Enemy From The Past (Unseen Enemy Book 4) (8 page)

And now here she was, alone in her bed, wishing that she had the guts to get up, open her bedroom door, and climb on to the sofa-bed with Jim. Or maybe invite him to join her in her own bed. Either way, she’d curl right up against that huge, solid body and raise her mouth to his. She knew his lips would be soft and gentle, his kisses hard and demanding, and God knows, she’d give him anything he demanded of her. Her pussy got wet at the thought, and she turned her face in to pillow to muffle her groan of desire.

Oh, Christ. Enough. Don’t make this whole thing more complicated than it already is.

Out on the sofa, Jim’s body was fighting the urge to go blasting through Kat’s door and gather her up in to his arms. He wanted her under him, wrapped around him, whispering his name as he thrust inside her. He’d make love to her slow and gentle and long, make sure that she loved every second of it. At the thought of her breathy sighs, his whole body tensed up: his cock was now rock-hard and he tried to reason with it, to no great success. He wanted her; he’d wanted her for so long, but he was sure that men and sex were not even remotely on her radar.

After what that guy did to her, she’d never let me near her. I’m sure of it.

They both turned over in their respective beds, trying to ignore what they thought and felt. That night, they had dreams about each other, wild, hot dreams in which they made love over and over again. In the morning, Kat woke up with a cry on her lips as her body jerked in a near-orgasm, and Jim woke up harder than he’d been the night before. He pressed his erection in to the sofa beneath him, wished that it was Kat under him. He buried his face in the pillow, took deep breaths, waited for his cock to calm the hell down.

When Kat felt her face return to its normal color, she came out in to the living room area. Jim had just gotten his body back under control, and so he managed a semi-normal morning greeting. Still… over their coffee, they had a very hard time meeting each other’s eyes.

**

Jim pulled up in front of the hair salon, glanced at his watch.

“OK, I’ll pick you up after work at about six. You don’t leave here without me. Clear?”

Kat looked over at him, annoyed at the alpha-male routine. “Jim. I’m sure that I can take the bus home.”

His eyes flashed. “And
I’m
sure you’ll still be here when I come to pick you up.”

“But it’s a major hassle for you.”

“Keeping you safe is
not
a hassle, minor or major. But you know what
is
a hassle? Listening to you tell me what a hassle it is.” He cocked his head at her. “So give it a fucking rest.”

She stared at him, then to his complete shock, she burst in to laughter.

“Something funny, sweetheart?” he asked.

“No. Nothing’s funny,” she said between giggles. “I just – I really, really like you.”

That took him by surprise. “Yeah?”

“Oh, yeah.” She grinned at him. “So I’ll be waiting, Prince Charming.”

“OK, good.” Jim tried to keep the scowl on his face, but he felt it slipping off, felt his expression softening. She was just so beautiful, and she had this light and calm about her. He’d never really seen that in her before, and he was overjoyed that he was part of the reason she looked this way now.

Kat walked in to the salon, nodded at her co-workers. She went in to the staffroom and made herself a cup of coffee. Her boss, Benny, looked relieved to see her.

“Kat!” he said. “Thank God you’re back.”

“Hey,” she said. “Good to see you too, boss. Things been busy around here, or what?”

He rolled his eyes. “Nothing out of the ordinary. But customers kept calling and asking for you, and when I said you were on leave for a few days, they just hung up. Said they’d only make an appointment for when you came back.”

“Oh.” She took a sip of coffee. “So, I have a busy day today?”

“Girl, you have no idea. You’ll be run off your feet for the next week, I promise you.” The phone rang and he sighed. “I’m sure that’ll be someone else wanting you.” He flipped the appointment book open. “You’re fully booked until the middle of next week, Kat.”

“Cool. God knows I need the tips.”

Benny peered at her, took in her happiness. “OK, I’ve got to get this call. Welcome back.”

“Thanks. I’m glad to be back.”

She went out to her work area and started checking her equipment, thinking about the complete one-eighty that her life had taken since she’d told Jim and his friends the truth. She felt airy and joyful, totally at peace with things as they were. She hadn’t realized that people cared if she showed up or not, and that knowledge warmed her.

