The Billionaire's Challenging Beauty (Bold, Alaskan Men Book 2) (13 page)

Saeger nodded, considering all the options.  “Do you have any way to check in with him?  Make sure he hasn’t been threatened?”

Cliff nodded his head.  “Absolutely.  I can call in a few favors.”

Saeger sighed as he rubbed his face, remembering that he hadn’t shaved this morning.  And then he thought about why and his stomach muscles tightened.  Nothing was going to happen to his Tyla!  No way!  “I’ll owe you.”

Cliff shook his head.  “I’m not doing this as a favor to you.  Tyla is part of my town.  No way am I letting anything happen to this town.  If some jackass thinks he can mess with Tyla, he’s mine!”

Saeger smiled, slightly relieved with the hard look in Cliff’s eyes.  The man was ex-military, ex-special forces.  He’d come to Winthrop to get away from the violence, but the man looked fully capable of handling any threat that came his way. 

Slapping the big sheriff on the arm, he nodded.  “I appreciate your help.  I’ll check in with you as soon as I find out anything.”

Cliff accepted the slap.  “And I’ll start nosing around, looking for those two guys, ask a few questions.  As soon as I hear from my contacts in the Army, I’ll send you whatever I’ve found out.”

The two men parted, both with a plan of action. 

Tyla parked her Jeep on the side of the road and looked around, trying to see if there were any strangers lurking about.  She kept telling herself that she was being ridiculous.  No one knew about her friendship with Violet.  They’d only even known each other for a few weeks, only since Creek started dating her. 

Tyla had met Violet at The Rotten Apple on the day that Creek had accused her of being a high priced call girl.  Violet had been devastated that day, hurt beyond words.  Tyla had given Violet a ride home because the woman had been drinking a martini.  As soon as they’d gotten back to Violet’s small apartment that she kept over her shop, the two had bonded over their anger at the men in their lives.  Violet had been so in love with Creek, and she’d thought that he’d only been with her for the sex.  A justifiable assumption since he’d paid her stepfather, a.k.a. Violet’s “pimp”, even though she hadn’t known anything about the pimping at the time. 

Now Violet and Tyla were the best of friends.  Tyla was even going to be Violet’s maid of honor at her wedding, although they hadn’t set a date yet.  She and Creek were so much in love that the wedding seemed almost superfluous.  And since Violet was basically living at Creek’s place, which was on a mountain near Saeger’s, they were already living their happily-ever-after. 

Tyla had thought that she might have that happily-ever-after with Saeger.  But then that stranger had come into her life.  She shivered as she stared out the window. 

It was going to rain again today, and she’d left the house without her rain boots.  She leaned her head against the steering wheel, trying to figure out what she was going to do. 

With determination, she lifted her head up and squared her shoulders.  She was going to walk into Violet’s shop, get the woman to call the police and she wasn’t going to care if the man thought she was crazy…Or insane…Or nuts. 

She probably was all of those things. 

And she’d have wet feet too.  Not a good day.

Stepping out of her Jeep, she walked across the street and opened the door to Violet’s shop.  The welcoming jingle of bells greeted her, as did Violet’s smile when she looked up.  “Hey there!” Violet called out.  She was wrapping up something for another customer.  “Come on back.  I have something to show you.”

Tyla moved deeper into the store, wishing that she could get her friend alone so she could ask for her help.  There were only a few other people in the store milling about but they didn’t look like they were seriously shopping.  The weather in Alaska could be pretty dicey.  One day it could be absolutely gorgeous and the next, snow falling.  And the next day, it could rain down buckets, causing the streams to flood.  People who lived in the lower forty-eight states would call this weather “winter”, but the people who lived in Alaska year round knew that it could even snow in the summer.  When the winter snows started to fall, the roads would close because they were too dangerous to drive until the snowplows cleared them.  And even after the snowplows came through, the snow would fall again. 

Thankfully, today was only rain and gloom. 

When the women walked out, Tyla moved closer to the cash register.  “How are you?” she asked, leaning in to give Violet a hug. 

“Doing great,” she said but when she pulled back, Violet took in the tension lines around Tyla’s eyes.  “What’s wrong?” she asked.

