Chance Encounter (6 page)

He did a quick Web search for Kendra Carson and found the surprising news that the young woman was in a vegetative state in a mental hospital in upstate New York and the prognosis for her recovery was poor.

No doubt about it, when Kendra Carson became Kacie Dane, someone had gone to great links to make the switch permanent. He had a feeling Noah McCall had had a lot to do with that.

Brennan leaned back against the wall and observed two of the other people on the elevator. Skylar James and Gabe Maddox had been waiting at the airport when the LCR plane had touched down.
 

Years ago, before Brennan had married, one of his friends had tried to set him up on a date with Skylar. He couldn’t remember why that hadn’t worked out. Seemed like she’d claimed she wasn’t interested in dating at that time. Since he’d had a date with a different woman almost every night back then, he hadn’t given it a second thought. Damn, he’d been arrogant.

The tall, rough-looking man standing beside her was her husband, Gabe. They’d both mentioned their daughter, Megan, several times, and from the way they continued to whisper and smile at each other, they appeared happy.

Skylar was a beautiful woman with shoulder-length mahogany hair, blue eyes, and a kind smile. Her husband seemed to be her opposite in almost every way. He was broad-shouldered and had dark hair and a perpetual scowl on his face. The only time his expression changed was when he looked at his wife, and the transformation was extraordinary. No doubt about it, the grim-faced LCR operative adored her.

Skylar interrupted the tense silence. “Kacie’s only expecting Gabe, Noah, and me. She might feel a bit overwhelmed, but I know she’ll be grateful for all of you wanting to help.”

The elevator came to a soft, shuddering halt, and the doors swung open. They marched out, one by one, and headed to an apartment at the end of the thickly carpeted corridor.
 

The apartment building seemed to have good security. He’d check those things out later, after he met his charge. The doorman had looked as tough as any defensive lineman he’d ever encountered on the field, and the two bulky men at the security desk in the lobby had the look of hard-assed, seasoned cops.
 

Before they could knock on the door, it swung open, and Kacie Dane stood there. Brennan barely got a glimpse of her before she threw herself into Skylar’s arms with an enthusiastic feminine squeal.
 

“It’s so good to see you.”

He’d seen plenty of photos of her, but it was the first time he’d heard her speak, and he was surprised at the loveliness of her voice. She sounded natural and sweet, without a hint of snobbishness.

Pulling from Skylar’s arms, Kacie turned to hug Gabe Maddox, whose grim expression changed once again—this time to one of affection. And then, as if she was used to hugging grim-faced, tough-assed guys, she grabbed McCall and gave him a fierce hug.

“Come in, come in.” She laughed nervously. “Sorry to keep you out in the hallway. I’m just so thrilled you guys are here. I—”

As they went through the door, Kacie broke off as she noted there were six of them. She gave a little puzzled smile of welcome to both Justin and Riley, and when she turned to Brennan, he saw a flash of recognition.

McCall introduced Justin and Riley, explaining that they would be in charge of the investigation. He then turned to Brennan.

“And this is Brennan Sinclair.”

“It’s great to meet you.”

As Brennan shook her hand, McCall explained, “Brennan is here to help, too, if you’ll agree to our plan.”

The sparkle in her eyes dimmed slightly as she took a deep breath. Though she’d been acting as though she was greeting everyone as if they were her honored, invited guests, Brennan realized it had been a façade. The shadows beneath her eyes and the small lines of tension around her mouth told another story. This was a woman on edge.
 

“Sorry. I was so excited to see everyone, I almost forgot you guys aren’t here for a fun social visit.” She waved a hand at the three sofas in the large living room. “Have a seat. Would you like something to drink?”

Everyone declined her offer of drinks and took a seat. All eyes went to McCall, who said, “Anything else happen?”

