Sunrise woke her early. Before seven. But she suspected she’d gotten way more sleep than Kyle had.

  “He can sleep anywhere, that boy. Always could, even before he joined the SEALs.”

  Her eyes widened. “Kyle is a Navy SEAL?”

  “Yup. He didn’t tell you?” Jerry Jones flashed her a glance in the rearview mirror.

  “No.”

  “Mm.” He nodded. “Guess that’s not a surprise. Seeing how he’s so worried.”

  “Worried about what?” she asked.

  “His injury. If his ankle doesn’t heal one hundred percent, they’ll probably force him out.”

  “I didn’t know.”

  This little trip with Kyle’s dad had been most enlightening.

  “He tends to keep things close to the vest. Unlike his brothers. Can’t get them to shut up.”

  “Brothers? There’s more than Kurt?”

  “Yup. Scooter is my youngest. Then there’s my girl and her kids. Family’s growing bigger every day.”

  It was odd, but she’d never been able to picture Kyle having a family or a personal life. Until now. It was a whole new side of him. It made her like him even more.

  “You have a big family?” the older man asked.

  “No. But I wish I did.”

  “That’s okay. Spend some time with ours and you’ll get over that. If Kyle lets you. So far I’m supposed to keep you a big secret. I’m not to tell a soul.”

  “He said that?”

  “Yup. Couldn’t even tell my wife or my mother-in-law about you. His orders.” Jerry grinned. “Apparently, you’re famous or something.”

  Apparently, the older man shared his son Kurt’s sense of humor.

  “Or something.” She smiled.

  “So you sing?” he asked, perfectly seriously.

  She realized he hadn’t been joking. He didn’t know who she was. And oddly, that was a relief. No pressure. No expectations. She could be herself.

  “I do.”

  “Wife and I sing in the church choir. Our town’s so small, anyone who can carry a tune in a bucket gets recruited for choir.”

  This conversation was so normal, so wonderfully mundane, she couldn’t keep the smile off her face. “I’d love to hear you sometime.”

  “I tell you what. I’ll talk to your jailer and see if he’ll let you out for an hour. You can come for the service on Sunday.”

  “That’d be nice. Thank you.”

  She loved this family. She wanted to be part of this family, if even for a little while.

  “What are you two talking about?” Kyle asked, his voice gruff from sleep.

  He adjusted his baseball hat and twisted in the front seat to look back at her.

  “You,” she said

  His eyebrows rose below the brim of the Jones Construction cap. “Why?”

  “You fell asleep. That makes you fair game in my book.” His dad chuckled.

  Kyle scowled at his father’s comment while Luna laughed.

  Did she really have to leave right after her follow-up appointment with her surgeon on Monday?

  Suddenly, she didn’t want to go.

  eighteen

  Kyle disconnected the call and turned to Luna. “Kurt is enjoying the ski house so much, he’s going to spend the night and head back in the morning.”

  She turned from staring out the back window of the cabin to face him. “Really? Won’t he be bored there all alone?” she asked.

  “There’s HBO, which Mom and Dad are too cheap to pay for, so he’s excited to watch that all night. And we did leave food in the fridge.” It was a nice house. And after living with the family his whole life, Kyle couldn’t blame his brother for enjoying the solitude.

  “Okay.” She laughed.

  His guilt had him saying, “I’m sorry I dragged you out of there.”

  “Technically, you carried me out in a box. But what are you sorry about?”

  “You paid for a kick ass ski house. And here we are in my family’s cabin with no indoor toilet.”

  “But with a big stone fireplace and what looks like handmade antique wood furniture and the most beautiful view I’ve ever seen.”

  “You’ll be less impressed when you have to use the outhouse in the middle of the night,” he warned.

  “I’m very good at holding it. Trust me. Once I get into some of those costumes I perform in, there’s no getting out of them easily, so…” She shrugged with a smile, then sobered. “And it was the paparazzi and whoever tipped them off that forced us to move here. Not you,” she corrected.

