Claiming Sarah (Ace Security #5)(8)

“That’s a relief.” Cole stood up, walked over to Felicity, and took her in his arms. As he was hugging her, he realized that she was about the same size as Sarah.

The thought didn’t really surprise him. For days, his mind had wandered back to the intriguing and stoic woman he’d met the week before.

Felicity pulled back and glanced at Cole. “What?”

“What, what?” he returned.

“Something happened while I was gone, didn’t it?”

“Lots of things happened,” Cole said.

Felicity’s eyes narrowed, and she stepped back and put her hands on her hips. “Don’t mess with me, Cole. You look . . . weird. What happened?”

“Gee, thanks,” Cole quipped.

“I’m not messing around,” Felicity said, her voice dropping. “You look . . . super serious. And you’re not usually serious. Unless you’re trying to convince me not to leave town.” She smiled to let him know she was joking, then said, “What’s up?”

Cole sighed. “I met someone. A girl.”

Felicity’s eyebrows went up as she gasped and put a hand on her chest. “A real live girl? Be still my heart!”

“Shut up,” Cole told her, slugging her lightly on the arm. “I’m pretty sure she’s in trouble.”

All humor left Felicity’s face. “What’s wrong? Should I call Ryder?”

Cole shook his head. “No need. I’ve got a meeting already arranged with everyone at Ace Security.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“She must be in a world of hurt if you called in everyone.”

“That’s just it. I’m not exactly sure what her situation is. I’ve only met her once, but she told me enough to make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.”

“Who is she?”

“Her name is Sarah Butler.”

“And?”

“And nothing. That’s about all I know. She’s supposed to start self-defense lessons with me today.”

“You have to know more than that,” Felicity complained.

“I know she doesn’t feel safe. That she has an admirer who’s making her uncomfortable. The cops don’t feel he’s a threat, but she does.”

Felicity frowned. “The cops don’t believe her?”

Cole shook his head. “To be fair, there’s not a lot of evidence pointing to the fact that he’s dangerous.”

“That’s bullshit,” Felicity fumed.

“They can’t investigate every time a single woman receives a love letter and she doesn’t return the person’s admiration.”

Felicity studied Cole. “I can’t tell where you stand on this. Your tone says you think she might be acting too cautiously, but the fact that you have a meeting with Ryder and the others says differently.”

“She’s scared to death,” Cole said, reasoning out loud what he’d been thinking since meeting Sarah. “On the surface, I have to agree with the cops.” He held up his hand to stop the protest he knew Felicity was about to make. “But I haven’t seen the letters or the gifts she says she’s received. I saw firsthand how freaked she was. And I doubt she would’ve reached out to Ace Security for help if this wasn’t serious.”

“If she already called the guys, how did you get involved, and why are you asking to meet with them about her?”

“Logan referred her to me for self-defense.”

“He didn’t take her case?”

“I think it was a matter of money. She found out how much it would cost to hire them and backed off. You know how he is, he wouldn’t let her just do nothing. So he referred her to me.”

“And now you’re referring her back to them,” Felicity concluded.

“This isn’t a usual case, I don’t think. I’m meeting with Sarah this evening, and I’m going to try to get more information on the guy who thinks he’s in love with her. Try to convince her to talk with Logan and the others. If nothing else, they can look into the buttmunch and let her know what they think about how dangerous he might be.”

“If you’re already giving this guy one of your trademark fucked-up nicknames, then I know where you stand on the issue,” she said with a grin.

“Something about this case makes me extremely nervous. And you didn’t see Sarah. She didn’t want to meet me too long after she got off work because it would be dark. And she was gripping this cat-shaped brass-knuckles thing as if it were all that was standing between her and certain death. And I really want to call this guy an asshole and ten other swear words, but I’m trying to cut down on my swearing so Grace’s babies don’t say fuck or shit as their first words. I’m getting creative.”

Felicity didn’t say anything for a moment, then finally nodded. “You’re a good guy, Cole.”

“Uh . . . thanks?” he said, his brow furrowed.

“I mean it. You’ve never hesitated to wade in when shit gets crazy. Look at my situation. If anything, I think your heart is too big sometimes. You always want to help everyone.”

“Is that bad?”

“No,” she said immediately. “I just worry about you. I hope this woman appreciates you and doesn’t take advantage of your generous heart.”