HIS Desire: An H.I.S. Novel (H.I.S. series Book 1) (7 page)

Jesse closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Kate, someone may be trying to kill you. Don’t make it easy on them. Why do you think we’re here instead of at the ball park?”

“Someone may be trying to kill you as well. Those bullets could have been meant for you just as easily as they were for me. You took a risk coming over here.”

“I can take care of myself, Kate.”

Her left hand tightened into a fist. “I. Can. Too. So quit treating me like I’m some whimpering little girl. Injured or not, I’m a trained FBI agent. I know what I’m doing.”

He reached over and his hand enclosed her fist, his thumb softly rubbing her white knuckles. “I know you can take care of yourself, Kate.”

Funny, he never acted like it.

She felt the warmth of his hand, the comforting strokes. She relaxed her fist hoping he wouldn’t let go.

“This guy is bold, and you shouldn’t take any unnecessary risks.”

They had been unable to locate the driver. Ed’s brother said he’d left town and didn’t know where he’d gone or when he’d return. Without the driver, they couldn’t find out who the shooter was, which left someone out there who wanted one of them dead.

“I’m not going to live my life in fear and never leave my apartment. No one is going to do that to me. Especially not some asshole,” she stated matter-of-factly.

He sighed. “Just don’t do anything stupid.”

Kate didn’t reply or pull her hand from his. Did he really care about what happened to her? How would that change things?

She’d never been more confounded about a man than she was about Jesse. One minute she was going to go for it, the next she was holding back because she didn’t want to get hurt. And hurt she’d get. She could find herself making the mistake of getting close to Jesse and having her heart broken.

Jesse had a daughter and a large, loving family. Like every other man, he’d never accept her for anything more than someone to pass the time with, pretending there was a relationship, giving her false hope she could fall in love and marry.

Before she realized it, the baseball game ended and an awkward silence ensued.

Jesse lifted her hand to his lips and lightly kissed it then pulled her forward for a quick, light kiss on the lips, lingering longer than before. He slowly pulled back from her. “Thank you for having me over, Kate.”

It took her a moment to realize he’d said something. “You’re welcome.”

She made the mistake of looking into those gorgeous eyes, and her pulse skipped, captivated by the heated desire she saw in them. And the question they posed.

Her uncertainty must have shown in her eyes because he surprised her when he shook his head and stood. “I had a great time. Good night, Kate.”

“Good night, Jesse.” She’d done the right thing. She’d done what she had to do. Otherwise, she’d hate herself in the morning. Besides, he didn’t even try to get her into bed.

“Come lock the door behind me.”

* * * * *

Jesse whistled on his walk to his SUV. He’d had a great time with Kate. Something about her drew him. Not just the thought of sex. And there were lots of thoughts of sex. Thoughts of her soft, naked body beneath his as he took his time worshiping every inch of her, and then plunging deep inside her.

He saw the familiar woman and stopped. “Hello, Elizabeth.”

She smiled and pulled her shoulders back, purposefully pushing out her breasts. “Hi, Jesse.” Her voice was low and seductive.

Not this again. “What are you doing out here?” Was the damn woman stalking him?

“I’m on my way to the Bayfront. Want to come with me? I could use the company.” She reached out and lightly touched his chest.

Her touch did nothing for him. He wanted Kate and no one else right now. Damn. Did he have it that bad already?

He removed her hand. “Sorry, I’m on my way to AJ’s. He’s expecting me.” Why did he feel the need to lie? He had to tell her that he wasn’t interested.
Again.

She pouted, pushing her lip out like a child about to throw a temper tantrum. “Maybe later?”

“Sure.” Anything to get away from her.

He watched her walk away with an extra sway in her hips.

Without trying, Kate had a seductive sway when she walked. He shook his head to clear those thoughts. Kate was special. Maybe he should have had her agree to a second date tonight. No, she would probably have said no. Better to just show up one day. It was going to be difficult, but if he had any chance of having her, he needed to take it slow. And he would have her.

Deep in thought, he almost missed the note on the windshield of his SUV.

CHAPTER SIX

Jesse approached the rear of his home where a room had been specially designed for H.I.S. headquarters. His brothers and most of the team waited for him. Because of the importance of the meeting, AJ had joined them as both an FBI agent and a Hamilton.

