Gabe (In the Company of Snipers, #8)(75)
Real damned good.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Are you guys trying to drive me crazy?” Kelsey asked, her shoulders squared. She’d showered and brushed her hair, maybe even curled it. It had been pulled high on her head, where a few chocolate strands escaped the clip.
Gabe had been on his way out the door to scout the neighborhood and give Zack a chance to catch some shuteye, but damn. This woman sure wasn’t the same one who’d gone to bed heartbroken the night before. Kelsey Stewart was back in the house, and ready to fight.
The fire in her brown eyes caught Gabe’s attention—until she slapped a long-stemmed red rose on the kitchen table, splinted fingers and all.
“Did you put this on my pillow last night, Gabe?” Her toe tapped the linoleum floor, her Irish obviously up.
“No, ma’am. I most certainly did not,” Gabe said, not believing what he was seeing. He raked a hand over his head. When had that happened? “Hey, Zack. Are you seeing this?”
Zack hoisted his tired butt off the computer chair and sauntered into the kitchen. “This was on your pillow, Kels? Really?”
“Yes, it was.” She had her nose in the air, and her comeback was full of attitude. “I don’t care what that Sam Becker man said. I don’t know him, and neither does Alex. And another thing—I’m tired of you guys hovering over me like I’m going to fall apart every time something bad happens. I’m not, and it’s not my imagination, either. Alex pulled me out of the river and took care of me those three missing days I can’t remember. He’s not a ghost, and he’s not dead, do you hear me? And he’s not Sam Becker, either.”
Gabe couldn’t wipe the surprise off his face. Wow, what a change. No wonder Alex loved this woman. She might not have made the most logical argument, but Kelsey had her swagger on.
“And another thing.” She paused to draw in a deep breath, her fingertips tracing the petals of the rose. “I’m not some helpless little waif who needs a big tough hero to come to my rescue. I’ve already got my hero. It’s time we start thinking about him for a change. What if he’s the one who needs help this time? Have you guys ever thought of that?”
“Kels.” Zack’s voice turned to honey in that soothing way he had. “Let’s not jump to conclusions. You’ve been on a lot of meds and—”
“That’s another thing. I’m not taking any more prescriptions. They make me tired and fuzzy until all I want to do is sleep. They make me dream too much. I’ll never feel good at that rate. Explain that rose, Zack. It’s real. If you guys didn’t sneak into my room and put it there, who did?”
“Shelby must’ve gotten it for you.”
“She better not have,” Gabe muttered. That meant breaking protocol by leaving the premises without letting him or Zack know. Speaking of which, where was Miss Shelby? Gabe had been extra quiet to let the ladies sleep, but now he ran to her bedroom and knocked. “Open up, or I’m coming in.”
He gave her two seconds before he followed through. Her bed was made, but no Shelby was in it. “Not here.” He stormed back to the kitchen, his anger up.
Zack was already at the back door, so Gabe hit the front in time to see her little red car pull to the curb on the other side of the street. Sure enough, Shelby’s long legs slid out of the driver’s side.
The second her shoes hit the pavement, he couldn’t get to her fast enough, his rage ignited at her damned stubborn streak. “Where have you been?”
The happy-go-lucky smile on her face dropped. She extended her right hand and the small white paper bag that was in it. “I ran to the pharmacy for some medicine. You were so sick last night and—”
“Get inside,” he hissed, scanning the street for anything out of place while he hurried to her side.
“Oh, stop grumbling.” She aimed her key fob at her car. “You caught the guy last night, didn’t you? What’s the problem with me running one little errand? I came right back.”
He grabbed her elbow, intent on dragging her if necessary. “Do you ever do what you’re told?”
She twisted around to her cutesy excuse for a car, hit the remote lock and—
BLAM! It blew sky high.
The earth shook.
Gabe teetered. Blinding light and searing heat flashed over him and Shelby in a wave.
She shrieked. He pulled her into his side, shielding her as the blast body slammed them backward to the ground. Gabe rolled, covering her, his arms and hands around her head and face to protect her. Just in time. A piece of burning plastic zipped by her head. She whimpered, but he had no time to worry if she was hurt. Not yet.
A black SUV roared out of the cul-de-sac, gunning for them, its engine at full throttle and its tires screaming. Gabe pulled the pistol from his holster and prepared for battle.
The front plate on the vehicle was covered. Automatic gunfire strafed Kelsey’s yard and house. Bullets thudded all around. Plugs of dirt splattered. Windows shattered.
Zack ran straight out the front door and into the line of fire, swearing a blue streak and returning shot after shot. With Shelby planted firmly under him, Gabe offered the same.
The fleeing vehicle screeched on two tires at the T-section and screamed away. Gabe let out a deep sigh of relief, staring at the frightened woman staring up at him. She blinked rapidly, her glasses gone from her face. A huge part of his male soul needed to turn her over his knee and spank the shit out of her for her blatant disobedience. Fear will do that. It will make a guy think things he’s never thought of before, but damned. She sure as hell had a whooping coming.