Protecting My Hart (Protectors Series Book 1) (8 page)

“Fuck, I know.” All of this I know, nothing I haven’t already thought of and considered every single day since the day I got back to the house and she was gone. Just vanished. JD was pissed, stated she cost him big. He had men searching for her, but never found her. Said he didn’t know why she left, but I know he didn’t tell me everything.

“Bro, it’s been five years. It might be time to call off the search, accept the fact that she’s gone, and if she’s alive she may not want to be found.”

“Don’t say
if
. She
is
alive, and I will find her even if it takes me until the day I die. I don’t care if she’s married and has a new life, a great life. I’ll leave her alone; I just need to know that she found happiness.”

“I know.” He sighs. “You gonna be able to get some sleep?”

“No, but I’ll try.”

“’Night.”

“’Night, Beamer.”

Sleep does not find me. My thoughts are filled with nothing but Hartley. Wherever she is, whatever she’s doing, I just hope that she is safe and happy.

The meeting with Mack, Beamer, Kash, and me just finished. They all have been briefed on the latest and Mack seems to think all this will be over in a couple more months. A few more minutes of bull shitting and the guys all leave Beamer’s apartment from our ‘Poker Game’.

“You gonna crash here again tonight?” Beam asks.

“No. I think I’m gonna head out, go home for a couple days before I have to go back to hell.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.”

“Hang in there, man, we are really close to the finish line.”

“Thank fuck for that. I’m tired of this shit. Thanks, for last night.”

“Anytime, brother. I’ve been thinkin’. After this shit is over, you and me, we take off for a while, jump on our bikes and ride, we’ll look for her.”

“Yeah, sounds good.” I offer a smile; Beamer is a good man, one of the best. He knows how much it killed me to find her gone when I got back, and having no trace on her, no way to find her. I know her name and birthday, and other than that… nothing.

Beamer lives in Atlanta, about twenty miles from Lachine. My place is about four miles north in Briley. Pulling my truck into the gas station, I’ve just filled the tank when I hear a woman in the parking lot across the way yelling. I don’t know why, but I’m drawn to the scene, the woman is crying and then I see her being attacked.
What the fuck?
Running over, I grab the bastard and toss him to the ground, he crawls backward on his hands and feet trying to get away from me as quickly as he can. When I turn my attention back to the girl, she’s desperately trying to get into her car. Unfortunately, her tires have been slashed and her back window shattered. Even if she gets in she can’t go anywhere.

“Ma’am?”

“Go away!” she cries. My entire body freezes at the sound of her voice. My heart begins to beat rapidly. Surely this can’t be, my mind is just messin’ with me. It’s the lack of sleep I’m sure. Still, I can’t stop my mouth from letting the word fall from my lips.

“Tesoro?”

Her entire body goes rigid. She doesn’t move; I’m not even sure she is breathing. I know I’m not. I watch as she slowly turns around, her perfect eyes wide with shock meet mine and my breath releases.

“Slyde?” Her voice soft, surprised, and fuckin’ perfect reaches my ears. It’s her. It’s really her. I’ve found her.
Finally
.

“Yeah, Hart, it’s me.”

“Oh my God.” She gasps. “I can’t stay here. I have to go. He’s watching. He’ll see me. He shouldn’t have found me so quickly. I have to go,” she states frantically, desperately trying to get back into her car.

“Hart.”

“I have to leave.”

“Hart.”

“He found me.”

“Hartley, stop.” I step up next to her, gently grasping her chin and forcing her eyes to meet mine. “Your tires have been slashed, your window broken, it won’t drive.”

“I have to get home to Ethan.”

Her soft words take me by surprise as pain begins to spread through my chest. She has a man.
Fuck
. I knew it would be possible. I just hoped that it wouldn’t be.

“OK. Let me take you home, my truck is just across the street.”

“OK.” She nods. I slip my arm around her waist and lead her to my truck. Fuck, it feels amazing to touch her again, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Helping her inside, I walk around the front and climb in. Hartley tells me where she lives and other than that we are completely silent. I pull up to an old apartment building that looks run-down and not safe at all.
What kind of creep is she with that lets her live in a place like this?
Not giving her the option, I open her door for her and help her down.

“Um, thanks for the ride.”

“You’re welcome, Hart, I’m walking you to the door to make sure you get inside OK.”

“That’s not necessary,” she states and I can tell she is shaking. I’m not sure if it’s from what happened earlier or if this Ethan guy has her terrified. Fuck, if she’s living with another fuckin’ jackass, I’m gonna lose my shit.

“I know, but for my piece of mind I want to make sure you’re safe in your house before I leave.”

She nods, and I follow her upstairs to the fifth floor. She unlocks the door, steps inside, and I follow her in. I want to size up this Ethan prick.

“Hi, Sarabeth. Sorry I’m late, I had car trouble again,” Hartley speaks to a young girl who’s sitting on the couch reading to a little boy curled into her.

“Momma!” The little boy’s face lights up; he jumps off the couch and runs to Hartley who bends down and scoops him up into a big hug, holding him tightly.

Momma? Hartley has a son? So she and this Ethan guy have a kid.
The pain in my chest increases.

“How’s my baby boy?”

“Good. I missed you, Momma.”

“Momma missed you too, and I’m happy to see you, but you should be in bed.”

“That’s my fault, I’m sorry. We were just having such a great time tonight. We had mac ‘n cheese for dinner, and he ate really well too. We played with blocks and colored for a while, and we have just been reading books.” Sarabeth’s eyes stay on Hartley momentarily, and then they fall to mine. I watch her body stiffen slightly.