“No. Nothing. Part of me feels as though I’m making this into something bigger than it is. But…”

Skylar was sitting beside her and took her hand. “And that’s exactly why these guys are here. To see if there
is
something to worry about. Then we’ll deal with whatever it is. You can’t be too cautious about something like this, Kacie.”

“I know. All these things just seem so slight compared to the other things I’ve dealt with before.”
 

“We have a plan,” McCall said.
 

“You guys have been so kind, but I know LCR doesn’t get involved in—”

McCall held up a hand. “Stop right there, Kacie. You’re one of our own. And you’re not alone. Got that?”

A sheen of grateful tears brightened Kacie’s eyes, and Brennan revised his opinions of both McCall and Kacie. The LCR leader did have a heart, and Kacie Dane was much more like her public persona than he had believed.

“Thank you, Noah.” Her eyes fell on each of them. “Thank you all. Since so few know about what happened…back then, I wasn’t sure exactly what I would do if this thing escalated.”

“And that’s where we come in.” McCall shot a glance at Brennan. “Sinclair is trained. He can protect and defend you until Justin and Riley can determine if there is a threat and who’s behind it.”

“So Brennan would be my bodyguard? But I’m—”

“We know how you feel about that kind of publicity, Kacie,” Skylar said. “That’s why we thought this would be the best way to make sure you’re safe without giving any indication to the media that you might be in danger. We—” Skylar’s eyes went to Brennan as if her explanation suddenly felt awkward.

Brennan put it as succinctly as he could. “I’m a former celebrity. Few people are going to question why we would be together. None of them would guess that I’m your bodyguard.”

“So we’re like…supposed to be dating?”

As the cold light in Brennan Sinclair’s eyes went below zero, Kacie inwardly cringed at how insultingly that had come out. However, she couldn’t truthfully say she was delighted with the idea. Brennan Sinclair was the kind of man she avoided at all cost. He was too big, too austere. Yes, he was nice-looking. Well, okay,
nice
wasn’t exactly the right word. She searched for another description—devastatingly handsome, sexy, gorgeous, overwhelmingly male, but only if you were into the tall, muscular, take-no-prisoners kind of guy. Even though she rarely dated, she preferred less intimidating-looking men. Ones who didn’t make her forget to breathe.

Don’t be silly, Kacie. You won’t actually be dating the guy. He’s going to protect you.

“I assure you, Ms. Dane, it would be for appearance’s sake only.”

Now she felt like she’d hurt his feelings, which seemed asinine in the extreme. Still, she needed to make him understand she meant no offense. “Please, call me Kacie. And having people believe we’re dating won’t bother me at all.”
 

What’s a little white lie among friends?

Feeling distinctly off-center, she pulled her gaze from Brennan’s dark, piercing gaze and looked over at Skylar. “This seems like a pound of prevention for an ounce of nothing.”

“If it’s nothing, then that’s great,” Skylar said. “Let Brennan protect you while Justin and Riley figure out if there is nothing to be worried about.”
 

As if aware she was going to protest again, Skylar added, “For me? Please?”

Turn down the one person who’d saved her life and helped her come back from hell? How could she?

“Okay. I’ll do it.”

“Excellent,” Noah said.
 

“You said only a handful of people are aware of your story,” Justin Kelly said. “We’ll need a list of these people.”

Kacie nodded. “Of course. I’ll put a list together. There aren’t that many…really.”
 

“You suspect any of them?” Brennan asked.

Kacie closed her eyes, knowing she had no choice but to bring up a possible suspect, no matter how uncomfortable it made her. “My mother.”

Skylar gasped and shook her head. “Why would she do that, Kacie? It would be no benefit to her at all.”

“It would if she thought she could blackmail me for more money.” She grimaced and added, “It didn’t improve our relationship when I cut off my payments to her.”

“Recently?” Brennan asked.

“Yes…just this past month.”

“You were paying your mother to keep her quiet?” Riley asked.

Kacie thought it odd that Riley picked up on that. Most people would assume she was using her substantial wealth to help her mother.
 

