Nobody's Lost (Rescue Me Saga #5)(6)
The houses began to look familiar. Not much had changed since he lived here as a teenager. He passed by the place his mom had owned and tried not to stare. He’d lived there with her and his sister until Mom lost the place. Ryder married Sherry at nineteen, and his mom moved into an apartment about the same time Marcia relocated to Santa Fe. Like him, she preferred the beat of her own drum.
A few years later, unable to find steady work, he joined the Marine Corps. Maybe he’d just wanted to escape from family problems.
How’d that work out for you?
His mom died while he was in the Corps. No chance to reconcile.
He loved his Marine family, but, man, he’d sure gotten himself f*cked up over there. Big-ass wuss. Couldn’t be around people more than a few hours now without shutting down or running away.
Just keep your focus on Top’s sister—then get your ass home.
Three blocks later, he pulled into a cul-de-sac and parked in the driveway beside a luxury townhouse. Why was the garage wide open? The BMW motorcycle parked in the corner sure didn’t fit the mental image he had of Adam’s sister. Must be her brother’s.
Ryder eased his helmet off and retrieved the knife from his boot. A month in the psych ward at the VA hospital and he’d voluntarily surrendered his sidearm and shotgun to Carlos. Last thing he wanted was to have one of those night terrors lead to him blowing his brains out. So many veterans had lost that battle…
Not that he couldn’t use other means, but if he was going to do it, he’d make sure he succeeded with one try.
Even without a sidearm, he could cause a lot of damage to an insurg—no, intruder—with his Bowie. Carlos’s people had taught him well.
He heard a woman’s voice coming from inside the house. He relaxed a bit. Probably Adam’s sister. Her voice sounded younger than her forty-or fifty-something age.
“Megan Gallagher? Ryder Wilson out here. Your brother Adam sent me to check on you.”
She said something he couldn’t hear and then yelled, “Speak loudly. Adam’s on the phone and wants you to confirm you are who you say you are.”
“No worries.” At least she didn’t let just anyone inside.
She spoke into the phone and listened before relaying the message to Ryder. “Adam asked me to ask you where the two of you first met.”
“Kosovo. I was a replacement for one of his recon Marines.”
Apparently, Adam gave her the go-ahead to let him inside. “Okay. Talk to you later. Love you, too.”
The still night air was split by the sound of a deadbolt unlocking, and the door opened slowly.
“Sorry. My brother taught me to be careful.”
“Megan Gallagher?”
She nodded and extended her hand in greeting.
Holy f*ck. The woman standing before him was years younger than Ryder had expected. How much younger was she than Top?
Her dark auburn hair spilled over her shoulders, long and thick. A man’s hands could get lost in those curls. She didn’t look anything like Top, who had dark hair and Lakota blood. She looked more Irish or maybe Scottish.
He couldn’t make out the color of her eyes in the dim light, but imagined they sparkled with life and humor. A tiny nose sprinkled with freckles and full, red lips adorned the most beautiful face he’d ever seen.
Man, what would it be like to kiss her? He hadn’t kissed a woman since his ex walked out on him five years ago.
Shit. What was he doing thinking about kissing her? This was Top’s sister. Top’s little sister! His master sergeant would have his hide if he did anything inappropriate with her.
God, he hoped he didn’t f*ck up this mission. He needed to redeem himself in Top’s eyes.
“Close the garage door before anyone gets in.”
Chapter Two
Megan stared back a moment longer than prudent before pushing in the code. The man had a lethal air about him as though a deadly current vibrated beneath his skin. Of course, he’s a Marine. But what struck her was the vacancy in his eyes that hadn’t been noticeable in Patrick’s or Adam’s.
Lost.
“What happened to bring the cops in?”
“A break-in.”
“You sure you didn’t just leave the garage door open by mistake?”
“No. I definitely closed it.” No doubt about it.
“If you didn’t lock the interior door to the house either, they could have just walked in without having to disarm the system at all.”
“I said I closed the garage door.” Megan folded her arms in front of her. “The reason you found it open was that I was about to leave to check into a hotel when Adam called. I was distracted.”
She couldn’t get a read on whether he believed her yet. Maybe she could send him on his way soon.
Be nice, Megan. The man’s come here to check on you in the middle of the night, for Pete’s sake.
“Please, come in.” Standing aside, she waved him inside.
He wore a weathered leather jacket as black as his hair. His jeans looked as if they’d been through a shredder at the knees. Had he rolled his bike at some point? He didn’t seem the type to buy fashionably stressed jeans.
She’d done a double take at the gleaming Harley he’d left parked in her driveway. Man, what would it be like to take a ride on that machine? Much sexier looking than Patrick’s BMW. Nothing beat the rumble of a Harley Davidson. Of course, no way would Megan ask this stranger for a ride.