Tyla looked around, hoping that no one was close enough to hear.  That’s when she saw the man!  The stranger who had threatened her! 

No wonder there was a new man menacing the streets of Winthrop!  Her first stranger had moved on to other areas.  And he was looking right at her, his brown eyebrows lifted as if asking her what was going on, daring her to say anything to Violet. 

Tyla understood the threat and swallowed down her words.  Turning back to Violet, she shook her head.  “Nothing.  Absolutely nothing is wrong.  I was just coming by to see if you needed any help today.”

Violet’s smile didn’t slip an inch.  “You are a life saver!” she groaned.  “The orders are coming in like crazy and my team can barely keep up.  Do you really have time to help?”

Tyla was startled.  Violet always had things under control.  She was a master at organization so if she had a landslide of orders, she had several people her team could call to help wrap things and get items ready for shipping.  Not to mention, the artists who created all of the pieces she sold in the store were more than willing to come in to help, as they did during the Christmas rush every year. 

Tyla had only used that excuse for Violet’s sake, assuming the woman would turn down her offer.  Tyla didn’t want Violet, or any of her friend’s employees, in any kind of danger. 

But if Violet really did need help, then she would definitely be there.  “What can I do?”

Violet smiled at the two other customers in the room.  “I’ll be with you in a moment,” she said, and grabbed Tyla’s wrist.  “Can you help with the wrapping?  You know the process.  Everything is at each of the stations and you know where to get the mailing labels.  Tom picks up the mail today by three, but I can ask him to do a second pick up today because there are so many orders coming in.”

And with that, Violet closed the door to the back room where the three other wrapping team members were busy.  Tyla looked around, not sure what was going on.  Violet had sounded strange.  She wasn’t sure what was in her friend’s voice, but it wasn’t normal. 

Keith, Violet’s team captain for the wrapping portion of her business, turned around and walked over to her.  In a hushed voice, he said, “Hey Tyla.  Just grab whatever and we’ll fill you in as soon as we can.”

Tyla hesitated for only a moment.  In the end, she wasn’t sure what else to do so she grabbed one of the labels and list of orders and started to figure out what needed to be done.  It was relatively easy.  She just had to find the stock item on the shelves, bring it over to the station and wrap it, slap the label on the wrapped box and put it on the stack of boxes that the mail carrier would pick up. 

Tyla was amazed at Violet’s easy process.  She’d organized this area so that everything was simple and fast.  All the supplies were on the wall with multiple wrapping stations set up. 

For thirty minutes, she wrapped and let her mind drift, trying to come up with a new plan.  She needed to get away from these men who seemed to know everything she was doing. 

Maybe if she went into Eagle Point, the next town over, she could contact one of the police officers and ask for help.  The strangers wouldn’t have contacts in the larger cities, would they? 

She wasn’t sure, but it was definitely worth a try. 

She wrapped, taped, slapped labels on the boxes and grabbed the next order, her mind grinding, trying to find holes in her plan. 

When Violet came into the back, she breathed a sigh of relief.  “Good grief, I thought that man would never leave!”

Keith and the others all stopped their wrapping and came over.  “What do we need to do?”

Tyla looked around, not sure what they were talking about.  Violet was quick to fill her in.  “Creek called.  He said you were on your way over here.  Apparently Saeger gave him a head’s up.  He’s working with Cliff, and they’re searching for the guys posing as fishermen.  But Saeger is waiting for you at his house.  You need to get there and talk to him.  Creek is going to drive you back.”

Tyla looked at her friend, stunned for a long moment.  “Saeger is…” her panic almost choked her.  “I have to go!” she said and ran out the door, ignoring Violet’s call to wait. 

She’d almost made it to her Jeep when a hand reached out, grabbed her and pulled her into the bushes.  The rain was coming down in sheets now and she was already soaked to the bone, but the fear pushed all of her discomfort away. 

“Trying to get around this isn’t going to work, girly!” the stranger said, twisting her wrist so that he hurt her.  “And because you’ve spooked too many of the local yahoos,” he growled and twisted harder, ignoring Tyla’s cry of pain, “the deadline has been moved up.  Get me the file by dawn tomorrow morning or your brother is dead!  Keep this little chitchat to yourself, or your friends will have accidents as well.  I’m not fooling around!”

