Carter Reed

  could do it on the main dance floor if you wanted.” She cringed. “Make sure it’s clean, though, huh?”

  “We didn’t get it on.” We had come close.

  “Why not? I would if he were mine.” Her voice dipped low to a seductive drawl.

  Carter looked over. His eyes lingered on Theresa and narrowed before he turned back to Noah.

  She barked out a laugh. “God, how many times does he get hit on? I was giving him the bedroom eyes, a lip quiver and everything and nothing. He’s loyal, I can tell.”

  I stiffened. Should I get pissed about that?

  Then she sighed, “I was wrong with all my rants before about him. Noah always said I didn’t know what I was talking about and I should’ve listened to him.” She gave me a wide smile. “I hope you have hot and dirty sex tonight, do it for me.”

  I glanced towards my boss. “I don’t think I need to. I think you’re going to be having your own tonight.”

  “No.” She rolled her eyes. “I love Brianna, but she freaked out when she saw us flirting. Look at her over there now.”

  The petite blonde stood close to both men. When one of her hands lifted, as if to rest on Carter’s chest, a bolt of possessiveness went through me. He was mine. Carter caught my look, curved the ends of his mouth up, and moved out of her reach. The hand fell back to her hip, but she stiffened and her head straightened upwards. He shot me a smoldering look as if to reassure me, but I blinked rapidly and shook my head to clear the need to go over there and drag the little girl away. It was primal, setting off the ache between my legs again.

  Theresa sipped her drink and murmured, “Holy woman, another hot look from him.”

  “So his sister doesn’t approve of the two of you?”

  She grinned at me. “Nice subject change, but I’ll take the bait.” She took a deep breath before sipping on her drink again. “Brianna is the princess in Noah’s family. Everybody dotes on her and she’s here, trying to prove that she can make it on her own. Of course, she’s doing it so she can get their grandfather’s inheritance. He made a stipulation that she had to keep a full-time job for so many years before she could touch that money. So this is her, trying to prove to everybody she can make it.”

  “You guys seemed fond of each other.”

  “We are. I love her like a little sister, which is probably why she freaked out when she saw me and Noah dancing together.” A sad tone rose in her voice. “And if little sister isn’t okay with it, then big brother won’t do it. Heavens that Brianna might be disturbed by something. She’s been through so much since their grandfather died ten years ago.” Her sarcasm was thick at the end.

  “So everybody does what she wants?”

  “Yeah,” she finished her drink and moved to the bar for another. “When their grandfather died, she had been with him. The next year was hard on her. She couldn’t sleep. She was barely eating. She started drinking, doing drugs, all of it. Unprotected sex. To say that she put that family through a second wringer after losing their grandfather is an understatement. Noah will not do anything to jeopardize her health in any way.”

  “They’re okay with her working here?”

  “Are you kidding me?” She shook her head. “After the initial shock, they love it. She loves it. That’s all that matters. They don’t care as long as she goes somewhere and makes money. Plus, she got that promotion.” When the bartender handed her the drink, she took a big gulp before setting it down roughly. “I know your man did that as a favor to Noah, but it didn’t help her. Now she’s got it in her head that the boss wants her. Look at her.”

  She had edged close to Carter again. Her head was tipped back, her long hair cascaded down her back, and her lips were pursed in an adorable pout. I gritted my teeth and tried to keep my fingers from shattering my glass.

  “I’m sorry,” Theresa groaned. “I love her. I’m just a bit sore because the night I wanted with Noah isn’t going to happen now. I don’t think it’ll ever happen.”

  “She can’t have that much say over your life.”

  “She does and she will.” Her eyes darkened. “And I know Noah. He is overprotective to the extreme. If there’s a slight chance that it would send her into the tailspin like before, he won’t chance it. He hasn’t even looked at me since she got here. And he won’t. We’re back to pretending we don’t know each other and I’m only his employee.”

  I remembered their small argument the first night at her apartment. “That’s what it was before?”

  “Yeah. His mother is great. She always includes me with their family events, but I’m not their family, not really. Noah doesn’t want me around his family. Brianna does, but not in the way I want to be there.”

  “With him?”

  “Exactly.”

  “That sounds lonely.” It sounded like me. Carter had been my family, and then it was gone when AJ died. I destroyed my second family as well.

  “I’m fine.” A hard edge was in her voice as she tossed back the rest of her drink. When she placed the glass back on the bar, she swayed to the side. I caught her, steadying her, but her head hung down. “Maybe I should go home.”

  “It’s close to closing. Maybe we should all go.”

  Her hand found mine that was on her arm. She squeezed it. “Thanks, Emma. I can already tell that you’re a good friend. Some days I think that’s the only thing I’ll get, good friends.”

  My voice was gruff. “Friends can be the best family sometimes.”

  “I know.”

  “What are you two talking about over here?” A sweet voice came from behind.

