Protecting The Billionaire Read online

  “Everything’ll be okay,” he said, tilting her chin up and kissing her forehead.

  She nodded. “I hear sirens. The police must be here.”

  The knocking on the door seconds later validated her statement.

  I’m safe. Rock’s safe. She repeated the words, but the shivering continued. Someone had shot at them. A bullet had actually flown right past her. Her stomach rolled and her lunch threatened to leave her. No one got hurt. Just remember that.

  “There’s nothing more for us to do here,” Detective Graves, the police officer who’d come inside to take their statements, said. “We’ll check the casing we found outside for any fingerprints. Who knows, we might get lucky.”

  She didn’t know much about weapons, but she’d watched enough movies to know the casing was the part left behind after a gun fired a shot.

  “We got the bullet too. That might provide some leads.”

  Yeah, she’d watched the police remove the bullet from Rock’s couch. Considering all the damage a single bullet could do to a person, she’d expected something larger.

  “I’ll be in touch with you both. Here’s my number if you need to reach me,” he said, handing them each a business card. “Please don’t hesitate to call.”

  Allison tucked the card into her pocket and watched the detective and Rock speak as they walked toward the door. With Rock’s attention elsewhere, she dropped her head in her hands. The entire event played through her mind again. One moment they’d been kissing and the next Rock tackled her to the floor, covering her body with his. A tear slipped down her cheek as a light bulb went on in her head. He’d used his own body as a shield. In a heartbeat, he’d been willing to sacrifice his own well-being for her safety.

  Her heart expanded, pushing its way out of her ribcage and filling her entire chest.

  “You holding up okay?”

  Allison looked up. Rock sat on the coffee table, his forearms on his thighs, facing her. “So, so.” How about him? From the moment he’d pushed her down, he’d stayed in control. Would he be offended if she asked if he was shaken up? The oddest things offended guy sometimes. He looks fine. The outside didn’t always match the inside. “Are you okay?”

  “Just a scratch.” He touched the rip in his shirt. A rip she hadn’t noticed until he drew her attention to it.

  “Baloney. You’re bleeding.” If she hadn’t been looking right at the wet spot on his dark shirt, she would’ve missed it. “Rock, you need a doctor.”

  “Bullet nicked me. I’ve gotten worse cuts shaving.” He pushed up his sleeve. “Not even bleeding anymore.”

  A blob of dry, crusted blood covered the wound. It did look as if his body had the bleeding under control. “We should clean it. Maybe put something on it so it doesn’t get infected.”

  “Sounds like you’re offering to play nurse.”

  She’d gotten certified in first aid and CPR when she started working for the Falmouth Foundation. If Rock’s injury was as minor as he said, she should be able to take care of it. “I’ll try, but if I clean it and it looks serious or starts bleeding again, I’m taking you to the ER. Do you have a first aid kit?”

  He gave her one of his panty-melting smiles before he sauntered away, distracting her for a moment from the fact a bullet had whizzed through the window not long ago. Earth to Allison, come in, Allison. She needed to think about his arm right now not how good he looked both in and out of a pair of jeans.

  “Should have everything ya need in here.” Rock handed her a large, white first aid box and a wet towel before tugging his shirt over his head, revealing the toned body underneath.

  Like a magnet drawn to metal, her eyes zeroed in on his hard pecs and then down to his six-pack. Arm, take care of his arm. Taking in a deep breath, she popped open the box and searched for what she needed. “Do you think Detective Graves’s suspicions are right? That this was some gang initiation.” He’d claimed a similar incident happened the week before in Southbridge, a nearby town.

  “Anything’s possible.” He remained still as she cleaned away the dried blood.

  She heard the uncertainty in his voice. “But you’re not convinced.”

  “You need a bodyguard.”

  “Rock—”

  “Listen, will you?” He grabbed her wrist. “Hire someone from Elite Force Security for when I’m not around. Maybe see if they do surveillance too. If someone is following you, we need to know.”

