Makena was off-limits.

Shane had done the marriage thing and failed miserably. The idea of trying something light and no-strings with Makena might work if she weren’t his best friend’s baby sister and a woman he knew would expect more than a few nights of meaningless sex.

She deserved more—deserved better than him.

He worked long hours and traveled all the time. He loved his job with the Corcoran Team, the off-the-books undercover group that took on high-risk rescue jobs for companies and governments. He lived with danger. Thrived on it.

Dragging Makena into that life—no matter how hard it was to forget her face even as he traveled thousands of miles away—would be a mistake.

He needed to watch over her. No kissing. No fun. Just two old friends talking.

Now, if he could only get his brain and body on the same page.

Tamed

HelenKay Dimon

www.millsandboon.co.uk

HELENKAY DIMON, an award-winning author, spent twelve years in the most unromantic career ever—divorce lawyer. After dedicating all that effort to helping people terminate relationships, she is thrilled to deal in happy endings and write romance novels for a living. Now her days are filled with gardening, writing, reading and spending time with her family in and around San Diego. Stop by her website, www.helenkaydimon.com, and say hello.

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Contents

Cover

Introduction

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Extract

Copyright

Chapter One

Makena Kingston had spent most of her life waiting for Shane Baker to wake up and notice her. Tonight she waited for him to pull into the guest parking space so they could have dinner.

She’d called him on a whim. A simple “Come over and we’ll eat.” It seemed innocent enough. He had a few days off from the Corcoran Team, the undercover squad where he worked with his best friend, her big brother, Holt.

She’d asked this morning, and the hours since had ticked by in painful slowness. Now she glanced out the window over her kitchen sink, looking for Shane. Glanced—as in looked for the five hundredth time.

From this position she could see the steps down to a small lawn area and a much bigger gravel-covered spot. The brightly colored cottages sat in a row, close together, allowing for some privacy but not much. The close quarters and general lack of updating helped her afford the place.

Maybe fifteen feet separated her deck from the one next door. Sometimes she could hear her neighbors, a young married couple, argue. They did that a lot, and about everything. Makena often thought marital longevity might not be on their side.

The night fell over Lannaker Estates, the fancy name for the development of cozy single-level homes perched on a small hill overlooking the Chester River. This part of Maryland, the Eastern Shore, possessed the bucolic feel of a university town, which it was. Small and quaint, close to the Chesapeake Bay and about an hour and a half from Washington, DC. Nothing much happened in Chestertown, and she liked it that way.

For the five hundred and first time, she glanced out back on her Shane watch. This time she saw a dark SUV parked parallel to the neighbor couple’s back porch. She couldn’t make out the exact color thanks to the fading early fall sunlight. Probably just someone coming to referee the fighting couple’s newest argument.

She could make out two people...wearing all black. That struck her as a little much for this time of year. They’d moved out of shorts weather, but the cool breezes hadn’t started yet.

Yeah, all black and...she balanced her palms on the counter and leaned in closer. She blinked a few times as she tried to figure out what she was seeing. It was as if the two people—men, she thought from their wide-shouldered builds—stalked the house. They separated. One stopped at a utility box attached to the house and did something. She couldn’t quite tell what. The other went to the back door and dropped down on one knee.

Then they raced. Stormed the back of the neighbor’s house. She switched from the window at the sink to the one on the side of her house. With her back to the wall, she peeked around the window frame and watched a bulky figure run through the back of the house next door.

Her heartbeat thundered in her ears, and her chest ached from the force of her heavy breathing. When a bang rang out in the quiet night, she gasped. She fought to drag air into her lungs, but her body stopped working. As if the messages from her brain just kept misfiring.

She stood, frozen, as her gaze searched from window to window, looking for any sign of movement. Thoughts jumbled in her muddled brain and she tried to think. It was as if someone had thrown a blanket over her, slowing down every movement and blocking every thought. She needed to do something. She should...the phone.

She patted her back pockets but couldn’t feel her cell. She didn’t have a landline, so she depended on the cell. Fear clogged her throat and a frantic desperation made her movements jerky. She glanced around and forced her brain to reboot. The family room. That was where she’d left it, so if she could get there she could call out.

A weird sensation washed over her. Her head whipped around and she saw him. A looming figure standing in the window directly across from her. He had the edge of the curtains in his fist. Even with the mask she could feel his furious glare.

Then he was gone.

She took off at a dash. Crossed the threshold and stopped at the fireplace. She threw the stack of magazines on the floor and ran around the coffee table. Laptop. Remote control. No cell.

She heard knocking in her head. A deafening series of thuds. It took her a few seconds to figure out the noise came from outside the cottage, not inside her mind. The back door crashed in. Wood splintered and the glass of the small window at the top of the door cracked.

Footsteps echoed around her. She could barely make out any sound over the clipped panting escaping her throat. She turned around and slammed her knee into the table but kept moving. Standing still meant death. Holt and Shane had drummed that into her head. Fight back. Scream.

She started to do just that.

“Help!” Her voice cut off when the attacker slammed into her.

She felt the force as if she’d run at high speed into a steel wall. Her teeth rattled and her head snapped back. The breath left her body. No mattered how she fought for balance, her feet slid across the floor.

Arms wrapped around her waist in a crushing band. The room spun as she fell back. She waited for the punishing thump against the floor, but it never came. Her butt bounced against the couch cushion just as the attacker’s body came toward her.

Tension choked the room. She went from thinking and feeling to autopilot. Before the attacker could use his weight to press her down, she scrambled. Pivoted to the left and kept going. She reached out to stop her fall, but it was too late. She kept going until she landed with a jolt on her hands and knees.

Something crunched under her leg. She grabbed it as she tried to run. She got maybe a foot before a hand latched on to her calf. A tight hand squeezed her muscle until she cried out in pain.

The aches mixed with the fear as her heartbeat kicked up even higher. She felt the burning in her palm and looked down. She didn’t know when she’d found her cell, but she held it.

She kicked out against the grip on her leg. Looked around for something to throw. Tried to keep her mind engaged as terror took off inside her.

The attacker regained his balance and climbed to his feet, never letting go of her leg. She hopped as she tried to make the call. Her eyes focused long enough for her to see the terrifying message: no signal.

She was on her own.