  Theresa stiffened. “Nothing, Brianna. How’s your night?”

  Up close, her bright blue eyes were dazzling. With a small nose, the perfect tiny mouth, Noah’s little sister resembled a pixie. Cute and adorable, but the feigned innocence in her depths shifted as she met my gaze. She let something dark slip for a second before her blinding smile rose a notch and excitement filtered through to cover it. The black staff shirt of Octave was tight on her, allowing a few inches to showcase the golden tan of her stomach. The uniform stipulated black shirt and black pants, and Brianna’s black pants stuck to every curve she had. She stuck a hand out. “We haven’t formally met, though Noah filled me in.”

  “Brianna, this is Emma. Emma, Brianna.” Theresa waved her hand between the two of us.

  When my hand took hers in the handshake, she held on a second longer than necessary. The warning was given. When my eyes narrowed, she let go. The smile never slipped a notch. “And you know Carter as well?”

  Oh boy. My chest tightened. “I’ve known Carter all my life.” I couldn’t help it.

  Her eyes widened. “Really?”

  Theresa rounded to me. “Really?”

  A hand curved around my hip at that moment and I was pulled into Carter’s side. He was warm and embracing. My body molded to his, fitting perfectly, as he said, “I was best friends with her brother. Their couch was my second bedroom.”

  “I didn’t know you had a best friend, Carter.” Noah joined the conversation.

  “I did.” He dropped a soft kiss to my shoulder. “And with that little tidbit, Emma and I should be getting home.”

  Brianna’s eyebrows shot up, as did Theresa’s. Noah frowned.

  Carter led me out by the hand. I glanced over my shoulder. Theresa mouthed to me, “Home?” I gave her a brief smile before we were out the door and hurrying down the darkened hallway. The guards fell into step around us, surrounding us, and we made our way through the club’s maze. The few times I had been there told me that we weren’t going to the usual side exit. However, I didn’t ask where we were headed as Carter dragged me behind him at a fast speed. The men sensed his urgency and grew tense as we stepped through the tunnel that connected the club with the hotel behind it. I remembered the penthouse, but as we stepped out of the plush hallway, lined with red velvet carpet, we went to the side stairs and hurried downstairs instead.

  We stopped at the door
that opened to the basement parking garage. The men swept through, but Carter held me back. For a second, we were alone. “What’s going on?”

  His hand tightened around mine. “We need to get you to safety.”

  “Carter.” Alarm slithered down my back. “What’s going on?”

  He didn’t respond, only withdrew his gun and tightened his hold on my hand. The door opened and one of the guards gave him a nod. “It’s clear, sir.”

  Carter went first but held my arm tight. When we crossed the few feet for the car, he stepped to the side and guided me inside with a hand over my head. He slid in next. I expected more guards to follow. There was room for three more, but was surprised when he shut the door. It was only the two of us. It wasn’t long until we started moving.

  It didn’t seem like we had gone far when the car jerked to a stop.

  My heart flew into my chest. Not again.

  Unlike last time, he didn’t wait to hear any information from the front. As soon as the car braked, Carter reacted. He had been sitting next to me. I had taken a relaxing breath. A few of the knots in my stomach had just loosened when he flew out of the car before I could even comprehend what was happening.

  As soon as I had, the air outside was filled with screams, gunshots, and shouts.

  “Gun!” someone yelled.

  Another screamed, “Run!”

  The next second, I heard a stampede. People ran past the car. The thud of people being shoved came next. “Get out of here.”

  Someone barked out, “Move away from there! Now!”

  “Ahh!” a girl cried out. Another thud came and her scream cut off.

  That was all it took. I scrambled out of the car. I didn’t want innocent people to get hurt because of me. When I opened the door, more people were running past. A guy almost ran into me. He caught himself, bounced off the car, and rotated in a circle around me. He kept running.

  “Get in the car!”

  I looked around. Some of the guards were positioned around me, but half of them were gone. I saw Mike in the distance. He was fighting someone. Where was Carter? Panic started to rise when I couldn’t see him. Then I yelled out, “Carter!”

  “Move it—” someone cursed. A strangled sound came from him next and I whirled to see that one of the guards had grabbed his throat. The guy was lifted off the ground and tossed aside. “Hey!”

  “Get going.” The guard pointed down the opposite direction. “Now.”

  The guy stood, ready to argue, but saw the other two guards. He ran where he was told to go.

  “Emma!”

  I craned my neck. Theresa stood inside a doorway, not far from where the car had stopped. Noah was in front of her with a restraining hand across her stomach. He was scowling as he watched the herd of people in the streets.

  Bang! Bang!

  “Emma! Get over here.” Theresa waved me over frantically.

  “No.” The guard closest to me grabbed my arm and started to push me back into the car. “Get inside, Miss Emma. Mr. Reed is coming back.”

  “But,” I looked to my friends.

  “It’s safer.” His hand tightened.