  No doubt she’d feel safer with either Rock or a bodyguard around her at all times. “That’ll still mean I have a stranger camping out in my house every night.”

  He ground his teeth and shook his head. “I’ll stay with you at night.”

  “You’re going to move in?” Considering how high-handed he acted, she should tell him to back off, remind him she could make her own decisions and she might not want a roommate. Under different circumstances and with a different man, she would. “You want to commute to Quantico everyday from Alexandria?”

  “No.”

  Whoa, what?

  Rock leaned closer and stroked her face with his fingertips. “But I will for you.”

  Her heart started its expansion ritual again.

  “Deal?”

  She smelled the cherry-scented candy on his breath when he whispered the word. Unable to speak around the golf ball lodged in her throat, she nodded. Her response earned her another smile and kiss, which threatened to burn her from the inside out.

  “Okay. I’ll call them first thing tomorrow and set something up.” She turned her attention back to his wound. With all the blood gone, the gash in his arm didn’t appear as bad as she expected. It still looked painful though. “You’re right, it’s not bleeding anymore. I’m still going to cover it up to keep it clean.”

  “You’ll call now.” He dropped his smartphone in her hand. “My arm can wait.” Crossing his arms, he moved away from her. “And tell them you want Connor Anderson assigned to ya.”

  She’d dealt with enough stubborn men in her life to know Rock wouldn’t back down until he got his way. Since she planned on calling them anyway, she guessed it made little difference if she did it now or in a few hours. “Fine, but after I want to hear about your interview today.” The bullet though the window had stopped him from answering her question earlier. “Do you have their number?”

  Rock once again disappeared into his room. This time when he came back, he carried his wallet and a clean shirt. “Here you go.” He held out a wrinkled business card and watched her dial the number. “You should call your family too.”

  Getting a bodyguard was bad enough. “I don’t—” Someone answered the line, cutting off the rest of her sentence.

  Since the family had used the firm before, it didn’t take Allison long to make the necessary arrangements. While she still hated the whole idea, at least she already knew one of the guards they were assigning to her. He’d acted as her cousin Callie’s personal bodyguard a few years earlier when the truth about her birth became public knowledge.

  “All set.” Annoyance leaked into her voice. “Let me finish up your arm.” She reached for a bandage and tape. “Now it’s your turn. How did the interview go?”

  Rock’s knees bumped hers as he moved closer. “Call your family.”

  If her father got wind of this, he’d be down here as fast as humanly possible, which she didn’t need or want. “Not right now.” Once her father found out, the rest of the family would too. She’d end up with a few brothers and perhaps even a cousin or two camped out at her place along with her father. She loved her family, but didn’t need them moving in, especially when the whole situation was probably her imagination getting the better of her. Yep, in a week or so, she’d be able to get rid of the bodyguards she hired. Getting her entire family worked up made no sense.

  “Ally, if my sister was in danger, I’d want to know. My dad and mom would too.”

  He means well. She needed to remember that; otherwise she might hit him over the head with the firs
t object she grabbed. “There’s nothing they can do. The bodyguards are arranged and I’ll have you around. Everything will be fine.” I hope. “Please let it go for tonight.” She focused on covering the ugly gash and hoped he missed the wobble in her voice. “Did the firm offer you a position today?”

  Rock sighed hard enough to knock someone over, but he didn’t press her again about calling her family. “They did.”

  “And?” Although Rock remained stationed in Virginia at the moment, she knew he could be deployed or transferred somewhere else. While that didn’t change her feelings or desire to be with him, a position with a firm like Elite Force meant he’d stay nearby, making their relationship much easier.

  “Gotta think about it. They gave me sometime before they need an answer.”