Dizziness hit her out of nowhere. He yanked on her leg and sent her sprawling backward. This time she missed the couch. The free fall ended with a hard smack against the hardwood floor. Her elbow made contact first and her hand went numb. The useless cell dropped and bounced.

She tried to turn over and he fell on top of her. His legs straddled her sides and his hand tightened on her throat. Seemingly using almost none of his strength, he flipped her over onto her back. Dead black eyes stared down at her.

“Move and you die.” He slipped a knife out and flashed it in front of her eyes. “Do not test me.”

“I don’t have anything.” She tried to shake her head, but he kept her locked against the floor. “I work at the university. I don’t—”

He tightened his hand. “Shut up.”

Survival instinct kicked in. She grabbed for the hand, trying to pry his fingers away as he choked off her breath. Desperate to gain traction, she shifted her hips. Her feet slipped across the floor.

Fear clamped down on her. The adrenaline pumping through her gave her a burst of energy. She slapped against him, against the floor. Her gaze whipped around the room as she looked for something to make into a weapon. Anything.

“It’s over.” The ominous threat sounded even worse in the attacker’s flat tone.

“No.” She said the word as much to herself as to him.

She had to stay conscious and clear even as panic bombarded her. It became harder and harder to breathe. He outweighed her. His strength far surpassed hers. Which meant she had to depend on her smarts.

But she was running out of options and air. As her vision darkened around the edges, she remembered the fireplace and the poker. While she wrestled with the hand crushing her windpipe, she shimmied. Moved on her back as he shifted and increased his grip.

With one last surge of energy, she threw her arm out to the side. The move nearly wrenched it out of the socket, but when she didn’t touch anything she did it again. This time she knocked over the small vase holding the fireplace tools. The poker hit the back of her hand and rolled. The handle slipped away from her fingers, but she lunged and caught it. Cool metal filled her palm.

She tightened her grip and prepared to swing.

* * *

SHANE BAKER ARRIVED in Chestertown an hour before Makena’s suggested dinnertime. He broke a few traffic laws getting to her, speeding being one of them. But instead of going in right away, he parked at the opposite end of her cottage complex and walked along the river, trying to clear his head.

Makena was off-limits. He’d done the marriage thing once and failed miserably. The idea of trying something light and no strings with Makena might work if she weren’t his best friend’s baby sister and a woman he knew would expect more than a few nights of meaningless sex. She deserved more. Deserved better than him.

He worked long hours and traveled all the time. He loved his job with the Corcoran Team, the off-the-books undercover group that took on high-risk rescue jobs for companies and governments. He lived with danger. Thrived on it.

Dragging Makena into that life, no matter how hard it was to forget her face even as he traveled thousands of miles away, would be a mistake. Dinner wasn’t even a good idea, but he couldn’t say no. Holt was out of town, enjoying some time off with Lindsey, his new girlfriend. Shane rationalized his presence at Makena’s back door as he walked toward it. He needed to watch over her. No kissing. No fun. Just two old friends talking.

Now if he could only get his brain and body on the same page.

He rounded the far corner of the complex. Heard the crunch of wood just as he saw Makena’s back door implode. Before his mind could process, he took off. He ran along the edge of the hill and sprinted to the porch. Up and inside just as he heard her scream, then voices.

His heart hammered in his chest as he silently hoped he wasn’t too late. He shot through the doorway. A series of grunts and thuds greeted him as he glanced around the small space. His eyes finally focused. It took him until then to realize the lights had blinked out. But he had no time to worry about that now. He had to get to her.

With his gun out, he approached in rapid speed. He was about to call out when something flashed through the air. She had something in her hand and swung it in an arc. It connected with the attacker’s shoulder.

The guy let out a roar. His big body shuddered, but he didn’t fall. Shane took care of that part. He switched his grip on the gun and whacked the guy in the side of the head with all his strength. The attacker dropped in a crumpled heap.

Then Shane focused on Makena. Her eyes wide and glassy. A ripped shirt and her long black hair half-pulled out of her ponytail. He’d never been happier to see her.

He took a step forward and she scooted back on her butt as if fear still held her in its grasp. “Makena, are you okay?”

Some of the haze cleared. She blinked and her shoulders fell. “Shane?”

“Come here, baby.” He stepped over the unmoving body to get to her.

In one lift he had her up and in his arms. His hands shook with relief, but that was nothing compared to the trembling moving through her. Much harder and she’d break apart. His palm smoothed over her hair as he scanned the room. He had no idea what was going on, but the guy on the floor wasn’t exactly dressed for a social visit.

Once he had them out of the immediate grabbing area if the guy should wake up, Shane pulled back from her. As gently as possible, he lifted her head to look into her eyes. “Did he hurt you?”

“There were two of them.” Her voice sounded small and shaky, totally unlike her usual spunky go-get-’em attitude.

The news sent a shot of adrenaline coursing through him. He slipped her behind him and faced the open area. The squeal of tires echoed in the distance. Shane left her only long enough to run to the back door. He caught sight of the back of a dark SUV. No license plate.

When he spun around again, Makena stood right behind him. She rubbed her hands over her arms. “I didn’t want to stay in there with him.”

Shane’s gaze shot past her to the body on the floor. The guy hadn’t moved, but he would, and Shane wanted him tied up and ready for questioning. He took out his cell to call in reinforcements.

She shook her head. “Mine wouldn’t work for some reason.”

Shane got a signal and sent the emergency code to Cameron Roth, one of his teammates, before turning back to her. “Stay here.”

With the order given, Shane headed for the guy. Checked for breathing and was relieved the guy was still alive, because it was tough to question a dead man.

“Zip ties?” He knew she had them, but he asked anyway. No sister of Holt Kingston, leader of the Corcoran traveling team, would have a house without zip ties. The bigger question was why the attacker had stormed in here. He had nailed the door with a determined kick, and Shane wanted to know why. “Did he say anything to you?”

“Barely.” She buzzed into the kitchen and came back with the restraints.

“I’m going to need to hear every word.” Shane went to work on binding the unconscious man. “I’m guessing he was here to rob you, but with your connection to the Corcoran Team, we can’t be too careful.”

“He’s not here for me. They...he...broke into the house next door.” She paced the floor a few feet away from him. “I saw him, he saw me and then he came over here.”

The idea of her being a witness brought him some comfort. Wrong place, wrong time. It sucked, but it meant she wasn’t the target. That would help him sleep again...someday.

