Never Mine by Clare Connelly
Chapter 6
THEIR SECURITY BUSINESS had a private jet, but it was nothing like this. It was more utilitarian, a tool to get them from A to B in a hurry, as needed, generally just around the States. This beast of a jet was like a sky palace, from the white leather lounge suite to the chandelier decorated dining room, a master bedroom that looked like it belonged in a Manhattan penthouse, a cinema, and a gym. He toured the plane in a professional capacity, checking for safety, but even as he did so he was awash with awe at the sheer grandiosity of it.
Even compared to clients he’d worked for in the past, this was next level.
He shouldn’t have been surprised, except Gray was never showy. In Iraq, Noah hadn’t even known Gray was a multi-billionaire; he’d acted like any other guy, getting his hands dirty, messing around, going through the stress, loss, adrenalin and fear in all the same ways. Max wasn’t showy either, but living up close and personal with her he couldn’t ignore the obvious, out of this world wealth she had at her fingertips. And had done since birth. To her, this must have all been very ordinary.
It was a short flight – just over an hour – and Max read the Virginia Woolf book the whole time, pausing only to nibble the cupcake, then meticulously wipe her fingers on a moist towelette before returning to the book. He worked – or pretended to work – when he wasn’t letting his eyes stray to her and the feline grace she exuded as she sat, legs curled beneath her, body relaxed yet graceful.
From the jet, it was straight into a waiting car, her usual driver Felix behind the wheel. Everything in Max’s life went like clockwork, thanks to Rachel, her assistant, who he knew was paid well above the odds but in exchange worked whenever Max needed her.
Noah sat in the front, dark glasses in place, so she wouldn’t know how often he looked at her in the side mirror. Almost as often as she looked at him.
Hell, this was the last thing he needed.
He forced himself to focus, to run through the data he had on her stalker, the incidents she’d logged, the access points to her life, the people in her life, the forensic evidence – none – which had him spiraling into a whole other thought process. In order to be able to leave such clean spaces, her stalker must have some kind of forensics knowledge. Time spent in a police force, a scientific or laboratory background, something that gave them the skills necessary to evade regular detection.
“I need to go to the office for a while. Okay?”
He dipped his head. “As I said in Paris, it’s your life.”
“Right. You’re just along for the ride.”
His eyes moved to the mirror, a small frown on his face. Why did she sound angry about that?
He didn’t respond. The car slid into the basement, and Noah slid his iPad into his computer bag, his eyes scanning the basement on autopilot, unprepared for anything unusual. But he saw it anyway, the moment it crossed his vision. “Stop the car.”
The driver took a second to react, but pressed the brakes lightly, so there was no squeal.
“What is it?”
Damn it. What he wouldn’t do to save Max from sounding scared like that. “Stay here.” His voice held a warning, and he turned to the driver as if to enlist his help with keeping Max in the car, then pushed out, his hand reaching for his hip, where the pistol sat.
Her car space was covered in what appeared to be, at first glance, red paint but which, as he got closer, he recognized as blood. Animal blood, he’d guess, and enough of it to dry tacky on the walls.
“Oh my God.”
He could have throttled the driver. Max was right behind him, pale as a sheet, her eyes filled with tears. “Who’s doing this?”
She moved closer to him on autopilot and without a second thought he put an arm around her, holding her to him, as if through that contact alone he could keep her right where she was.
“I don’t know, Max, but I swear to you, I will find out. And until then, you are safe. I will keep you safe if it’s the last thing I do.”
She was shivering uncontrollably.
“It’s animal blood,” he said, as though that might reassure her. She nodded against his side.
“But…why?”
“Because this person is sick. That’s the only explanation.”
He looked over his shoulder for the driver. “Take our suitcases to Max’s office. Thanks.”
He pulled out his phone, dialled his friend – DCS Wingrave – and asked for the best forensics team to be sent immediately, his eyes not leaving Max’s face. He then waited for the driver to return, giving strict instructions to remain with the car until the police arrived. They stood there, silent, for the twenty minutes that took, and then Noah had a quiet word with Wingrave.
“I don’t suspect the driver, but I can’t rule him out completely. Treat him with caution. This has to be an inside job.” He flicked a glance at Max, to be sure she couldn’t hear him. “There’s too much access, way too little trail. Anything you can turn up would be appreciated.”
“Of course, mate. We’re on it.”
“I’m going to need to be kept informed.”
It wasn’t protocol, but their friendship went way back, so too did the trust between the two men.
“I’ll send you a report by the end of the day.”
