Page 35 of Guarded from Sabotage

By the time I got back to B and A, Sarah was looking much cheerier. The conversation with her parents went well, although they were upset, obviously, but they were glad to know we’re helping her. “They know about Blade and Arrow from what happened to Hanna,” Sarah explained. “So they know I have the best people helping me.”

Nothing like the faith of the woman I can’t stop thinking aboutandher parents to really put the pressure on me and my team to solve this.

But we will. I’ll make sure of it. No matter what it takes, no matter how many favors I have to call in, I’m going to fix this for Sarah.

And then, once it’s all over, I can ask her out. And hopefully, she’ll agree.

But selfishly, I don’t want to wait.

Especially looking at Sarah as she walks beside me, so fresh and pretty, the setting sun casting a golden glow across her face and turning her hair to a shimmering bronze. She’s wearing a white dress with a pattern of orange flowers all over it; not tight, but just clingy enough to show off the swell of her breasts and the pert curve of her ass.

As we cross the backyard towards the restored barn, her head’s on a swivel, taking it all in—the thousands of white lights strung from all the trees, the luminaries set on either side of the path, the solar lanterns just starting to blink on, and the custom banner draped over the open barn doors that announces in bold lettering,Happy Birthday, Jade!

I knew what Niall was planning, and I’m even surprised by how everything came together. It’s definitely a far cry from how things looked when we first arrived this past summer, when the ranch was still in disrepair and the barn was one strong wind from falling down. But now?—

“It looks so pretty,” Sarah says, glancing up at me with a smile. “When I saw the barn the last time I was here, I didn’t get a good look. I had no idea how nice you guys made it.”

“Well, we wanted to have a place where we could all hang out,” I reply. “This way, we can be outside even when it’s raining. Niall wants to extend our underground passage to reach the barn so he can bring Jade out here without getting wet.”

Her brows jump up in surprise. “You have an underground passage here?”

“Yeah. We have two egress points from the ranch—one in the pantry and the other in the basement, next to the gym. They come out to the garage, so if the house is ever—” My mouth snaps shut so abruptly my teeth click.Why am I mentioning a possible security breach after I promised Sarah it’s safe here?

“Anyway,” I add brightly, “It’s convenient if we have a big storm and don’t want to walk from the garage to the ranch. Helpful if we’re bringing home groceries or something.”

Sarah pats my arm. “It’s okay, Dante. I saw the one they have at the other Blade and Arrow. Hanna showed me. Considering it saved her life, I think it’s a great idea to have one here.”

Right. Sometimes I forget how much Sarah knows about B and A, but it’s natural Hanna would share that sort of thing with her. Especially since Hanna and Finn live at the Sleepy Hollow headquarters, and Sarah’s been there to visit her.

“It looks like a good crowd,” Sarah says as she tilts her chin towards the barn. “Who did you say would be here again? I know you told me, but…” She grimaces. “I was a little preoccupied before.”

Preoccupied by the news from the meeting is what she means. Preoccupied thinking about how she was going to tell her parents about all the crap that happened to her.

But here she is, cheerfully heading to this party so she doesn’t disappoint Jade, when she has every reason to decline the invitation. I wouldn’t judge her for it. No one here would. It’s another show of bravery that makes me like Sarah even more.

And it makes me feel even more protective of her, if that’s even possible.

As we approach the barn, the hum of happy voices grows louder, and I can see at least a dozen people standing in small clusters inside. Instinct has me taking Sarah’s hand—it’s a friendly thing to do, right?—as I say, “Well, we have the team, of course. And obviously, Jade. Plus, we have some friends from San Antonio here. There’s TJ and Milena?—”

“He’s the one who convinced you to join the Green Berets, isn’t he?”

I give her hand a little squeeze. “Yes. He works for the highway patrol now, and keeps busy with his wife and kids. Andthen there’s Hayden and Boone, Quint and Corrie, and I think—” Scanning the barn, I search for a tall, curly-haired blonde, spotting him over by the foosball table. “Nolan. He was on my team, but he’s still active duty. He’s on leave visiting his family in Austin.”

“I’d love to meet him,” Sarah says. “Which one is he?”

We’re nearly to the barn doors, and I angle my head towards the foosball table. “He’s over there playing against Erik. The tall one with blonde hair.”

She blinks. “Oh, heistall.” Six inches taller than my six-foot-two, Nolan’s well over a foot taller than Sarah.

Intuitive as always—he’s always seemed to know things the rest of us didn’t—Nolan glances over and flashes a bright smile at us. He raises his voice as he calls over, “Dante! ‘Bout time you got here. These steaks aren’t going to cook themselves.”

He tosses his last beanbag, hitting the bullseye effortlessly, and bounds across the barn to meet us. “Hey, D.” Clapping my shoulder, he says, “It’s good to see you. Pretty nice place you guys have here.”

Then his gaze moves to Sarah, and his eyes brighten with interest. “And this is Sarah, right?” He holds out his hand to her, and she lets go of mine to take it. “It’s very nice to meet you, Sarah. I hope this guy is taking care of you.”

A rush of jealousy sweeps through me, and I nearly crack my molars trying to keep from snarling at him to stop touching Sarah. Which is ridiculous—I’ve known Nolan for years and would trust him with my life. And he would never,everdo anything to hurt a woman.

He’s just shaking her hand. That’s all. There’s no reason to be jealous.

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