“Here.” He handed her his cell. “Call the police. They’ll need to check on the neighbors.”

“I hate to think about what they’ll find over there.”

“You’re not alone on that.” Shane did a quick pocket check of the unconscious guy. He was about to stand up when he touched a piece of paper. Slipped it out of the guy’s pocket and read the message. The words on it hit Shane like a kick to the gut.

She froze while pacing back and forth a few feet away. “What is it?”

“Your name and address.”

She frowned. “What?”

There was only one explanation, and it chilled him straight to the bone. “The men were here for you.”

Chapter Two

Makena tried not to throw up. Shane didn’t spook easily. The guy tracked killers and kidnappers for a living. He waded into danger without blinking. But now he was crouched down in her family room, holding that piece of paper with his face turning pale and his mouth flattening into a thin line.

Without saying a word, Shane turned back to the downed man and ripped off the knit cap covering his face. “Do you recognize this guy? Have you ever seen him?”

Those qualified as the questions she could answer without even thinking about it. One look and she knew. “No. Never.”

“Did he say anything that could—”

“Why is he here? Why my neighborhood?” That was all she could think to ask even though she knew the questions didn’t make sense or even match what Shane was saying.

A guy in a commando outfit storming into your house and holding a gun should raise a whole bunch of questions. None came to her in that moment. Her mind went blank. She chalked it up to some sort of weird self-protection mechanism.

She had no idea what her outward reaction looked like, but it had Shane standing up and reaching for her. His eyes narrowed as he stepped over the motionless body and put a hand on her arm. A touch she couldn’t even feel.

“Let’s try this,” he said as he stood there facing her. “Take a deep breath.”

“Okay.” He could say anything next. She was willing to do or say whatever would unravel the confusion of the last few minutes.

“Did you tell anyone about Holt or the Corcoran Team?” Shane pitched his voice low as he asked, “Maybe in conversation or by accident? Even a mention of the team’s name?”

It took a second for the question to register. She’d expected...something else. “No.”

“It’s fine if you did. I just need to know.”

“I said no,” she said, her voice growing louder with each word. She knew better. Corcoran’s work depended on secrecy and the ability to move freely without being identified. They worked for governments and corporations, protecting and rescuing. She would never endanger anyone on the team.

And she would never risk Shane’s life. Seeing him now, the broad shoulders and fit build that had his T-shirt hugging his biceps and hanging loose over his flat stomach, made her a little breathless. The short light brown hair and that familiar scruff around his chin just begged for her to run a finger over it. He possessed a handsome, almost pretty face that guaranteed an unending stream of teasing from his teammates...and she’d spent years loving him from a distance.

“It’s easy to do.” Shane shook his head. “More than once I’ve—”

“Honestly, Shane. No.” She’d failed at a lot of things in her life, but not this. The safety of the people she cared about ranked above everything else. She’d never even stepped close to that line.

His gaze searched hers for another second. “I believe you.”

“You should.” It was almost insulting that he experienced any doubt.

“That leaves very few reasonable options.” He stood so close and leaned in as he spoke. “Are you messed up in something?”

The words didn’t make any sense at first. It was as if the slam against the floor had rattled her brain. Scrambled whatever up there helped her comprehend simple sentences. “Like what?”

“Something that would bring armed men to your door.”

“Are you serious?” She worked at a desk. She read files and sat in on meetings. Nothing about her life shouted excitement...except for one thing. Her secret. The one piece she never shared. The same side work that kept her sane and would make Shane furious if he knew. She couldn’t even imagine the warnings and threats he’d issue if he knew.

More body aches sparked to life the longer she stood there. She tried to take a mental inventory. Sore knee. A twinge in her back. That pain when she moved her wrist a certain way. She was going to be one big thumping bruise tomorrow.

“I’m being thorough.” He talked slowly, enunciating each word. “We can’t miss anything. Even the smallest bit can sometimes provide the lead.”

“I work in college admissions. I can’t really imagine a kid or a kid’s parents resorting to this sort of revenge for an application rejection.” Maybe she could, but that didn’t mean they’d be able to find her. Neither her cell nor her address was public record.

But the other thing. She bit her bottom lip as she tried to reason it out. The part of her life, the private part, where she sat at a computer and conducted interviews. Pored through records and looked for lies. Those men could get angry enough to hurt her.

Shane stood over six feet and now he bent down until they stood eye to eye. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“Nothing.”

His intense stare didn’t let up. “We’ve known each other for too long for me not to pick up on that bobble in your voice.”

“I was attacked.” But he was right. It had been years. She’d met him through Holt. Shane was her big brother’s best friend. The guy with the bad marriage and, eventually, the difficult divorce. The one who made sure Holt came home safe from their assignments. The one who hung around and joked and looked and smelled so good.

For Makena, appreciation and attraction had grown from the second they met. She’d kept her feelings locked inside and pushed them away while he was married. Once he was single again, her gaze started lingering longer on Shane’s broad chest. Even when they weren’t together, the memory of his deep voice vibrated in her head. She looked forward to seeing him, even if the peek amounted to nothing more than a quick glimpse as Shane dropped Holt off somewhere.

She missed him when he was gone and enjoyed whatever little time they spent together these days. And today she silently thanked him for getting there on time. His entry had made all the difference. Anything could have happened to her if he’d waited a few more minutes to show up.

A groan cut off her mental wanderings. Low and almost a growl, it had her attention zipping to the floor. The attacker didn’t move and his eyes didn’t open, but the air changed. She felt rather than saw movement.

She shifted so they could both look down. “He’s waking up.”

“Good.” Shane moved her back, just far enough that the attacker’s hand no longer rested next to her foot. “I have some questions for him.”

Funny, but all she wanted was to see the guy dragged out of her house and locked up. The why mattered, but seeing the guy’s presence triggered a constant shaking inside her. “Any chance we could handle those at the police station?”

“I want to question this guy without an official report.”

That sounded like one of those things Holt said and she tried to ignore because she did not want to know. “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

Shane took a step in the downed man’s direction and his eyes popped open. “You have two minutes to tell me who you are and why you’re here.” Shane aimed his gun at the attacker. “Or do you need an incentive?”

“Shane, please.” The only thing she wanted less than to hear about Shane’s work plans was to watch them in action. She understood the need for hard talk—even violence—to combat evil, but she did not want to witness it firsthand. She’d had enough of that tonight.

