[B.S. #3] Claiming Laura (15 page)

“Sometimes even having proof isn’t enough in order to be safe.”

“True. And I soon found out that you never get between a drug supplier and his customers. In my naiveté, I questioned the doctor. Well, to make a long story short, my nice doctor put a hit on me. I knew too much. Thank God Jared and Stan were shadowing me. They saved my life. They were like bulldogs, following my every step. And if they hadn’t been the men they were, I wouldn’t be here now.”

“Yes, thank God for your men.” Laura shuddered. She knew exactly what it was like, living with that fear. Her life had been in danger ten long years now. She had run before and she would run again if she had to. Only this time she would be leaving behind someone she truly cared about.

What if the General used Clay to get at her? Laura shuddered again. She couldn’t allow him to be put in danger because of her.

Janet shook her head slightly as if she could hear Laura’s thoughts. “Laura, I don’t know Clay well, but I’ve heard Brad talk about him and the unit. My money is on them helping you even if you don’t want them to. I think it’s in some men’s DNA. They were born protectors.”

Janet took a seat on the chair near the huge fireplace that was warming the room along with the large picture window letting in the sun. It allowed them to see the mountain range in the background.

Laura turned from looking out the window and at Janet. “I know you’re right, but I don’t want Clay to get hurt. This is my mess to sort out. He shouldn’t have to take on my problems.”

“Your problems are his. You’re just kidding yourself if you think Clay would let you leave. He would just have the extra problem of finding you, because he will, and bring down the General at the same time,” Jared said from the doorway. Holding two coffee cups, he walked into the room and placed them on the table between the couch and chair that Janet was sitting in.

“Didn’t mean to butt in on your conversation, but I couldn’t help overhearing. I was just bringing coffee to the two of you. But now that I’ve already butted in, I want to add something. Late every night, Clay calls and asks about you, even if you two just talked a couple of hours before. He has to know if you are safe, if your hands still hurt, are you taking your medicine…The list goes on and on, and we have to reassure him every night. That’s a man that you think will let you go? That he will back down and let the general win? Well, I think you better take another look at what kind of man you hooked. The man is crazy for you and nothing, not even you, are going to get in the way of him keeping you safe and by his side.” Jared just turned and walked back into the kitchen, leaving them alone.

“See, what did I say? Your problems are his. So it would be better to be completely honest to him with what happened between you and the General years ago, so that Clay will know what he is dealing with.” Janet reached down to the table and picked up her coffee cup with a self-satisfying smile on her face.

“OK, don’t rub it in. It’s just that I’ve never encountered any men like Clay, his unit, and now your men, with such integrity. You learned firsthand and I guess I will, too.” Laura also picked up her cup. She was going to ask about cookies then Stan appeared at the door holding a plate.

Lucky, lucky Janet and maybe herself soon, Laura thought as she took a cookie from the plate that Stan extended to her.

Chapter Fifteen

Clay arrived at the cabin. He got out of his truck and just stood for a moment. He was exhausted from the flight and before that from staying up with Angel’s grandmother drinking wine and listening to her stories late into the night. After such a stressful case, it was nice to unwind and celebrate his friend’s new marriage. He was even now with Angel. Yes, he had taken the case on for him so he could concentrate on Laura, but Angel meeting and falling in love with Cyn had more than made up for any outstanding debt between them.

Clay understood James’s and Angel’s feelings toward their women more than ever now. He had caught an early flight, not waiting to wait a single minute more than he had to. He couldn’t wait to see Laura again.

The rest of the unit had gone their separate ways, each needing some down time after the intense case. Chase and Lance would bring the jet back to Detroit later on today. Grant and Brad had decided to rent a car and see the sights on their way back. Angel and James were both treated to a honeymoon cabin on the reserve, and Clay didn’t expect to hear from them for a while.

Shaking his large body, Clay rolled his neck to get the cricks out from the long drive up to the cabin. He was almost nervous of seeing Laura again. Before he had to leave to help Angel, they hadn’t had time to discuss what he had learned about her prior life. They also hadn’t had a chance to talk over the fight they had before the bombing. She seemed to accept him back in the hospital. Maybe now that she had time to think it over, and was feeling better, she might just give him his walking papers again. He knew she had sounded friendly on the phone, but living with other people might have kept her from saying what she wanted to.