Noah dipped his head in thanks. “I want this bastard caught, Drew. Yesterday.”
“Understood.”
“I’m fine,”she assured him, when she felt anything but fine. “It’s just animal blood. A stupid prank. It doesn’t mean anything.” It meant something. It meant something dark and dangerous and scary, too much to analyse.
She forced a smile to her face as she greeted Rachel. “Hi, Rach.”
Max’s assistant dipped her head and stood, not missing a beat. “Lunch is on your desk, and I’ve prioritized your emails. There’s a two o’clock meeting you need to be in on, to do with the restructure of the Aegean contract. I’ve flagged anything else urgent.”
Noah strode into Max’s office, anger flashing through him – an anger he’d never experienced in a professional role. He’d missed something. He hadn’t done enough. There was no other explanation for the access this person had.
Max’s office was secure. He nodded to her, where she stood at the door and Max walked in with a determination that made his gut roll. She was so brave, but that didn’t stop him from wanting to pull her into his arms and hold her close to him again, to distract her with their desire, to kiss her until she forgot about a stalker and blood and being followed and danger.
She worked almost as though nothing was wrong, but Noah could see beyond the act now. He saw the tightness around her lips, the look in her eyes that spoke of feeling hunted and wanted to flatten the entire world until he knew who was doing this to her.
He worked flat out, analysing security footage, making contact with his friends in international police forces to compare MO’s, to see if there were similar characteristics to any active or historic cases. There was too much sophistication here, it wasn’t likely that Max was the first victim. But it was highly possible the stalker’s skills and abilities were improving, that he was growing bolder by having escaped detection.
Noah didn’t need to press ‘play’ on the tape to see how that ended. His eyes strayed to Max, his gut twisting hard.
“I’m finished.”She scraped her chair back, focusing on Noah, wondering why after such a short time he felt like a kind of anchor to her.
He compressed his lips, a habit he had when he was deep in thought, then stood.
“Give me a minute.”
She nodded, looking out over a bleak London, wondering if it had really only been earlier that morning she’d been in Paris staring up at a blue sky, the sun on her face fooling her into thinking she was truly carefree.
He made some calls, speaking too softly for her to hear every word, her brain too mushed to really try, and then he was at her side.
“Let’s go.”
In the garage, he took the driver’s seat, so Max shivered at the idea that the man who ferried her all over town at any hour might bear some fault in all this.
“It’s just a precaution,” he muttered, as though sensing her need for reassurance.
She clasped her hands in her lap and stared out of the window. Familiar landmarks whizzed past, but she took no comfort from how often she’d seen them.
“How do you know the way so well?” The question emerged breathless. When she turned to face him, adrenalin pounded through her.
“We came here the day before yesterday,” he reminded her.
“But you’re not from London.”
“I’ve spent time here.”
“When?”
Talking to Noah was exactly what she needed to keep her mind off things.
“For work.”
It told her nothing.
“When you were protecting someone?”
He nodded once.
“And you can’t tell me who.”
He slid her a sidelong glance. “No.”
“What if I guess?”
His laugh was rich and warm and so like a normal sound that blood pounded through her in sheer relief. She found herself smiling, curling a little in the seat to face him bodily.
“Give it a shot.”
“Will you tell me if I’m right?”
“I won’t deny it.”
“Uh huh. Fascinating. Someone…royal?”
“No.”
“Hmm. Famous?”
“Yes.”
“Famous why?”
“That’s cheating.”
She pouted, tapping her index finger to her chin as she considered that. “Famous…for acting?”
He pulled the car to a stop at traffic lights, automatically looking left and right, scoping the environment. It reminded her of the imminent danger he anticipated, and her smile slipped.
“No.”
“Music, then,” she said, her voice wobbly.
“No.”
“I’m stumped.”
He grinned, accelerating as the light changed. “Good. It’s confidential, remember.”
“Fine,” she sat back in her seat.
“I lived here on and off for eighteen months. My client worked in the city, as you do, and lived in Hammersmith. I’m familiar with these roads.”
“Did you drive him to and from work as well?”
“Her,” he corrected automatically. “On occasion.”
“Because she had a stalker?”
“No.”
“Then why –,”
“She was the target of national outrage. Death threats, newspaper articles. It was a modern day witch hunt.”
It was more information than he’d wanted to reveal, she was sure of it. Max didn’t probe though; she respected his boundary, and the fact he viewed his protectees as confidential.
“There was no one source of threat, but many. She required general round-the-clock protection. People in the street would attack her, berate her. I watched this woman go from a total ball-buster to a nervous wreck in the space of twelve months. God, I hated people.”
