Under Pressure (Body Armor #1)(51)

“You want to explain that?”

How? Leese was nothing like Webb, but the point now was to dissuade him from digging in. “For a right-brained dreamer, living in a family full of left-brained workaholics felt a lot like ‘nuts,’ and not the nice kind. Before my mother passed away, she was a buffer, making the differences easier to take. But now that she’s gone...”

Gone forever.

Heartache left her quiet. In so many ways, she still missed her mom. Every day. Sometimes every minute.

“Now?” Leese prompted.

It shouldn’t still affect her, any of it, but it did. “Webb always thought I was immature. He’d often said I needed a better dose of the real world.”

Leese snorted. “I’d say you’ve swallowed a pretty big dose lately.”

“Maybe.” She certainly felt like she’d dealt with her fair share. “But the thing is, Webb told me that I was going down the wrong path, throwing away my opportunities by not taking advantage of family connections. He told me to trust him, to try things his way—”

“His way is not my way.”

“And I’m not into blind faith.”

They stared at each other, the tension growing, until a sudden buzzing split the quiet.

Startled, Cat jerked back, ready to run, to hide.

“Easy,” Leese said. “It’s just the intercom.” He walked to the door and pushed a button on the wall. “What is it?”

“Sorry to disturb you, Mr. Phelps,” said an eerie, disconnected voice. “You have a visitor. A Mr. Miles Dartman.”

Horror washed over Cat. What visitor? An imposter? Someone trying to find a way in, a way to reach her?

She meant to make the denial loud and clear, but her “No” sounded only as a breathless whisper.

Watching her, Leese said into the speaker, “Allow him up.” As he stepped away from the door, his gaze never wavered. “I’m going out for a few hours. Miles is going to stay with you.”





CHAPTER NINE

ALREADY SHAKING HER HEAD, Cat said again, louder this time, “No.”

It hurt Leese to see her like this, so afraid, expecting the worst. From the moment he’d met her, she’d seemed genuine to him. His instincts had told him to believe in her, in the threats she detailed.

Seeing her now, the unmistakable fear she couldn’t hide, he knew he’d been right. “It’s okay. I won’t be long.”

“You can’t leave.”

Needing to reassure her, Leese strode closer. “I’m only running a few necessary errands. Miles is a friend. He’s here to keep you company.”

“You’re supposed to stay with me.”

He could see the panic, and it gnawed on him. “I trust Miles. He’s a good friend, a good man, and he’s skilled.”

Looking smaller, hurt, she whispered, “I don’t want you to go.”

Leese considered how to handle her very real panic, what to do to snap her out of it. Most of the time Cat was strong, independent, determined. She’d barely awakened, and then he’d thrown her for a loop. He regretted not telling her sooner.

If she hadn’t napped, or if he hadn’t gotten so involved researching her father... But that didn’t matter now. She wouldn’t like showing so much blatant fear, not to him, definitely not to Miles.

He settled on a method, and said with feigned indifference, “I’m going all the same. Just do me a favor and don’t give Miles a hard time.”

The callous comment rid her of the vulnerability real fast. Jaw tight, eyes glittering, she slowly stood to face him. “Afraid I’ll pick on him? If I can, then how badass can he be?”

“Very badass.” A knock sounded at the door. “Now behave.”

He heard her indignant gasp as he turned his back and went to answer. He checked the peep hole first, saw Miles looking around in awe and opened the locks.

“Hell of a setup you have here,” Miles said as he stepped in.

“Yeah, it is.” They exchanged a quick, gruff bro hug. “Thanks for coming.”

“No problem. You’ve got me curious.”

“Curious,” Cat asked, “about what?”

Miles looked toward her, then lifted a brow. “Hi.”

Guessing there would be fireworks, Leese beckoned her forward. “Catalina, come meet Miles.”

Unfortunately, an unholy light had entered Cat’s eyes.

She sized up Miles, head to toe, sent a provoking look at Leese and purred, “My, my, my. So you’re my new protector?”

Immediately charmed, Miles smiled at her. “Seems so.” He, too, looked at Leese.

“No,” Leese said to him, answering a question he hadn’t asked, then to Cat, he repeated, “No,” to curb any ideas she might have.

She asked, “You’re still leaving?”

“Yes.” He didn’t want to wait any longer before going by her house. If anyone had rifled through it, he’d know.

“Do what you must.” Her chin lifted and she strolled closer. “Tell me, Miles, do you have the same scruples as Leese?”

“Scruples?” Miles asked, his amusement growing.

“Cat,” Leese warned. He was relieved to again see her stiff pride, but she didn’t have to push it so far. “This won’t change anything.”