Beneath the Secrets Part 3(12)

***

Kara woke with a gasp as the hotel door burst open, instinctively clutching the blanket to her naked body as she sat up. Heart in her throat, she blinked a new day’s sunlight—and the huge man with long dark hair now standing at the foot of the bed—into view.

“What the hell were you thinking, Blake?” the man demanded.

Beside her, Blake, undaunted by his nakedness, threw off the covers and stood up to grab his pants. “In case you didn’t notice, Royce,” he said irritably to the bigger, crankier version of himself, “I’m not alone.”

Royce, Kara thought, processing the name with relief. Blake’s brother.

Royce snorted. “When are you ever alone?”

Irritation and embarrassment prickled at Kara, and she scanned desperately for her missing clothes. “Kara,” Blake said. “He’s an ass. Ignore him. Way to be a gentleman, Royce. Thanks a f*cking lot.”

“I suppose ‘thanks a f*cking lot’ makes you a gentleman?”

“This wasn’t the way to announce our arrival, Royce,” another man grumbled, appearing in the doorway and clearly of the same genetics but with his hair cut to his nape. The Navy SEAL, she assumed.

Blake glowered at the newcomer, tugging his pants, sans underwear, over his hips. “How about some warning, Luke?”

The instant Blake glanced at Luke, like a predator waiting for an opening, Royce stalked forward, heading straight for Blake—and good gosh, the man really was huge. He stopped in Blake’s face, but Blake was seemingly unfazed, clearly used to Royce’s attempts at intimidation, standing toe to toe with him. “Back off, Royce,” he warned in a low, tight voice.

“Killing Alvarez isn’t going to do anything but put you behind bars or in a grave.”

Kara watched the muscles in Blake’s body bunch, his fingers curling into his palms as he leaned forward, right in his brother’s face. “And if Lauren had been killed? Would you sit back and let her murderer live the high life?”

Luke stepped beside them and shoved them apart. “Enough. This isn’t solving anything.”

If Lauren had been killed. Lauren must be Royce’s woman. Kara’s stomach knotted with realization. Blake’s woman had been killed by Alvarez.

“Enough, I said,” Luke barked again. “Not now. Not here.”

Tension curled in the air, the two men glaring at each other, and Kara knew, despite Royce’s gruff approach—perhaps because of it—that he was terrified of losing Blake. Her chest burned and her soul ached. Royce was afraid of losing his brother, like she was her sister.

Finally, in unison, as if they’d come to a silent agreement, Blake and Royce took several steps backwards, both crossing their arms in front of their chests. Royce glanced at Kara and then back at Blake. “You do know that to get these women proper protection and identities that will carry them a lifetime, we have to call the feds.” It wasn’t a question.

Kara’s heart lurched. No. No this was not happening. They were not going to call the feds. The implications to her sister were devastating, and the hard steel and determination of Royce’s expression, told her he was set on doing this. This was his way of saving his brother. He wasn’t going to back down.

Adrenaline rushed through Kara and her gaze went to the gun on Blake’s nightstand where he’d left it. Training and instinct kicked in and she dove for it, and somehow she managed to keep the sheet at her chest in the process. The cold steel was relief in her hand. It was her control among all these men, and she aimed it at Royce. “No one is calling the feds.”

She felt the room’s attention shift to her a moment before Blake growled, “Are you crazy, Kara? Put the damn gun down.”

“Not a chance.” The mattress shifted with his weight but she didn’t dare look his direction. “Don’t even think about taking the gun, Blake. I’ll drop the sheet and fight you for it. I don’t care who’s watching.” She lifted her chin at Royce, praying she’d successfully held Blake at bay. “We aren’t calling the feds, Royce. You and I both know they will take over the operation and my sister will be a fatality of a bigger investigation. I can’t let that happen.”

Royce snorted. “You’re naked and half my size and you’re telling me what’s going to happen?”

“Law enforcement 101. My bullet trumps your size. And yes. I am. I get that you’re desperate to save Blake from his death wish.”

“Hey,” Blake barked.

“You do have a death wish, Blake,” she said, and continued talking to Royce. “And I get you’ll do anything to protect him, but remember that this is my sister we’re talking about here. I feel the same about her. She isn’t trained like we are. She doesn’t have a chance inside the cartel and I will do anything to protect her. If that means tying your big ass up and feeding you three meals a day like a baby in a chair to control you, until she’s safe, that’s what I’ll do.”

“Kara,” Blake said softly this time, the mattress shifting again with his approach.

“I told you, Blake,” she warned, “I’ll fight you for the gun.”

“Royce is an overbearing ass,” he replied. “But he’s one of the good guys. He won’t leave your sister to be a statistic any more than I will.”