Tag: crime

She was finally afraid of him.

She should be, but Adam felt he didn’t like knowing that Zara now feared him.

It was his own fault, he’d jumped to conclusions and was glad he hadn’t acted and done something he couldn’t take back. Like kill her.

When he returned with his first aid kit and supplies he found Zara huddled on the couch, her face tight with pain, her eyes wide with fear. She shrunk away from him and he hated it.

“I can explain,” he said as he knelt on the floor beside the couch, and began to clean the gunshot wound with a wet cloth. “I knew that man too. His name is Warren Warrick and he’s the one who killed the rest of my team. I was taken alive to a remote camp, tortured for almost three weeks for information, I killed him when I escaped. I was medically discharged when I returned to the States, and I moved my family out here, to what used to be my maternal grandparents estate. Its remote, has good security, I thought I could defend it, defend them, here. Turns out I was the threat they needed protection from. But Warrick and whoever he was working for must have found out you were here, decided to take out both of us.”

Zara was staring at him wide eyes. “I didn’t know. I swear, Adam, I didn’t know he did that to you. I’m so sorry. I told you this was my fault. My father likes to keep tabs on me, he must have had me followed, or bugged my things or something. I’m so sorry, but I swear I didn’t lead him here on purpose.”

“I believe you.” He did, too. “This is going to hurt,” he told her as he held up a sterile pair of tweezers. “Bullet is still in there, I need to get it out.”

She nodded, her skin a sickly gray, her jaw clamped tightly together. She looked prepared but he was the one who hesitated, feeling queasy at the thought of causing her more pain.

But he did what had to be done. Removing the bullet, ignoring Zara’s whimpers, then cleaning and bandaging the wound.

“What are we going to do now?” Zara asked after she’d taken the painkillers he’d offered.

He had a plan, but he had no idea if Zara would be willing to go along with it. If she didn’t he’d leave her here, get her to hide, then call he cops, leaving her safety in their hands. It didn’t sit well with him but he wouldn’t force her to go with him if she was afraid of him now. “Do you trust me?”

Her brown eyes met his squarely, there was fear in them, pain too, but when she spoke her voice was firm. “I trust you.”

Adam felt his entire body sag in relief. He’d only met this woman yesterday but there was something about her that touched him in places he’d thought were broken, damaged beyond repair. He would protect her with his life.

Pain burned through her leg, and Zara cried out in surprise.

Adam lunged at her, wrapping an arm around her waist and taking her to the ground in one smooth motion. He rolled them so he took the brunt of the impact then rolled them behind the stone pizza oven.

“Stay down,” he ordered as he reached up to do something.

A man she thought was dead was walking towards them. Zara gasped. She had to be wrong but she wasn’t. He was there, with a gun, and that same evil smirk she remembered so well.

He was going to kill her, Adam too, although she had no idea why he had followed her here or why he wanted her dead.

She scrunched her eyes closed, unable to watch the gunshot that would end her life.

The gunshot was loud.

She waited for pain, or blackness, or white lights, or whatever accompanied death, but there was nothing.

“We have to get moving, they’ll send more men,” Adam said, and she felt his arms slip beneath her knees and around her shoulders and he lifted her.

Cautiously she cracked open an eye to see if she really wasn’t dead and saw the man who had come after her was the one who had died.

Adam must of shot him first.

Now he was carrying her quickly back inside. She’s brought trouble to his peaceful refuge, he could have died because of her.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered.

“Not your fault,” he said as he set her down on a couch in the living room.

“It is. I know him. He was here for me,” she admitted.

His eyes widened in shock then narrowed in suspicion, and she suddenly realised what he meant when he said he was dangerous. This Adam knew how to kill, how to inflict injury, how to be cold and unfeeling.

“How do you know him?” he demanded, his voice low and threatening.

Zara shrunk away from him, trying to find safety in the couch cushions. “H-he was m-my dad’s best fr-friend, but he a-always scared m-me. I was t-told he died somewhere in S-South America.”

A shocked gasp escaped his lips but he no longer looked at her like he could snap her neck at any second. “We need to talk,” Adam said, “but first I need to take care of your leg so we can get out of here.”

As she watched him disappear she wondered whether he was taking her with him to protect her or because he thought she’d done something wrong. She had no idea what was going on.

This had to be without a doubt the single most stupid thing he had ever done.

Adam didn’t stop doing it though.

For the life of him he couldn’t seem to tear his lips away from the delicious creature who was pressed up against him. She’d been watching him for hours, hadn’t followed him out here, hadn’t left him alone, and had told him she cared about what happened to him.

Crazy.

Zara was crazy.

And maybe … maybe everything he needed right now.

“What are you doing to me?” he murmured as he broke the kiss and tucked a wet lock of hair behind Zara’s ear.

“What are YOU doing to ME?” she shot back.

“I’m not a safe man to be around,” he warned, in case all of that hadn’t already sunk in.

“You have issues, like everyone else. Maybe you should consider getting some help. I mean for your loss and whatever caused the nightmares.

“Don’t need help,” he growled.

“Thats what I thought too.” Her gaze dropped and he had the feeling she was summoning courage. When she met his gaze again her face was determined. “But I was wrong. I needed help and asking didn’t make me weak it made me strong. You need a reason to want to get better.”

Because he was truly curious, the first time he’d cared about anything in a long time, Adam asked, “What was your reason?”

“The power of love,” she answered without hesitation.