The previous night, shaken by the note, Jesse had broken every driving law getting to Emily’s house where Reagan had stayed while he and Kate watched the ball game. All of the women he loved were in one place and unprotected. His heart pounded and his hands shook the entire drive, afraid the team would be too late. That he’d had made the wrong choice, again. This time a date instead of a phone call.

Jesse met his brothers, Ken and three team members and uttered something like, “Thank God,” when Ken gave him the good news the girls were secure. The brothers didn’t play their leftover childhood game of rock-paper-scissors to find out who broke the bad news to Emily. They left everything to Jesse.

Emily Hamilton, their baby sister, as all the men knew, was a handful. One would think growing up with five, actually six, overprotective brothers, she’d be some meek, mild woman who depended on her brothers to take care of her. Somehow they’d pushed her to become a strong-willed, independent woman who loved her brothers but didn’t want them interfering in her life.

If it hadn’t have been for her daughter Amber, she wouldn’t have agreed to a team at her home. She’d refused to go to the safe house. She’d told them to do their damn job and protect them where they lived.

That’s what they were going to do.

He looked around the room at his team. Even though there were chairs, the men preferred to stand, and today was no exception. He should just remove them to make more room. They could use it with the recent growth of the team. Huddled in groups, conversations ranged from arguments over the baseball game to replays of last night’s bar scene.

Jesse cleared his throat, and the room quieted. All eyes turned to him. Conversations forgotten. “As you know, someone recently tried to kill either myself or AJ’s partner, Kate Ross.”

The men nodded. After the shooting, they’d wanted to provide a protective detail for him, but he’d vetoed it. Brad and Matt went behind his back and sent a team to shadow him. He’d smiled and kept his mouth shut. He loved his brothers.

“Things have changed. Last night, I received a note on my car that says,
“Because of you, I lost someone I love. Now you’re going to lose someone you love. Facilitator.”

“Since the note isn’t specific, we have to branch out in a couple directions,” Matt informed them. “Some of you will join the team watching Emily, Amber and Reagan.”

The room burst into laughter.

Catching his breath, Jamaal Lewis, an ex-deputy marshal, asked, “How’d that go over?”

Jesse grimaced. They knew Emily too well. “It went over as well as you can imagine.”

The laughter continued.

“Okay. Okay.” He waved his hands and his team immediately sobered. “For now, Reagan will stay with her.”

“Why isn’t she staying with you?” Steve Smith, an ex-FBI agent, asked. “We can cover both houses.”

The team loved Reagan. They treated her like she had ten extra uncles, and they spoiled her relentlessly. He knew they’d never let anything happen to her. She was too precious to all of them.

“Because we have someone else to protect. Someone who won’t want us. It’s not someone I love, but it’s a hunch I have that she’s the actual target. FBI Special Agent Kate Ross.”

After thinking through the note and the shooting, Jesse realized it had to be Kate the Facilitator thought he loved.

AJ raised his eyebrows. “What the fuck? She’s not going to agree with you on this.”

Jesse gave an exasperated sigh. How could he explain to her that he thought she was in danger even though the note said someone he loves? In his gut, he knew the note meant Kate.

“Well, I’ll have to find a way to convince her.”

“She already has an FBI detail. She doesn’t need H.I.S. protection, too.”

“Well, she’s getting it.”

“We’re not hiring you in to consult on this one.”

“I never asked you to. This is personal, AJ. We’re going to handle it no matter what the FBI does.”

“Okay, the women’s protection is set. Let’s get to the most important part. We need to find out who this guy calling himself Facilitator is and stop him.” Matt rubbed his leg.

Matt and Brad were identical twins at six-two and were solidly-built with the Hamilton standard issue broad chests, bulging muscles, jet black hair and trademark golden-brown eyes. They both sported noticeable broken noses as mementoes of their time growing up together.

AJ moved forward. “After Jesse called me last night, I made reviewing his old FBI cases a priority. I leave it to you to check his cases here.”

“I’m already on it. I also have copies of his FBI cases, too.”

“Dammit, Devon! I don’t want to hear that.”

