Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Ryker unlocked the door to his home, which, on the outside, looked like an abandoned warehouse.
He used it only in case of emergencies, preferring hotel food over cooking for himself.
After the attempted assassination at the hotel, he had no choice.
He reset the security alarm before stepping onto the lift up to the top floor to his residence.
The nicely furnished apartment had been compliments of Eve, and he didn’t have the heart to change a thing.
He rubbed his chest to ease his aching heart as he gazed at the floral paintings she’d hung on his walls.
He had a whole storage shed full of her others, which used to hang in her studio.
He’d been careless back then, but not anymore.
He pressed a kiss to his fingers and touched his favorite painting.
“It’s almost over. He’s going to come after her like he did you, only this time I’ll be there to stop him.”
He flicked on the power of the six flat screens hanging on the wall and booted his personal computer. He was in for a long night.
Ryker walked into the kitchen. The stainless steel pans hanging above the island shined, confirming that Rosemary was still keeping the place clean.
He yanked the fridge open to find it bare, save the six pack of Miller Lite and a couple cans of Dr. Pepper he’d left the last time he’d been back.
Grabbing a can of soda, he walked back into the open living room.
The room had a dual personality, much like his own.
One part looked like command central, with high-tech computers and equipment and the wall full of monitors, the best that money could buy.
The other side of the room looked like a normal living space, complete with leather sofas, his favorite La-Z-Boy, and another big screen TV hanging on the wall. The life he used to have.
He opened the soda and took a sip as he slid into his computer chair.
The leather creaked beneath his weight as he pulled up the surveillance around Harper’s house on three screens, and on the other three, he pulled up the hidden cameras he’d placed inside her residence.
He hit the switch to turn on the audio. He’d keep her safe.
He wouldn’t make the same mistake again.
Harper had already made it home. She’d changed into yoga pants and a tank top.
Her outfit of choice when she was home alone.
His outfit of choice when he watched her.
The tank top hugged the swells of her breasts.
The yoga pants clung to her every mouthwatering curve.
He would have definitely seduced her into bed if given the chance. He still might.
He engaged the motion sensors around the perimeter of her house.
They’d trigger an alert through his system if anyone got too close.
Not that she had many visitors during the week.
A few of her sisters and the family friends, including the kilt-wearing Ian MacDougall, had been within an arm’s reach of her all night.
Harper booted her laptop and disappeared into her kitchen, returning with a glass of wine.
She was one of the easier ones to watch.
He watched as she surfed the web, and only then did he start to play.
Within seconds, he’d taken remote command of her computer and started a video of a woman thoroughly being kissed on the bed. He typed a message across the screen.
This could be you.
Her eyes narrowed as her gaze shifted around her house. He knew what she was looking for, not that she’d ever find his hiding spots. She picked up her phone, punishingly pressing the keyboard to send him a message.
You have video in my house!?!?!?!?!?!?
Ryker changed the video for her to one of cats and chuckled before he called her.
“What kind of protector would I be if I didn’t?”
“You aren’t a protector; you’re a voyeur.” She rose from her couch, walked to the window and peeked outside.
“Calling me a voyeur makes it sound like I’m watching you have sex. I haven’t been that lucky.”
“And you won’t be,” she said, returning to her computer. She logged off, put the laptop away and picked up her wine, sloshing it around while gesturing with her hands. “I’m never having sex in these walls again. I’m going to have to move or rent a hotel. Now, look what you’ve made me do.”
He remembered saying those words the day before to the woman who’d tried to filet him. Just one more reminder why he needed to keep his head in the game. His enemies would eat her for lunch and leave her broken, if not dead. “Get some rest, Harper. You look tired.”
“Bite me,” she said and took a sip of her wine, resettling into her favorite spot on the couch.
“How do you even know this Richard guy is coming for me? We haven’t seen him yet.
He can’t be very efficient if he’s missed all those thirty times I’ve been vulnerable.
How do I even know you’re telling the truth? ”
“Because you aren’t the only one he used.
” Ryker’s answer tasted like razor blades going down his throat.
All he heard was the quick intake of her breath.
Her picture on the screen told him so much more.
The color had drained from her face. Her glass held frozen in mid-air.
She was scared, and she damn well better be.
“Who else?” Her words were whispered.
“My sister-in-law. Get some sleep, Harper. You’re safe tonight. You have my word.”
With that, he hung up. Saying the words made his heart clench.
He watched Harper on the screen. She sat with the phone clutched in her hand and her head down.
He couldn’t read her expression, but he didn’t have to.
He could imagine her thoughts. What if it had been one of her sisters who had been killed?
That alone would have her being more vigilant.
He remembered the hurt in Eve’s eyes when she’d finally told her family about her abilities.
The way her entire family shunned her and made her feel like a freak for her gifts, suggesting she join the military like her step-brother.
They’d destroyed her spirit. She’d been broken, and he’d been the one to pick up the pieces.
It was his fault that she’d ever entertained the idea of working for his company six months prior to her big family reveal.
It was she who confided in the Thatcher sisters and asked for directions about her career.
Unbeknownst to them, they’d helped him pull her out of the depression even his brother couldn’t see.
Ryker’s urging her to use her abilities had cost her; she paid with her life. It was his fault she was dead. He’d be damned if he let anyone hurt Harper. He wouldn’t let Richard Grant anywhere near her. Not while he was watching.
After a sleepless night, Ryker had just stepped out of the shower and now ran a towel over his head as he flipped through the screens in his hunt for Harper.
He found her in her room, packing a bag.
He tossed the towel over a chair and grabbed his phone, dialing her number.
She paused when it rang and then ignored the damn phone.
She was going to run. He could feel it in every fiber of his bones.
Ryker hurried to dress, never letting his eyes stray from the computer for more than a few seconds.
If he was going to stop her, he needed to get to her and fast. When she picked up the phone, he couldn’t see who she was calling, so he clicked on the audio.
“Hey, it’s me,” she said in a hushed tone, so he turned up the volume. “You remember our little talk? You were right, and I need your help.”
He couldn’t hear who she was talking to or what was being said. The one-way conversation had him clenching his teeth as he slipped a foot into his boot.
“You’re on sister duty. Keep them safe.”
What the hell did the woman think she was doing? And where the hell was she headed? She couldn’t possibly have a clue on where to find Richard. If she had, she would have said something, wouldn’t she?”
Harper slid her suitcase closed, and Ryker had to switch screens to follow as she locked up her house and stepped outside. Her gaze scanned the streets before she got into a fucking cab. Had she known about the GPS on her car?
A flash of the cab company name on the side of the car and a few minutes later, he had hacked into their system and pulled up the cab’s GPS. He watched as it took her to the last place he ever thought she’d go. Her office.
He didn’t know if he should be relieved or pissed off. Ryker grabbed his keys, and within minutes, he was dodging traffic toward her destination. If he didn’t catch her there, he might not be able to track her any further. It was his only hope of stopping whatever game she was playing.