“Go wait outside for the police.” He never broke eye contact with the attacker. They’d launched into a staring contest and neither of them moved.

She wanted Shane safe. She also wanted him to stay out of jail, so she was not leaving, no matter how much relief flooded through her at the thought at being outside in the fresh air and away from the injured attacker. “No way.”

Shane shot her a quick glance before returning his attention to the guy on the floor. “I need answers. He has them.”

The attacker lifted his head but didn’t say anything. His fingers moved on the carpet and sent Shane’s gaze bouncing.

He held out a hand in her direction even as his focus remained on the attacker’s prone form. “Stay back.”

She didn’t have any intention of getting closer. The exact opposite, actually. She took one step and backed into a chair. She could add her calf to the list of injured body parts.

She swore as she glanced down. The room started spinning in slow motion. The attacker’s foot hooked around hers and he pulled. Her knee buckled as the air whizzed under her. Prone one second, the attacker moved with record speed the next as he jackknifed into a sitting position.

Shane’s hand brushed her forearm as he made a grab for her, but the attacker proved to be a second faster. He wrapped an arm around her legs. She fell and her weight came down in a rush. The next time she inhaled, she lay on top of the attacker, her back against his front, with the fire poker balanced on her neck, keeping her locked against him.

“Drop your gun.” Those were the first words the attacker had spoken since Shane raced through the back door.

Her breath rushed out of her as her heartbeat thundered in her ears. The shaking inside her morphed into waves of panic. Tension filled the room and seemed to have Shane’s arm locked as he pointed the gun just past her head at the attacker.

“I said drop it.” The pressure against her neck closed in, choking off what little air moved through her, as the attacker spoke. “Do it or I kill her.”

“No.” Shane didn’t offer anything else. Just that.

The attacker tightened his grip until his knuckles turned white. She could see his skin right by her face. His arms shook as he pulled in. The light began to fade on her.

No way was she going out like this, in her own home while Shane watched. She flailed, shifting her weight and elbowing as she pushed and kicked.

Shane said something, but she couldn’t hear him. Couldn’t hear anything. Could barely think.

Movement flashed in front of her. Shane went from looming over them to shifting to the side. A bang echoed through the room, right by her face. She felt the attacker shudder behind her. His hold tightened for a fraction of a second, then slipped away.

Her ears rang as Shane reached down and lifted her to her feet. She tried to turn and see what was happening as she rose, but Shane’s arm blocked her. Her body came to a halt and her head rested on his shoulder as her leg muscles gave out. She glanced over his arm and spied the blood on the floor around the attacker’s head, before she quickly closed her eyes again.

Shane had shot the guy.

The realization hit her and her stomach flipped. The trembling moving through her had her teeth chattering. “Did you...”

His arm tightened around her waist as his hand brushed up and down her back. “Yes.”

The soothing gesture threatened to suck her in. She fought off the comfort and pulled back so she could look up at him. “You mean you killed him.”

“Yeah.”

He didn’t deny it or try to pretty up the words. Part of her appreciated the clear voice and the sure way he spoke about his actions, without justification. But part of her hated how easy it all seemed for him.

“Are you okay?” With his hands on her shoulders, he turned her body until his shoulders stood between her and an unwanted view of the death below her.

She didn’t see a reason to lie, so she didn’t. “Not really.”

“He would have killed you.” Shane sounded so sure.

His conviction fueled hers. That fast, some of the haze cleared. “I know.”

“Makena, I—” He broke eye contact and glanced toward the front of the house.

She heard it, too. “Sirens.”

“Now we have a problem.” Shane stepped back.

“Now? As opposed to two minutes ago?”

“Don’t panic.”

That comment almost guaranteed she would. “I doubt that.”

“The police are going to come in here and act like I’m the suspect.” He offered the explanation as he unloaded his gun.

“What?” She needed Shane right where he was. Not down at a police station. Not in danger. But that wasn’t her only concern.

A new wave of panic crashed over her. The police could not go through her house. There were papers, folders and files they could not see. She hadn’t done anything wrong, but she’d have to explain, and she couldn’t. Not to them. Maybe not even to Shane.

He set his weapon on the table with the bullets next to it. “To be safe I’m going to get on my knees and—”

She grabbed on to his arm and fought to keep him on his feet. “No, I need your help.” A frantic clawing ripped through her insides. “There are things here.”

The sirens wailed and lights flashed outside the window. She could make out the shadows of people outside, likely neighbors gathered to see what was happening. There would be police and possibly press at some point.

None of this could happen.

Shane’s hand went to her shoulder, then up to touch her hair. “Talk to me.”

“The police can’t go near my safe.” She’d locked everything away in anticipation of Shane’s visit. Gathered up every shred of evidence and hidden it. She knew if she’d left out even a piece of paper, Shane would sniff it out. She’d been so careful. And now...

His eyes narrowed. “What are you saying?”

“I’ll explain later.” She had his arm and started pushing and shoving him in the direction of the bedroom. “You just need to keep them away from the safe.”

A banging started. Sounded like the side of a hand pounding against her front door. Then the doorbell dinged once, and then a second time. The noise hit a crescendo as her panic rose and whipped up around them.

“I’ll keep the focus on me.” He motioned toward the front door. “Go let them in.”

“What about—”

“You’ll explain it all later.”

She didn’t answer. Didn’t have time because the front door crashed in. Chaos exploded around her as uniformed officers piled into her small family room. She turned back around to say something to Shane, but he’d disappeared.

Her glance dropped and she spied him on his knees, right near the body. He had his hands hooked behind his head, but the police kept shouting. They knocked him down on his stomach as they wrenched his arms behind his back.

“No, he’s not—” A policeman pulled her back before she could rush in and move everyone off Shane.

Shane turned his head to the side and looked up at her. “Call Connor.”

Her brain scrambled. “My cell doesn’t work.” She shook her head, trying to remember where she put it or why that information even mattered.

“They probably blocked the signal. Try again.” He glared, as if willing her to listen. “We need Connor.”

Connor Bowen, the owner and head of the Corcoran Team. The man with power and connections. She knew one thing: if Shane needed Connor for reinforcements, they were all in trouble.

