Page 89 of Marked for Obsession

“Just leave your things here. I’ll send Ivan to get them once we know for sure it’s safe.”

With a parting nod, Jax went back downstairs and straight to his office. Grabbing his gun and keys from his desk drawer, he slid the weapon into his back waistband before shoving the keys into his jeans front pocket.

This. This right here was theexactreason he never fucked his clients. It caused too many distractions, and those tended to get people killed.

You’re not just fucking Poppy. She’s more to you than that. Much, much more.

The voice in his head was right. Somehow the sexy nurse from Kansas had worked her way past his long-standing walls and into his heart.

And that right there may have cost them both their lives.

He had just turned to leave the room when an alarm sounded from his computer’s speakers. It was one he recognized instantly.

And it turned his blood to ice.

Jax went back to his desk, his fingers flying over the keyboard as he typed in the required login and password. Hitting enter, he watched and waited as the screen became filled with multiple live images.

Each one showing a different part of his land.

He scanned them all, searching closely for what had set off the breaching alarm. At first, he didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. But then…

There, in the small window at the very bottom left of the screen were two ATVs. The drivers wore all black, their faces covered with ski masks. They were traveling from the west, and both men were headed straight for the cabin.

Son of a bitch!

More movement caught his eye as Jax spotted a third ATV in one of the other feeds. This one was coming from the east, and it was close. Too fucking close.

“What the hell?”

His alarm should’ve gone off sooner. Much, much sooner. But he didn’t have time to worry about that now.

They were here, and he needed to get Poppy to safety.

Yanking his phone from his back pocket, Jax pulled up the same footage from the connected app on his phone. Keeping an eye on the men coming for them, he started up the stairs just as Poppy made it about halfway down.

“Get back upstairs!” he ordered briskly.

Eyes wide, she spun on her sneakered heels and did as she was told. “Are they here?”

“Yes.” He refused to lie. “They must’ve found a way around my system.” Something he’dthoughtwas an impossibility.

“W-what do we do?”

Pulling his weapon free, Jax grabbed Poppy’s wrist flipped her hand over, laying the pistol into her open palm. “Take this and go into the bathroom.”

“What about you?”

He fucking hated the fear staring back at him. More than anything, Jax wanted to erase it from her eyes forever. To replace it with nothing but love and joy and laughter.

And he would. As God was his witness, hewould. But first…

“I’m going to do what I’m trained to do.” He ushered her into the bathroom. “Lock the door behind you, and if anyone comes through it but me, shoot them. You understand?”

“Jax, I—”

“Please.” He took a precious moment to cup one side of her face. “I can’t take care of the problem if I’m worried about you. You’ve trusted me this far. Don’t stop now.”

“I won’t.” She turned her face and kissed his palm. “Go. Do what you’ve got to do.”

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