Max knew then who he was talking about. “Marina Oshvelt,” she said softly, referring to the Chairperson of a massive bank that had gone bust, leaving tens of thousands of Britons stranded, their money inaccessible, mortgages called in.
His eyes met hers for a fraction of a second then he looked away, turning into her street.
“People were livid about that.”
“Understandably. But there were many factors at play. Marina was used by the board as a fall guy. She didn’t deserve it. The criticism almost destroyed her.”
Max’s heart trembled and something dark clouded her mind, a question she wanted answered even when she was afraid of what that answer might be. “And you tried to comfort her?”
His brow crinkled as he turned to her. “Comfort her?”
Max looked away, out of her window, as Noah keyed in the pin to her gate.
“Max, it wasn’t like that. It’s never like that. In all the years I’ve been doing this, you are the only client I’ve ever…touched. It goes completely against the grain. My ethos is simple – professional distance. I do my job most effectively when I see my client as an object and nothing more. Over time, I came to feel sympathy for Marina’s predicament – only an automaton wouldn’t have felt sorry for her – but I stayed out of it and kept her safe, as I was being paid to do.”
Max nodded slowly. “I’m not paying you though.”
“That doesn’t change my desire to keep you safe.” He reached over, putting a hand on her knee so her lips parted on a husky breath of welcome. “You get that, right?”
His eyes moved quickly beyond her, as though yanked by an individual string, and suddenly he reminded her of a cat ready to pounce.
“What? What is it?”
His hand moved to his pistol and was raising, his eyes moving from her window to the gate, so Max turned automatically, looking out of her own window.
“Don’t shoot,” she urged, when she saw what he was reacting to. “That’s just Edward, it’s okay.”
“Edward?” He lowered the gun to his lap, his eyes still on the sauntering figure of a man.
“He’s my neighbour’s grandson. He’s harmless.”
“Hiya,” Edward grinned as he approached the car. “How’s things?”
Max dredged deep and pulled up her best ‘everything’s fine’ smile. “Not too bad. And you?”
“Just dropping off some supplies.”
“How’s Norma?”
“Grumpy today,” Edward said with an affectionate roll of his eyes. “Apparently I got the wrong apples.”
“Oh dear.” Max found a laugh of her own. “Off to get more then?”
“Yeah. I’ll see you later.” Edward disappeared around the car and down the street.
“How do you know him?”
Something shifted inside Max.
“Are you asking as my bodyguard, or…?”
“Or?”
“Or as a guy I kissed last night?”
His expression was inscrutable as he drove through the gate. “For the reasons we’ve discussed, your bodyguard.”
Despite his answer, a small smile flickered on her lips. “I see. Well, I know him as well as you know any neighbour.”
“I don’t know my neighbour at all.”
Curiosity sparked inside of her.
“He’s at his grandma’s once a week or so. We usually chat, if I happen to be home at the same time. I always go to Norma’s birthday parties, her Christmas drinks, so I see him then too.” She leaned forward. “He’s not the guy, I promise you.”
Noah’s smile might have been designed to reassure but she could see the wheels turning behind his eyes and almost felt sorry for Edward. He was likely to be the subject of a background check without even realizing it.
“Please don’t start harassing Norma. She’s eighty four and deaf in one ear. Plus, she’s super crotchety.”
He watched as the gate shut behind them, then eased the car into the garage.
“Though she does have a penchant for attractive younger men, so that might offer some consolation.”
His grin completely undid her. She stared at him, her heart racing, wondering what it was about Noah that made her lose herself like this, why she couldn’t get a grip on her feelings where he was concerned.
“I’ll worry about who to harass. You just keep going about your life.”
“With my perma-shadow.”
“Is that a complaint?”
She shook her head wordlessly, aching for him, craving his lips on hers, wishing that it was last night again and they were kissing, only this time, he didn’t pull away.
“It’s just different to what I’m used to.”
In more ways than one.
“I’ll try to be invisible.”
“You, Noah Storm, don’t stand a chance in hell of that. I’m sorry to tell you that there is nothing remotely unnoticeable about you.”
She hesitated as they entered the house, the blood from the carpark at the top of her mind, so she was glad beyond words that Noah was with her, that he stayed close with her, checking alarms, windows, reviewing the motion alerts on her security sensors. But she shivered as she watched him, hating that this was necessary, hating that this was her life.
“Max? Are you okay?”
She hadn’t realized he’d stopped watching the screen and was now watching her.