Clay took a deep breath as he walked up to the front door of the house and knocked.

Jared opened the door. The disappointment must have shown on Clay’s face, because Jared just laughed and told him to come in. Clay walked into a large living room where the main focus was on the huge fireplace taking up one whole wall of the room. On the other wall was a large picture window that let anyone sitting in the living room have a great view of the mountains. Clay took a quick glance around, noticing everything, but his eyes were only for Laura, whom he spotted asleep on the couch.

“Don’t worry Laura’s fine. She taking a nap, she still gets tired fast, but Janet said that was to be expected. We’ll be in the kitchen if you need us.” Jared took his coat and left Clay alone to make his way to Laura’s side.

Clay took a minute and just looked his fill. There was his woman. As he started to walk to her side, Clay had such protective feelings mixed with lust come over him so intense that it stopped him in his tracks. Was this love? He didn’t know. He just knew he’d never had feelings like this before.

Finally reaching the couch and getting to his knees, he reached over and gently moved her hair off her cheek and tucked it behind her ear.

His movements must have awakened her as he was suddenly looking into large green eyes that he could drown in. Her eyes seemed to change to a warmer hue as she spotted him beside her.

Reaching out a still red hand, she cupped his jaw. “Are you really here? I’m so glad you’re back. I missed you.”

Clay rose, scooping her off the couch and into his arms, hugging her tightly. He then lowered his head and kissed her like he had wanted to do before he left. He ate at her mouth, loving her taste and just wanting to get as close to her as he possibly could.

Laura returned his enthusiastic greeting by wrapping her arms around his neck, almost choking him, and kissing him like he had been gone a year.

Clay let his hands slide down her back and cupped her ass, bringing her close so she could feel what she did to him. Clay didn’t know how long they stood there and just breathed each other in, but he finally heard a load clearing of someone’s throat.

He let go of Laura’s lips and took a long breath. Looking over Laura’s shoulder, he could see their three hosts standing in the doorway to the kitchen, each with a large smile on their face.

“Sorry to interrupt,” Janet spoke first, walking up to them with a bottle and spoon in her hands. “But it is time for her medicine. We”—she looked back and forth between the two large men on either side of her—“thought that you should come up for air. After all you’ve been going at it for almost fifteen minutes. While I approve, I don’t want Laura to have an infection on her hands because she didn’t take the medicine. I think it’s in your best interest also, Clay, if her hands heal as fast as they could.”

Clay took his hands off Laura’s ass and gently set her feet on the ground. He noticed that she was also breathing heavily and looking dazed. Gently taking one of her hands, Clay made her sit on the couch and nestled close beside her. “The faster she heals the better. Give me the bottle and I will give it to her. She’s my responsibility now that I’m here. I can’t thank you all enough for keeping her safe.”

Jared walked behind his wife, with Stan taking a chair in the living room. “Stan and I really didn’t want to interrupt, but the wife said it was time.”

Janet turned to Jared as she handed the bottle to Clay. “Yeah, blame it on me. You guys stick together. I know you both would have let them go as far as they wanted and cheered them on while you stood watching.” Walking up to Jared, who had also taken a seat on another large chair in the living room, she climbed onto his lap and curled up, laying her head on his shoulder.

“Well, we don’t get TV up here…” Stan trailed off.

Janet gave Stan a dirty look and Clay just laughed as he opened the bottle and gave a spoonful of the liquid to Laura.

Laura also was grinning at the three of them. She had gotten to know them well over the last few weeks and she was becoming used to this kind of back-and-forth banter between them. The words might be stinging, but looking into each of their eyes, she could see the love shining through. Obviously they got off on razzing each other. Sometimes they even disappeared on her for a while. Not long, they wouldn’t leave her safety to chance, but Laura knew why, just by looking at the sparkle in Janet’s eyes when she returned.