  She secured the bandage with one more piece of tape and Rock grabbed the shirt he’d carried out with him. “Don’t think so.” She snatched the T-shirt away and tossed it aside. She’d spent the last thirty minutes looking at his naked chest and thinking about how it’d feel against hers. No way was he covering it up until she got what she wanted. The shirt landed on Baxter’s head, but the dog merely lifted his head and gave it a shake before resting it on his front paws again. The dog had been sitting next to her since she sat down and he didn’t look about to move for any reason.

  Rock cocked an eyebrow. “What should I do?”

  When he put it that way, what other choice did she have than to instruct him? “Let’s start with this.” With a little tug, she pulled her shirt over her head and unclipped her bra, Rock’s eyes following her movements. Reaching out, she took his hands and the Adam’s apple in his throat moved up and down as she brought his hands to her breasts. His palms scorched her nipples and heat gathered low in her stomach. When he gave them each a squeeze, the heat slithered lower to between her legs.

  “Anything else I should do?” Warm breath drifted over her breast as he spoke, and she bit down on her lip.

  Oh, most definitely. “Touch me.”

  Rock’s tongue traced her nipple, and then he kissed her collarbone while his other hand moved down her side. “I am.”

  “Not there.” He was playing with her. She heard it in his voice. Well, right now, she wasn’t in the mood for games. Grabbing his hand, she moved it between her legs. The heat of his skin seeped through the fabric and touched her. “Here,” she whispered, closing her eyes. For a moment, he obliged her request. When he moved his hand, she opened her eyes. “What’s wrong?”

  Rock leaned toward her ear. “Waiting for my next order.”

  “We need a bed for what I have in mind.”

  Chapter 11

  He focused on clearing his mind as he watched the last police cruiser leave. He’d given Kane explicit instructions. He wanted Raimono dead, but he didn’t want it happening in front of Allison. He didn’t want the memory haunting her forever.

  Either Kane failed to pass the message on to the lackey he tasked with the job or the dumb flunkey had ignored his orders. From what he’d heard, people only made that mistake once. When Kane found out what happened here, he wouldn’t want to be the punk he’d seen fire at the window before jumping in the beat-up Camaro and taking off. That was why he hadn’t called Kane the moment the punk fired the shots. Ripping a guy like him a new one would only be detrimental to his own health.

  Another bout of rage bubbled up despite his efforts. He’d seen Allison go inside. The shooter had too. The Camaro had already been parked near the sidewalk when Allison pulled into the parking lot. If he’d known who sat in the car, he would’ve done something, tried to stop the guy somehow.

  He’d realized it too late. There’ll be other opportunities.

  Back in control, he pulled out his cell phone. Allison and Raimono couldn’t be together all the time. He’d remind Kane what needed to happen. Then he’d wait. But he couldn’t wait forever.

  Chapter 12

  Man, she hated this. She couldn’t even walk outside the building for a coffee without Connor following her. The man had been her constant shadow since he’d arrived at her house this morning. Actually, she’d had a shadow since Friday night, but one of them she didn’t mind having.

  Although not her original plan, she’d spent Friday night at Rock’s apartment. Then on Saturday, he’d followed her home and stayed with her until this morning when he’d left for the base, but only after Connor arrived. Now she was stuck with Connor until Rock got back tonight. And lucky her, she got to repeat the entire process again tomorrow.

  Yesterday, she’d tried to convince Rock they’d overreacted on Friday, that she’d imagined someone had followed her to his apartment. The whole experience had been like talking to a concrete wall. No matter what argument she made, he had a counterargument. In the end, she gave up, promising herself that if all remained quiet for the next few days and Elite Force didn’t see anything suspicious, she’d get rid of the bodyguards. If Rock wanted to keep staying with her and commute everyday, he could. She liked having him close, and besides, he gave her some personal space unlike Connor, the bodyguard now sitting outside her office door.

  When they’d arrived at the Falmouth Foundation earlier, he’d insisted he sit inside her office. If she had to, she could deal with having a bodyguard in the building and even driving with him in the car, but she drew the line at him sitting across the desk from her. If he’d stayed in the room with her all day, she’d never get anything done.

