The Billionaire's Prize: Taken & Tempted: (Book 3 Billionaire Bodyguard Series) (2 page)

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Shoulders weighted by the heavy sense of responsibility, Cade Soren hung up the phone and wondered if he was overreacting. His gut had told him to bring Kylie to Denver where he had the manpower to protect her, so he’d followed it.

Because the last time he ignored his gut instinct, his father ended up dead in the back alley of a seedy motel.

At the time, he’d believed what the police told him. Cause of death was a bounty hunting search gone wrong. No one had responded to Dad’s call for backup. If only Dad had let him join the chase. The remorse over not protecting his father or preventing his loss still pounded stakes of guilt through Cade’s chest.

Two months ago he’d met Kylie Graham at a coffee shop around the corner from his building. He couldn’t remember if she worked at a law office, but she’d mentioned her boss at the firm had funded her excursion to Denver.

That encounter changed what he’d assumed about Dad’s death.

Honestly, he hadn’t wanted to sit down with her, definitely hadn’t wanted to discuss his father’s death with a complete stranger. He’d recently finished a media blitz tour from coast to coast, gaining traction for his company in important circles, and returned exhausted. He recalled her impressive intellect, but he hadn’t been in the mood to be impressed.

Thinking back, he also recalled that her passion had intrigued him. An intense fire fueled her drive to connect pieces of information others missed, and he knew this girl was going places. He respected that. She was different from the women he’d met over the past several years. Used to keeping company with the upper echelons of society, he’d grown tired of models with eating disorders, exotic dancers with daddy issues, celebrities newly out of rehab, and women who thought their beauty could land them a rich guy. He’d found Kylie incredibly refreshing and intriguing. But at the time he hadn’t been in the mood for intrigue either.

To his surprise, her earnestness
about solving the mystery she’d uncovered eventually chipped away at his cool reserve. Especially when she told him she believed the clues pointed to a deliberate killing, not a bounty hunting accident.

The revelation had floored him. He had finally managed to patch those old wounds inside him, had succeeded at moving on from the past and half-burying his remorse. Her exploration turned his father’s death into a cold case for murder. She’d ripped open the past, leaving him a mess inside.

So he’d asked for the folder with her clues and notes, telling her he’d take it to his legal team. Unfortunately, he never got around to it. He hadn’t been ready to unearth the truth surrounding the self-blame he’d carried all this time.

When she left him a message two weeks ago about a new eyewitness, Maria Sanchez, he’d pulled out the folder but still hadn’t taken the time to look through it as well as he should have.

Now he regretted his procrastination. One more addition to the stack of regrets piling on his conscience. When it came to his career or investments, he could handle anything. When it came to his personal life, he had no issues. But his dad was a whole different story.

God, he missed Trey. Right now his brother was on a plane with his sister-in-law Devon to greet their three adopted children. The five of them would arrive as a new family in Denver next week.

Cade
scrolled through his phone and dialed his cousin Liam’s cell phone. “Hey, do you have a minute? Something’s come up.”

“Sure. Shoot.”

Cade sighed. “I need a favor.”

“Hang on,” Liam said. “I’m two seconds away.”

“You don’t have to come to my office—”

“Too late. I’m here.” Liam grinned as he strolled into Cade’s office, but his smile quickly faded. He discreetly closed the door behind him. “What’s up?”

Glancing at his cousin’s wardrobe choices, Cade shook his head. Liam wore a blue t-shirt underneath a brown corduroy jacket that looked like he’d bought it at a thrift store. At least he’d
managed to find jeans without rips or tears, unlike his brother Adam. As joint CEOs of a company cresting the billion dollar mark, the cousins could afford to step it up. “I’m installing a new dress code. No t-shirts. Or cowboy hats.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard that before.” Liam rolled his eyes
and adjusted his cowboy hat, unimpressed by Cade’s irritation over his outfit. “
You
represent the company. You’re the face of Soren Security.”

“Doesn’t mean you can’t try.”

“Ouch, that hurts.” Liam’s blue-green eyes twinkled with amusement. “I am trying. Can’t you tell?”

“A wrinkled suit jacket from our grandfather’s era isn’t cutting it.”

The entertained light in Liam’s eyes extinguished. “I thought you needed a favor. You don’t have an attitude of gratitude for a guy who wants my help.”

“Sorry, I’m in a foul mood.”

“Never would’ve guessed. Crabass.”