  “Emma!”

  I recognized the voice. Everything in me tightened with tension. Carter. He was there, running back to me and waving me to the side. When he saw I wasn’t doing what he wanted, he yelled next, “Matthew, get her inside now!”

  A woman screamed behind me.

  “Carter!” Noah stepped out from their doorway. “Our car took off.”

  He waved them over. “Get in the car. Matthew, get her inside NOW!”

  The grip on my arm doubled and I was lifted in the air. As I watched, Noah and Theresa started to cross towards us, but then I saw something else. Horror rose in my throat and my eyes bulged out. I couldn’t stop it. I couldn’t do anything.

  Carter was covering the distance at a breakneck speed, but someone stepped out of another doorway. He was too far away for the guards to grab him, and not close enough for Carter to tackle him.

  Scott Graham lifted the gun in his hand. It was small, but he lifted it with ease. He had done it many times before. Instead of the flashy Casanova impression he had given me before, a cold mask gripped his features. He was like Carter, a killer. Then he turned the gun towards me.

  Everything stopped.

  My heart stopped beating. I stopped breathing.

  “EMMA!” Theresa yelled. A bloodcurdling scream ripped from her throat next.

  He saw me, aimed, and his eyes narrowed. It was coming. It was a matter of seconds.

  I readied myself. I stared at him, dead in the eyes, and waited. I was going to die. I knew it in that moment, and I couldn’t do anything to stop it.

  The guard whirled around in that moment, but Scott could still see me. He moved his gun to the side and steadied his hand once more.

  All the sudden, Carter was there. He snaked a hand around his neck. Scott stiffened, but it was too late. Carter grabbed a hold of the back of his neck and twisted. It was a clean movement, lethal. His neck snapped and he let go of the body. It dropped at his feet. Carter didn’t pause. He sprinted over it and was next to me seconds later. He took me from the guard. Before I was shoved inside, I looked over again. Two guards had followed Carter. They swooped down and each grabbed one end of the body. Scott was thrown in a car before us, and it raced off.

  Theresa and Noah were already inside the car, waiting for us.

  “Where’s your sister?” My heart was pounding in my eardrums.

  “Employee exit. She’s safe.”

  As we had talked, Carter slammed his door shut and our car took off again. The sister wouldn’t have mattered anyway. Carter wasn’t waiting. From the sudden speed of the car, I was thrown backwards. He still held me around my waist and pulled me to his lap. I sat there, huddled over him, as I couldn’t close my eyes anymore. I almost died. I should’ve felt something, fear, shock, something, but I felt nothing.

  I assumed we would take Theresa home, but was surprised when we stopped outside a remote cabin-like home. It was huge. When I climbed out of the car, I glanced over and saw two large wrought iron gates closing behind us. It locked and a bolt of electricity sounded. No one was getting in.

  “Where are we?”

  Noah answered Theresa’s question, “We’re somewhere safe. Don’t worry. We’re only here for the night.” He frowned at Carter. “Right?”

  There was no answer. Carter took my hand and led the way. When we stepped inside a spacious foyer, he pulled me into a back room and closed the door. “I need you to do me a favor.”

  “Why are we here? Why aren’t we home?”

  He stepped close and dropped his voice, “That’s part of the favor I need from you. I don’t trust your friend. I can’t let her go on her own and I couldn’t bring them to our home, so this was the next best choice. Everyone’s on lockdown for the next twenty-four hours. There’s no cell phone or internet connection here. I have one television, but that’s it.” He turned my shoulders so that I faced him squarely. “Emma, I need you to watch your friend for me.”

  “Theresa?” Alarm rose in me. “Why?”

  “I killed a man. She was already in the car, but she could’ve seen. I need to know what she saw and what she’s thinking about it.”

  “You mean if she’ll report you?” No, she wouldn’t. I frowned. She couldn’t, this was Carter. My Carter. “She knows you’re friends with Noah and she knows about us.”

  “You said yourself that she’s never approved of my connections and she doesn’t like my friendship with Noah.” He frowned a little and touched my hip to pull me closer. His head dropped to my neck, his favorite spot. His lips brushed against my skin as he murmured, “I killed a man in front of her. I know she considered him a friend. I’d kill him again.”

  Shivers coursed through me, but they weren’t the bad kind. They should’ve been, but they weren’t. I held my breath, closing my eyes as his hand explored under my shirt. It traveled up, neari
ng my breasts. It stopped underneath my breasts. His fingers slid under my bra and rested there. My chest rose as I wanted him to continue touching me.

  He grinned against my neck and moved back to meet my gaze. His eyes were lidded, heavy with desire. “I would do it again in a heartbeat. He was sent to kill you, Emma.”

  The image of him holding his gun flashed in my mind. A heavy feeling rested over my chest. “Why? He worked for you, didn’t he?”

  He hesitated, removing his hand and stepped back.