The rest of the day was spent with all of them catching up. Clay told them about Cyn and Angel and how the cult leader had hidden diamonds in the garden of their compound. He also told them about the Native ceremony that he had just come from as the girls pushed him for more details. Finally, after supper, Clay turned the conversation around to ask Laura about the General.

“Do we have to talk about him tonight? Can’t we just spend a nice night and worry about it tomorrow?” Laura asked him while they all sat back relaxing in the living room and had an after-supper glass of wine.

“I wish we could, but something’s been bugging me since you mentioned the General. I didn’t have time to give it my full attention with helping Angel, but something is nagging me in the back of my mind. I don’t know if it’s the time frame of ten years ago, or his name. Ten years ago was when our unit was discharged. At the time we were trying to ferret out an international enemy of the states that we had reason to believe was hiding in the village. Could be just a coincidence, but the two could be connected.

“We know General Brown well. We suspected that he had a say in—if not the final one in our discharge. I would like to hear the facts from you. I know some from my friends the Feds, and I think we should get Grant to do some more digging around. Grant and Brad decided to drive back to Detroit, but he is the best and can do this remotely from the car. I would like to get him on it right away, but I need to give him more info on your case.” Clay watched Laura as she sipped her wine.

He knew that she dreaded going over everything and didn’t want to ruin the mood of the evening, but he knew time was of the essence. They had already taken too much of a chance with allowing this much time to elapse without looking into it.

Clay took Laura’s hands in his and rubbed her knuckles with one of his fingers, trying to reassure her. “Don’t you want this to be over as soon as possible? Having to look over your shoulder every time you go out? We also don’t know how long it will be before they come after you again. My friends will keep what they know under wraps, but the General has long arms and he will put the pieces together, if he hasn’t already done so. I’ll make a deal with you. Tonight we will just talk about what you did for the General on a day-to-day basis.”

Janet added, “I agree with Clay. The sooner you talk about it and deal with everything, the sooner you can have your life back. I know you’re scared, but with Clay’s team and my guys, you have the best help you’re ever going to get. I can assure you that they can deal with whatever you tell them, and they will keep you safe.”

“Yes, you are both right. I just don’t want you,
any of you
”—she looked around at Janet and her men then back at Clay—“to get hurt trying to help me.”

Jared answered her from his chair. “Don’t forget that we all do this for a living. Janet likes to nose in, but we have learned to keep her safe even with her trying to help. So really—”

He was cut off when a pillow flew at his head from Janet who was now sitting on Stan’s lap. “Sometimes I come up with good suggestions,” Janet told him with a huff.

Jared, his eyes twinkling, put a hand out and grabbed the pillow before it could connect with him. “Yes, love, you do help in your own way. We couldn’t do without you.”

Stan grabbed the second pillow that Janet had picked up. “No more fighting from you. We just might have to return the favor later tonight.”

Janet just blushed and put her arms around Stan’s neck and gave him a kiss on his cheek. “As long as you don’t forget that I’m needed.”

“Love, we need you every day. Don’t ever forget that,” Jared told her.

Clay, after watching the back-and-forth banter, turned to Laura. “Well, what do you say?”

Laura took a deep breath and looked right in Clay’s eyes. She hadn’t been completely honest with him. If she was going to accept his protection and his love, she had to tell him everything.

Taking a sip of her wine for courage, Laura sat up. “I need to tell you my story, my real story. Ten years ago, I was working in Washington as an executive secretary. I did a little of everything. One thing I did take care of every month was the General’s expenses that he needed reimbursement on. He was always bad at keeping receipts, so we set up a bank account for him to use just for that purpose. Between the few receipts that he had and the bank statement, I could usually figure out his expenses and do up the report.”

Clay nodded, urging her on. “That’s completely normal for a secretary.”

Taking a moment, she put her glass down on the coffee table before her nervous hands spilled what wine was left in it, and continued.
“Anyway, one day the General was on the phone when I went in to get the information. He just pointed at the corner of his desk and I picked everything up and went back to mine to start making the list. But that day I picked up more than just his receipts and regular bank statement. Amongst the pile of papers was another bank statement. I took a quick look at it, and didn’t think too much of it, until I saw that it was a bank statement from the Cayman Islands of and in the General’s name.