Dylan is looking at me like I’m crazy. He knows Hollywood, and he knows how he is about family. No doubt they all are thinking I have a death wish for even thinking the things I am about Karina.
“I’m protecting her, that’s all.”
Dylan looks at me doubtfully, but he has my back. He looks at Logan. “Hollywood called him, Logan. He knows he can trust Knox.”
He says it meaningfully, but I don’t miss the doubt on his face. I don’t blame him. I’m sure it’s obvious to anyone paying attention that I already have a thing for Karina.
I sit down on the chair facing the guys, and we get to talking.
When Karina comes back in, she’s in a pair of tight blue jeans and a black V-neck T-shirt. I had guessed at the sizes, and I was pretty close, but the clothes she has on show off her curves in a way that has my jeans tightening in the crotch. I pull a chair over next to mine, and she sits down.
Karina
“Karina, this is Dylan, Bear, Logan, Aiden, and John,” Knox tells me, pointing to each of the men as he goes. I know my eyes are big looking at each of them. I’m used to being around handsome men. My brother-in-law is in fact named Hollywood because he looks like a movie star. But these men are all equally handsome. They all have different features that stand out, but they have a rugged air about them. They’re sort of beautiful in a scary, overpowering, manly kind of way.
I nod and give them a little wave and blush immediately. What kind of dork waves at them? I do.
“Dylan... so what did you find out?” Knox asks one man.
I can’t help but fidget in my seat. Knox smiles at me, and I know he’s trying to comfort me. Right now, all I want to do is curl up in his lap and have his arms wrapped around me. That would make me feel better.
Dylan goes from laid back, leaning into the couch to sitting up, elbows on his knees work mode instantly. “The guy that is targeting Karina is named Nick Watson. Like she said, he’s the twin brother to Blake. He just got out of serving five and a half years in prison for a manslaughter charge that was cut short to a lesser charge.”
“Where is he now?” Knox asks while giving me an apologetic look.
Dylan clears his throat. “He’s on his way to Tennessee. He’s in Oklahoma. He’s taking it slow, making stops along the way. We’re getting intel to find out what kind of stops, but I’m sure he’s tracked her car. Isn’t that where you left it?” he asks me.
I nod. “So do you think he had a tracking device on my car?”
Riggs nods, and I want to bang my head against the wall. How dumb could I be? Of course he was tracking me. I should have ditched the car way before I did.
As if sensing exactly what I’m thinking, Knox interrupts my thoughts. “It will be fine. It will take him a while to figure out where you went after that, and we’ll be ready for him.”
I nod and then wince. “My car broke down just a few blocks from the bus station. The guy I sold the car to probably won’t give me up, he was pretty nice, but I don’t think it will be hard to figure out I took a bus when he finds out my car stopped running.”
Knox softens his voice when he talks to me. “It will be okay, Karina.”
“Yeah, I know, so what do we do?”
The men all start throwing around ideas, and they are all talking at once.
“Have you filled in Nash and Walker?” Knox asks Dylan.
“Yeah, they know.”
“Who’s Nash and Walker?” I ask Knox, but the one they call Logan who is sitting on the other side of me answers me.
“Nash is our commander and Walker, well Walker runs it all. We don’t do anything without them knowing about it.”
I put my head in my hand. “Oh my gosh, what have I done? I’m sure you guys do important stuff. Like really important things if you’re friends with Hollywood. I shouldn’t have dragged you all into this.”
Most of the men are still talking, but Logan puts his hand on my back and rubs up and down once as if he’s trying to soothe me. “Hey, it’s okay. Actually, this type of thing is what we’re trained to do. Don’t sweat it.”
I take a deep breath and nod, thanking Logan for at least trying to make me feel better.
“Hands off, Logan.”
The command comes from Knox, and my head whips around so fast I feel like I’m going to have whiplash. He’s staring over my head at Logan, and the anger is evident in his face. It’s almost like he’s jealous. But no, that couldn’t be right.