The comment pulled a reluctant grin from Cade. He’d grown up with his two cousins as if they were his brothers. Unlike his tense relationship with Adam, Cade had bonded more with Liam—maybe because Liam would always be the baby, even if he’d just turned thirty. For cousins, they shared more physical traits with each other than with their respective brothers. He and Liam were leaner, more athletic,
instead of the bodybuilder type like Trey and Adam. They also shared the
blue-eyed,
light-haired chromosomes in the family. Liam could get away with calling him a crabass.
“You and Adam still have your street contacts from Las Vegas?”

“You mean our old CI’s?” He shrugged. “We keep in touch.”

“I don’t know if confidential informants will help in this case, but I want you to investigate if any of our rival bounty hunters had it out for us before we left. Actually, go further back.”

“How far?”

“Five years.”

“Dude, is this about Uncle Jake?” Strain pinched Liam’s forehead under his hat. “I know the anniversary of his passing is this week. Do you need a beer? A Hallmark card?
A hug?”

Cade snorted. “Information, Liam. That’s what I need. I want to revisit a potential grudge from any rivals we might’ve had at the time.”

Liam scratched his jaw. “Didn’t the police rule out foul play? Wasn’t it an accidental death?”

Releasing a stressed sigh, Cade nodded. “I have reason to believe they were wrong.”

“That sucks.” Liam looked pissed off on his behalf. “I’ll get on it.”

“Is Adam busy?” Cade asked.

“He’s online tricking out the latest custom Harley-Davidson he ordered. Does that count as busy?”

“Go figure.” Cade wasn’t surprised. Adam collected designer Harleys like some men obsessed over vintage cars. “When he’s finished, ask him to check out a person of interest…” He sifted through pages in a folder with Kylie’s notes on his dad’s case. “Ramos. Bruno Ramos. See what Adam can dig up on the guy.”

“Done and done.”

“Thanks. I’d do my own investigating but I’m picking up Kylie and the bodyguard I assigned her at the airport.”

“Is that the lawyer chick you talked about months ago?”

“One and the same. I don’t know if she’s a lawyer, but she has done a hell of a job convincing me there’s more to my dad’s death.” He gaze narrowed.
“So has yesterday’s murder of Kylie’s eye witness, Maria Sanchez.”

Liam’s eyes rounded beneath the brim of his hat. “This is serious.”

“Deadly serious,” Cade said, disgusted he hadn’t pursued
this lead before it went from a suspicion to a confirmation. Before his negligence put lives in danger. Again.

No, not again.

He refused to let Kylie suffer the same fate as his father and Maria. He’d do everything in his power to protect her.
Everything.
He could lie to himself about the events leading up to Dad’s death, but he wouldn’t forgive himself if anything happened to Kylie.

A part of him would die inside if the same tragedy
played out a second time.

His soul needed redemption. Protecting Kylie gave him that.

He’d do whatever it took, which included putting his own neck on the line, to keep her safe from monsters disguised as men.

After cramming three hours of work into one hour, Cade made an important stop before he met the limo awaiting him downstairs.

As he walked into Mindy’s office he didn’t knock, then wished he had. Mindy’s fiancé, Isaac, stood with his arms around her, their foreheads touching. The look in Isaac’s eyes as he gazed at Mindy brought up a longing Cade had tamped down for years. Too absorbed in his career and investments, Cade had put off serious relationships.

Moments like this reminded him of what he was missing. He cleared his throat. “Sorry to interrupt.”

The two untangled themselves from each other. Isaac sent him a nod. Mindy smoothed her hair and then faced him with a bright smile. “How can I help you?”

“I need to ask a huge favor.”

“What is it?” Isaac said in mock warning, adding a half smile. “You may have women lined up around the block, but you only get my girl from nine to five.”

Cade checked his watch. “Can I have her until six?”

“Depends,” Isaac said.

Mindy swatted him on the arm.

Isaac kissed her. “I’ll see you later, babe.”

“Promise me you two aren’t eloping.” The thought made Cade shudder. “I can’t survive without you as my right-hand girl.”

She waved at Isaac, who left her office and closed the door. “We aren’t eloping, I promise.”

“The two weeks you’ll be gone on your honeymoon are going to be hell. I’m lucky February is a slow month in the land of public relations.”

“What can I do for you?” she asked, leafing through a stack of papers on her desk.

He pulled out his wallet and handed her a black American Express card. “I need you to go shopping.”

Surprise registered on her features.
“This is by far my favorite assignment.” She tapped the eraser of her pencil against her chin. “Does this have anything to do with the file I dug up for you earlier?”

He nodded. “That file contains information that someone might kill over.”

“Oh, my goodness. I had no idea.”

