Chapter 10
CHAPTER 10
“You look great, by the way.” Carter set his mug on the counter. He meant the compliment. She looked spectacular in the dress. It hugged all her curves and showed off her legs in a way that Carter felt below his belt. Damn if it wasn’t super distracting. He needed to focus on the problem at hand. “But why do I have the feeling that you still being in a cocktail dress at eight in the morning has to do with those three goons who were here?”
Mia glanced down at her dress like she’d forgotten she was wearing it. “Forget it, Carter. Like I said before, I don’t need your help. Thanks for breakfast but you know where the door is.”
“Mia, you need help. I know it, and you know it. Whatever it is, you’re in over your head.”
She whirled around, her hands on her hips which was never a good sign. Carter braced himself for the coming storm.
“What makes you think I can’t handle myself? I’ve been taking care of myself for years. I don’t need you interfering in my life. Just because you bring me food doesn’t mean you have any say in my life. Just. Butt. Out. Stop coming over. Forget where I live.” She glared at him.
Carter kept his voice measured and his stance relaxed. Dealing with Mia reminded him of working with injured animals. Eliminate sudden or potentially threatening movements. Proceed with caution. “I’m sure you can take care of yourself in normal circumstances, but I also know that this isn’t normal. Three men stood in your house and hurt you. This Bobby guy said you had to do what he wanted because two lives depended on it. None of that is normal. Whatever is going on, you need help. Please let me help you, Mia. I don’t want to see anything bad happen to you.”
“Too late.” She let out a long sigh. “Look, I really appreciate that you want to help me. I truly do but you can’t get involved in this. It’s hard enough as it is, I don’t need any further complications. So, thank you, but I think it’s better if you don’t stop by anymore.” With that, she turned and headed around the corner.
He had no doubt she was standing by the door waiting for him to leave but he wasn’t willing to give up just yet. Navy SEALs never quit. He moved toward her sofa. “I get that you’re worried and you’re in trouble. You don’t want to make it worse, but Mia, my job in the Navy is basically dealing with trouble in all kinds of hellholes around the world. I know what I’m doing, and I can handle myself, no question. I’m not afraid of a two-bit thug. More importantly, I can help you keep your friends safe. Let me. I can keep you safe and no matter what happens to me, I guarantee I won’t hold you responsible.”
Carter had no idea why he was so willing to get into the middle of whatever this was to help Mia, but he just knew that he was determined to keep her safe. If he had to guess it was probably a reaction to being holed up in Hawai’i while his CO tried to figure out what the hell was going on with the other half of the team. The last eight months had taken a larger toll than he was willing to admit. It was one thing to go out on an op with his teammates when he knew they had his back when the shit hit the fan. And it always did. It was another thing altogether to have to look over his shoulder to check for ‘friendly fire’ while at the same time fighting the known enemy in front of him.
The bottom line, he was tired of feeling helpless. Of not being able to do his job properly. Of not knowing if he could trust four members of the team who had sworn allegiance to each other. And now being out of the loop with the investigation, made him itchy. He wanted to be in a situation that he could control. That he could affect the outcome without worrying about someone supposedly on his side doing him in. He wanted a situation where he wasn’t helpless and it was clear who the bad guys were.
“Mia, you need help and if I’m honest, I need something to do. There’s a lot going on back on the mainland and currently I can’t be a part of it. I’m not so good with that, so I need a distraction. You would be doing me a favor by letting me get involved. And I swear I can keep you safe and help with your friends.” Okay, that last part might have been an exaggeration but at least he could try.
Mia bit her lip and dropped her hand from the doorknob as she studied him. A pounding on the door made her jump. She stared at it and all the color left her cheeks.
“Let me answer it.” He rushed to her side. In a low voice, he said, “Go stand in the hallway out of sight.”
She hesitated but then the pounding rattled the door again, and she nodded. Carter waited until she was no longer visible, then opened the door a bit and stood in the opening, blocking the view inside. “Hello. Bobby, is it?”
Bobby glared at him. “I want to see Mia. Now.”
“She’s busy.” Carter kept the opening small and looked beyond Bobby to the two henchmen standing behind him.
“Well get her un-busy.”
“No can do. You want to leave a message?”
“Yeah,” Bobby said and then pushed forward expecting the door to open wider when he banged on it. The surprised expression on his face was nearly comical when he realized it didn’t move because Carter’s foot was blocking it and Bobby ended up crashing into the solid wood.
“Fuck,” he snarled. “God damn get her for me now!”
“You’re attracting attention,” Carter pointed out as a woman who was walking her dog paused out in front of the house to watch them. “Unless you want the cops to come, I suggest you leave. Quietly. I’ll tell Mia you were here and ask her to call you.”
Bobby turned to glare at the woman, who then hurried away, tugging her dog along. Bobby swore again as a car rolled slowly passed. “Fine. Tell her to call me ASAP. And if you fuck with me again, you’ll regret it.” He stomped down the steps with his two bruisers in tow.
