Page 6 of Mike

CHAPTER THREE

Joelle now understood why the skeevy pair at the bar had been talking about sabotaging Mike Carlese’s truck. It was because the plotters wouldn’t stand a chance if they tried to kill the man any other way; whether attempting it with a gun, a knife, or a small army. Mike was a beast when taking on trained opponents, so there was no way in hell either Melanie or Cameron—who looked like they lacked even a thimbleful of combat skills—would be able to best him face to face. But their plan was still a bit delusional. Mike, an undisputed master at close quarters confrontations, also appeared to have situational awareness down to a science.

Which means he would notice them.

Because he’d noticed her.

Yeah. Joelle hadn’t missed the moment Mike’s eyes had focused in on her position in the gym. Not that she was afraid of his perusal. She just didn’t want to get made as anything other than a woman who admired his prowess. So she’d done the only thing she could to escape his additional scrutiny. She’d bugged out.

Her surveillance from now on was going to go from casual passerby nonchalance, to one-hundred percent covert. Which she hadn’t planned when saddling herself with being Mike’s protection. She’d figured to be in his periphery while he was out in public, and now that approach had been shot to Helsinki.

Nothing was ever easy, was it? Joe mentally kicked herself that things on her agenda had gotten more complicated. Shouldn’t she just tail Mellie and Cameron to make this side-gig easier on herself?

Nope. Not happening.

Joe hated to admit it, but she was sticking to the course because…she liked what she saw while spying on Mike.

Hell’s bells, what woman wouldn’t? The man was beyond attractive, built like sin, and…she’d never been drawn to a guy with a bald pate before, but Mike was rocking the look like he’d invented it. She wondered what his smooth scalp would feel like, scraped with her nails. Would it be prickly with small hairs, or would it be soft under her sensual assault?

Gah! And there she went again.

Trying to find something that would turn her libido off, Joe focused on the man’s beard. Okay. It was a little rough, like he’d forgotten to pay attention to it lately, but Joe could picture it trimmed up to a nice, two or three-inch length, a look that would be way more civilized.

Ah, dang. Who was she kidding. The wild facial hair fit Mike to a T, and she liked it.

The only thing missing that would finish off his good guy/bad guy look to perfection—if he sported any—were tattoos. But he wasn’t…at least that Joe had been able to see. Maybe he had ink hidden on his body somewhere that a certain someone who took an interest might uncover if they…

Joelle sighed. She needed to stop her thoughts right the heel now. She had an agenda; a job to do for her agency which was of utmost importance, and on top of that, she’d taken on this watchdog role to keep murder from being done. That was already too much on her plate without adding a side-dish of man.

Besides, Mike, no matter how mouthwatering, might be an asp-hole like the last couple guys she’d dated. Although she could barely remember them, it had been so long ago. And now that she thought on it, had they really been the arse-wipes, or had she? She’d been labeled a ball-buster far too many times to count, so…yeah. She’d probably been responsible for the fails, which was why she now saved herself the trouble of being jettisoned, using a flesh-tone pocket-rocket for all her womanly needs.

It was just easier.

Joe snorted. So why was she giving Mike a second look? Was it because he was handsome as sin? Was it the fine ass she’d noticed every time he bent over? Or was it something less carnal? Perhaps it was the infinite patience he’d shown for the two chuckleheads who were clearly vying for a job on his SWAT team. That had been danged admirable. If Joelle had been vetting them, she would have thrown them out on their kiesters long before Mike had called it quits.

Yeah, he’d been pretty flippin’ brilliant. And she’d wanted to stick around and watch him get into some action with a worthy opponent, but before that had or hadn’t happened, he’d laid eyes on her and she’d taken off.

After waiting a few minutes in her running car to see if Mike would emerge to continue his stare-off, she quickly determined he wasn’t interested—such a shame—and circled around the block, parked her car in a spot where it couldn’t be seen, and waited for him to leave the gym. Five minutes later she followed him and his friends to their current lunch spot, and her opinion of him, after she settled in, rose even higher.

She watched from a seat on the far side of the food truck, but Mike’s obvious high regard for his friends was easily discerned. She observed that he laughed easily and engaged with interest, but she also took note of how he remained hyper-aware of his surroundings…which made it a good thing she’d changed her shirt and pulled a big, floppy hat on her head, tucking up her hair and leaving the brim slouched over her face.

When the group finally got up to leave, Joelle, in no hurry, chewed down the food she’d finally procured, because she had no need to immediately tail Mike. She’d put a tracker on his beat-up truck, so no matter if he got out of sight, she’d be able to locate him wherever he went. What she did need to do, Joelle reminded herself as she polished off her single taco, was to track him to his house, then stake it out. Once she was certain no one was observing her, she’d mount a couple battery-operated cameras—as well as a hot spot—on his property, aimed at his truck. Then she’d be able to see when and if the conniving-couple she’d overheard would mess with the vehicle while it was home-berthed, at which point she’d rush in and save the day before disappearing off Mike’s radar for good.

Joe doubted the duplicitous-duo would target the man’s house, what with the plotting twitch’s kids being in residence there with their dad. If Melanie had any motherly instincts at all, she’d want to keep danger away from the young pair. Joelle also figured the bleeping creeps wouldn’t attempt to mess with Mike’s vehicle at work. The BPD parking lot had plenty of surveillance, and the unskilled-subversives wouldn’t risk getting caught at the high-profile location.

For Joe’s part, if it looked like—after tailing Mike for a few days—he had any other places he habitually parked, she would throw up some cameras in those spots, too. Maybe his parent’s house, or a…booty call?

Huh. Did Mike have a special lady friend? Joe scowled at the thought, then shook herself. It was none of her business. Stop fixating on the man, she scolded herself. She didn’t have a casual sex agenda, even if she had the time. Other than her small slip-up today where they’d caught each other’s eye, Mike need never know she was watching him, or jonesing over his…assets.

For the duration, it was time to pull up her professional-panties and see this job through.

Joe, following Mike’s signal to a fairly remote area, noted a driveway cutting through the trees to a house she couldn’t see, that had to be his. The location was ideal for privacy, but not so great for security purposes. Mike’s ex’s boy-toy could easily sneak through the woods and cap his truck in some horrific way. Especially if the Melanie-witch was correct, and Mike didn’t have any kind of security on premise.

Of course, that made it easier for Joe, too, to get in and out, unseen.

She drove past the driveway, and luckily, not a mile down the road she found a hiking and picnic area where she could leave her car and wait Mike out until he left again. Perfect.

An hour later, Joe realized he must have hunkered in for the afternoon. Screw it. Grabbing her backpack full of equipment from the rear seat, she locked her vehicle, and hoofed it into the trees, headed back toward Mike’s property.

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