Jesse saw several of the team’s chests shake as they tried to stifle their laughter. They liked AJ, but they liked poking fun at him even more. Not only was he the youngest brother and not part of H.I.S., but he had the unfortunate reality of being born on April first.

“Then don’t listen.” No one was sure what Devon’s job had been when he’d been in the CIA, but there was nothing he couldn’t find with a computer. Devon ran his hand through this long, curly, jet black hair stopping at the bump on his head.

“Still hurt?”

Devon shook his head. “No. It’s fine.”

Jesse had been called from a hospital in Vegas as Devon’s emergency contact when Devon had been admitted after the hotel found him unconscious in his room. He had a large knot on his head and short-term memory loss. His entire Vegas trip was gone.

The hotel room had been cleaned by the time Jesse arrived. The hotel confirmed there was a shattered lamp, but it had already been disposed of. No other signs of struggle had been evident. Unfortunately, the hotel’s security cameras had been down the entire weekend, so they had no idea who hit Devon or why.

Since nothing had been taken and his computer systems weren’t compromised, Devon didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. Jesse remained hopeful Devon’s memory returned.

“Okay, AJ. Tell us about this perp.” Jesse needed to find out who they were up against. Time to remove the threat to the women in his life.

“About two years ago, not long after you left the agency, this guy pops up. We only know who he is by the card with
“Facilitator for Hire”
imprinted on it that he leaves at his kills. He likes to kill in a variety of ways. A bullet between the eyes, broken neck, strangulation…you get the picture. Our profile says he enjoys it, considers it art and that’s why he leaves his card. It’s his signature on his masterpiece.

“We’re not sure what made him choose a drive-by shooting this last time. It was risky.” AJ shook his head. “Unfortunately, no one knows who he is. He’s like a ghost.”

“Then how does he get hired if no one knows who he is?” Matt asked the obvious question.

“You don’t select him, he selects you. If you want someone killed, you quietly get the word out, and if he chooses you, he’ll come to you. Not personally, of course. That would make it too easy for us. We’ve sent people undercover, putting out the word we want someone killed but haven’t been contacted. It’s a gut feeling, but I think he knows who we really are.

“Since no one will admit to hiring him, we don’t know how he gets paid. We’ve looked through our suspect’s financials and haven’t found anything.”

“Give me their names. If there’s something there, I’ll find it.” Devon loved a challenge.

AJ nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“What about the car and the note?” Ken asked.

“We found the car this morning. He’d left his calling card. No prints. The car had been wiped clean. Whoever this bastard is, he’s careful.”

“How can you label a drive-by in Fells Point careful?” Jesse asked. His thoughts returned to the panic he’d felt thinking Kate was going to be killed. He didn’t even think. He’d reacted automatically, moving to save her. But he’d been too slow. She’d been shot anyway.

“Well now,” AJ drawled, “I didn’t say he was smart.”

“I want Steve and Joe to comb through the files with Devon then follow up on any leads.”

Joe Stone was another ex-FBI agent who’d worked with Jesse and was familiar with some of his old cases.

“Ken, keep a team on Emily’s house and a team on Kate. Make sure Kate doesn’t know you’re there until I contact her.”

“The girls are secure. We’ll head out right after this for Ms. Ross’ protection. What do you want us to do about the FBI detail?”

AJ grinned at Jesse. “Yeah, Jess, what are you going to do about the FBI detail?”

Jesse’s eyes narrowed at AJ. “We’re going to have to cover their asses, too, now won’t we?”

The room broke out into laughter again. AJ glowered at everyone.

“Matt and Brad will stay inside with Emily and the girls. I’ll stay inside with Kate.” Jesse wanted Reagan with him, but if Kate was the real target, as he suspected, then it would be too dangerous. Best she stayed with his brothers for now.

AJ burst out laughing. He caught his breath, his hand held his side. “You really think she’s going to let you stay inside with her? You really don’t know Kate.”

He knew she wasn’t going to willingly let him stay with her. He hadn’t worked out yet how he was going to manage it, but he would. She had to be protected, and he wasn’t leaving that to the FBI. He didn’t understand it, but he knew he had to be close to her and protect her.