  He tipped his head to acknowledge the truth of that.

  Even so, he should have figured out a way to keep her safe while staying there. To get in touch with Rudnick. To get the backup he needed to keep her safe there.

  Speaking of Rudnick… “I have to make one more phone call.”

  “Go ahead. I’m fine.”

  He leveled a stare on her. “You really are, aren’t you?”

  Her brows rose. “Yes. Did you expect me not to be?”

  “Honestly. Yes.” It was the truth, but in this instance he probably should have lied since the truth wasn’t all that flattering.

  He’d just basically admitted that he thought she was too much of a diva to not have a meltdown when faced with roughing it in a hunting cabin.

  Her brow remained cocked high. “I’ll forgive you for saying that since you don’t know me very well.”

  Maybe she was right.

  As fun as this banter was, he needed to make contact with his boss. He’d taken a high value client and moved her. Without permission. Without telling anyone.

  Kyle punched in Jon Rudnick’s number and once again got sent directly to voicemail. Where the hell was this guy?

  A horrible thought hit him. The PMC game was no safer than being active-duty military. And Rudnick’s guys played in the big leagues. What if his only contact at GAPS had been injured or killed?

  Feeling a little sick and worried for a fellow frogman, even if he’d never met him in person, Kyle needed answers.

  When the prompt came for him to leave a message, he said, “Rudnick. Kyle Jones here. We had an unexpected visitor so our mutual friend and I relocated. We’re fine but uh call me back when you can.”

  He disconnected, at a loss. Then he remembered the original card Blessing had given him. That had been an office number. Not Rudnick’s cell.

  Kyle scrolled through the call history in his phone and found the number. He hit the screen to make the call.

  “Guardian Angel Protection Services, we got your six when God’s too busy. Chris Cassidy speaking. What can I do for you?”

  The long and odd greeting was delivered in the thickest southern draw that Kyle, as a born and raised New Yorker, had ever heard.

  Maybe GAPS was less Blackwater and more backwater, judging by the office staff.

  It threw Kyle enough, he had to gather his thoughts before he said, “Um, yeah. This is Kyle Jones. Uh, I was trying to reach Jon Rudnick about a job I’m doing for you guys.”

  “Hey, yeah. Jon had to catch a flight. You’d have to call the satellite phone number, which I’m guessing he didn’t give you since he wasn’t expecting to have to fly out. He told me to keep an ear out for you in case you needed anything. Gotta tell you, we’re barebones here right now. But I’m here, so how y’all doing?”

  “Uh, well, I don’t know how much you know about the job—”

  “I think I pretty much got briefed on it all.”

  At least that was encouraging. The rest of this conversation, not so much.

  “Our location was compromised. When I couldn’t get a hold of Rudnick by phone I extracted and relocated the client to a secondary location.”

  “You secure? Y’all need backup?” Chris drawled.

  “Would you have someone for me if I did?” Kyle asked, only partially joking.

  Chris let out a long low chuckle. “I could probably scrounge someone up or fly up there myself.”

  “Nah. I’m good for now.”

  “If that changes, I’ll text you my cell number. You call, day or night.”

  “Okay. Thanks.” He turned to see Luna heading out the door of the cabin. “Uh, I gotta go. I’ll keep in touch.”

  He disconnected and ran to follow her out.

  “You can’t be wandering around outside,” he reprimanded.

  She turned and lifted a brow. “Who exactly is going to see me?”

  “We do have neighbors. Just not close. And there could be hunters in the woods.”

  “Hunting what?”

  “This time of year? Probably squirrel.”

  Her surprised and slightly nauseated looking expression at his answer had him laughing. “You’re not in Manhattan or Miami anymore.”

  “Yeah. That’s obvious.” She turned to lean on the railing that lined the covered front porch of the cabin. “It’s so pretty here.”

  She gazed out over the sweeping view of rolling hills the high elevation of the property provided.

