Dangerous Protector (Red Stone Security #14)(19)

They liked to showboat and get their names in the news for closing a big case. Finding out that Enzo De Fiore was alive and then nailing him to the wall with a lengthy prison sentence was just the type of thing that would have the Feds salivating.

Aaron didn’t care about any of that shit. He didn’t care if De Fiore was dead or alive. He just wanted to make sure Tegan was safe, protected.

This need to take care of her, to look out for her, had taken him off guard. Yeah, he’d been attracted to her since pretty much the day he’d met her. He couldn’t deny that to himself. And after seeing the friendly, genuine way she was with customers, he’d started to simply like her. But now that he knew what she’d been through, he flat out respected her. Not many people could have gone on the run like she had and come out of it okay.

And stealing a gangster’s dog? That just made him adore her more even if he hated that she’d put herself in danger. She’d gotten under his skin and no matter that he told himself to go slow, he wasn’t sure he could take his own advice.

There was a steady hum of activity at the precinct but he was tucked down a hallway so he couldn’t hear what was going on in the bullpen. Only two detectives had passed him in the hall in the last hour. So when Porter Caldwell stepped into view at the end of the hallway, he straightened, surprised.

Porter was his direct boss, though he’d taken a more hands-on role for many years with Red Stone before taking over one of the security divisions. And the guy was a former Marine, too. Semper Fi. Hard not to like the man.

He nodded once as Porter reached him, a small laptop bag in his hand. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah. Carlito called me. Stopped by so I could talk to your girl.”

Surprise flickered through him. Tegan might not be his girl, but he wasn’t going to correct Porter.

Aaron had planned to tell Porter what was going on with Tegan. When he’d called to let Porter know he was taking time off, the other man had kept things brief because he was on the way to the hospital. His sister-in-law was about to give birth—or maybe she had already—so Aaron was more than a little surprised he was here now. “What’s going on with Grant and Belle?”

Porter half smiled. “False alarm but, man, she’s close. And they’re both ready for that kid to get here.”

Aaron snorted. “They’ll have their hands full soon enough. How’s Maddox?”

“Keeping us busy…” He trailed off as the door to Carlito’s office opened.

A man and a woman, both wearing staid dark suits and neutral expressions, stepped out. They barely glanced at Porter or Aaron as they headed down the hallway, murmuring quietly to each other.

Aaron moved into Carlito’s office, wanting to make sure Tegan was okay.

Her face lit up when she saw him. His heart squeezed at the sight. Yeah, he’d definitely started to fall for her, no use denying it. For the drive here she’d tucked all her hair into a winter cap, and had worn sunglasses and adorable earmuffs to hide her ears. If whoever was after her had access to any CCTVs or facial recognition software they shouldn’t be able to locate her. She’d since taken off the disguise so that her wavy auburn hair was down and around her face.

She stood and he had the strongest urge to pull her into his arms, to comfort her. So he did. He didn’t give a shit what anyone else thought either. It had been so damn long since he’d felt this way about anyone. The truth was what he felt for Tegan was more than a case of lust. More than anything he’d experienced in the past. She was so easy to be around.

She leaned into his hold, burying her face against his chest. “They asked a billion questions,” she muttered. “And they asked the same question ten different ways. Like they think I’m freaking stupid, or lying.”

Both Carlito and Porter snorted quietly, clearly not surprised.

She pulled back and looked at Porter curiously. “I know you from somewhere. You’re Lizzy’s husband. She was showing off a picture of your son at the shop a while ago and you were in it.”

Porter flushed, surprising Aaron. He cleared his throat. “Yeah, she said she’d met you.” He looked back at Aaron. “When you told me you needed time off, I didn’t realize it had to do with that bombing until Carlito called me.”

Carlito leaned against the front of his desk, watching them in silence.

“If you need a safe house we’ll set one up,” Porter continued.

Tegan’s eyes widened slightly as she looked up at Aaron, the question in her blue gaze. Did he want her to go to one?

He quickly weighed the idea. No one knew where she was, and they’d taken all precautions to keep her location quiet so that even the Feds didn’t know she was with him. His son was safe and with his parents for the next few days. Since Dillon was on Christmas break he didn’t have to worry about school either. Bottom line, if Tegan went to a safe house, she’d be away from him.

Nope, not happening.

He looked at Porter. “She’s good with me. If that changes, I’ll let you know.”

Porter nodded once, as if he’d expected the answer. “I’d like to set up extra security. Something subtle. One agent in front of your place keeping an eye on things.”

Yeah, Aaron had thought of the same thing. “I’ll pay—”

Porter cut him off with a shake of his head. “This is pro bono. Call it a Christmas present. Anyone could have been hurt in that bombing. Her car was outside a children’s boutique.” Porter’s jaw tightened, rage bleeding into his eyes as he took a breath. “We want to help.”