Carter watched them go and when their van left the curb, he closed the door and locked it.
Mia came out of the hallway with her arms wrapped around her waist.
“Let me help you,” he offered again.
She cocked her head and Carter knew she was considering his offer. Say yes. Say yes , he willed her.
“How can you think you can help me when you have no idea what I’m involved in.”
Now we’re getting somewhere. She was considering his offer. He could work with that. “You’re right, but I’m a Navy SEAL. I’m pretty sure I can handle a few assholes who like to prey on women.”
“What if it’s more than that?”
Carter shrugged. “If I can’t deal with it on my own, I have three other guys who will jump in to help me. We’re part of a team. We stick together no matter what.”
She swallowed and rubbed her face and then she chewed on her bottom lip. Carter had a hard time concentrating. His gaze zeroed in on her lips. Focus , he reminded himself, but she cocked her head, and her hair, which had been pinned up, fell down her back, and he immediately pictured tangling his hands in it. The urge to kiss Mia was so intense he missed her next words. “Sorry?” he mumbled.
“I said, I would have to pay you.”
“Pay me?” The thought was insulting. “I don’t want your money.”
“You don’t accept payment then we don’t do this.” She folded her arms across her chest.
Damn. He hadn’t seen that coming. He gritted his teeth. “Fine, you can pay me.” An idea came to him. “We can work it out in trade. You teach me how to surf and I will help you with your problem.” He wasn’t sure she was going to buy it. How much could surfing lessons cost?
She narrowed her eyes at him. “I’ll tell you what’s going on and you can decide if you truly want to get involved in this mess. If you don’t, that’s fine but you can’t tell anyone, especially the cops. You do that and I’m dead. So are my friends.”
It was a no-brainer. “Agreed.”
Mia went over and sat down on the couch. No sudden movements . He took the matching chair on her right. “Tell me what’s going on.” He spied a hundred dollar bill sticking partially out from under the cushion. Carter said nothing but he knew whatever was coming was going to be much more interesting than he’d anticipated.
Mia spent a solid thirty minutes telling Carter her story. She was succinct and met his eyes. Two good signs. When people meandered in telling their tales, he often felt they were making it up as they went along.
“Bobby sounds like a real piece of work,” he finally commented.
“At this point, I don’t have much of a choice.”
Carter agreed. “Why don’t you go to the cops?” He thought it was a bad idea, but he needed to hear her reasons.
She glared at him. “Are you going to tell them? I already told you bringing in the police would get me killed.”
“I’m not going to tell them, and I agree it might not be the best idea, but I wanted to hear your logic behind the choice.”
She leaned back deeper into the couch and tucked her legs beneath her. “Because I think they, the cops, will make me keep going regardless. It would give them someone on the inside. And then, I lose control. Not that I have that much but if they are involved, I have to do whatever they say. I don’t like that option. Also, Akela would definitely end up in prison and who knows what would happen to Kai. It’s better to keep the cops out of it and deal with it myself. I make the money, pay Bobby off, and then we all go our separate ways.”
Carter seriously doubted that was going to happen. There was no way a guy like Bobby was going to let a golden goose like Mia slip through his fingers. Not in this lifetime. Or any other. “Professional gambling. I gotta say, that was totally unexpected.”
Mia lifted her chin. “I’m unexpected in all kinds of ways.”
She could say that again. Carter was blown away by her and that in itself was a mystery to him. The gambling thing was just the icing on the cake.
“So what do you think? Still think you can help me?” Mia asked.
Carter nodded. “I can. I can keep you safe while you’re gambling and, once I get the lay of the land, maybe I can figure out a way to get Bobby off your back.”
She shook her head. “Don’t mess with Bobby. But if you can keep me safe until I get the money, that would be…helpful. I need to be able to concentrate totally when I play. I don’t want Bobby or anyone else bugging me and I need to know that he’s not going to just show up whenever he wants and catch me off guard.” She shivered.
“Agreed. You should call him before he turns up here again. You need to arrange some sort of meeting location for whatever he wants. Tell him your place is off limits because your neighbors are already asking about him and you’re pretty sure they’ll call the cops if he shows up again. That should keep him away. I’ll go with you to the meeting and make sure you’re okay.”
She nodded and picked up her cell phone. “You sure you’re good with this?” she asked one more time as she dialed.
“More than sure.”
“Okay then,” she agreed.
“I’m just going to get my stuff and I’ll be back shortly. Are you going to be okay here on your own or do you want to come with me?” Carter offered.
Mia looked up, the expression on her face totally confused. “Get your stuff? What are you talking about?”
“You can’t stay here on your own. The threat of the cops will only keep him away for a bit. Either I move in here with you or you move out to my cabin at the ranch, which would be safer, but it’s your choice.” Carter did his best to keep the smile off his face but he had to admit he was looking forward to his new job. Maybe even a bit too much.