  He followed her gaze.

  The days were getting shorter and shorter. Soon the sun would dip low in the sky and give her a show in the form of a spectacular sunset. He’d seen it himself many times, although until this very moment, he’d forgotten how nice it was.

  It had been a long time since he’d been home. Even longer since he’d been here in the cabin for a hunting trip with his father and brothers.

  Did the remaining males of the family even still have those weekend trips?

  Judging by the condition the cabin had been in when they arrived, they must. There were only a few spider webs to clear away. A pile of wood was stacked neatly by the hearth along with newspaper and kindling. And the canned food in the cupboard wasn’t even expired.

  He hadn’t counted on there being anything, so his father would be returning with supplies. Mainly bottled water and some essentials for meals.

  They had a propane stove here, so he could cook and make coffee for himself and tea for Luna.

  She turned back to him and headed for the door and he breathed a sigh of relief. He didn’t like her being out in the open. Paranoid, maybe. He didn’t care.

  “Can I charge my cell phone? It went dead somewhere between the ski house and here.”

  “Sure. There’s an outlet by the stove.”

  At least there was power…as long as the generator had gas in it. His father was bringing more gasoline too.

  This whole thing was probably an epically bad idea.

  Although when she plugged in her cell then wandered back to the window, she looked so happy, so calm, he had to wonder if this might be the best thing for her.

  She froze, then turned to face him, her face beaming. “Kyle. There’s a deer.”

  He laughed. “Probably more than one. Keep watching. They usually travel in a herd.”

  “Really?” She pivoted back to the window her nose practically pressed against the glass.

  It was what he needed to see. He’d made the right decision. She was happy. More, she was safe.

  Now he just had to keep her safe. And try not to imagine her naked. And try not to dream about her while she was sleeping literally feet away from him across the room in the other bed.

  Her cell phone began to ring, jarring the peace with shrill music.

  He laughed. “You sure you want that thing charged?”

  She sighed and headed toward the device. “I might have to reconsider that.”

  Luna frowned at the screen. “It’s Angel.”

  Her fiancé.

  And with that reminder and harsh dose of reality, his contentment came screeching to a halt.

  She swiped the screen and pressed the phone to her ear. “Hey. What’s up?”

  Her eyes widened and he swore he could see the blood drain from her face.

  She was shaking when she lowered her hand.

  “Angel got a letter. A—a threat. About me.”

  Shit.

  nineteen

  Kyle strode to her and took the cell out of her hand. With a frighteningly intense expression on his face, he pressed it to his ear.

  “Hello? Angel!” Scowling he handed the cell to her. “He’s already hung up.”

  “He had to go,” she explained.

  Without realizing what she was doing, she took the phone he’d handed her. But that seemed all she was capable of.

  This threat was invading every aspect of her life. How could she feel safe anywhere? Even here.

  “I want you to call him back so I can talk to him. But first, come here.” He came forward and gripped her shoulders with two strong hands. “You need to sit down before you pass out.”

  She shook her head. “They even got to him. In Europe.”

  Kyle blew out a curse. “He’s in Europe?”

  She nodded.

  Another curse, this one a bit harsher, spilled out of Kyle as that hardened expression turned his jaw, his eyes too, rock hard.

  Breathing seemed impossible. She tried to draw in a breath but her chest wouldn’t cooperate. That’s when the shaking began.

  “Christ. Come here. You’re good. We’re okay here. I promise you.” He pulled her tight against the brick wall of his chest.

  “You can’t promise that.” She pressed against the soft shirt that covered his hard muscles.

  He didn’t try to contradict her this time. She knew it wouldn’t have helped anyway. Maybe he knew that too.

  His hands, splayed against her back, rubbing slowly up and down, helped more than any words. His solid presence did make her believe she was safe, until she realized one bullet could remove his protection from her life and leave her vulnerable.

  Kyle pulled back far enough that he could cup her face in his hands. “I’ll call for back-up. I can and I will keep you safe. I swear on my life.”

