘no’? You can’t do this alone. You need backup.”

“ And I’ll have it, Pop . But I don’t know how long we’ll be, and your birthday is Friday . Mom would kill both of us if you missed it.”

Boomer wouldn’t tell his dad that his mom had made special plans for his birthday.

She’d gotten tickets for an intimate concert starring Rick’s favorite singer, Billy Joel .

There were only one hundred tickets available, and she’d won hers through a local radio station two months ago.

Since the event date was the same as his birthday, she’d decided to make it a surprise.

“ Ian will probably send Jake with me. We’ve got it covered.

” Not wanting his dad to think he didn’t need or trust him to help out, he added, “ After Friday , if this isn’t settled, you can cover my six if you want, but don’t get Mom pissed at me again.

She’s still mad that I won’t go out with her friend’s niece. ”

Rick harrumphed but then smiled. “ You made the right choice there, son. I’ve met Diane’s niece, and she gives new meaning to the word .

.. uh, never mind. You’re just better off and leave it at that.

” Boomer and Kat chuckled. It was evident Rick had forgotten she was in the room for a moment.

“ As for not going with you, fine. As long as someone from the team has your six. And promise me, if you need me, you’ll call no matter what. ”

“ Of course. There’s no one else I’d rather have covering my ass.” Boomer’s cell phone rang, so he stood and grabbed it from the counter. Glancing at the screen, he hit the call button. “ Hey , Boss -man ... uh-huh ... okay. See you in thirty.”

He hung up, looking at Rick and then Kat . “ Ian’s got info for us, so we’re heading to Trident . You have about fifteen minutes for a quick shower if you want, and we’ll grab some breakfast on the way.”

Rick finished the last of his coffee and set the cup in the sink as Kat left the room to go shower.

He patted Boomer on the back before walking toward the front door.

“ I’ll run to the bagel place you all like and grab breakfast for everyone.

This way, you don’t have to stop. I’ll meet you at the compound. ”

As he headed toward his own shower, Boomer glanced over his shoulder. “ Thanks , Pop . Grab a few extras because I’m not sure how many of us will be there. See you in a few.”

As Kat lathered the shampoo into her hair, she replayed the conversation she’d had with Benny the night before. After she’d thanked him for helping her, his response had been, “ No problem. It’s what I do.” It was close to what Tiny had said when she’d thanked the big man earlier.

Well , what did she expect Benny to say after all this time?

She’d been “dead” to him for longer than the seven years she’d been in his life.

He had gone on to live without her. Now , she was just a girl he used to know who needed to hire him to keep her safe and help her escape the mess she was in. Nothing more.

Rinsing her hair, she thought about how good he looked this morning after she’d recovered from the shock of seeing his dad again.

He must have rolled out of bed a few minutes before she did.

His dark brown hair was a bit shaggy and sticking up in several places.

His eyes were tired-looking, yet still the sexiest ones she’d ever seen.

Her dreams of him over the years hadn’t done the man he was now justice.

He was handsome as hell, with a body that would make a nun have dirty thoughts.

She may still be a virgin, but it didn’t mean she was na?ve about sex.

In this day and age, it wasn’t possible.

Sex was all over the TV and the internet.

It was in the movies she saw and the books and newspapers she read daily.