She
was
a part of something here, after all: she had really, honestly made a life, with a good job and good friends. It made her more determined than ever to hold on to it, to protect it. To stay, this time.

If I can.

**

Doctor Hal Fife looked up as Emma and Dean came in to his office. He studied Emma’s face and he felt relieved when he saw that she looked happy and calm.

“Hi,” she said.

“Hi,” Hal replied. “Come and talk to me.”

“I wanted to say that I’m sorry for how I behaved the last time that I was here,” Emma said as she sat down. “I honestly can’t explain why I said the things that I did.”

“Oh, Emma. No need to apologize.” Hal leaned back. “Everyone’s reaction to the news of remission is different, and despite what you’d think, most people don’t jump up and dance. Tears and shock are much more common, and I also see lots of disbelief. One man actually accused me of lying to him, said that I was in on it with his family. It’s a huge adjustment to have to make, and it can take some time.”

“Well, I’m pretty damn happy now,” Emma said.

“Yes, I can see that.” Hal glanced at Dean. “How are you doing?”

“Great.” He ran his hands through his scruffy blond hair. “This is what I’ve dreamed of for as long as I’ve known Emma.”

“OK, so.” Hal smiled. “Questions?”

“Millions,” Emma said. “But I guess the main one is, what do we do now?”

Hal nodded. “I need to see you once a month, at least for the time being. Before each appointment, you need to do the full run of tests: blood, bone marrow, everything. I’ll check them over and discuss anything I find when we meet.”

“OK.”

“If nothing unusual happens after a year, we can start to do our follow-up once every three months, but never more than that. You’ll get tested and see me regularly until you’re clear for four years.”

“Four?” Dean said. “I thought that three years of remission was enough for a person to be declared cured.”

“Not in this case,” Hal said. “Your leukemia was so aggressive, Emma, and it progressed so rapidly, that if it were to recur, I think we’d be surprised at how quickly it moved. That’s why I need to see you monthly and for a year longer. If anything happens, we need to get ahead of it, no time to waste.”

“What should we be looking for?” Dean asked. “If it were to recur, what signs would Emma show?”

“It would present itself the way it did the first time, right in the beginning.” Hal turned to Emma. “Fatigue, dizziness, bad bruising, nausea, vomiting. If any of these things happen, you get back to me right away. I don’t care if a bad flu is going around Denver and
everyone
is puking their guts up – if
you
throw up, you see me. You understand me?”

“Yes.”

Hal opened his hands. “And that’s it, at least from my side. You’re a healthy young woman, Emma, so go out and live your life. Be happy. OK?”

She smiled at him, and he knew that she was finally ready to do what he said. “OK.” She got to her feet and when he held out his hand to her, she shook her head. “No way. The man who saved my life gets a hug.”

“I’d love that,” Hal said.

Dean watched as Emma and her doctor hugged tightly for a few seconds, then they stepped back.

“Thank you,” she whispered. “For everything.”

Hal held her shoulders gently for a little while longer, and smiled.

“I don’t get lots of success stories, Emma,” he said quietly. “By the time people get to me, it’s usually pretty bad. Mostly, it’s almost hopeless. Thank
you
for living – it gives me some strength to go on and help the next frightened person who walks through that door.”

“You’re welcome,” she said, tears in her eyes. “You have no idea how welcome you are.”

Chapter Eight

“So, how did you all end up in Denver?”

Jim glanced over at Kat, curled up in the armchair across from him sipping a cup of tea that he’d made for her. “What?”

“You and the guys. I know you all know each other from your time overseas, but you’re not all from here. So how’d you all end up in the same city after you left Afghanistan?”

He set his book down on the coffee table and settled deeper in to the sofa. “Well, Dallas left first. He used to come to Colorado to go skiing when he was a kid, and he’s always loved it here, he says. He moved to the city, started his security firm, bought two houses. Then about three months later, Dean finished his tour and packed it in. Dean is actually from Denver but his parents have a tiny place now since the kids all left home, and so Dallas offered him his one place as a rental. Dean has a friend named Reena who helped him start up the tattoo parlour, and he’s been building it ever since. And me? When I came back to the States, I went back to Iowa but was going crazy on the farm.” He grinned. “I’m not much of a farmer, to be honest with you.”