  It took some big-time persuading, but she’d managed to get him to stay just outside her door. Of course that meant the man knew when she left her office to get a coffee or even go to the restroom, and he insisted on going everywhere with her, which was something she’d found out very quickly this morning when she’d tried to make her usual ten thirty coffee run next door. The moment she opened her office door, he came to his feet. When she’d told him of her plan, he fell into step next to her.

  She’d allowed him to accompany her to the café without an argument, after all she hired him to keep an eye on her. Doing so would be impossible if he stayed here while she walked outside and to the next building. She’d even bought him an espresso and a muffin. However, when they returned and he tried to check the restroom before she went in, she put her foot down. Invading her privacy was one thing. Other female employees used the ladies room though and they didn’t need Connor or any other man walking in on them.

  Connor hadn’t like that one bit. Only after she reminded him the receptionist would’ve seen any nonemployees go into the bathroom, had he conceded and stood guard outside the door instead.

  The only positive thing, if one could call it positive, was that Jake had taken a few days off this week to spend time with Charlie and Garret, so he didn’t know about the situation. He would soon enough. After all a large, armed man had followed her into work and now sat outside her office door. No doubt Cindy, Jake’s personal assistant, would tell him the next time they spoke. When he learned the truth, questions would follow. Hopefully none of that took place today because she needed to get things done. Several grant proposals required her attention if she hoped to meet their end of the month deadlines.

  Allison scrolled down and started on the next grant section, but two hard knocks on the door made her pause. What can he possibly want? Except for following her around every time she stepped out of her office, he’d left her alone to work so far today.

  “Come in.” The sooner she found out, the sooner he’d go back to leaving her alone, well at least until she tried to make a break for the ladies room again.

  “Something you want to share?”

  Phooey. Jake. So much for a little more time. “I thought you were out until Thursday.” A little small talk never hurt anything, even if it did only postpone the inevitable.

  “I was until Cindy called and said you had a guard sitting outside your door. Out with it. What’s going on?” Jake stood on the other side of her desk, his arms crossed and his serious expression making him look like a younger
clone of Uncle Warren.

  “First, how’s Charlie and Garret. Do you have any new pictures of him?” She’d answer Jake. In the long run, what other choice did she have? Still, she didn’t appreciate him barging in and demanding answers. He might be her boss at the Falmouth Foundation, but he wasn’t her master.

  His expression didn’t change, but Jake ran a hand through his short hair. “Okay, fine, we’ll do it your way. Everyone’s great. Maureen and her husband are down visiting again.” Pulling out his smartphone, he touched the screen before passing it to her. “These pictures are from last weekend when Sara and Christopher flew out.”

  Score one for me. With four brothers and a slew of male cousins, she didn’t often win. She scrolled through the various pictures. Many of them where of Garret alone, but there were also a few of Garret with Jake’s sister Sara and her soon-to-be husband, who also happened to be Jake’s best friend, Christopher Hall. “He looks like you. Uncle Warren must be crazy happy. Two grandsons in less than a year.” She reached the last of the most recent pictures, one of Garret asleep on Charlie.

  “Allison.”

  “What? He must be.”

  Jake grabbed the phone before she could scroll through any older photos. “I answered your questions. Now out with it. What’s with the armed guard outside your door?”

  Looks like the reprieve is over. “It’s nothing. He’ll be gone in another few days.” She didn’t care what Rock or anyone else said. Unless someone at the security firm came back with evidence confirming she needed a full-time bodyguard, she’d be parting ways with Connor and Neil, the other bodyguard Elite Force assigned to her, soon.

  “That’s not an answer.” Shoving the smartphone into a pocket, he sat and eyed her over his steepled fingers, a clear indication he had no intentions of budging until he got the answers he wanted. She’d seen both her dad and uncle strike a similar pose when dealing with their children.