A Time to Die. BEVERLY BARTON

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СКАЧАТЬ over her shoulder at them, and the other remained seated, partially blocked from Deke’s view by the other two.

      He recognized Cara Bedell immediately: tall, statuesque and redheaded. Although not as pretty as Lucie Evans, there was something about Ms. Bedell that reminded him of the Dundee agent. They were approximately the same height and size, but Lucie was a few years older and her hair a deeper, darker shade of red.

      Ms. Bedell moved forward, her hand outstretched. “You’re from Dundee Security?”

      “Yes, ma’am.” Deke shook her hand. “I’m Deke Bronson.” He hitched his thumb in Geoff’s direction. “This is Geoff Monday.”

      “I assume that Sawyer explained the situation, and you understand that I want you two on the job until we find the person behind today’s bombing,” Cara said.

      “Yes, ma’am,” Deke replied.

      She turned to Desmond. “I expect daily updates from the police department. And I want any information you can legally share with Dundee Security to be shared with Mr. Bronson and Mr. Monday. Understood?”

      “Yeah, I understand,” Desmond said, a flash of irritation in his gaze.

      Cara Bedell turned to the tall, slender African-American woman with curly black hair and striking hazel eyes. “Take tomorrow off, Toni. I don’t want anyone coming to work here until we get heavier security in place.”

      “No problem, Ms. Bedell. After what happened, I’m not eager to come back.” Toni turned to the seated woman. “Jafari is waiting for me downstairs. I’ll call you at home later. Are you’re sure you’re all right? You don’t need to go to the ER or…?”

      “The medics checked me out,” the woman said. “I’ve got a bruise on one knee and a slight bump on my forehead. I’m fine. Go home. Call me tomorrow. I should know by then if we can return to work Friday.”

      Deke and Geoff watched Toni as she exited the office, both quite aware of how attractive she was. Then Deke faced the seated woman. Beautiful didn’t quite describe her. Exquisite might come close. Blond hair hung below her shoulders in soft, loose curls. Blue eyes were framed by thick, dark lashes. A peaches-and-cream complexion was touched with a fading summer tan. He blinked once, twice and then closed his eyes for a couple of seconds, certain his vision was playing tricks on him.

      When he reopened his eyes, his gaze connected with the lady’s. Momentarily robbed of breath, he stared at her. It had been ten years, but seeing her again, he felt as if it had been only yesterday. Hers was the face that had haunted his dreams ever since that bloody day in the capital of Gadi when she had gotten caught in the crossfire between his team and Babu Tum’s guards.

      She rose from the chair, leaning heavily on a decorative wooden cane with a bronze handle. He didn’t move. Didn’t speak. She took a step toward him, then held out her free hand.

      “I’m Lexie Murrough, the president of Helping Hands.”

      CHAPTER TWO

      LEXIE GAZED at the big, dark man standing in front of her, and an involuntary shiver rippled along her nerve endings. Sexual awareness, plain and simple. Although not actually handsome—he was far too rugged to be good-looking—he possessed a raw, masculine magnetism that overwhelmed her senses. She couldn’t remember ever having had such a strong reaction to a man.

      Before Mr. Bronson could shake her hand, the stoutly built blond guy stepped between them and grinned at her. “I’m Geoff Monday. I believe I’m your bodyguard, Ms. Murrough.”

      Deke Bronson grasped his co-worker’s shoulder and urged him aside. “No, you’ve got that wrong. I’ll be guarding Ms. Murrough.” He nodded toward Cara. “Ms. Bedell is your assignment.”

      “Are you sure about this?” Mr. Monday said.

      “Positive,” Mr. Bronson replied, a look of certainty and determination in his dark gray eyes.

      Lexie’s heart skipped a beat. Heaven help her! She instinctively understood that Deke Bronson had claimed her, and his possessive attitude felt oddly personal. If this was some sort of one-upmanship between the two Dundee agents, she really didn’t understand why either would consider her the prize. After all, Cara Bedell was the billionaire heiress.

      “Look, whichever one of you is my guy, I’m ready to leave,” Cara told them in an authoritarian tone, one she had perfected from years of having underlings jump at her every command. Lexie knew that Cara didn’t realize how extremely bossy she was, how often people misunderstood her aggressive personality, mistaking it for arrogance and rudeness.

      The two agents shared a quick, hard glance, then Geoff Monday walked over to Cara, grinned and gestured toward the door. “Whenever you’re ready, Ms. Bedell.”

      “Lexie, I’ll be in touch first thing tomorrow. Hopefully, the police—” Cara cast Bain Desmond an imperious glare “—will have some information for us by then and we’ll know how to proceed.” She turned to Deke Bronson. “Take good care of Lexie. She’s one of the few people I know who’s actually worth her weight in gold.”

      Deke nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

      As soon as Cara and Geoff left, Lexie smiled at the Dundee agent. “If you’ll give me just a minute, I’ll be ready to go.”

      He nodded.

      “He’ll be staying with you 24/7,” Cara had told her, after she’d made the arrangements—without first consulting Lexie for an opinion—explaining that she had hired a couple of Dundee agents to act as bodyguards for the two of them. “I’d feel better if you moved in with me for the time being, but I know you won’t do that. So do not argue with me about needing around-the-clock protection. Until we know who and what we’re dealing with, we have to work under the assumption that your life is in danger.”

      Hours after the explosion, Lexie was still a bit shaky and unnerved. Leaning heavily on her cane, she walked over to Bain. As she placed her hand on his arm, she felt Deke Bronson’s intense stare. In her peripheral vision, she noticed that he was watching her closely. Don’t assume anything, she told herself. It’s nothing personal. It’s his job to watch over you.

      “I’m sorry about tonight,” Lexie told Bain. “I was looking forward to the burgers and our getting started on your Christmas shopping.”

      “Another time.” Bain patted her hand affectionately, then glanced over at Deke. “Take good care of her. When it comes to Lexie, Ms. Bedell is right. Only I’d say Lexie is priceless.”

      “I’ll protect Ms. Murrough with my life,” Deke said.

      Bain lifted an eyebrow. Lexie’s breath caught in her throat.

      She kissed Bain on the cheek. When she turned to Deke, she noted the scowl on his face and the tension in his jaw. Undoubtedly he was one of those people who didn’t approve of showing affection in public. Well, too bad. She believed in it. She was a touchy-feely person. She hugged and kissed friends without giving her actions a second thought.

      “My car or yours?” she asked as they walked out into the hallway, Deke two steps behind her.

      “Yours. I drove over from Atlanta in a rental, which is supposed to be picked up later today. СКАЧАТЬ