Chapter Three

Shane tried not to stare at her. Being in the same room with Makena always resulted in the same reaction. His heart rate kicked up as fast as his common sense took a nosedive. The black hair, usually pulled back with those sexy curls hanging down by her ears. The dark eyes and hints of the heritage passed down from her Japanese mother.

The long legs and trim body...everything about her set his blood boiling. So beautiful that she tested every vow he’d ever made postdivorce about keeping relationships light and sex only. He wanted her every minute and fought off the attraction with every cell and every muscle.

He tore his attention away from her and watched his team as he stood in the middle of her family room with activity buzzing around him. Cam and Connor had arrived. Connor had walked through the door and immediately started doing what he did best—he ran the whole show. Came in with a cover and ordered people, all while silently wrestling control away from whatever poor schmuck thought he ran the crime scene.

Cam, along with Holt, formed the three-man traveling team for Corcoran. Cam showed up to help because that was what Cam did. No questions asked, he rushed in and provided support. Many times that included flying a helicopter. This time he stood on the other side of Makena, across from Shane, and made sure no one got near her.

Connor broke away from the detective and headed over to the Corcoran semicircle. “We have one dead attacker.”

“Thanks to Shane,” Cam said.

“You would have done the same thing.” Every member of the team would have put his body in front of Makena. Forget about her being innocent, though that counted as a good answer. She was Holt’s sister, and no one touched the people the team members cared about.

“Probably.” Cam shrugged. “I’m betting I would have used more finesse. Maybe been quicker about it.”

Shane knew Cam was joking...or engaging in what Cam thought qualified as joking. Making sly comments meant to break the tension. If Shane hadn’t walked in on some guy manhandling Makena, watched as the guy tried to choke the life out of her, he might be more in the mood to be soothed. But not right now.

“The guy intended to kill me.” The rough edge to Makena’s words was hard to miss.

Cam’s smile suggested he didn’t. “Then I definitely would have killed him, too.”

Shane was about to remind her about Cam’s odd sense of humor when Connor broke in. “Now that we have that settled.”

An officer behind Makena knocked into her. She jumped. Looked two seconds away from screaming but somehow managed to bite it back.

Shane could not help being impressed. She didn’t deal in danger as they did, yet she’d stayed calm. She’d listened to the informal training they gave her and kept fighting no matter what. She never let down her guard. Those smarts and that strength had kept her alive.

She cleared her throat as she visibly brought her nerves back under control. Most signs vanished. All but the way she rubbed her hands together in front of her until her skin turned red. “What about my neighbors?”

No surprise her mind went there. Shane had checked on that first thing. “They weren’t home.”

Her shoulders fell as she blew out a long breath. “I heard a shot...or I thought I did.”

She wouldn’t like the answer, but Shane offered it anyway. “Killed the dog.”

Cam swore under his breath. “That sucks.”

An awful situation, but the death toll could have been so much worse and Shane remained grateful it wasn’t. “At least it wasn’t a person.”

“I like dogs.” Cam moved out of the way as the ambulance crew brought in the stretcher.

“Is this what you guys always talk about on a job?” Makena watched every move as the crew lifted the still body and locked the stretcher in place. Her voice shook and a certain sadness moved in her dark eyes.

Shane wanted to make it better. Fought the urge to go to her, put an arm around her...test his control to its very limit. But he would do it for her. Or he would have done it if the audience didn’t consist of Cam and Connor and what looked like six police officers filing in and out of the house as the detectives talked in the corner.

Unable to think of the right thing to say, Shane went with the one thing that might help. “He’s trying to calm you.”

Her eyes narrowed as her head turned and she stared at Cam. “Really?”

“He’s terrible at it. Makes you pity Julia, doesn’t it?” Julia White, the love of Cam’s life. The reason Shane now hesitated when he called in a favor or needed backup as he played a hunch.

“The office is working on background on the attacker.” Connor talked over all of them. “Preliminary reports are he had a record. Petty stuff.”

“Are we sure that’s it?” Shane glanced around, from the discarded fire poker to the magazines strewn all over the floor. Despite the battle, most of the furniture and other stuff in the room remained intact. But the man was still dead. “If so, it looks as if he escalated this time.”

Connor nodded as he retrieved his cell from his back pocket. “We need to call Holt.”

“No.” Makena put her hand over the phone. Looked as though she tried to tug it out of Connor’s hands.

Connor pulled it out of reach. “Excuse me?”

Before she said a word, Shane knew where this was going to go. Holt had met Lindsey during a job. She had grown up in a cult but possessed an inner strength. Holt hadn’t stood a chance against her. He fell in love in the equivalent of a week. He’d spent two months going back and forth from his house in Maryland to hers in Oregon, but he was on his way back home and bringing Lindsey with him for good this time.

“He needs to stay with Lindsey.” Makena spoke slowly, as if she were explaining a big idea to a small child. “The only way he’ll do that now is if he doesn’t know this happened.”

Connor waited until she finished. “That’s not an option.”

The stretcher rolled by and Shane moved the group to the side to stay out of the way. He also lowered his voice as the rumble of conversation in the room died down. “It actually is.”

“This explanation should be interesting,” Cam said under his breath.

“Makena can stay with me.” Shane ignored Connor’s lifted eyebrow and the stunned expression on Makena’s face, though he thought she could play her shock down a bit. “For protection.”

Cam cleared his throat. “Uh-huh.”

“Protection?” Connor asked at the same time.

Shane decided to ignore both of them. “We need to move her to a safe location while we confirm this guy’s identity and figure out why he had her contact information, because that suggests more than a burglary gone wrong.”

“And you’re volunteering to be her bodyguard.” Connor hesitated over each word, not bothering to ask it as a question. “You think that’s a good idea?”

“I’m standing right here.” Makena rolled her eyes. “And I’m a grown-up who should be part of this conversation, in case you gentlemen missed that fact.”

Shane could fight his team or Makena, not both. “Someone sent men after you and we need to know why.”

“Because of Corcoran, I assume.” Connor glanced at the detectives. “I’ve ordered a lockdown just to be safe.”

“That sounds bad.” Makena bit her bottom lip.

“My wife is not a fan of the protocol,” Connor said. “No one on the team is, since it involves being trapped inside and having the women in our lives skip their regular schedules. Not exactly an easy task since they fight every minute of it.”

Makena snorted. “Good for them.”

“Easy for you to say.” Cam whistled. “Julia is going to be ticked off.”

