Binding Ties Read online

  “Easy for you to say. You weren’t the one who sent him into that crazy bitch’s hands.”

  “He volunteered for the job. He knew exactly what he was doing when he let her men take him into custody.”

  “He did it to save Adam from taking his place. I know Gage. The second he learned that Adam was his brother, his decision was made.”

  “Are you saying that he wouldn’t have volunteered if it wasn’t to save Adam?” asked Victor.

  “No, he was on board the whole time, but now that he knows he has a brother, there’s no telling what kind of sacrifice he’s making to keep Adam safe.”

  Victor stepped closer, easing into her personal space like he belonged there. “There’s more at stake here than one man. Gage knows that. He’s smart enough to realize that the only true way to keep Adam safe is to take Stynger down for good.”

  “That’s part of what worries me. It’s personal for Gage. If he gets the chance to kill Stynger, he’ll do it. Even if it means sacrificing himself.” Maybe he already had, and that was why no one had heard from him.

  Victor must have read her mind. “He’s still alive, Bella. You have to believe that.” He came toward her, compassion shining in his bright eyes. One lean, hard hand was extended. She knew he meant to offer comfort, but she was too fragile for that right now. She had to stay strong, stay tough. As tired as she was, as worried as she was, it would have been too easy for her to crack under the strain and let her emotions run free. One touch from him might be all it took to shatter her self-control.

  She hadn’t cried in years—not since the night she’d killed her husband in a blind rage. She wasn’t about to start now.

  Bella moved away before he could reach her. “I’m sure he’s alive,” she lied. “I’m also sure we’ll find him soon. I just have to stay vigilant and keep looking for even the smallest signs of his whereabouts. We’ve been on enough missions together that I know how he thinks.”

  Victor’s hand fell to his side. “You’ll be a lot more vigilant after you get some food and sleep. You know him better than any of us. If we’re going to see some obscure sign he left behind, you’re the most likely one to spot it. But only if you’re not exhausted.”

  She gave him a pointed stare. “I’d sleep better without one of my men in my kitchen, honey.”

  “When was the last time you ate?”

  She couldn’t remember, but that didn’t make him right. “If it’s that important to you, then feed me already so we can get to whatever it is you need to talk about. I’m wrung out.”

  “Maybe the talk should wait until tomorrow.”

  “I’m busy tomorrow. Talk now.”

  “I don’t think so. Your blood sugar is too low for my peace of mind. It’ll take only a minute to warm up the food.”

  She watched him move around her kitchen, opening cabinets and finding what he was looking for. The smell of curry filled her kitchen, making her stomach rumble.

  He set a plate of food in the microwave, pushed some buttons. Nothing happened. He frowned as he checked to make sure it was plugged in. “It’s not working.”

  Bella went to his side and tried to make the appliance work, with no luck. “Sorry. It’s one of the few kitchen tools I know how to use. I must have worn it out.”

  “No worries. We have other options.” He opened her oven door and pulled out her box of business receipts, staring at them as if they might bite. “You keep paperwork in your oven?”

  “It’s a handy spot. Nothing blows away when I open the windows.”

  “What about when you cook?”

  She laughed. “Honey, I work eighty-hour weeks, minimum. I spend more than half of my time out of the country, run a reputable business where lives are on the line every day, and you think I have time to cook? You’re adorable.”

  A blush brightened his cheeks and made his glacier blue eyes stand out. She knew he was a poster boy for the military, all upright and honorable, but there was something about the clarity of his eyes that really sold the whole look. She swore she could see right through him, like he had nothing to hide.

  No one was that honorable. Especially not her.

  “Does your oven even work?” he asked.

  Bella shrugged. “Who knows? Never tried it.”

  He turned a knob to get the gas-fueled contraption working. She probably should have been paying attention to how he operated it, but all she could concentrate on was the way his fingers gently gripped the knob, giving it the slightest twist.

  Her nipples puckered in response.

  After a few seconds, his brow scrunched up as he turned the knob again. “Your pilot light’s out.”

  “I didn’t want to set my receipts on fire. The IRS frowns on excuses like that during an audit.”

  “Got any matches?”

  She pulled a lighter from her junk drawer and handed it to him. He knelt down, making his jeans go tight over a manly ass carved by God himself. She was so busy admiring him, she barely heard his question.

  “Did you move the oven out recently?”

  Bella shook her head to get it set on straight again. “Why on earth would I do that?”

  “To clean under it.”

  She grinned. “So adorable. I just want to pinch your cheeks.” His ass cheeks, if she had her choice.

  “Right. Got it. You don’t clean, either.”

  “I have a housekeeper who comes in once a month to keep the place livable.”

  “When was she here last?”

  “I don’t know. While we were gone sometime. Why?”

  He pointed to some crumbs on her floor next to a rusty brown smudge line, his face taut with concern. “Scuff marks. Someone’s moved your oven.”

  Before she had time to follow why he was upset by her oven’s position, he turned on a flashlight app on his phone and directed it behind the oven.

  “Bella,” he said, his tone eerily calm, as it was during a firefight, “turn around and walk out the way I came in. Don’t touch anything.”

  Serious worry settled in between the cracks in her arousal and fatigue. “What’s going on?”

  He took her arm and forced her to start walking. “Someone tied what looks like an explosive device to your gas line. Time to go and call the bomb squad from outside.”

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