“My mother and I don’t have what you would call a close relationship.” She gave a slight shoulder lift, as if that didn’t matter to her. “She was more than happy to stay quiet since she looked at my abduction as more of an embarrassment than anything else. The money I gave her just sweetened the deal. She recently got married again, this time to a wealthy man, so I stopped sending her money, and she’s angry.”

“Then you’re right,” Skylar said. “I’d put her at the top of my list, too.”

“We’ll go by and visit with your mother,” Riley said. “If it is her, we can…encourage her to stop.”

Kacie couldn’t help but smile at the thought of Justin and Riley paying Sonia Carson Musgrave a visit. Justin looked tough enough to take on a grizzly, much less her conniving mother. And though Riley was slender and on the petite side, the fierce gleam in her eyes said that she could be just as fearsome as her partner.

Noah stood. “I’ve got a couple of items I need to see to before I head back home. Kelly and Ingram, keep me informed of your progress. Skylar and Gabe, you’re staying in New York a little longer?”

Gabe nodded. “We’ll visit with Skye’s family for a few hours and then head back home tomorrow.”

“Our babysitter is watching Megan,” Skylar added as she sent an apologetic glance at Kacie. “I wish I could stay longer, but I’ve never been away from her for more than a few hours.”

“Don’t be silly,” Kacie said. “I’m just thrilled I got to see you both. If you’re available, come back tonight for dinner.”

Skylar gave her a warm hug. “That sounds wonderful. We’ll catch up then.”

Within a minute, they were all out the door with the exception of the tall, unsmiling Brennan Sinclair.

Kacie closed the door and turned to face him. Before she could say a word, Brennan said, “So if we’re going to be dating, I guess we’d better get acquainted.”

Chapter Seven

Get acquainted with this grim-faced, tough-looking, gorgeous man? Odd how the idea both excited and terrified her.

She hadn’t dated anyone steadily since before her abduction. Dating meant sharing and opening up to another person. Though she no longer considered herself Kendra Carson and felt as though she had almost nothing in common with her, wariness of the opposite sex was something they both shared.

Before her abduction, she had dated plenty. Unfortunately, her selection in dates had been as poor as her decision-making abilities in other things. Kendra Carson’s last boyfriend, Calvin Henderson, had been into drugs, both using and selling. She hadn’t been a user, not even occasionally. She would have liked to say it was because she had good judgment, but that would be a lie. Her refusal to use illegal drugs had been all about vanity. She’d seen what drugs could do to a person’s appearance, especially their teeth, hair, and complexion. Her goal to be a model had trumped any desire to get high.

Kacie checked her watch, thankful she had an excuse to delay the sharing. “I’ve got to get dressed for a business meeting. I have a two o’clock lunch appointment with my agent. We can talk when I get back.”

“Then I guess we need to share quickly.”

“This is a business lunch. You don’t have to go with me. I—”

“Yes, I do. Remember, that’s why I’m here.”

“It’s just with my agent. It’ll look really strange if I bring a date. Besides, I’ll be perfectly safe. I’ll take a cab there and back.”

“I don’t care if you’re lunching with the pope and riding in the Popemobile, I’m going with you.”

“But she knows nothing about you. It’ll look odd if you just show up without any warning.”

“Can’t be helped. Unless you’re in the apartment, I’m with you at all times. Understand?”

“But this is a business luncheon.”

“And you’re my business. Deal with it.”

Arguing would do no good, and she didn’t have time for it anyway. She gave him a stiff nod. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Inside her bedroom, Kacie took a few minutes to settle her nerves. She knew she was behaving irrationally, which was the reason she hadn’t lost her temper in front of Brennan. He was here to protect her. How ungrateful and churlish of her to be angry with him.
 

Just because he made her feel things… She swallowed hard as she amended that thought. No, he didn’t make her feel things…he made her
feel
. And how scary was that?