A moment later, Tyla was pushed back out of the bushes so hard that she fell on her bottom, right into a puddle of cold, muddy water. 

She pushed her hair out of her eyes; trying to see which direction the other man had gone.  Unfortunately, she couldn’t see him.  She couldn’t see anything!  The rain was coming down hard and the bushes were thick in this area. 

“Tyla!” Creek called out. 

Tyla looked around and saw the large man running towards her.  Creek grabbed her upper arms and helped her stand up but Tyla shook her head.  “I’m fine,” she whispered.  “Just wet.  I slipped in the rain.”  She bent down and grabbed her backpack.  “I have to go,” she told him even as he continued to hold her arms. 

Creek shook his head, his eyes hard and menacing.  “I’m driving you back to Winthrop.  Saeger is waiting for you there.”

Tyla forced a smile, trying to pretend like she was okay even though she was shivering with dread and fear.  “I’m fine,” she repeated again, trying to push his hands away. 

Creek didn’t believe her for a second.  “You’re not fine.  You’re trembling like a leaf.  Just let me…”

They were at her Jeep now and she pulled her keys out of her pocket.  “Save Violet,” she whispered.  “Get her safe.” 

Tyla’s words caused Creek to freeze and look down at Tyla. 

“Go!” she whispered again.  “Get her safe!”

With those words, she jumped into her Jeep and started the engine.  With one last look at Creek, she drove off.  When she glanced into her rearview mirror, she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Creek running back to the shop.  He practically tore the door off just as Tyla turned the corner, heading back to Winthrop.

She had to do it, she told herself.  She had to keep everyone safe.  It had been one thing when the man had been threatening Matt’s life.  She’d been conflicted enough.  But now the horrible men were threatening Matt, Violet, Creek, and even Saeger.  She had to steal the file, get the information to the men so they would go away.  If she just gave him the file, whatever it was, then everyone would be safe again. 

She had been trying so hard to get out of this, then feeling guilty because she had almost resorted to stealing the file for the goons. 

No more!  She was not dealing with this!  No file, no invention was worth anyone’s life!  She’d go to prison to save everyone if that’s what it took!

Saeger had just gotten off the phone with Creek again when the doorbell rang.  Walking over to his computer, he pressed a few buttons and realized that it was Tyla standing outside of his door.

With a muttered curse, he hurried to the door and yanked it open.   “Where the hell have you been?” he demanded, grabbing her arm and yanking her inside. 

It was a cold, rainy day and she was shivering, she wasn’t wearing a coat, her rain boots or even an umbrella.  She was drenched and cold to the bone. 

“Get them off, Tyla,” he commanded, but didn’t wait for her to follow his instructions.  He peeled her clothes off of her himself, and then lifted her into his arms.  He walked right out to the covered deck, protecting her from the cold as much as possible.  But with a press of another button, the cover to the outdoor hot tub opened up, the water already bubbling with steam rising from the water.  He stepped into the water in his clothes, holding her close until she was fully immersed in the warmth. 

He’d remembered to toss his cell phone onto the side of the patio and picked it up when she wrapped her arms around his neck.  Dialing Creek, he told his friend that Tyla was with him, that she was safe.

Tyla heard the words and shivered.  She wasn’t safe.  She had one night with Saeger.  One more precious night to be in his arms.  It was afternoon now, but she didn’t care.  She wanted him.  She wanted to revel in his arms and savor this time with him.  She’d steal the file, give it to the bad guys and then walk into Cliff’s office and confess to everything.  She didn’t care about going to prison.  She just needed everyone to be safe. 

Turning to Saeger, she kissed his neck, his jaw, letting her hands run all over his body. When she realized he was still wearing his clothes, she peeled them off of him.

“Honey, slow down.  We need to talk,” he said, and pulled her hands away from him.  But he only had two hands.  He could hold her arms or he could stop her kisses.  He couldn’t do both.  And in the end, he couldn’t stop anything.  He was only a man, after all.  This was Tyla.  He needed her and she seemed to need this as well.  So he made love to her, tossing his wet clothes onto the stone patio behind him and made love to his woman in the warmth of the bubbling water. 