Immediately he released her. He hadn’t even asked if she was involved. He’d assumed because she’d taken this job she wasn’t attached but he could have been wrong. Adam did his best to keep his face impassive but from the smirk on Zara’s he suspected he’d failed.

“I’m not involved, that wasn’t what I meant. Its just that I want to fall in love one day, get married, have kids, a proper family, and I want to be my best for them when I do,” Zara said.

That was something he could never give her. Never again would he risk innocent lives.

Adam swam to the edge of the pool and lifted himself out. “Zara, I’m …”

“Don’t tell me again how scary you are,” she said, climbing out of the pool to stand beside him. “I’m not buying it, but it doesn’t matter what I think, it only matters what you think, what you want your future to look like.”

He knew what his future looked like.

Bleak and empty.

In a year Zara would be gone, taking her light and sunshine with her, and even though she would be here for a while he couldn’t kiss her again. He couldn’t risk hurting her too.

Adam was turning to walk away when a bullet buzzed by him.

Her heart was breaking.

Adam truly believed that it was his fault his wife and daughter had died. She did not. Although she could see how he might think it, he was messed up, and she wanted to help but she didn’t know how.

She watched as he swam lap after lap in the pool. He’d been going at it for hours now. Dawn was here, the sun would be rising soon, and she thought she should tell him to stop but she didn’t want to intrude. So not wanting him to be alone she’d just sat out here with her feet in the pool, watching him and offering her silent support.

One thing she did know was that Zara would keep a close eye on Adam the next day. She was worried about him.

A hand curled around her ankle and tugged, and Zara let out a shriek when she was pulled into the pool. Her head went under for a moment but then it burst back up to the surface and she threw back her head and laughed.

“Why are you laughing?” Adam demanded as he pushed her back up against the side of the pool.

“Its been way too long since I’ve been swimming,” she said with a giggle.

“Why have you been sitting out here all night?”

“Didn’t want you to be alone?”

“Why not?”

“Because I care about what happens to you.”

“You care even though I hurt you?”

“Yep.”

“Even though you know what happened to my family?”

“Yes.”

“You don’t even know me.”

“I know you’re a good man who served your country, who lost everything they loved.”

“Are you always so positive and upbeat?” Adam growled.

“No,” Zara answered honestly. “I learned the hard way that life makes you go through hard stuff, painful stuff, you can either complain or look for the good stuff, small as they may be.”

“I don’t like the thought of anyone hurting you,” Adam huffed.

Something warm curled inside her, spreading out until her previously chilly limbs were tingling. “I don’t like the thought of you hurting either,” she told him.

Adam muttered something under his breath that she didn’t catch, then he grabbed her biceps, dragged her up against his hard, lean body, and crushed his mouth to hers in the most toe-curling, panty-melting kiss she’d ever experienced.

Her eyes widened in shock at his declaration and Adam prepared to see the fear seep into her warm brown eyes, followed by the horror that she was in the presence of a monster. None of that happened. Instead her eyes narrowed and she shook her head. “I don’t buy that at all.”

What was it about this woman? She was fearless, determined, and seemed to see things in him that weren’t there.

Guess that also meant she was crazy. 

Moving further into her personal space he used his height to his advantage, towering over her. “My wife and daughter are dead because of me.”

“Maybe,” she conceded. “But that doesn’t mean you killed them.” Her tone was kind and her touch when she reached out and placed a hand on his chest, right above his heart. “I can’t imagine what that loss would be like, but if you want to talk about it I’m here, if you don’t want to talk thats okay too.”

Her smile was genuine and when she turned to leave the room he felt like she was taking the tiny beam of sunlight she’d managed to shine on him in that moment of physical contact with her. 

“Zara, wait.” The words were out of his mouth before he could even think about it. But when she turned and looked up at him with patient empathy he realised he didn’t regret them. He needed to make her understand how dangerous he was, she was sweet, he didn’t want to wind up hurting her worse than he already had.

“Lets sit.” She took his hand like he hadn’t almost strangled her to death, and guided him to sit on the edge of his bed. Once they were both seated she didn’t say anything just waited and held his hand. 

“I attacked her, my wife,” he said softly, unwanted memories pawing at his brain trying to get out. “I was asleep, dreaming, nightmares, I threw her up against the wall. She tried to wake me but she couldn’t. I tore up the bedroom, she was terrified, grabbed our daughter and ran. She crashed the car.”

“I’m so sorry, thats awful. But, Adam.” She waited until he met her gaze before continuing, “That doesn’t mean you killed them. It was a horrible accident. She must have been afraid, I was when you grabbed me, but it was clear you weren’t deliberately doing it. She might have been scared, might have wanted to protect your daughter, but she knew that it wasn’t really you she was running from. I’m so sorry you lost them, and I’m so sorry about whatever happened to you to cause the dreams.”

This woman had to be an angel. She was still sitting beside him, still holding his hand, offering him kindness and absolution he didn’t deserve.

It wasn’t right. 

Anger and grief warred inside him and unable to handle sweet Zara and her understanding a second longer he stormed across the room and out the door. Zara called his name but he ignored her and ran through the house and out into the cool night. 

“I should have been there,” he screamed into the darkness. He should never have left his family so often to go on missions with his Delta team that a rift developed between him and his wife, he should never have allowed himself to get to the point where he became a danger to his family, and he should have been there in the car, driving his wife and daughter to a safe place. 

He had failed. 

Diving into his swimming pool he began to swim, punishing his body was the only way he could cope with what he had lost.