“Kylie Graham is arriving at the Denver airport in a couple hours. I hauled her out of Las Vegas on a hunch she’s in the line of fire. We’re talking heavy artillery. The girl has nothing but the clothes on her back. I need you to supplement her wardrobe.”

“I see.” She grabbed a notepad. “Okay, Frederick’s of Hollywood or Victoria’s Secret?”

Cade exhaled. “I’m not flying her to Denver to have sex with her. What kind of guy do you think I am?”

“Do you really want me to answer that?” Mindy asked with a pleasant smile. “I was at the art gallery fundraiser we hosted last weekend, remember.”

“I wish I could forget.” Within an hour of arriving, he’d lost count of how many women had slipped him their numbers. When Mindy announced who he was, as the patron of the event, an admiring circle of arm candy and gold diggers trapped him. He barely had a chance to talk to the important clients he’d invited. “I didn’t go home with any of those women. I swear to you.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Why not?”

“They’re all the same,” he muttered. “Besides, you should know me better than that.”

With a shrug, she admitted, “Five months ago, you would have. Usually you handle the attention like a seasoned pro.” She tapped her pencil against her chin again, sizing him up. “Now that I think about it, you haven’t been yourself when it comes to your female entourage. What gives?”

“I got bored. Can we go back to the shopping list, please?”

“Our resident playboy has lost his mojo?” Her eyes glittered with interest. “Fascinating.”

“Could you take off your journalist hat for a minute, and stay on subject?”

She leaned toward him and whispered, “I think I know why.”

“Can we stick to the damn list?” He didn’t care to discuss his recent disinterest in the dating game, mostly because he hadn’t pinned down the reason himself. He had more pressing problems weighing on him.

She nodded as if confirming a thought to herself. “Your brother is married now. He’s about to acquire an instant family, three little adopted children to keep him busy at home.
You’re feeling left out.”

“I’m not feeling left out.” He ground his teeth. “I’m on edge because this week is the anniversary of my dad’s death, and I don’t need more guilt or blood on my hands.
The list,
Mindy
.”

She held up her hands to quell his anger. “I didn’t mean to pry.”

“Yes, you did.”

“Sorry, I can’t help it. Okay, back to the list.” She drew lines through the lingerie options. “What else?”

“No, you’re right. Kylie will need the basics in that department.” He wouldn’t have considered
the detail, and was glad he’d come to Mindy for help. “She’ll be here at the office with me part of the time, so a few suits wouldn’t hurt.”

“Ah, I see. Trying to replace me.” She wrote down
suits.

“Never.” Physical pain shot through him at the notion. “I can’t live without you. Don’t take that out of context—you or Isaac.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.” She grinned. “But that’s a nice compliment. What else?”

“Your call. Whatever you think she needs.”

She peered at him with one eyebrow arched. “What’s her size?”

Remembering back to the day they met, he thought a moment. He pictured Kylie in his mind like photographic recall. “She’s five-foot-five. Thirty six D cup. Waist size eight. Hips more generous, size twelve.”

Mindy glanced at him like he’d morphed into a serial stalker. “And how on earth would you know that from one meeting with her?”

“Not what you’re thinking.” He wasn’t going to delve into his first job as a carnival barker, when he spent his summers at the county fair guessing people’s weight and age. That period of his life seemed like eons ago.

“Um…okay, budget?”

“I’m not familiar with the word. Can you spell it?”

Her smile widened. “Nice.” She tucked the unfinished list into her purse. “I’ll make sure you redeem yourself for yanking Kylie away from her life and all she holds dear to assuage your conscience.”

Unable to argue with her blunt assessment, he spread his hands. “Did you have to phrase it like that?”

She patted his arm. “I’m just giving you grief.”

“Thanks.
I need more of that.”

She wrinkled her nose with a cutesy smile that took the edge off his
annoyance. “When do I leave?”

“Five minutes ago.”

“Yes, sir.” She gave a salute, grabbed her coat and left to run his errands.

He decided Mindy deserved a raise.

As he headed toward the elevators, concern gathered
at the base of his neck. If he had issues coming to grips with the gravity of the situation, he wondered how Kylie would
act
when she landed in Denver.

Shell shocked? Hysterical? Numb? Desperate?
Untrusting? Shaken? Afraid?

All of the above?
 

He pictured the crime scene footage from the news station. The maid, Maria, didn’t deserve to die. He couldn’t shake the sickening reminder of similar footage at the same motel, revealing his father as the victim. Knots of responsibility tightened in his stomach.

Ninety minutes later Cade’s limo pulled onto the tarmac. It idled a short distance from where his family’s private jet had landed.

Urgency tugged at him.