And when they both climaxed in each other’s arms, he sighed with satisfaction.  She was here, she was safe.  He still had no idea what was going on, but the FBI was looking into things now.  Cliff was investigating the two men who had come to town masquerading as fishermen, and found that they were wanted by the FBI already, suspected of murdering two other people in Utah and Arizona. 

Cliff was holding off on picking the men up while everyone tried to figure out what they were up to.  Why were men who were basically hit men staying in Winthrop, Alaska?  And how were they connected to Tyla? 

Saeger lifted her into his arms and brought her into his house.  Wrapping a towel around each of them, he carried her into his living room and pressed another button, making the fireplace leap with flames.  He sat down with her in his lap and just held her close.  It was a long time before he realized that she was asleep.  But he didn’t care.  He still held her close.  Pulling the blanket from the back of the sofa over both of them, he moved her so that she was laying along the length of him while he leaned back and fell asleep.  She was safe in his arms.  As soon as she woke up, he’d ask her what was going on. 

Tyla stirred, wondering why she was so warm.  When she lifted her head, she realized that she was lying on top of Saeger and the fire was heating the room, making everything toasty and warm.  With sadness, she laid her head back down.  It was already dark outside.  She had no idea how long she’d slept, nor did she care.  She had one night with this man.  She was going to enjoy it. 

So she made love to Saeger right there in front of the fireplace.  Her fingers moved over his body, memorizing every angle, every muscle.  She knew the exact moment when he became aware of what she was doing.  And a few minutes later, she knew that he was fully involved in the activity.  When her mouth closed over his erection this time, she wasn’t going to allow him to pull her away.  This was her time.  This was the last time she would be allowed to touch him, to make love to him.  She was going to love him fully and completely. 

“Tyla!” he growled, sitting up and trying to pull her away.  But her hands were ready and she grabbed his wrists, not letting him pull her away this time.  If he was going to remember her, she wanted him to remember this, her mouth and the way she loved him. 

“Tyla!” he almost yelled.  “I can’t hold back!”

She slid her fingers along his thighs and he fell back against the cushions of the sofa, his control gone.  She loved the way he lost that amazing control! 

When it was all over, she moved up his body, her legs straddling his lean waist.  Her hands were propped up on his chest as she stared down at him with so much love in her eyes.

Saeger had no idea what was going on inside her head, but he fully approved.  When he could focus again, he looked up at the beauty and realized she was smiling down at him, looking like a satisfied cat who was ready to curl up on his chest. 

“Tit for tat, my beauty,” he growled. 

The smile quickly disappeared from her lovely features and he almost laughed.  But he was too intent on punishing her for what she’d just done to him.  He’d lost control.  He never lost control! 

But he was going to show her who was in charge this time. 

In one swift move, he lifted her up, ignoring her startled expression and laid her out on the large coffee table.  When he looked down at her, her blond hair sparkling in the firelight, his body hardened once again.  But he was in command now and he bent lower, grabbing her ankles and almost laughing when she realized his intent. 

His mouth latched onto her core and he slid one finger inside of her heat.  She arched her body against his touch, but he didn’t give her any mercy.  His mouth touched, teased and tortured her body while his fingers moved inside of her, feeling her body tighten around him.  He loved the way she screamed and begged him for release, but he wasn’t giving in.  He wanted more.  He wanted all of her. 

When he finally allowed her to climax, she was screaming out his name, her body writhing as she convulsed over and over again. 

And only then did he roll another condom down his length and pull her against him.  Filling her up slowly, he watched her eyes, her fingers pulling at his hair but he ignored the pain, enjoying the way she moved with him. 

Moving inside of this woman, his Tyla, was the best experience of his life.  He loved the way she shivered, writhed, and begged as he moved, her inner muscles clenching around him and her legs holding him tightly. 

When he knew he was about to lose control again, he moved differently, helping her with altered friction.  “Come for me,” he commanded, watching a moment later as her body exploded.  She looked so beautiful with the firelight making her skin glow and he couldn’t hold back.  His own orgasm took control and he pounded into her delicate body until her tight sheath drained him. 

They stayed like that for a long time, neither of them able to move.  The fire crackled, the rain continued to rage outside the windows and Saeger held her close, unwilling to release her for any reason.