Rescuing His Curvy Girl (Rose Protection Agency #3)

Chapter 1

One

Harmony Gibbs brought the cup of coffee to her face and inhaled as if it held all the secrets of life. For her, it did. Or at least the secrets to staying awake after yet another all-nighter when she should have been home sleeping.

I’ll sleep when I’m dead.

Harmony grinned at the words her dad said constantly when she was younger and he was working two jobs, sometimes three, to keep a roof over their heads. It was just the two of them forever, but her dad was determined to help Harmony succeed.

And succeed she did. A top research analyst and on track to earn her Ph.D. in four months, Harmony worked her ass off to get to where she was. A work ethic she definitely learned from her father.

If only he could see her now.

Harmony took a seat by the window, looking out onto the alley. It wasn’t the best view around, but with the way her mind ricocheted, she needed the quiet. Away from other customers and the traffic of the main road the coffee shop faced.

Harmony’s brain finally kicked in about halfway through her caramel latte, the sugar and caffeine waking her up like she hadn’t spent the last twenty-four hours upright.

She reached for the impulse muffin with sugar crystals decorating the top.

A smile lifted her lips as she held up her prize. Like her own precious.

Movement outside caught her eye. The early morning was slowly brightening, but the alley was dark, the shadows long and lingering before the sun could showcase everything happening.

Three men walked from the right. Something about the way they moved kept Harmony’s attention. They were looking for something. Walking together, but checking behind them as if watching for anyone coming.

What the hell?

They made it to the door across the alley and stopped. One of them stepped up and put something against the door. The other two…

Holy shit!

Harmony fumbled for her phone and called nine-one-one.

“Nine-one-one. What is your emergency?”

“Um, there’s a break-in. I’m watching. Three guys. All in dark clothes. One has a gun, and they’re… Oh, my God, they’re inside.”

“Can you hide? Somewhere they won’t see you?”

“No. I mean, I’m not in the building they’re breaking into. I’m at Sunrise Brews. They’re across the alley.”

“And you’re safe?”

“Yes, I’m good. I’m fine. I’m enjoying my muffin.”

The woman on the phone laughed. “Good. That’s great. I’m dispatching the police there right now. Are you available to stick around and speak to them? They’ll need a statement from you.”

“Yeah.” Harmony checked the time. “I’ll stay. This is important.”

“Thank you. Be careful. If the men come out, do not chase them. Let them go. The police will find them.”

“Thanks. Yeah, I’m not looking to get shot. But I don’t want anyone else to, either.”

“I agree. The police should be pulling up now. Do you see them?”

Harmony shook her head before she answered, then heard the sirens. “I hear them.”

“Okay, good. Captain Marcus Patrick will come find you. Can I tell him your name?”

“Oh, yeah. Harmony Gibbs.”

“Thanks Harmony. I’m Mackenzie. Captain Patrick is a good man. He’ll come right to find you.”

“Sounds good. Thanks, Mackenzie.”

“Thank you, Harmony. I hope we don’t talk again soon.”

Harmony chuckled. “Same.”

Damien Joseph parked on the side of the road, wondering why there were so many cops around his favorite coffee shop. He dropped his sunglasses into the cupholder and got out, looking around for a familiar face or two.

Captain Marcus Patrick was walking out of Sunrise Brews, his gaze scanning the crowd in a way that told Damien whatever brought Marcus to the coffee shop wasn’t resolved.

Damien raised his hand to catch Marcus’s attention. Marcus nodded back and waved Damien through the police tape surrounding the area.

“I didn’t realize someone called you. I don’t think we need a protector just yet,” Marcus said as he shook Damien’s hand.

Damien shook his head. “Not here on business. This is my go-to place for a good cup of coffee.”

Marcus looked back at the shop as if he didn’t realize where he’d just walked out of. “Sorry.”

“What’s going on?”

“It’s a weird one. Mackenzie got a call from a woman who said she saw someone breaking into the building next door.” Marcus nodded across the alley.

“Pickens Systems Inc.?”

“Yeah. The witness said she was enjoying her muffin and noticed three men walking up the alley. It was dark, but they were wearing masks, and one was carrying a gun.”

“Whoa.”

“Even harder to believe, they got inside.”

“That place is locked up tight from what I’ve heard.”

Marcus nodded. “Yep. But somehow these three got inside in a few seconds.”

“Then what?”

Marcus exhaled a mirthless chuckle. “That’s where shit gets really weird. They avoided all cameras and all the security and made it up to the CEO’s office.”

