Deadly Fallout (Red Stone Security Series Book 10) (3 page)

Dr. Gerard Fernandez was a prick. Braddock had met him at different functions over the last decade and couldn’t stand the guy. So self-righteous about everything. It wasn’t like Fernandez did any pro bono or charity work, not like Braddock did. Something Zoe should be able to clearly see. Why couldn’t she see how good they’d be together? How right they were for each other?

After spending six months in South America working for Medicine Without Borders, he’d come back ready to start something with Zoe. He knew she was angry at him for what had happened at the hospital, but she shouldn’t have played so hard to get with him. She should
know
that she belonged to him. He’d made his intentions clear long ago and she’d seemed receptive, always so friendly at work. Until that night when she’d completely overreacted to his advances.

He’d even left his wife for her. Right before he’d gone to South America he’d started the divorce proceedings. His lawyer was brilliant and everything had gone smoothly. He was paying out the ass for the divorce but it was worth it. Especially since he knew he could be paying a lot more.

For some reason his ex-wife hadn’t fought him at all. She’d just taken what was owed her in their prenuptial agreement and walked away without a fight. She’d tried to leave him once two years ago but he’d made it clear that no one walked away from him. Ever since then she’d done nothing but try to please him. It had been so tiring. Being rid of her was one of the best things that could have happened to him.

Now he could focus all his attention on Zoe. Like she deserved. She was a smart, talented woman and deserved to be with someone like him. She was knowledgeable about their industry, could hold intelligent conversations with their peers, and was an incredibly calm surgeon. She’d never gotten rattled during surgeries, had always been cool and focused. That alone was a turn-on. Plus she was beautiful so he could take her anywhere. That nonsense from the hospital would blow over eventually. It was just a misunderstanding and he would forgive her for embarrassing him. Of course he’d have to punish her, but he wouldn’t hold it over her head forever.

When he realized his tumbler was empty he started to stand—only to discover he wasn’t alone. As he faced the glass doors that led to his living room, he frowned at the tall, lithe woman standing there with her hands on her hips.

“What are you doing here?” His gaze went to the Scotch bottle in her hand and his frown deepened. He hated it when she made herself feel at home. He’d barely been back in the country and here she was. Annoying him.

With a tinkling laugh, she glided toward him, her hips swaying seductively. Despite the cooler temperature and the breeze coming up off the ocean, she wore a skin tight neon purple dress that accentuated all her curves. The puffy jacket she wore looked as if it was for fashion, not warmth. She had a tight body, one she worked hard to keep, but strip it away and there wasn’t much underneath. She’d been a good fuck, nothing more. It was deeply disturbing the way she kept trying to insert herself back into his life. All those emails and phone calls while he’d been away. He knew she wasn’t that bright, which was one of the reasons he’d originally hooked up with her, but she was clearly persistent.

“I heard you were back in town and couldn’t believe you hadn’t called.” Her lips pulled down into a faux pouty frown and he noticed she wasn’t wearing her normal bright red lipstick.

How the hell had she known… Damn it, fucking social media. He’d gotten an alert that the hospital had posted something about his return. He’d wanted to fly under the radar for a couple weeks, but he should have expected that someone as important as him wouldn’t go unnoticed for long. Well, if she was here, maybe he could get something out of her visit. He tilted his head at the bottle in her hand before he sat back in his chair. “Is that for me?”

Sighing, she moved toward him, her heels clicking on the tile as she opened the bottle. She poured him a glass before spreading her legs and straddling him. Her puffy, feathery jacket brushed against his face as she sat on him. “You’re in a mood. Did the South America trip not go well?”

His gaze dipped to her mouth as she spoke and he started to get hard. The woman could give some serious head. He wondered if she’d blow him then leave. No, that would be too much wishful thinking. She’d want to stay and talk afterward. “It was fine. I’m just tired after traveling.”

She shifted slightly over him, her dress riding up on her thighs as she rubbed herself over his growing dick. “Is that for me?” she murmured, leaning down to nip his ear between her teeth.

