Page 200 of Protective Heroes

All three hit the floor hard.

“Fuck me, there went the SUV,” Caden bit out between clenched teeth.

Reece helped Abigail up and tucked her into his embrace, hauling her back into her room. Caden followed hot on their heels. He turned to where Abigail was situated between him and Caden.

“Oh, by the way, we’ve got company.” Caden hit the release on his Glock and checked his rounds before sliding it back into the chamber with a metallic grind then a single click.

“No shit! Did you get a good look at them? How many? How heavily armed are they?”

“All good questions. Be right back.” Caden turned on his heel, crouched down and eased out the door they had just come through, Reece’s fast slung questions unanswered.

“What? Where’s he going?” Even in the low light Reece could see Abigail’s eyes glitter with uncertainty, but he noted the absence of fear from her tone.

He moved to the window and pulled the curtain back just enough to see the outer perimeter of the property. “To check our exits. Be ready for a fast exit.”

As subtly as possible, he glanced over at Abigail who now sat on the corner of her bed. Instead of the scared woman he expected to see, she looked pointedly at the gun he had and then back up at him, her expression changing to one of assessment.

Her chest rose and fell, then she shocked the holy hell out of him. “Do you happen to have an extra gun?”

“They’re coming in from our six like we thought.” Caden rejoined them and filled him in on the situation. “They’re staying under the radar on the south side of the property where the lake is located.”

“Good. We’ll use the porch ledge I saw out this window and cut them off before they round the house. Abigail, lock the door and we’ll be back to get you in five.”

“They used the lake path?” Abigail asked. Her breath came faster than usual, but she kept her eyes focused on the entrance to the room. No fear in sight.

Kneeling, Caden answered with a nod of his head. In two flicks, he produced his .38 special from the holster strapped to his ankle. He stood and handed it over. Abigail checked the chambers then locked the revolver in place. And for some insane second all he could see was Abigail shooting a gun. Fucking sexiest damn thing he’d ever lay eyes on.

His dick twitched. He shifted gears and focused on the hostiles they were up against.

Then it clicked. “Where’d you learn to use that thing?”

“When I was a kid, my sister had to work a lot, so I found extracurricular activities to occupy my time. Shooting was one of them.” She shrugged a single shoulder. “I won a few competitions.” She winked and his dick took over. Blood rushed south and his cock pulsed behind the zipper of his rapidly tightening pants.

She turned the force of her attention to Caden.

“Did you get an ID on who the hell is after me?”

“That would be a negative. It was too dark and they stuck to the side of the house where your floodlight couldn’t reach them. And that damn tree of yours blocked me from seeing them take out our exit strategy. I did see a vehicle, though. Either black or navy blue.”

A cloud of uncertainty settled over Abigail’s expression. Reece’s heart clenched at the sudden change. Her shoulders slumped and her head dipped where he couldn’t see her eyes. God, it boiled his blood to see her like this. The woman he knew was confident and didn’t back down from anyone. Not even him when he was all worked up over some dumb shit. Anger poisoned his veins and he clenched his fist at his side. If her ex had anything to do with this he’d be the one needing a restraining order.

And if it wasn’t, when he got his hands on the son of a bitch that had put that look in her eyes, he would squeeze the life out of him and enjoy every second of it.

Reece shifted the curtain for a better look at the grounds below. He caught a glimpse of Caden as he moved over to Abigail and pulled her into his arms for reassurance. He felt pulled to join them. Instead, he shot a dark look at Caden over the top of her head that summed up the clusterfuck of a night in one second. And it wasn’t over by a long shot.

“How many?”

Caden signaled five then returned to holding Abigail close. He placed a kiss on the top of her head and she pulled back, her shoulders up and her chin held high. The smart, determined woman he knew now in control again.

He hadn’t missed the fact that when he and Caden had shown her affection, she hadn’t pulled back. He filed that away to analyze later. The more time he spent with her, the more he wanted what Caden wanted. A chance to explore whatever it was that drew them both into the gravitational pull that was Abigail Torres. But something in him polarized her effect the minute he thought of any kind of happy future and he was damn tired of feeling as though he was adrift.

Caden joined him by the window. “It’s too damn quiet out there. We need to get a move on.” Reece pulled his cell out. “I’m calling in Dane. He’s close and on standby to?—”

Glass shattered directly below them and Reece broke off mid-sentence. The wood flooring of the old country house shook with the force of another explosion. Only seconds passed before another explosion hit, this time toward the back of the house, followed by another somewhere close to their side of the house.

Reece strode across the room to the door. Smoke filtered up the stairs, trapping them to the top floor.

Reece shoved the curtains aside and threw open the large window. Thank God she had the room with the porch below. He pulled Abigail to his side while Caden eased out to set a perimeter. “We’re going out through here. Once we get across the roof, Caden will help you down. When we hit the ground, haul ass for the southwest treeline and don’t look back.”

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