Page 70 of Wilde In His Arms

She hoped he was taking care of himself and not overdoing it.She didn’t want him to overtax his body and suffer just to get here faster.

She grabbed the full trash bag behind the bar and headed through the kitchen and out to the dumpster.She tossed the bag in the huge container and turned back to the bar, but stopped short when she spotted someone lurking on the other side of the building, watching her.

“Can I help you?”she asked across the distance, putting a hand on the knife she used to open cases of beer in her back pocket.“You’re not supposed to be back here.”

“Just having a smoke and getting some air,” he called back, turning to walk around the building back to the front parking area.No one was allowed to go through the kitchen.Safety hazard, and all that.

She shrugged it off, until she walked into the bar and spotted the guy saying something to a woman at a two-top table on the edge of the room.She was dressed in jeans and a white button-down shirt, the sleeves rolled up, and wearing flats.

He was in black denim, a white shirt, sleeves rolled up, too, and wearing work boots.

Something about them tripped her radar.She pulled out her phone and called Nick.

He picked up on the first ring.“Hey, sweetheart, I was just about to call you.How’s your night going?”

“Good, so far, but…I went out back to take out the trash and some guy was back there watching me.Then I came into the bar and he’s whispering to some woman.I’ve never seen them before, and you said to be careful.So, could they be part of Javier’s crew?”She really hoped not and didn’t want to cry wolf every time someone in the bar made her uneasy.

“Send me a picture of them.”

She took the pic and texted it to him.

“Don’t be mad.”

That made her back go straight.“Why?”

“They’re FBI.Your protection detail.I handpicked them.”

Well, that was sweet.If frustrating.“Then why didn’t you tell me about it?”

“I want you to be alert, but not make it obvious you know you’re being watched.And you did a damn fine job of it tonight, spotting them as suspicious.I’m even more impressed and grateful you called me to make sure everything was okay.”

She appreciated the praise and assessed the agents again.They weren’t exactly in the suits she expected of FBI agents.But their dressing down needed some work.Especially for a place like this where denim and plaid ruled.

“Please tell me this means there are agents watching your back, too.Because the way I see it, you are the target.”

Nick sighed and she felt it all the way through the line.“He wants to make me pay for what I did to his sister.”

“She tried to kill you!You defended yourself.And I hope you know that it wasn’t your fault.You had no choice.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”The short, deep, clipped words backed up what he said.

She understood it was hard for him.“Okay.It sounds like you’re having trouble sleeping because of it.”He sounded so tired.

She wished she could be with him to help him through this.

“I miss you, okay?I worry about you.A threat has been made against me and mine.Everyone is being protected.Just in case.So please, don’t be mad.”

“I’m not.I appreciate that you’re trying to keep me safe.Mason has been in a lot, too, watching out for Lyric.And me.”

“I asked him to keep an eye on you.”Sounded like Nick wanted to be the one doing it.“I miss you like crazy.Especially now that I don’t have work to distract me.”

She stepped behind the bar, caught the first customer holding up an empty beer bottle asking for another and bent to the fridge to grab one.“What have you been doing today?”

“Physical therapy before lunch, then my cousins came over and helped me pack up the last of my stuff.”

She handed her customer his beer, turned and added it to his tab, then turned back to the bar and poured another customer a whiskey straight.“Does that mean you’ll be here soon?”

“I have my interview at work about the shooting day after next and some other things to tie up here, like saying goodbye to my family.”

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