She laughed. “No?”

“Nope. I hate cows and chickens, and Mom and Dad have plenty of both. Anyway, when Dean called and offered me a job, I couldn’t get on a plane fast enough.”

“Where’d you learn to do tattoos?” she said.

“When I was in high school, I worked at a parlour at the weekends. I just learned hands-on, you know, and I got good at it. Soon it became all I really wanted to do. Until the Rangers, that is.”

“And – and you do OK at it? Like, you can make a living as a tattoo artist?”

Oh, hell, yeah.” Jim examined her expression. “You’re thinking about my crappy little apartment, aren’t you?”

She flushed. “I’m in no position to call
anyone’s
place crappy
or
little.”

“Hey, it’s OK. I was just teasing you. Anyway, yes. I make a great living at it, and I made a good chunk of change in the Rangers. I bought my bike and I bought my truck, and the rest is just sitting there. Waiting for me to need it for something big.” He shrugged. “Maybe a house, one day. Maybe some traveling. I’ll see.”

Kat nodded. “And Chris?”

“Oh, yeah. He’s from Vermont, and he was just like me: finished up his tour, went home to his Dad’s garage to work. He liked it well enough, but when he heard that me and the guys were all hanging out together again, he moved out here right away. With his skills, he had no shortage of job offers, but he loves bikes, so he took a job at King’s.” Jim shrugged. “And here we all are. One big, happy group of ex-Rangers and former snipers.”

“You guys are close, huh?”

Jim looked at her. “Yeah, for sure. After the shit we pulled each other through over there, there’s nothing else we
could
be.”

She nodded again.

“And what about you and the girls?”

“How’d we all become friends?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, that’s a shorter story than yours: Emma and Jenny and Liv all went to school together. I think they’ve known each other since Grade Two or something. They stayed in touch when Liv hit it big modelling, mostly because she never really left Denver.” Kat sipped her tea. “Liv was getting pressured to move to L.A., but she loves the Rockies, so she just never did, even though it meant tons of travel for her.”

“And how’d you get in to the mix?”

Kat laughed. “Through Liv. She had this big photo shoot and her hair guy totally flaked. Nigel called the salon where I work and begged my boss for help.”

“Nigel, her former assistant?”

“Yeah. He’s planning her wedding now.”

“Oh, right. I remember him now.”

“Anyway, I was new to Denver and didn't have many clients yet, so I was free that afternoon. I agreed to come on super-short notice and get Liv ready for the shoot. We talked, and hit it off, and I was so surprised, you know? I mean, she’s just never, ever had that bitchy celebrity personality, and she was so grateful that I helped her out… she paid me a huge bonus out of her own pocket and invited me for coffee. We became friends, and she asked me to her place for drinks one night and the girls were there. And that’s it, really.”

“They’re good people,” Jim said. “I like that they’re with my friends. I think the guys are the happiest I’ve ever seen them.”

“Yeah, the girls too.” Kat grinned, wanting to tease him a bit in return. “I guess that just leaves us to pair up, huh?”

“What?” Jim was staring at her. “You and me?”

His eyes were holding hers so intently, Kat blushed. “I’m joking, Jim. Obviously.”

A pause. Then Jim spoke quietly.

“Why are you joking?”

“What?” she said, her voice not quite steady.

“I mean, why not?”

“Why not you and me?”

“Yeah.”

“Uh… well…”

Just then, Jim’s cell rang. He cursed, dug it out of his jeans pocket. Kat sat and stared at him, wondering just what the hell she could say to his question.

“What’s up, Dallas?” Jim snapped, furious that the man had fucking called right at
that exact second
.

Goddammit. When will a moment like that ever happen again?

“Jim.” Dallas’ voice was terse. “I know it’s getting late, but can I drop by and talk to you guys?”

“It can’t wait ‘til tomorrow?”

“Not really.”