He slid his hands around her, letting them settle on her hips. Pushing out a sigh, he leaned his head back. “I’m not really in the mood.” He knew if he said that, she’d give him what he wanted and he wouldn’t have to do any work. And after he got what he wanted, he’d make up an excuse about having to get up early tomorrow and kick her out.

She leaned back then, her dark eyes flashing with anger. One of her hands tightened on his shoulder and the other slid around to the back of his neck. She usually liked it rough, maybe he’d make time for her tonight after all.

“Not in the mood? Could’ve fooled me,” she snapped.

Damn, time to placate her. “It’s not that. I…my divorce is just final and I’ve been in a shithole for the last six months. I’m exhausted and you know what I need.” He dropped his voice, sounding apologetic.

Her lips pursed. “If you’re so exhausted how did you have the time to go see Zoe Hansen tonight?”

He jerked in his seat, sitting up straighter. Alarm surged through him. He hadn’t told anyone he’d gone to see Zoe. “How the hell did you—”

A sudden, sharp pain pierced his neck as she sliced across his jugular. He lurched forward, his hands on her hips tightening as blood sprayed everywhere, covering her face and clothes.
Blood?

That was when he saw the flash of metal in her hand as she slid off him. Crimson stained her stupid jacket as she laughed crazily, a knife gripped tightly in her fingers. He slapped a hand to his neck, trying to stop the gushing. He stood, his legs wobbling, but he forced himself to remain upright.

She took a step back, watching him gleefully, her eyes completely crazy.

His knees shook, but he had to stand, to get help. Sitting would accelerate the blood loss. Help. He had to call for help. He fumbled in his pants pocket and grabbed his phone. It slipped from his fingers because of all the blood. As it landed on the tile, she laughed again.

“That’s what you get, stupid fuck,” she spat, turning on her heel and stomping toward the open sliding glass door.

He took a step after her, but fell to his knees, the impact jarring him, but he barely felt the pain. The blood was spurting out, not leaking so the bitch must have cut an artery. He opened his mouth, trying to speak, but a rush of pain overwhelmed him as blood gurgled up from the wound. He tried to hold his wound but his hands were too slick and his vision was turning dark.

No! This stupid bitch couldn’t have killed him. He refused to die like this. No, no…

* * *

Sawyer tried not to stare at Zoe as she smoothed a hand down the front of her wool coat and made her way around the couch to hug Alex. Or Blue, as almost everyone else called him.

But hell, it was hard not to watch her. Petite and compact with smooth mocha skin and intelligent dark eyes, nothing got past that woman. He vividly remembered the last time he’d seen her and inwardly cringed. He didn’t regret punching her brother, but he did regret doing it in front of an audience. Especially since she’d been there.

He’d only met her a couple times before that encounter and each time he’d been too damn nervous to talk to her. Big, bad SEAL couldn’t talk to a small woman with luscious curves and a smart mouth he’d had way too many fantasies about. Her hair was shorter now, the corkscrew curls bouncing everywhere. Years ago she’d worn it long and straight. He liked this version of her too.

He jerked out of his haze when he realized Blue was talking to him. “Sawyer, this is Zoe Hansen, Vincent’s sister.”

Sawyer started to say they’d already met before when Zoe held out a hand, her expression polite. “Nice to meet you.”

What the fuck? She didn’t remember him? That shouldn’t annoy him as much as it did. Talk about a blow to his ego. He gritted his teeth and tried to force a polite smile as he returned her handshake. God, her hands were soft too. That was when he realized how red her eyes were, as if she’d been crying. He frowned. “You okay?”

Just like that her polite expression went completely blank. “I’m good, thank you.” Then she cleared her throat and looked pointedly at Blue.

His friend gave a short nod before looking back at Mina and Sawyer. “We’re going to be in my office for a few minutes but make yourself at home.”

“Come on, I’ll get you something to drink,” Mina said, smiling and motioning to the mini-bar. “How’s this week gone?”

