her lips trembling.
Dani handed another blanket to Cole but he tossed it on the sofa. She looked up at him, her gaze filled with questions.
He telegraphed an I’ll-tell-you-later look and went to the lamp. “We need to turn off the lights until I’m sure we’re secure.”
Dani didn’t question him. He turned off the lamps, and she went for the wall switch.
He nodded at the bank of windows on the far side of the room. “Blinds next.”
He grabbed the remote and set the blinds in motion on the floor-to-ceiling windows facing the ocean. The motor whirred, slowly bringing down the blinds but not before he caught sight of the two men trudging along the beach far too close to the house for comfort.
Cole glanced at Alyssa sitting wide-eyed on the couch, the blanket doing nothing to stop her shivering. He’d taken on the responsibility of protecting her, but was he up to the task if he couldn’t put behind him the loss of his buddy in Iraq? A loss that was all Cole’s fault.
Shake it off, he warned himself as he’d done when he needed to finish out his last tour after Mac died.
“Take Alyssa to the hallway,” he barked at his sister. “If we have a breach, take her out the garage door and evacuate.”
Dani didn’t hesitate but hurried to Alyssa and lifted her by the arm.
“What’s happening?” Alyssa’s voice rose in alarm.
“The men who were following you are heading toward the deck.” Cole didn’t have to say any more. The look on Alyssa’s face said it all.
If he didn’t somehow stop these men from getting inside and figuring out she was the one who overheard them, her life would be at stake—and his and Dani’s, too.
TWO
Once in the long hallway, Alyssa shook off Dani’s arm and peered around the corner. Framed in a shaft of light seeping through the small window from the outdoor security light, Cole stood at the ready. Alyssa could only gape at him.
He had a gun. A gun, for goodness’ sakes! Apparently, he’d had it with him all this time. While he’d held her. While he’d carried her and she’d rested her head trustingly on his chest, he’d been armed like the men chasing her.
“Stay here.” Dani shot across the room, surefooted even in the dim lighting, and joined her brother. She swooped down and pulled a weapon from an ankle holster, the grace and ease of the movement proving she’d done so many times before.
Seriously? Both of them had guns?
“Who are you people?” Alyssa asked, surprised at how shrill her voice sounded.
“All you need to know right now is that we’re here to help you.” Cole kept his intense focus on the window in the door.
Should she have blindly trusted a strange man on the beach? Had she traded one set of killers for another?
Neither of them looked like killers, and Cole had said he used to be a U.S. Marshal...but then Nolan was a cop and now she had reason to believe he’d murdered Todd.
Unbelievable!
How could she ever imagine when she’d set off tonight that the man who’d cared for them since Todd died was the one who’d ended Todd’s life? Now she didn’t know what or who to believe. Who to trust.
“Looks like they’re moving down the beach,” Cole said, grabbing Alyssa’s attention. “Head upstairs, Dani, and keep an eye on them until they’re out of sight.”
Dani gave a clipped nod and Alyssa stepped back into the main room. Dani jogged to the open staircase on long legs that took her up the steps in a flash.
Cole lowered his gun, but kept it gripped between both of his hands and his focus on the door. Silhouetted by the outside light, his long-sleeved shirt clung to his body, molding to muscles she knew were rock hard from when he’d carried her to the house. He was tall—well over six feet she figured. She had to look up at him and she easily cleared five-eleven without shoes. Chestnut-colored hair covered his collar and had a slight wave as it started to dry.
“We’re clear, Cole.” Dani’s voice came from upstairs, and Alyssa pulled her focus from him to watch Dani run down the stairs. “Go ahead and have a seat, Alyssa.”
“Now would be a good time to tell me who you are and why you have guns.” Alyssa directed her comment to Dani, who hadn’t asked a single question of Cole. If Alyssa had a brother who brought home a soaked stray, she’d be peppering him with nonstop questions.
Dani just smiled, lighting up a beautiful face surrounded by natural blond waves. She clicked on a lamp, flooding the room with light. Alyssa blinked until her eyes adjusted; by that time Cole was joining her. His lips tipped in a warm smile. Instead of making Alyssa feel welcome the way Dani’s had, it surprised her when her heart started beating a little bit faster.
She dropped onto the sofa and adjusted the blanket to hide her surprise.
“You okay?” He sat on the table facing her and set his weapon next to him.
“Yes.” She looked into sharp blue eyes that missed nothing yet were kind. She felt a warm connection. Not an earth-shattering, startling sizzle—just a feeling that he was a good and honorable man.
“Alyssa,” he said, breaking the spell and making her jump, “whatever’s going on with you, we can help work through it. That’s what we do and we’d gladly accept you as a client.”
She watched him, searching for duplicitous motives. She found only kindness laced with something that resembled sorrow.
“A client?” she asked.
“Remember I told you I used to be a marshal?” Cole’s gaze didn’t waver. “Well, all of my brothers and sisters used to work in law enforcement, too. Now we operate a private investigations agency in Portland. We’re a nonprofit agency that specializes in providing free services to people who are in need but can’t afford quality investigators.”
Private investigators? Maybe they could help her find out if Nolan killed Todd.
“Wait.” Dani came forward and those questions that hadn’t been asked earlier lingered on her face. “Alyssa’s not a client?”
“Not yet,” Cole said. “We just met on the beach, but it seems like she’s a good candidate for our help.”
“No wonder you were freaked out by our guns.” Dani grabbed a laptop from the table and plopped onto the sofa. She typed for a few moments, then swiveled the screen toward Alyssa. “Here’s our company Web site. This tells you a little about our family. Just so you know we’re legit.”
Thankful Dani seemed to be a mind reader, Alyssa focused on the About Us page on a professional Web site for The Justice Agency. The page contained no photos but held bios for each of them. Five siblings. Three men and two women. She scanned the page, aware that Dani and Cole were both watching her, but she wouldn’t hurry and miss a single word. If she was going to consider letting them help her