Shane jumped back in before the conversation devolved into an us-versus-them battle. “You guys handle the lockdown and I’ll handle Makena.”

Her eyebrow lifted. “Oh, really?”

Okay, that was a miscalculation. He knew that tone. Dreaded that tone. “Your safety.”

“Right.” Cam nodded. “That’s what you meant.”

Connor shifted just enough to bring everyone’s attention snapping back to him. “I’ll give you a twenty-four-hour reprieve on calling in Holt.”

That was not going to go over well. Shane started a mental countdown. Ten, nine, eight...

“Don’t I get to decide?” Makena asked.

“No.” Connor’s smile faded as fast as it came. “In the meantime, I need to go finish my ‘Homeland Security is taking over’ speech.”

“That explains the uniforms.” Makena’s gaze roamed over Connor’s vest.

Shane liked the Homeland ones. There was a certain subtlety to the white lettering on the dark material. Better than the FBI. The team had them all. Whatever the job called for, they were ready.

“I wear this, I flash paperwork and give out a phone number that rings in the office of a very important man, and we control the crime scene. No questions asked, which is what we need right now.” From anyone else the comment would have come off more egotistical than realistic. Somehow Connor sold it.

Not that Makena was easy to impress. “That’s a lot of power.”

“I can be trusted.” Connor winked and then walked away, forging a path as policemen shifted out of his way.

Cam waited a second, then followed. “I’m going to watch.”

A crowd formed around Connor as he rapid-fired questions. Shane appreciated the distraction. Because it left him alone with Makena at least for a few minutes. Enough time had passed. He wanted answers.

“What’s in that safe?” He’d kept the police interest off the bedroom and whatever Makena had locked in there, but he wanted to know.

She shushed him. Actually shushed him. “Not now.”

He wanted to insist, but as his mind ran through the events of the past few hours, he couldn’t bring himself to put her through one more thing. Not that they could wait long. Not with gunmen on the loose and a dead body being taken to the morgue. “Your time is running out.”

Her eyebrow lifted. “Meaning?”

His temper. He’d had enough game playing during his marriage to last him forever.

With a hand on her forearm, he steered her out the front door to the porch. Neighbors milled around the yard, shadowed in the police cars’ headlights. Darkness had fallen and a cool breeze carried the smell of the nearby river up to the cottage.

He ignored all of it and concentrated on her, making sure to drop her arm as soon as he could. Touching her just tempted him, and right now they had serious business to figure out. “You are way smarter than I am. You know what I’m saying.”

She leaned in and dropped her voice to a low whisper. “Can you get it out of here without raising questions or causing a problem?”

He didn’t even know what it was. He’d been to the house many times and didn’t remember a safe. That probably meant a small one, which made his task easier. No way could he load a heavy safe on his back and get it out of there without questions.

“I’ll be able to take the contents out.” He made the distinction but didn’t know if she picked up on it or not. “And when I do I plan on looking through whatever is in there, so don’t even bother arguing about that.”

She linked her hand under his elbow. “I should be able to do something to convince you not to invade my privacy.”

The words skidded across his senses. She didn’t mean...couldn’t mean... “Don’t do that.”

Her dark eyes filled with confusion. “What?”

Doubt kicked him in the gut, but he ignored it. “If that’s the kind of offer I think it is—”

She shot him a frown that suggested she was just about to kick him. “Oh, please. It was an honest comment.”

“Before someone tried to kill you tonight, you would have just had to ask and I would have left your personal life alone.” That wasn’t quite true. His job provided him with the ability to check out certain details. If he thought she was in trouble, he would not have hesitated to rush in and help out. “But now that I know you’re in danger and hiding something, the chance of you winning this battle is zero.”

“You don’t play fair.” She waved a hand between them. “Whipping out that whole bodyguard, good-guy thing.”

He had no idea what that meant, so he skipped over it. “Can we carry the contents?”

“Yes.” The answer came quickly and didn’t sound all that convincing.

But that didn’t change the plan. He only had one real play here, and it depended on keeping Connor away from the usual full-house search. “We grab whatever this is, head to a dark and quiet place I know to get something to eat, and you tell me what the big secret is.”

Her mouth dropped open. “You can eat after all that’s happened?”

The woman latched on to the damnedest comments. “I can always eat.”

“How is that possible?”

Shane couldn’t remember the last time a situation had robbed him of his appetite. If it didn’t mean more hours in the gym, he’d eat even more during the day. “I’m not exactly small.”

She leaned against the porch railing. “Oh, I know.”

She did it again. The husky tone. The potentially provocative phrasing. Much more of this and he’d hustle her out of there and do something really stupid. “Makena.”

Silence screamed between them. After a few seconds she lifted her hands as if in mock surrender. “Fine. Sneak stuff out, eat and talk. Got it.”

He could stick to that plan. He had to if he wanted to remain sane. “There, was that so hard?”

“Actually, yes.”

A weight lifted off his shoulders. “Well, you better get used to it.”

“The bossiness, the need you have to get your way—which?”

“All of it. Because for the next day, I’m all you’ve got.” And for some reason, that made him feel infinitely better.

Chapter Four

Shane hadn’t issued an empty threat. Makena could actually feel the time running out as she sat in a tucked-away corner booth of a diner she’d never heard of. Never mind that they were on her turf. Even with the out-of-control way he drove, he lived more than a half hour away. She spent all of her time in and around Chestertown. Yet he’d driven maybe fifteen miles and found some dive she never even knew existed. Drove right to it, so he definitely knew it was there.

“The owners don’t spend a lot on lights.” She squinted in the dark, trying to make out the faces of the diners sitting nearby but giving up. The smell of French fries and cheese lured her in. If the food tasted half as good as it smelled, she’d be back.

“It was just paperwork.” He leaned an elbow on either side of his plate and ignored his hamburger. “That’s what had you all twitchy.”

Sounded as if Shane wanted to jump right into work and the safe and her secrets. No. Thank. You.

She held up her sandwich. “It’s actually grilled cheese.”

He flattened a hand against the fake-wood table. “I know you’re thinking you can drag this out, throw off my concentration.”

She let the cheese stretch in a string before breaking it off and popping it in her mouth. “I’m hoping.”

“No.”