Jim knew that tone, and he glanced at Kat. “Yeah, OK.”

“Thanks, man. I’ll be there in about ten minutes.”

“Sure.” He disconnected, set the phone on the table. He felt Kat’s wide eyes searching his expression, looking for clues, and he kept his face impassive.

“What did Dallas want?” Kat asked.

“I’m not sure,” Jim said, his voice casual. “But he says he wants to talk to us.”

“When?”

“Right now.”

She blinked. “Why? What’s happened?” She got to her feet, suddenly panicked, spilling tea on the floor. “Is he – is he coming? Did he find me?”

“Hey, now,” Jim said, and got to his feet too. “I’m sure it’s nothing like that, OK? If it were, Dallas would have told me to get you out of here and to the safe room in his security firm. At the very least, he’d have told me to get my gun. He didn’t say any of that, so I’m sure the dickhead has no idea where you are. Alright?”

She didn’t seem to hear him. Her breathing was fast and short, her eyes had a faraway, almost glazed look that he didn’t like. Jim approached her carefully and touched her arm.

“Breathe, baby. Just breathe.”

“I – I’m scared.”

“I know.” Jim held her face in his hands, tried to get her to focus on him. “But I’m here with you, right? You’re safe, Kat, and I’m not letting anyone hurt you, not ever again. You hearing me?”

“Yeah.”

“Kat?”

“Yeah.” Her breathing slowed down. “Yeah, I hear you.”

“OK.” He gently lowered her the sofa, and sat next to her. “Now, relax. We’ll see what Dallas has to say before we decide to panic. You with me?”

“Uh-huh.”

“OK, good.” He held her hands, tried to take her shaking in to his own body. “We’ll take it one step at a time, yeah? And we’ll do it together. All of us.”

**

Jim opened the door at Dallas’ knock, and the two men had a few seconds of silent communication. Jim nodded slightly and braced himself for what was almost certainly a shock of some kind.

“Kat.” Dallas was as implacable as ever. “How you doing, darlin’?”

She was on the sofa, her hands twisting over and over again. “OK, I guess. Worried about you being here, a bit.”

Dallas sat down. “Nothing to worry about yet.”

“Yet?” Jim echoed.

“Yeah. Yet.”

Kat swallowed hard. “So what’s going on?”

“I spent the whole day today looking in to – him. Your friend Leanne was right… he travels a lot, and I followed his credit card and cell phone activity. In the past four years, he’s been to Wisconsin, Michigan, Alabama, Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas and Arizona. In that order.”

Kat turned deathly pale. “All the places I’ve been…”

“Yeah.” Dallas was calm. “Everywhere except here.”

“Fuck me,” Jim said angrily. “I thought you said Kat would be hard to track? That
you’d
struggle to find her after all this time and all these moves?”

“I would, man. But if I gave it enough time and attention, and had access to the resources that he does as a cop and an ex-military operative? I’d manage it.”

“Just like he is,” she whispered.

“Yeah.”

“So… he’s getting closer, he’s almost here. I have to go.” She stood up, panicked. “It was a mistake to stop in Denver for so long. I have to move again, right now.”

“Whoa, Kat. Hold up, alright?” Dallas patted the sofa next to him. “I have a plan. Can you sit and listen?”

“OK.” She sank down again, her legs weak under her.

“I’m going to send two of my people out there, to Foxburg Falls. They’re going to find this guy, keep an eye on him. They’ll report in to me every day, and if he goes anywhere, they’ll follow him.”

Kat stared at Dallas, stunned. “I didn’t think you were serious about that when you said it yesterday.”

“About what?’ he asked.

“About sending some of your people out to Oregon.”

“Why wouldn’t I be serious about it?”

“Well.” She shifted. “The expense.”

“What?”

“What you’re proposing would cost you a fortune in staff and travel and overtime.” Kat flushed. “I mean – I can’t even
begin
to afford a security firm like yours for one night at a bar, Dallas, let alone a full-time protective team undercover and investigating in another state. I don’t want you to bankroll this. It’s too much.”

“OK. You done?” Dallas asked her.

She blinked. “Uh. Yes.”