  Those words broke something inside her. One moment she was staring into eyes like blue stone. The next, she was up on her tiptoes, crashing her lips against his.

  He reacted with an equal amount of enthusiasm and pressed her body against his in a vise-like grip.

  Angling his head, he kissed her back with unrestrained passion. He took possession of her mouth as he plunged his tongue between her parted lips.

  Then it was over.

  Kyle pulled back, his expression hard, almost angry. “We can’t do this.”

  “Yes. We can.” She moved back in, bringing her lips closer to his.

  He held her away. Those arms that had shielded her before worked as a barrier against her now.

  “No. We can’t. You’re engaged.” His tone was as hard as his eyes as he said it.

  The words were on the tip of her tongue. She wanted to tell him the truth. Kyle had been more of a partner to her these past couple of weeks than Angel ever had been.

  Her throat tight as the tears of frustration filled her eyes, she could only shake her head. She raised her gaze to meet his as the tears spilled down her cheeks.

  “Please,” she whispered, her hands gripping the arms that held her back.

  “Fuck.” His nostrils flared as he drew in a sharp breath and then was back. Holding her. Kissing her.

  She melted against him. Fear began to be replaced by need. Frustration faded in the presence of pleasure.

  He slid his hands down her body.

  One large palm splayed over her ass and hauled her hips tight against him.

  He pulled back again, breathing heavily. “Tell me to stop.”

  Kyle wanted her as much as she wanted him. That was obvious. The physical evidence of his desire between them pressed long and hard against her.

  “Don’t stop,” she gasped.

  “Luna. Please. I’m trying to do what’s right.”

  She heard the pain in his voice. The desperation. But she was long past being able to think. Or to reason right from wrong.

  Her emotions were a big, twisted ball overwhelmingly dominated by her own desperation and need.

  Stress. Fear. Both powerful emotions. But so was passion and desire. She wanted to feel that instead for once. Just for a little while.

  She reached down between their bodies and stroked his length.

  His eyes closed, a deep furrow formed in his forehead. “Please don’t.”

  She felt power after feeling powerless for so long. It was exhilarating. Addicting. She craved more and gave him another stroke.

  He groaned. “Luna.”

  “I want this. I want you.”

  “Oh, God.” Again, his was a plea filled with pure agony.

  “Please. Kyle.”

  “Fuck.” The word came out like a long low growl.

  She found herself airborne as he lifted her and carried her to one of the four narrow beds in the room.

  They should have done this in the suite on that big king-sized bed. But something about the small cot in the hunting cabin made this feel more… genuine.

  He tugged down the waist of her pants, past her knees, all the way to her ankles. Untangling them from her feet, he tossed them onto the nearby bed. Then his eyes landed on her bare skin.

  “You wear those things with no fucking underwear?” he asked, raising is narrowed gaze to meet hers.

  “Sometimes,” she answered.

  “Fuck.” Shaking his head, he looked unhappy. Maybe even overwhelmed by that information.

  But not for long. After sucking in one big lungful of air, Kyle pushed her legs wide, bent low and latched onto her core.

  The heat of his tongue forced a breath from her lungs.

  She threw her head back, pressing against the single pillow with her eyes closed tight. It had been so long since she’d been touched. Even longer since a man had done this. And he hadn’t done it anything like Kyle was now.

  He wasn’t gentle. He worked her hard with his mouth and his fingers. It was exactly what she needed.

  Her hips rose to meet him without her even realizing she’d moved. He supported her with two hands beneath her bare bottom and sucked harder. Tortured her faster.

  Seconds later, she was crying out a string of nonsense. Whether her words made sense to him or not, she didn’t know, but they whipped Kyle into a frenzy.

  He lifted her hips higher. Plunged his tongue against her heated flesh faster. Sucked harder until she was no longer able to form words. Just loud cries. They were the unmistakable sounds of an orgasm so powerful it was almost frightening.