Sitting forward he tapped his foot, waiting for an attendant to wheel a set of removable steps into place for the passengers to disembark. He slid off his fedora, skimming his thumbs along the brim. 

Finally they anchored the stairs. The cabin door opened.

Slone exited first. The bodyguard’s steely gaze scouted the surroundings with the due diligence Cade expected.

Then Kylie emerged. He sat up straight. She wasn’t dressed for late October weather in the mountains. She wore yellow sandals, yoga pants, and a thin white button down
top.

The wind picked up and
her hair flew in all directions as she raced down the steps looking like a Valkyrie, an angelic shield-maiden from Norse mythology. He couldn’t see her face. He needed to see her, to look into her eyes and know that she trusted him, assuring him he’d done the right thing. That she’d be okay.

Tension shredded his nerves until he couldn’t stand it. He threw open the limo door and started toward her. His hard strides swallowed the distance between them.

As the wind fought his momentum, he braced himself and called her name. “Kylie.”

She turned to him. Her eyes held the panic of a startled animal.
A look he never wanted to see on her face again. No one deserved to live in that state of fear, especially when the cause circled back to him.

His chest clenched. “Kylie, it’s me. Cade.”

The girl’s pupils became pinpoints. She wheezed, waved her hand at her throat. The next thing he knew, her eyes rolled back and she collapsed in his arms.

“Kylie?” He shook her lightly. “Kylie, you’re safe now.”
Her head lolled forward. She sagged against his chest, and he held her weight easily. Shifting her limp form to better support her, he turned to the bodyguard. “Is she okay?”

“I think so.” Slone shrugged with no emotion. “She was fine the whole flight, but nervous.
She talked nonstop. Not sure what happened between the steps and…you.”

Cade tossed his hair back to stop the strands from stinging his eyes. “I’ll bet it’s the change in altitude.”

Between a desert valley and a mountaintop, the difference in elevation caused some people to experience vertigo or faint. Kylie hadn’t acclimated well to the contrast in heights.
He slid her heavy backpack off her shoulders. Shedding his coat, he draped it around her.

Gradually, she revived as he held her. A second later,
her hands clenched his coat lapels up to her neck. She stood on wobbly legs. “It’s f-f-freezing.”

“You’ll be warm soon.
The limo’s right over there. Think you can make it?”

“I’m fine,” she insisted, though when he curved his arm around her waist she didn’t argue. The limo driver held the door open for them. Cade took Kylie’s hand, helping her inside. He set her backpack in the corner of the L-shaped seat. Once the door shut, she burrowed into his coat. The crease in her forehead disappeared. “Much better.”

His concern didn’t waver. “You sure?”

She nodded. His oversized coat made her look small and delicate. Breakable.

Now he believed he’d done the right thing
by bringing her here. “You can trust me, Kylie. No one will hurt you.”

Gaze trained on the floor, she swallowed. “Don’t worry about me. I’m a survivor. I can handle anything.”

He found her vow of strength endearing and smoothed a lock of windblown hair back from her face, the strands silky against his finger. “I don’t doubt that for a minute.”

Slone slid into the passenger seat beside the driver who immediately shifted the gear and drove away from the airport. As they merged onto the highway, Cade poured a glass of water and handed it to her.

“Thank you,” she said, lifting it to her lips.

His gaze traveled over her face.

Innocent beauty graced her features. Her cheeks held a hint of pink. Her honey-brown hair flowed in natural waves to frame her face. The bold rectangular glasses she wore had a slight cat eye flare at the corners,
drawing attention to the
unusual
weave of colors in her eyes.

Odd that he hadn’t remembered her as attractive. In a shy, bookish,
I study in my free time
sort of way. Not his type, but very pretty.

When she clicked her fingernails against her water glass, she pierced the spell of his appraisal.
An awkward silence fell between them.

He offered an attempt at casual conversation, usually his strong suit. “Sorry this was so sudden—”

“Thank you for doing this,” she said at the same time.

They exchanged tentative smiles.

“Let’s start again,” he said, gesturing with his hand. “Where are you from in Vegas?”

She nudged her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “I grew up in Henderson and went to Foothill High.”

“Go Falcons.”

A hint of a smile touched her lips. “I read somewhere that you’re a native of my hometown.”

“Normally, I’d tell you not to believe half of what the press says about me, but in this case the information is accurate. My dad and uncle started their bail bond and bounty hunter business near the strip, so we went to school in the city before we moved to the far west side of Henderson. That’s our old stomping ground. It’s changed a lot since I went to school there, definitely for the better.”

“I assume you played football?”