Chapter Four
Jude watched the myriad of emotions shift over Ivy’s face.
He’d avoided people like her his whole life, especially women.
There was a softness to her. A certain innocence.
His parents had been the same way. They wore their hearts on their sleeves and would have no problem dropping everything to help a neighbor or even a stranger.
They believed that people were genuinely good and that had been their downfall.
He hadn’t realized how dangerous Ivy was until she had touched his cheek with such tenderness.
He was a stranger. Through her eyes, he must seem gruff, hard, even downright menacing, and yet she’d looked at him with such compassion it nearly took his feet out from under him.
When she’d mentioned needing to get home to some guy named Ash, a surge of something white-hot and ugly had flashed through him.
Fucking ridiculous. Just because he’d found her and carried her to his rental cabin didn’t mean he had any claim to her—not that he’d want to if he could.
He didn’t know this woman, and he didn’t date as a rule.
He’d never felt jealous with anyone, so to have it happen with a stranger was staggering.
The relief that poured through him when she said Ash was her brother was just as unacceptable as the jealousy itself.
Now she was speaking with her brother. The volume of the phone made the conversation audible, and he didn’t give a shit that he was eavesdropping.
He knew a Virginia Navy SEAL who’d married a flight medic and the woman’s son had autism.
The son had saved her life when some fucked-up family drama went down in Texas.
He’d also helped to open a pizza restaurant with his classmates—one who was the brother of another SEAL on the same team.
He and his task force had taken courses on identifying neurodivergence to better assist the individuals they encountered on the job.
He was searching his memory, trying to identify challenges Ivy’s brother might face with this change of plans, when his phone rang.
He glanced at the screen and approval settled in his chest. His team was fast and efficient.
“Hayes,” he answered.
“Sir, we just arrived on the property. The truck is gone, and the tire marks stop when they exit the property. The tech department is trying to locate the vehicle on street cameras. Footprint patterns are consistent with the woman’s story.
I have a set of women’s size six followed by two sets of men’s boots. ”
“Did you find a…” He paused. What the hell had she called the thing? “A black fanny pack?”
His agent stated something in his comm unit and must’ve received an answer back through the device in his ear. “Yes, sir. At the back of the property. The zipper is open and there are no contents inside.”
“Good work. As soon as the weather clears, I’ll bring the woman into the office for an official statement.
I want local law enforcement increasing their presence on her street for the time being.
The men who pursued her might try to find her there.
If the bag was empty, they have the keys to her truck and apartment, along with her identification and address.
Based on the recording, they’re not going to want her to be a loose end. ”
“Understood.”
He hung up the call and immediately dialed another number. It wasn’t often he leaned on others, but he hated the thought of Ivy’s brother being vulnerable in their apartment.
“Hello, Jude.” He could hear the smile in the voice of Red’s wife.
“Thalia, is Red there?”
“Yes. He’s driving. I’ll switch you to speaker.” If he listened closely, he could hear the rain bouncing against the car and the whoosh of the wipers.
“Jude?”
“Hey, Red. I need a favor.” The rain continued to come down hard and every so often the cabin would illuminate with a streak of lightning.
“Name it.”
“Need transportation for a friend’s brother.
Their apartment complex might be compromised.
” He stated the address, fully expecting Red to be an hour or so away.
All he could do was hope that his friend arrived before anyone with nefarious intentions.
Ash could always take a cab, and Red could check in to make sure he’d made it to his girlfriend’s house.
“We’re not even ten minutes from there. Tiny’s vet is the neighboring town. We just left there and are headed back to Coronado. No reason we can’t stop in and help.”
If anyone else told him they’d driven so far to take a lizard to a vet, he might be concerned but he knew the iguana held special significance for Red and Thalia.
Plus, the dog-sized reptile was downright congenial after living with Red its whole life.
He crossed the room to Ivy, who was still on the phone, so he could fill her in on the transportation for Ash.