Energy pounded off him. Every line of his body suggested he’d nip and pick at this until he got his answers. The intense stare. The stiff shoulders. That determined punch to his voice.

She gave up and dumped the sandwich on her plate. “You do understand this has been a rough night, right?”

He frowned. “I guess. Sort of.”

She thought about kicking him under the table but leaned in, dragging her body halfway across the table toward him, instead. “Did you miss the part where a guy died on my floor?”

“That sort of thing is not that out of the ordinary for me.”

Scary thing was she knew he wasn’t lying. Any sane woman would run. Take off in the opposite direction and not look back. She’d tried that. She honestly had. She’d dated other guys and pretended her heart didn’t do triple time whenever she saw him. None of it worked.

The big tough-guy thing, the pretty face and linebacker body all combined to knock her off balance. She’d been attracted to him from the start, and the feelings refused to die. But right now she needed him to be more than the man she wove wild dreams about each night. She needed him to back off on her secrets but stay close in case someone really was after her.

She dropped back against the ripped booth and stared him down. “Your work scares me.”

“It’s fine.” He waved her concerns off without ever breaking eye contact. “Back to our deal. I believe you have something to say to me.”

She glanced up, about to tiptoe through the facts, when the words clogged in her throat. She could make out one face in the diner. Wasn’t tough, since he walked directly toward her, in a line right behind Shane. Slow and steady steps with a face filled with fury.

A ball of anxiety started spinning in her stomach. She had to sit on her hands to keep from fidgeting. “Were we followed here?”

Shane picked most of the toppings off his burger. “You’ve been watching too much television.”

She couldn’t move. All of a sudden her body froze and her mind went blank. The guy could have a gun or...she needed Shane on high alert. “You don’t understand.”

Shane’s expression changed as he shifted in his seat and glanced behind him. “What are you—”

The unwanted guest stopped right at the end of the table and stared at her. “Heard you had some trouble at your place tonight.”

He looked far too happy about the idea. He’d also just painted a target on his chest as the lead suspect in her attack. “How would you know that?”

Shane stood up, shoving his way out until he seemed to take up most of the space around the booth. “Who are you?”

“You on a date with her?” Jeff barked out a harsh laugh. “Dude, you should run. This one is—”

“That’s enough.” Shane didn’t even raise his voice. Didn’t have to. The vibration of menace would have been tough to miss.

Jeff took a step back. “You going to fight me?”

“You do not want that.” Shane shook his head as he eyed Jeff up and down. “Trust me.”

The mood in the diner changed. People openly gawked and the waitress backed away from their table. Blame it on testosterone or whatever, but a battle was brewing and clearly everyone felt the danger. Except Jeff. He didn’t back down. He outweighed Shane by at least thirty pounds, but Shane was all lean muscle and lethal fighter.

This would be a bloodbath, and while Jeff deserved to be pounded into the floor, she didn’t want to witness it. “Shane, stop.”

“Listen to the woman, Shane.”

“One more time. Who are you?” Shane’s voice dripped with disdain.

“Just one of the men she screwed over.” Jeff threw out an arm in her direction, nearly hitting her.

She pulled back just in time. “You can’t blame me. You’re the liar.”

With each word, her anger rose. She seethed with it. This guy had tracked her down, showed up at her house more than once. He’d been in the wrong and now pretended to be the victim. She despised him and everything he stood for.

Jeff’s face flushed red and he took a threatening step toward her. He reached his arm out but never touched her. Shane moved with lightning speed to stand between them and pushed the guy back. Kept pushing over Jeff’s protests and swearing until his back hit the wall. Shane held Jeff there with a hand around his throat. That was it. One hand had him pinned.

Shane didn’t even move as Jeff punched at his arm and moved his whole body, trying to break loose. When two men got up at another table, Shane held up a hand. Didn’t say a word, but the gesture was enough to get them sitting back down again.

Makena’s heart lodged in her throat and wouldn’t slip back down again. She wanted to stop the madness, but it had spiraled so fast and so furiously and she could only stand there, openmouthed and stunned.

“We seem to be having a miscommunication issue here. Let me be clear.” Shane’s voice sounded deadly cold and even. “You don’t go near her. Not to talk with her or touch her. Ever.”

Jeff tried to pry Shane’s hand off but failed. “She’s been asking for it.”

“That is the line said by every abusive male on the planet.” Shane’s grip tightened. “She dumped you. Move on.”

The idea of dating Jeff made her stomach roll. “That’s not what this is about.”

Jeff scoffed. “As if I would date that piece of—” His words choked off as his eyes bulged.

“Last warning.” Shane leaned in closer to Jeff. “If you think I won’t rip you apart in front of an audience, you’re dead wrong.”

“Tough talk from a guy who doesn’t even know what’s going on.”

It was as if Jeff wanted Shane to kill him. She couldn’t believe Jeff missed the rage simmering there. That he couldn’t see the darkness in Shane’s eyes.

After a beat of silence Shane let Jeff go, but not before shoving his head back and knocking it against the wall. “Explain it to me.”

Jeff doubled over in a coughing fit. It took him a few minutes to regain his composure. When he did, anger thrummed off him. “Ask your girlfriend. She’s the one causing trouble.” He scowled at her. “You going to turn on this guy, too?”

She hated being put in the role of bad guy. Jeff took no responsibility for his bad choices. That shouldn’t surprise her, but it did. “Shane’s not a liar.”

“Makena, don’t help,” Shane said without moving his gaze away from Jeff.

“That won’t work. She’s ruthless.”

Shane pointed at Jeff. “And you’re done talking to her or about her.”

He batted the hand away. “You’ll find out. Just wait.”

Makena watched as Jeff stomped off. Pivoted around the tables, ignoring all the stares and the waitress rooted to the spot with the coffeepot dangling from her hand. The noise of the diner muffled. Makena could hear the creaking of chairs and the clanging of silverware, but it all sounded so distant.

Shane dropped back into his seat and stared at her. “So...”

“I never dated that guy. I would never date someone like him.” She wanted that clear from the start.

The waitress darted over and refilled glasses. Shane waited until she left again to start talking. “What’s his name? And do not hesitate. Tell me.”

She didn’t even have to wage an internal debate. It would all spill out now. “Jeff Horvath.”

Shane exhaled. “And who is Jeff Horvath to you?”

“That’s not exactly an easy question.”

