Walker (Bowen Boys, #1)(14)

Walker didn’t bother answering.

“She’s either your mate or she owes you money. I dismissed the second one right away because she has more than you even on payday. So she’s gotta be your mate.”

“You got it.” Marc didn’t gloat, nor did he ask again why he had sent her away. So he told him. “Khan told me…no, that’s not right, he forbade me to see her.”

“No f*ck? Sheesh, I wish he’d get laid or something. Can he even do that?”

Walker shook his head.

“Not the getting laid part. I’m pretty sure no woman would come near him without him snarling at her. But you’re going to mate with her anyway, right? Or are you going to let him rule you?”

“Yes. For now.” Walker looked out over the woods behind his house. “She and I kissed today and when Khan came in and started to show me how much larger he is than me, she…she knocked him on his ass with a water pitcher. I pulled out the glass and let him deal with it afterwards. I sent her home so she and I couldn’t get any closer.”

Marc snorted. “You think that’s going to work? You sending her away? I don’t. You’re an idiot if you think that.”

So did Walker. He wondered how long he’d last before he tried to find her.





Chapter Five


The crutches weren’t doing her a bit of good. They had the first day and then into the second, but now she had tossed them across the room and glared at them every time she tried to make her body cooperate with what she was doing.

When Jane had taken her home three days ago, Lynne tried to remember why she was in an all-fired hurry to leave. Then she’d think of that jackass Khan and would get pissed all over again. Lynne wondered what his problem was as she made her way to the kitchen. She nearly tripped over the rug when someone knocked on her back door.

Jane. The woman had been coming over on her way to work every day. She was entirely too chipper for her tastes, but she did seem to love her job of taking care of people. She opened the door, but blocked her entrance.

“You should be using your crutches, not walking around yet.”

Lynne nodded, but didn’t move.

“If you let me in, I’ll share the pizza I have.”

Pizza. Caitlynne loved pizza and when Jane showed her the box, it was all she could do not to knock her down and take it from her. It was from her favorite place. And from the scents coming from the box, it was one that was covered in meat and cheese and everything else they had in the kitchen.

“The guy who owns the place knows you.” Jane got down some paper plates when Lynne showed her where they were. “I noticed the pizza boxes in the fridge and figured you’ve been there. When I mentioned your name, he knew just what kind you liked. He said to call him sometime and he’ll give you the news.”

Lynne nearly bobbled the glass of wine. She set it down and sat with Jane as she took out the first slice. She’d have to get rid of her sooner rather than later now. She would have to call Omar and find out what he knew.

“I’ve been ordering from him since I moved here. They have the best pizza.” They did too. Omar Sanders was one of her workers, one of her snitches. “I order one at least once or twice a week.”

“Yeah, that’s what he said. Said you hadn’t been around lately and I told him you’d been injured a week or so back. He said he knew.” She frowned as she took another slice. “How do you suppose he knew that?”

Because she’d been injured two weeks ago on information that he had given her. It wasn’t his fault that the information was only half there, and she’d already told him she was fine. But because of her injuries, it was the reason that she’d been sleeping so soundly the night the idiots had broken in. She’d taken a pain pill so she could sleep after talking with her boss for over an hour beforehand.

Lynne shrugged. “He’s the best, but a little off his rocker. That was awesome pizza. How much do I owe you for saving me from having to cook for myself?”

“Nothing. It was fun and I like talking to you.” Jane looked at her watch as she stood up. “I need to get going. Working a double tonight. Thanks, Lynne. It was really nice for me too. I hate to cook.”

“Me too.” Jane went out the door and Lynne was just shutting it when she caught something out the corner of her eye. Waving at Jane and making a production of slipping around on the wet decking, she saw who was there.

“Mother f*ck,” she said low and to herself as Jane drove away. She made her limp more pronounced as she made her way into the house, pulling out her cell as she went. “Agent McCray to speak to leader Garrett.” She recited the numbers that were given to her when she was first trained. “I have a code seven twenty-three.”

“Stand by, Agent McCray, while I find him.” The girl’s tone was nervous and full of terror. Lynne knew that had she shown up rather than called, the girl would have pissed herself. Lynne wasn’t your every day agent.

“Where?”

Lynne told him the precise location of the man across the street when he came on the line.

“I’m sending a sleeper to you. For Christ’s sake, don’t f*cking shoot this one.”

One time. One time she shoots the guy sent to protect her and it’s like she did it every day. She went to the front room, pulled up the sight to locate camera she had mounted on her roof, and turned the camera toward the man standing there.