“My friend, Mason Williams, is on his way to the apartment. He’ll go to the door, knock, and show his identification. He has red hair and a beard. He’ll take Ash where he needs to go. He’s about ten minutes out.”
“Did you hear that, Ash?”
“Yes. A stranger is going to pick me up at the apartment.”
“You can ask for his I.D.” She had to look up to meet Jude’s eyes.
“You don’t have to share any personal information with him, but you can trust him to get you to Jess’s condo.
I trust Jude to get me home when it’s safe, but you’ll need to stay with Jess until you hear from me.
Otherwise, you can continue your weekly schedule, just from Jess’s condo. I love you. Please be safe.”
He said goodbye to Thalia and Red, then disconnected the call after only half processing their goodbyes.
He couldn’t concentrate. Not when Ivy’s words resonated in his chest. I trust Jude to get me home when it’s safe.
Maybe she just said the words to calm her brother, but the way she looked up at him when she said it?
Fuck, he could practically see the truth radiating through those warm, trusting eyes.
He clenched his jaw tightly, hating that this innocent woman had been dragged into something so depraved.
They’d been searching for a lead, any hint that the missing children might be linked to a trafficking case.
What were the odds that his recent anguish would lead him here at the exact time this woman needed his help?
A woman who by some curse or miracle found herself in the middle of a potential crime ring.
Not only that, but she’d been intuitive enough to recognize danger and record the men.
The audio was as clear as if his team had bugged the house.
“Your brother—is he okay with the plan?”
“It’s going to be hard for him. Usually when there’s a change of plans, I update this schedule we have, and it makes things easier. On Sundays we work on one of those big three-thousand-piece puzzles and order pizza.”
His stomach knotted as an image popped into his head.
One of him and his family sitting around a board game.
Pizza off to one side. Popcorn on the other.
Their Friday night tradition. Christ, he hadn’t thought of that in years.
Didn’t want to think about what he’d lost, but this woman seemed to intensify those memories.
There would always be darkness inside him.
He couldn’t escape that, which is why he did his best to forget all the light and happiness he’d once had.
“Jude?” Once again, the tips of her fingers pressed into his skin. This time his arm, not his face, but her touch was no less potent. He jerked away.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I don’t know why I keep doing that. Ash hates being touched by people without his consent first, so you’d think I’d be able to honor your personal boundaries, too. It won’t happen again.”
Jesus. He was a prick. Jude wanted to tell her it was okay but the fact that he suddenly felt cold without her petite hands gripping his arm was all he needed to simply give her a curt nod. “If you had access to a laptop, could you update his schedule?”
Her gaze met his, eyes brightening as though he’d just given her a gift.
She didn’t hold back her smile, and it made his breath catch in his chest. He’d done his best to ignore how pretty she was, but with that smile aimed in his direction he couldn’t deny what was right in front of him.
Her face was heart-shaped and free of makeup.
Her large eyes glittered in varying shades of golden brown.
She was petite but he hadn’t missed her curves as he held her against him on the walk toward the cabin.
Annoyed with himself, he spun around—not able to reciprocate her sweet smile—and went to retrieve his laptop.
When he returned, he expected to see frustration on her face, but she simply thanked him for letting her use his computer and settled on the couch.
He couldn’t deny he was interested in what she was doing, so he made himself busy and brewed a pot of coffee.
“That smells amazing.” She sighed from her space on the sofa.
“I don’t have any cream or sugar,” he grumbled.
“If you share, I promise I won’t complain.” She was peering at him with an animated expression. Like one of those cartoons where the character’s eyes went wide as they pleaded for something.
His lips quirked, shocking the shit out of him.
He couldn’t remember the last time he smiled.
“Fuck.” He bit out a string of expletives as the boiling liquid splashed over his wrist instead of into the cup.
He dropped the mug, and it shattered on the floor.