“Momma? Who’s that?”

“This is one of momma’s friends, Mr. Slyde.” The little boy wiggles out of Hartley’s arms and walks over to me. He stares up at me, and I crouch down so I am more on his level. He watches me for a few moments before he smiles.

“Hi, Mr. Slyde. My name is Ethan.” Surprise takes over me. So Ethan is her son and not her man. I also notice Ethan is about five years old
. Is this why she disappeared?

“Hi, Ethan, I’m really happy to meet you.”

“Ethan, why don’t you go brush your teeth and climb into bed. I’ll be right there to tuck you in.”

“OK. Goodnight, Mr. Slyde. Goodnight, Sarabeth. Thanks for playin’ with me.”

“Goodnight, Ethan,” Sarabeth replies with a smile and watches Ethan run down the hall before returning her gaze to me.

“Nice to meet you, Sarabeth.” I give her an easy smile and she relaxes.

“Um, you too. I should go.” She gets off the couch still eyeing me, but not tense any longer.

“Thanks so much and sorry for being late. Here you go. I’ve got day shift tomorrow, so I won’t need you. I will let you know about next week.”

“Sounds great.” Sarabeth smiles and walks out of the door.

“Sarabeth lives two floors below me and babysits when I’m at work.”

“You have a son.”

“Yes.”

“He’s beautiful. How old is he?”

“Almost five, and yes he’s perfect.”

“Like his mother. Is that why you left?”

“Yes.”

“Hart…”

“I’m going to put Ethan to bed. Thank you for the ride.”

“Hart, you’re not getting rid of me that easily. Go tuck him into bed. I’ll wait here. We need to talk.”

“Slyde…”

“Go.”

She hesitates briefly before turning down the hall. My mind is spinning in overdrive. I’ve found her, and she has a son who I agree is perfect. Now I know why she left, but there is still so much unanswered. I can’t believe I have finally found her, after all these years of searching and she has been this close the whole time. Why couldn’t we find her then? Well, I know one thing, I’m not letting her vanish on me again.

Hartley comes back into the living room. She’s changed into yoga pants and a t-shirt, and I smile because some things never change. She settles on the one side of the couch, and I settle on the other. She looks completely exhausted and completely beautiful and stunning.

“How have you been?” she asks softly.

“I’ve been good. How about you?” I ask in return.

“Good. Busy.”

“Hart. What happened?”

“I left. I found out I was pregnant and left. I couldn’t stay there anymore. I hadn’t been safe in that house for a long time, and when I found out about Ethan I had to go. It wasn’t just me. I had to protect my baby.”

“What do you mean you weren’t safe for a long time?”

“Nothing. Listen, Slyde, it’s old news, happened a long time ago. I’m tired. I’ve had a hell of a night. I’m really happy to see you, but it’s all too much right now. I just want my bed.”

“OK, Hart, calm down, don’t get upset. Go to bed. We’ll talk in the morning.”

“What? You’re coming back tomorrow?”

“No Hart, I’m not. I’m staying here. You were attacked tonight; I can see you’re still upset about that, still scared, and I want to make sure you’re OK. Don’t bother arguing with me. You won’t win. I will sleep here on the couch, and in the morning we can talk more and figure out what to do about your car.”

“But…”

“No buts. Go to bed. Sweet dreams, Hartley,” I murmur softly.

Her lips curve up slightly before she replies, “Sweet dreams, Slyde.”

The pain in my chest has disappeared and my heart races at her smile and a peace fills me as I watch her walk down the hall to her room.
Mi Tesoro.

Slipping my shirt off and lying down on the couch, so much is going through my head. I can't believe I found her even after all these years of searching. And she has a kid. A son. I feel my lips smiling; that little boy is the most beautiful little boy I have ever seen. My mind jumps to the sound of her voice. Something serious is going on. She kept saying that he found her and she had to go. I don’t understand what she means.
Who found her? Is she running? Hiding?
Hartley is terrified of something or of some
one
rather. I have to figure out what is going on. I do know one thing for certain. Now that I've found her, I sure as hell am not letting her disappear again. I’ve just started to fall asleep when I hear it.

"No! Please no! Don’t hurt him! No, no, no!"
Hartley's screams reach my ears, and I bolt up racing into her room ready to attack whoever is in there. Hartley is thrashing on the bed. It's a nightmare.
Holy fuck!

“Hartley... Wake up, Hart...It's just a dream, Tesoro, wake up.” I gently nudge her. She shoots up, terrified, panic filling her eyes as she looks at me.

“Ethan.” she rasps.

“He's asleep and perfectly safe, and so are you. You're home, Hart. You're safe.”

“I'll never be safe. He will always try to find me. When he does he will try to kill me again. I can't let him hurt Ethan. We have to leave.” She breaks into sobs and buries her face in her hands.

I pull her into my arms and wrap her tight. My heart breaks further when I feel her shaking in terror against me.

“I won't let anybody hurt you, mi Tesoro. I promise.”

“Momma?” a little voice comes from behind me and Hartley pulls back and pulls herself together quickly. The brave shield that is now in place shocks me a bit.

“Hey, baby boy, come here.”

Little Ethan comes over and Hartley pulls him up into her lap.

“Momma, did you have a bad dream again?”

“Yeah, baby, I did. I'm sorry I woke you up.”

“It’s OK, Momma, I just want you to be OK.”

“You know what? This hug is making everything all better. You have magic hugs.”

“Magic hugs that make you better?”

“Yeah, honey, they do.”

“So you are OK now?”

“Yeah, baby boy, I am.”

“Good.”

“How about we put you back to bed?” Hartley suggests.