Chapter 4

CHAPTER

FOUR

"As you can see, everything is fine." Heidi rushed to keep in step with Beau as he charged into her house like he owned the place. "I'm not even sure what you're looking for. Do you think I'm hiding something here?"

"I need to make sure there are no safety concerns." He went into the kitchen and opened a few cabinets, as well as the door to her walk-in pantry.

"Safety concerns . . . in my cabinets?" Her confusion turned into irritation.

He continued to storm the house, checking every crevice and behind every curtain.

Then another thought hit her. Stephen had said he found a couple of bugs as well as a camera in the house. Had Rafferty sent Beau here when those things went offline?

Maybe.

Because Rafferty had to be the one who had those planted here. He was the only one who made sense. She might try to convince herself otherwise, but when it came to Rafferty . . . the shoe fit.

Beau headed upstairs toward her bedroom, still acting as if he were on a war path.

She scrambled to keep up with him but managed to remain on his heels. "Like I said, everything is fine."

Beau grunted and headed toward her bedroom.

Typical Beau. The company currently employed twelve security operatives, many of them just like Beau. Others had come and gone over the years, some rougher than others. All of them had an air of mystery about them, however.

He searched her room, her bathroom, and her two spare bedrooms.

Then he headed downstairs again, unable to be deterred.

"Just one more place to check, and I'll be out of your hair." Beau started toward the coat closet.

The closet hiding Stephen.

Panic filled her. Heidi had to stop Beau before he opened that door. But how?

Her thoughts raced as she glanced around.

She had to do something.

On second thought, maybe Stephen being discovered was the best thing.

He had ambushed her in her own home, after all.

But he hadn't hurt her. She wanted to believe she could trust the dangerous but fascinating man.

She didn't have much time to decide who to trust.

She had to follow her gut instinct.

Stephen, she decided. She trusted Stephen.

Just as Beau reached the door, she screamed.

He spun around. "What in tarnation is wrong, woman?"

"A mouse!" Her hands covered her heart. "It just ran across the floor. Get it!"

He scowled at her, looking annoyed.

Then he opened the door anyway.

So much for that idea.

I'm so sorry, Stephen. But a mouse was the best I could come up with.

Heidi braced herself for whatever would happen next.

Stephen shifted uncomfortably as he stood stiffly in the small pantry.

This was the only place he'd been able to stash himself before Heidi and Beau came back downstairs.

He had to be careful not to move and accidentally knock a can of beans or a box of pasta off the shelf behind him.

That would be a dead giveaway to his presence—something he couldn't risk.

He continued to listen to the conversation in the living room.

"I think the mouse went in there! It was a big one. Maybe a rat." Panic filled Heidi's voice.

"Overreact much?"

"Rude much?"

A smile tugged at Stephen's lips. At least Heidi had given it right back to Beau.

She'd had to be tough when working with the Blackstone operatives.

She'd tried her best to stop Beau from opening the door to the closet where Stephen had been hiding.

Good. That probably meant she trusted him—at least somewhat. That she was on his side and not Beau's.

That was a good start, but they still had a long way to go.

"I'll be outside," Beau said. "Call me if you need anything. Got it?"

"If you insist," Heidi said. "I would have put together a dossier on this assignment if Rafferty had given me a heads up."

"You should just be happy that I'm here."

Stephen heard a door open and a grunt. "I don't see any rats. You sure you weren't seeing things?"

"I . . . uh, well . . . I guess I was."

Beau grunted again. "I'm going to put a camera on your back door also so I can monitor that side of the house."

A camera on the back door? Great. That would make it even more complicated for Stephen to get out of here. But he'd figure out something.

He drew in another deep breath as he reminded himself to remain frozen.

"Will you need to come inside to do that?" Heidi asked.

"No, I want you to lock up as soon as I leave. I can do everything I need from outside."

"Perfect, because I need to clean up my groceries and make dinner." She paused. "You really think I'm in danger?"

"Yep." Beau's answer was succinct, and he offered no other details.

Stephen waited as he heard the door close. The lock click in place. Heard Heidi pace down the hallway. Another door being locked.

Then footsteps padded back toward the kitchen.

"Stephen?" The words came out at a harsh whisper. "Where are you?"

He nudged open the pantry door, thankful the space had been sizable enough to accommodate his large frame.

As soon as Heidi spotted him, her expression softened. "I thought for sure you were going to be discovered."

"Thankfully, you guys went upstairs and afforded me the opportunity to find another hiding spot."

She rubbed a hand over her chest, her eyes closed. "I'm glad. I didn't know how I would explain having you in my closet."

"You wouldn't have had to explain. Beau would've realized what was going on and tried to kill me." His eyebrows flicked upward in a matter-of-fact manner.

She opened her eyes, and they widened until they were as big as a full moon on a cloudless night. "Look, I'm so sorry to hear about everything that's happened. But I don't know how much I can help you."

He shushed her, motioning for her to keep her voice down. They couldn't afford for Beau to hear them talking.

Stephen walked into the living room and turned on the TV. As a news story filled the air, he knew the noise would conceal part of their conversation.

It was right on time too. A thump sounded at the back door—Beau installing that new camera.

His presence made this situation even trickier.

"What do we do now?" Heidi stared up at him, studying his gaze as if hoping he might have some answers.

Stephen hadn't expected Beau to show up. He had to recalculate.

"I'm going to be stuck here," he said. "Since your townhouse is sandwiched between two others, I can only get out the front and back doors—neither of which will work right now."

"It sounds like we're going to be together for a while." Heidi tilted her head. "So how about you help me clean up and start dinner because I'm starving."

Something about her words caused a smile to tug at his lips.

Her plan almost sounded too normal. But normal was what Stephen had been craving lately, so he wouldn't argue.

It had been a long time since he'd experienced normal. Since his adoptive parents had died, he supposed. He'd been eleven at the time, and everything had been different since then. From being shuffled to various homes to finding his own way to work out his grief—through cage fighting.

Then he'd been plucked out of that life and into an equally tough position with Project Elevate.

Still, he had to remain on guard. This situation could turn even more violent at any moment.

He didn't trust Beau. The man was too fond of whispered conversations. He had the tendency to disappear at the worst times. Once, he'd even left Stephen in the middle of a mission. Had claimed it was a misunderstanding. Stephen had almost been killed.

He didn't like having the man outside. Didn't know exactly what his former colleague was up to.

For that reason, Stephen would have to plan his next moves very carefully.