“Good. So, as I was saying, I’m sending two of my people to Foxburg Falls.” He paused. “Any objections?”

Tears slid down Kat’s cheeks, and she shook her head. Dallas’ face softened.

“Hey,” he said. “No crying, Kat. I’m doing this because I want to and because I can. I make more than enough money from my paying clients, believe me. Don’t worry about bankrupting me with one
pro bono
op. OK?”

“OK,” she whispered. “Thank you.”

Jim took her hand, gave it a reassuring squeeze. She took a deep breath, then managed a smile at the two men.

“Alright, Dallas.” Kat cleared her throat. “Tell me what else you’re thinking.”

“No beating around the bush, hon. I need to know Leanne and Bobby’s real names.”

Dallas and Jim expected her to protest, but to their complete and utter shock, she nodded.

“Yeah, I figured. I already called her and told her what’s going on.”

“What?” Jim stared at her. “When did you call her?”

“Yesterday, when I was at work.”

“And you didn’t
say
anything to me?”

Kat shrugged. “What was there to say? I mean, all I told her was that more people know what happened. I figured I’d wait to see what Dallas’ investigation turned up before I made any other moves.”

“And what did she say?” Jim said, watching her closely.

“She was good and freaked out, and she’ll be ever more so when I tell her that you’re sending people over to talk to her.”

“They won’t approach her at work, Kat,” Dallas said. “Not ever. They can meet her and Bobby somewhere safe, OK?”

She bit her lip. “You promise me they’ll be careful?”

“I swear.”

“OK,” she said. “I’ll tell her about them coming, and that she can talk to them openly.”

“Good.” Dallas was all business again. “Their names?”

Kat sighed. “Ellen Price and Nate Torrance.”

“Thank you, Kat,” Dallas said. “I promise we’ll keep them safe, too, OK? They did something amazing for you, at huge personal risk to themselves, and there’s
no way
we’re going to put them in harm’s way. Not for anything.”

Kat nodded.

Dallas stood up. “So, that’s it, at least for now. I’ll tell you everything I hear, and if I think for one second that he’s making any kind of move at all, I’ll get you to a safe house that I keep for clients. OK?”

“OK. Thanks, Dallas.”

“You’re welcome.” He hugged her, holding her tightly for a few seconds. “You doing alright?”

She managed a small laugh. “Ummm. Debatable.”

“Yeah, I bet. Chin up, girl.” Dallas’ eyes were warm. “We got this, OK? You stay close to Jim, and let me do my part. We all hang in there for just a while longer, and we’ll get through it.”

After Dallas had gone, Kat looked at Jim, her face tight with stress.

“God,” she said. “He’s just not giving up, is he?”

“Dallas?” Jim asked, knowing full well who she was actually taking about.

“Well, him too. But I meant –
him
.”

“Yeah, well, none of us are either. And we’ve got all the advantage here, sweetheart, don’t forget that. He has no idea we’re coming, no idea we’re watching him.”

She took a deep breath. “You’re right.”

“I know I am. Now, go and have a relaxing shower, and get ready for bed, OK? Everything’s fine.”

“OK.”

He watched her go in to the bathroom, and he waited until the shower had been running for a few minutes. When he was sure she wasn’t coming out again, Jim picked up his cell and called Dallas.

“I figured I’d hear from you,” Dallas greeted him.

“So what didn’t you tell her?”

“What do you mean?” Dallas’ voice was guarded.

Jim glanced at the closed bathroom door. “Come on, man, I know you were holding back. Don’t jerk me around.”

“OK, OK. Sorry.” Dallas sighed. “It’s just – this fucker’s not at all what I expected from a pathetic coward who beats on and rapes women. He’s smarter than I thought he’d be, more organized and determined. Patient and relentless, way less impulsive than I anticipated. That kind of single-minded commitment to tracking down a woman, combined with his training and ability, is scarily rare. The truth is, man, I don’t think he’ll ever stop… however it all started, finding her and killing her is probably his goddamn life’s mission at this point. An obsession.”

“You’re saying she’ll never be safe,” Jim said in a way that made it clear that it wasn’t a question.