Tearing his attention from Zoe’s retreating backside, he turned to Mina and smiled as she poured him a bourbon. “Good. Learned a lot.”

Laughing lightly, she shook her head and handed him the drink before dropping onto one of the couches. “Such a succinct answer. You’re as bad as Alex.”

“You really want to hear about the protocol review and training exercises we did?” After a twenty-year Navy career, he’d recently retired at thirty-seven and had taken a job with Red Stone Security heading up one of their East Coast divisions. And this was his last week of training under Alex.

It was still too soon to decide, but Sawyer was going with his gut that this was the best damn move he could have ever made career-wise. He’d been offered jobs by multiple government agencies, but the political bullshit he’d have had to deal with had held him back from accepting. When Porter Caldwell, one of the owners of Red Stone had contacted him, he’d internally jumped at the offer. He’d made Porter wait for his answer because he’d wanted to negotiate his hiring terms, but taking this job had been a no-brainer.

Mina pursed her lips together. “Well, I don’t need
all
the details.” She started to say something else when a soft bell dinged.

He knew from being invited over here on multiple occasions that was the timer for the oven. They had a chef who came by four or five days a week and prepared dinner for them. Since he hadn’t seen or heard their chef, he assumed she’d gone home for the evening. Sawyer automatically stood. “I’ll get it… What did Marcelle make tonight?”

Smiling, Mina stood. “Herb-roasted lamb with a side of potatoes, butternut squash soup and a spinach salad. And you don’t have to get anything.”

He just grunted. “You shouldn’t be doing anything anyway.” A week ago Alex and Mina had told Sawyer that Mina was fourteen weeks pregnant. He didn’t know anything about pregnant women but she probably shouldn’t be lifting stuff.

“Seriously, don’t even start with me,” she muttered, nudging him out of the way with her hip. “I only get nauseous in the mornings and I think I can handle pulling a glass pan out of the oven.”

Ignoring her, Sawyer headed into the kitchen and took the oven mitts left on the counter before opening up one of the ovens. Their kitchen was one of those state-of-the-art types with commercial grade appliances that probably rivaled the best restaurants in the city. Especially the stainless steel double oven with a sixty inch range and a built-in broiler with a raised griddle. He’d learned to cook at a young age—thanks to his mom, he and all his brothers had—and found it was something he enjoyed immensely. Good thing too, since he’d been single most of his life. He’d love a spread like this.

“You always look at that oven like you want to marry it,” Mina said lightly.

Snorting, he pulled out the giant pan and set it on the stove top before turning it off. “I don’t know if I’d go that far,” he said, lifting the lid to the soup. The rich scent was perfect. “I can leave this simmering or turn it off, depending on how long Zoe and Alex will be?” He phrased it as a question because, yeah, he was digging for information. He hadn’t liked the sight of Zoe crying at all and he wanted to know what was going on. And he wasn’t above fishing.

Crossing her arms around her middle, Mina leaned against one of the counters next to a covered tray of assorted cheeses Marcelle must have left out. “I don’t know how long they’re going to be.”

“Something going on with your friend?” Screw the subtle art of fishing.

Mina bit her bottom lip. She glanced at the entryway, then back at Sawyer, her dark green eyes filled with worry. “Yes. I don’t think it’s a secret either.” She fidgeted with the hem of her sweater before sighing and continuing. “She has a stalker. The guy’s been out of the country for the last six months but he’s back a week early and stopped by her work tonight to harass her. It really rattled her.”

That hadn’t been what he’d been expecting at all. “She has a stalker and Vincent hasn’t…taken care of the problem?” At one time Sawyer and Vincent had had some issues but no matter what Sawyer thought of him, Vincent was the type of guy to take care of his family, by legal means or otherwise. No way he’d let some asshole harass his sister without doing something about it.

“She only recently told Vincent. As in, earlier tonight.” Sighing, Mina headed for the stainless steel refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of sparkling water. “Alex has been monitoring the guy as best he could, but obviously he got back into the country without him knowing. I’m sure he’s trying to figure out what happened as we speak.”