He shoved his plate of uneaten food aside and leaned in on his elbows. “Lucky for you, I have all night. All day tomorrow, too. Talk.”

“He’s a fake SEAL.” The words tumbled out of her then. “You were in the military. Others weren’t. There are men who pretend to be war heroes, special ops guys, and...they lie. They live their entire lives lying and not caring that real people fought and died doing what the liars claim to have done.”

She expected to feel empty and frustrated at having the information pulled out of her, but no. A surge of relief hit her. She’d dealt with this huge weight and all the anger that came along with it for almost a year.

Shane’s eyes narrowed and stayed there. “This Jeff is one of those guys?”

“Yes.”

“Huh, I should have decked him.” Shane dropped his hands to the table. Just inches from hers. “What does any of this have to do with you?”

This was the part he’d hate. She steeled her body for the inevitable yelling. “There’s this website called Wall of Dishonor. It outs men who are pretending to be war heroes.” When he continued to frown, she tried again. “I work for the website. Do research, file Freedom of Information Act requests.”

“You work at a college. At a desk.” His expression went blank. “Didn’t you reiterate that earlier?”

The look on his face didn’t fool her. He was winding up. She could feel the tension twisting the air around them. “Yes, but—”

“What, Makena?”

That tone. Not helpful, but she decided not to point that out, since he looked half-ready to strangle her. “I do this on the side.”

“You tick off men who lie about military service. Men invested in their lies who have everything to lose when you uncover their deceit.” With each word he jammed his fingertip against the table with a thud. “Do you hear the tone of my voice? Can you tell how bad this is?”

“They deserve to be exposed.” She believed that to her core. She’d grown up with a military man. Her father had dedicated his life to his career more than he ever had his family. Early in his service, he’d been stationed in Hawaii and found the perfect military wife who put everything aside for his career. By the time Makena and Holt came along, their parents were entrenched.

Dad was tough and commanding and demanded excellence, something she’d failed at for almost all of her life. Holt had suffered their father’s wrath while she’d been spared. She’d been the disappointment. She flailed and tried to find her way, but got something of a pass from her parents, who never expected much of her anyway. Holt went into the army.

She’d gotten a lot of things wrong in her life, but she understood the military mind-set and the sacrifices. She hated the idea of someone claiming to have served who never did. It was an insult, and she’d spent most of her free time for nearly a year hunting these guys down.

“I’m not denying that guys like Jeff should be exposed.” Shane shook his head. “He deserves to be shamed.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“You...are you...” He wiped a hand over his face. “Does Holt know?”

“No.” Her big brother could not know. He would try to control her choices in the name of protecting her.

She understood the tendency, even appreciated the concern, but he had a hard time letting go of his protector mode and realizing she wasn’t a kid anymore. The fact that she’d transferred colleges twice until she found the right fit and moved around in jobs until she landed at the college only supported his point that she was not responsible. But she was. She had a career now, paid rent. She had a purpose.

“You didn’t tell him because you knew he’d lose his mind. That he’d forbid it.”

Forbid. The word sliced through her brain, bringing a wave of anger right behind it. “I’m a grown woman. My big brother doesn’t control what I do.”

This time Shane slammed the side of his hand against the table. “He wants you safe.”

There was a difference between safe and coddled. She wasn’t convinced Holt, or Shane for that matter, always saw the line. “I get that, but he doesn’t get to make choices for me.”

Shane’s back teeth slammed together. “I want you safe.”

Well... Her heart sped up and it had nothing to do with the argument. “I thought we were talking about Holt.”

“We’re talking about danger.” Shane closed his eyes as he visibly wrestled to control the anger bouncing around inside him. “That guy talked as if he knew where you live. He was here, a place you said you’ve never been.”

“Which is why I asked if we were followed.” She’d checked, looked and thought they were safe...until Jeff walked in the door. The idea of him being so close and staying unseen terrified her.

Shane’s mouth dropped open. “You’re blaming me?”

That was not what she meant. Not at all. She put a hand over his, letting the warmth of his skin seep into her and wipe away the chill. “I’m admitting that I do this job. On the side.”

“In secret.”

“It’s the only way to do it. The liars cover their tracks.”

He opened his hand and let her fingers slide through his. “Let someone else take over.”

She had to smile at that. “Says the guy who walks into danger every single day without asking someone to fill in for him.”

“I’m trained for it. You’re not.” He turned her hand over and rubbed a thumb over her palm.

The move, so gentle and sweet, had something fluttering inside her. She forced her mind to focus. “For the most part I sit and look things up. It’s completely safe.”

“Then why does Jeff Horvath know who you are and how to get to you?”

The diner started spinning. She’d fought so hard to control her life, and one moment months ago had ruined all that.

“Because I messed up.” She slipped her hand out from under his. “He was one of the first targets and I—”

“Targets?”

“—confronted him.”

“You did what?” Shane’s voice stayed flat and emotionless.

She looked away, but she could still see the moment. Filled with indignation and a sense of satisfaction, she’d stepped up to Jeff as he came out of church and told him, right there in front of his fiancée, that he’d been found out and now everyone would know. His business associates, his family, all the people he’d lied to for years, would know.

He’d claimed to be deployed while he played in Europe as a civilian. The tales of getting out early for some heroic act were even more ridiculous. She spewed it all in public instead of letting the website uncover him while she maintained her anonymity. A huge misstep she’d never made again, but the one time with Jeff was enough to keep her on edge.

She glanced at Shane again. Saw the rage bubbling under the surface and knew it was all for her. “Please don’t break out into a lecture.”

“I can’t, because I’m speechless.”

“You don’t need to exaggerate.”

His mouth opened twice before he spit out any words. “Do you have any idea what I’d do if someone hurt you?”

She’d waited forever for him to say something like that, and now he’d said it in a wave of fury. “No. You don’t exactly share your feelings. How am I even supposed to know you’d care?”

“I’d care.” He nodded toward her plate and the globs of now-cold cheese. “Fuel up, because we’re going to spend a lot of hours talking about this.”

She didn’t hide her wince. “I was afraid you’d say something like that.”

“You think fake military guys get angry? Wait until you hear this real retired army guy.” He stole a French fry off her plate.

“I should have gone with Cam,” she mumbled under her breath as she picked up her sandwich.

“Too bad, because you’re stuck with me.”

She wanted to hate that idea, but she couldn’t.

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