“What?”

“Yeah. No faults, no overrides. Nothing that explains how they made it through a building stuffed with security and got in front of a man who’s worth more than half the city combined.”

“What did they want from him?”

“Don’t know. Grant Pickens said there was only one guy and he wanted his help, then they heard sirens and the guy ran.”

“Is he in custody?”

“Yeah, but he’s not talking. Lawyered up in a hurry.”

“What happened to the other two?”

Marcus shrugged. “No clue. No one saw anything, and Mr. Pickens is adamant there was only one person. Did the other two pose as employees, or were they employees this guy used to get inside? Was there really only one guy? Did they get outside and leave their guy behind?”

“Wow. You would think they’d have cameras to capture everything. What about the witness? Do you believe her?”

Marcus sighed. “I do. She was pretty convinced she saw three people.”

“You think she’s safe with two others out there?”

“I asked if she wanted protection, and she said no. She was running late for work and asked for a copy of the police report to show her boss, but that was it.”

Damien snorted. “That’s interesting.”

Marcus laughed. “Yeah. She’s a research assistant and Ph.D. candidate. Smart woman. She worked all night and was going back to work today.”

Damien winced. “Really? Is she reliable?”

“We caught someone. Maybe not three guys, but we caught one. That makes me think she’s more reliable than not.”

“Good point.”

An officer called Marcus’s name. He held up a finger before turning back to Damien. “I need to go. Enjoy your coffee.”

“Thanks. Good luck, Marcus.”

Marcus nodded and headed across the alley to the officer standing by the door.

Damien watched them talk for a minute, then walked into the coffee shop for his caffeine fix.

Harmony had never been so happy to see her bed in her entire life. She was exhausted. After working through the night, the excitement of her morning, and working another full day, she needed all the sleep she could get.

Her boss, Doctor Griffiths, let Harmony being late slide when she produced the business card from the police captain. Doctor Griffiths still wanted to see the police report when it was available, but at least Harmony didn’t get in trouble.

Her stomach growled loudly, and Harmony groaned. All she wanted to do was sleep. She was so tired and had been running on caffeine and adrenaline. But if she didn’t eat something, she knew she’d be up in a few hours and feeling even worse.

Harmony groaned and pushed herself upright again. Her legs protested. She wobbled, catching herself on the edge of the bed. She paused, focusing her energy, and tried again.

She made it to the kitchen and opened her empty refrigerator. Unless expired half and half and condiments counted as food. To her growling stomach, they did not.

She pivoted to the pantry. Pasta but nothing to put on it. Peanut butter but no bread or jelly. Can of soup? That wouldn’t hold her long enough.

She went back to the freezer, hoping something would appear that she’d forgotten about. Ice cream would be good but probably wouldn’t keep her asleep all night.

“Victory!” Harmony cried when she spotted a freezer-burned bagel. She snatched it from the bottom of the drawer, then hesitated and grabbed the ice cream, too.

She tossed the bagel into the toaster, cursing herself for not thinking to split the two halves apart before she froze it, and grabbed a spoon.

She opened the ice cream and leaned against the counter.

The vanilla had just the right amount of sweetness, and the chocolate and peanut butter ribbons added a good balance.

The chocolate-covered pretzels provided a crunch and a touch of salty to give her that sweet and salty combo that made her stomach happy.

It was ice cream perfection as far as Harmony was concerned.

The toaster oven dinged. She set the ice cream down and pulled out her frozen on the inside, burning on the outside bagel. She split it apart and flipped the insides down so they would toast, then went back to her ice cream.

She carried the container to her curbside-rescued couch and turned on the too small TV she didn’t watch enough to warrant something bigger.

A sitcom she wasn’t familiar with played on the channel she’d last watched.

Harmony laughed at the hijinks of the characters and left the channel on as she finished her ice cream and retrieved her bagel.

She slathered peanut butter over the almost-burnt bagel and knew she needed to go to the grocery store soon or she really would starve.

The sitcom ended, and the news came on. The top story was the break-in she witnessed.

A man in a fancy suit smiled at the reporter next to him. There was something in his gaze. Something… Harmony couldn’t figure it out.

“Mr. Pickens, thank you for speaking to me today. I know you’ve had a tough day.”

The man in the suit, apparently Mr. Pickens, nodded. “I have. I never thought I’d be going through anything like this.”

“In your business, you have top security. Do you have any idea how someone got inside?”