Page 26 of Cruise

As he walked the area with Cowboy and listened to where Cowboy intended to add extra surveillance, he was impressed. Cowboy had been excited when Ariel had gifted him with herprogram and equipment. He’d indicated it was a higher quality than what he had available.

Booker appreciated how everyone was willing to help him make Lexi and Maureen safe. They finished the walkaround and then headed toward the porch.

“So until we have electronic surveillance, how can we keep everyone safe?” Booker asked.

“I think it would be best if, at night, we had two people on watch in the house, patrolling and looking out through the windows during the night. If we did six-hour shifts, then people could still get some sleep. It’s dark, and I don’t feel comfortable having patrols outside tonight because her brother knows this place way better than we do. I put two small cameras up in the barn just to make sure no one goes in there. Whoever is on patrol can check the feed periodically. They are designed for long-term use but will give us a heads-up just in case someone tries to set the barn on fire,” Cowboy said.

“I’m wide awake, so I’ll take one of the first watches,” Twist said, opening the door and heading into the house.

Booker agreed with them, but for some reason, he was getting that twitchy feeling inside the house. He was going to have Lexi give him a more in-depth tour when they were finished with supper.

Booker followed Lexi up the stairs, trying to keep his mind on searching for her brother, but her backside, with its rounded curves, was bewitching. He smiled at the smirk on Lexi’s face when her hand tilted his chin up to her face. He adored seeing the smile on her face from him checking her out.

“You can’t blame me for appreciating the beauty that your booty is,” Booker said, grinning, then lifted her in his arms.

Her arms wrapped around his neck, and she leaned closer for a kiss. He’d love to give up searching the house for some alone time with her, but he wasn’t sacrificing her safety. They had all the time in the world because he wasn’t giving her up.

He kissed up her neck, then nibbled along her ear. “I’d rather stay with you in my arms, but I’m twitchy in this house. I need to see everything.”

Lexi huffed as he set her on her feet. She took him toward what used to be her mom and dad’s room but was just her mom’s now. She opened the door and stepped in.

“This is Mom’s room and her closet. This door leads to the bathroom that connects to what is her sewing room now. It used to be Cliff’s room when he stayed here.”

Booker ran his hands along the walls and windows. He opened the closet and moved the clothes to see behind them. He checked above the top shelf. Then he laid down on the floor and double-checked under the bed. The downside of reading books is he’d read multiple thrillers where the villain was in the house with their victim. He was bound and determined that it wouldn’t happen to him. He followed Lexi into the adjoining bathroom and checked everything again.

Unless Cliff had superpowers, he wasn’t hiding in the bathroom. As Lexi pointed out the things in the sewing room, he listened and once again tapped the walls while circling the room. He stood in front of what looked like a built-in bookcase and felt a slight cool breeze.

He pointed to the bookcase. “What’s on the other side of this?” he asked.

Lexi stared at it and then went out the door into the hallway. She glanced around and came back.

“I don’t know. The next bedroom doesn’t share a common wall with this room. Let’s go down and ask Mom.”

Booker followed Lexi out of the room and down the stairs. And yes, his eyes followed how her ass looked in her jeans. Everything about her fascinated him.

When they got downstairs, Maureen was pulling bowls from the cabinet.

“Compass, can you get the sandwiches out of the refrigerator, please?”

Before Lexi could bring up the room, her mom had commandeered them both to help get the items out for supper. He didn’t have to know this minute, but he needed to know why the upstairs had what seemed to be floor space missing.

After they were all settled around the table, Cowboy went over his plan for the house security and the property. Booker only hoped it was enough. He wanted to get to the fun part of being Lexi’s man. Discussing their likes and dislikes and what they wanted for their future. He needed to treat this like one of his missions from when he served: get the job done, then he could focus on reaping the rewards of finding her again.

Chapter Eleven

Lexi stood looking out the back door as the sun peeked over the horizon. She adored her life on the road going to signings but also loved what used to be the peacefulness of the ranch. This morning, she didn’t feel peace. She was on edge.

Supper had been fun with everyone, but immediately after, Cowboy had called Booker out to the barn to check something. When they’d returned, Cowboy had shown them a camera thathad been hidden high up in the rafters. Booker had instantly added another guard to patrol during the night. She couldn’t decide if it was overkill or if they really needed it.

The thought of having to shoot her brother was hurting her heart, but the possibility of him killing her mom had her willing to do whatever was needed. She would have never dreamed she might be faced with these choices.

Warm arms slipped around her, and Drew’s fresh-from-the-shower scent had her wishing for some time alone with him. He’d come to bed after his shift during the night, but he’d fallen right asleep. She’d left him sleeping because she wasn’t going to steal the small amount of shut-eye he had for her own selfish needs.

“I’m ready to settle this. I want to go to sleep with you after pleasing you for hours and wake up with you by kissing you awake,” he muttered.

She turned in his arms, placing her cup on the cabinet, then sliding her arms around him.

“Me too, but I’ll feel better about taking the time for us once I know we’re all safe.”

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