Before he could even move to set down the pot, Ivy was there removing it from his hands.
She flipped on the kitchen sink, took his arm, and positioned it under the cool water.
“Ouch,” she soothed. “Burns hurt. I’m sorry I distracted you.”
“You didn’t,” he said through clenched teeth, wishing she didn’t look so goddamn cute with concern furrowing her brow.
He couldn’t remember the last time someone worried over him.
It felt too familial, like something his mother might’ve done.
The pain along his skin was suddenly unnoticeable compared to the crushing agony in his chest. The memory of his mother kneeling on the bathroom floor cleansing a skinned knee.
His dad telling jokes as he leaned just inside the doorframe, distracting him.
The rustle behind him made him turn. Ivy was already crouched over the mess he’d made, sweeping the shards of glass into a dustpan.
“Leave it,” he said over his shoulder. “You’re going to cut yourself.”
He jerked back when her laughter filled the space. “Seriously? I think I can manage.”
Jude wasn’t used to be questioned or laughed at for that matter. He didn’t care for it. Keeping people at arm’s length was ineffective when the other party seemed to completely dismiss his standoffish attitude. She poured the glass into the small waste bin at the corner of the kitchenette.
“Keep your hand under the water,” she said and left the room.
Great, now she was giving him instructions.
That was another thing he wasn’t used to.
People looked to him for answers and direction, not the other way around.
He hated how off-kilter this woman made him feel.
How immune she seemed to his rough demeanor, which had always effectively kept others away.
She returned moments later with the first aid kit he’d used on her. “Okay, let me have a look.”
“I can handle it.”
“You could, but why not take advantage of having another person here?”
A carnal thought struck him and he shifted uncomfortably.
Jesus, he needed to get her out of here.
The second they arrived at the task force office he was handing her over to one of his agents to deal with.
The mere thought of passing her off to someone else had his muscles clenching with possessiveness.
More reason to assign someone else to this woman.
He was so disturbed by the feelings coursing through him, he didn’t notice the water had switched off until she was gently patting the burned area of his skin dry.
She applied a packet of burn ointment onto a cotton swab and dabbed it over his red skin before covering it in gauze.
He continued to watch her, dumbfounded, as she cleaned up the first aid kit, then reached into the cabinet above her head and took down two more mugs.
She poured them coffee, setting one in front of him, then picking up her own with both hands.
She peered at him over the rim and blew along the top.
“Thanks,” he said.
She nodded, still staring at him like she could see through to his soul. He shifted, uncomfortable with the attention. “Are you okay?”
“Me?” He took a gulp of his coffee, forgetting it was radioactive hot, and forced himself to gulp it down so he didn’t look like an even bigger idiot. “You’re the one who was unconscious in the forest during a storm. The one who was chased and shot at—and you’re asking me if I’m okay?”
She took her own tentative sip, much more cautiously than he had.
“You told me you came here for solitude. It didn’t escape my notice that there’s an empty bottle of whiskey on the table.
Some beer cans in the trash. You sobered fast enough, but your eyes look tired.
Not the I need more sleep tired, but tired tired.
Like the world has flattened you but you keep pushing forward.
I can tell you’re holding on to something heavy and I… ”
“No.” He clenched the handle of his mug.
“I’m not looking for a friend. Certainly not looking for a fucking therapy session.
You have something I need. Once it stops raining, we’ll hike down to my truck.
Then you’ll give your statement at my office, and I’ll have an agent drive you home.
” Shit. She was a nice girl. Didn’t deserve his toxic attitude.
Self-preservation had the words spewing from his lips.
The more he started to feel something stirring inside him, though, the more of an asshole he became.
It was on the tip of his tongue to apologize—another first. He bit the words back and shot her a hard glare.
Instead of shrinking back or looking hurt, her expression was passive.
She simply nodded, looking almost bored, then stepped to the side, allowing him to pass.
He took his mug with him, stalking out of the room.