She wrapped her arms around her slender body. Usually she’d lie, project the confident image she showed the entire world, but she didn’t want to do that anymore. Or maybe it was just that she didn’t want to do that with Noah.
“I just…I don’t want to live like this.”
A muscle jerked in Noah’s jaw. “It will be over soon.”
“This guy, maybe. And then what? I’m never going to feel normal again.” Her teeth were chattering, the shock of the day, the emotions of the night before, reverberating through her. “I’m never going to walk down the street and not worry that someone’s following me.”
“Do you know what’s going to make you feel better?”
She did, but the problem was, he didn’t want to give it to her.
“When he’s caught, and locked up. When you get to testify at his trial, and look him in the eye and show him how strong you are. When you get to smile past him, and get on with your life. Every day you do that, you’ll feel good, and eventually, you’ll take strength from this. You’re going to beat him.”
“Am I?”
His eyes narrowed, determination flicking in the heat of his gaze. “I’m going to make sure of it.”
Half her lips lifted in a weak smile. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“Me too.”
She could have lost herself in his eyes. She simply wanted to look up at him and stop time, to stay just like they were.
But then he stiffened, stepping back, looking towards the front door. “Are you expecting anyone?”
She froze, wishing he was still holding her hand, but Noah was already on alert. Then, she heard it. The turning of her front doorknob. Her pulse exploded.
She couldn’t speak. Noah looked at her and Max shook her head, her eyes huge in her face, her fingernails clenched into her palms.
“Stay here.” His eyes held a warning. Don’t ignore him. Not like the carpark. She nodded jerkily, staying right where she was, but fear was a metallic taste in her mouth as Noah withdrew his gun and moved, silently, oh so stealthily, through her house, towards the front door. Fear morphed into something else, taking a different shape, as she thought of Noah getting hurt, and needing to protect him! It made her want to laugh, a maniacal, unhinged sound, but she bit it back, staring down the corridor.
Noah braced against the wall,listening to the footsteps, watching the shadow cast and at just the right moment, stepped out, aiming his arm at neck height for most men, pinning the intruder back against the wall and holding the gun to his head before his eyes adjusted and he recognized Gray.
“Holy shit, man!” Gray lifted his hands and pushed Noah backwards, swearing again then laughing. “I should have told you I was coming over.”
“Yeah, you should have. You’re lucky I didn’t shoot.”
Noah sheathed his pistol, wondering at the sinking sensation of guilt in his gut. Not guilt at having pulled a weapon on his friend, but guilt about something else entirely – the way he’d been standing with Gray’s sister a minute ago, the way he’d been thinking about her all day, the things he’d been wanting to say to her, do to her.
“I heard about the carpark. How is she?”
Incredible. Strong. Resilient. Noah bit back the first words and focused on his job. “She was shocked but she’s coping. I want this bastard put away.”
“What do we know?”
“Give me a sec.” He walked back into the lounge, where Max was standing, right as he’d left her. “It’s Gray.”
“Gray?” She squeaked, exhaling a huge breath. “OhmyGod. Why didn’t he call?”
“Because he’s an idiot. You’re fine. Go about your business, I just need to talk to him a minute.”
She looked ready to argue, as though she knew they’d be talking about her and didn’t want to be excluded, but then she nodded slowly. “I’ll be in here.”
Was she scared to go upstairs? To move about the house? He hated that. This bastard had taken way too much from her. As he left the room, he heard the flicking on of the kettle.
Back in the entrance way, Noah ran through the investigations he’d been conducting. While he was providing on-the-ground security for Max, he had a team of digital analysts wading through the back end of her life: her contacts, her events, looking at logged security footage and paparazzi shots, Instagram photos, for anything that might stand out – using sophisticated facial recognition technology to spot any repeating faces.
“And?”
“And we’re working on it. Until then, I’m here.”
“The blood –,”
“We were in Paris. I’ve already spoken to the corporate security team and made recommendations for tightening procedures at Fortescue Tower.”
Gray dragged a hand through his hair, his eyes focused on the wall opposite. “I thought I’d done that.”
“You’re not a security expert, Gray. There’s only so much you can do.”
“I thought I hired the best of the best.”
“You did,” Noah grinned, pointing at his chest. “You’re looking at him.”
“You’re such a cocky bastard.” Gray laughed. “You got dinner plans?”
Dinner plans? He thought of Max immediately, of spending time with her, eating with her, and guilt flushed him. “I was going to secure the house then catch up on some reports.”
“Eat with us. I’ll order some burgers.”
Us. Him and Max. Noah was Gray’s best friend, but in this situation, he was an outsider, and he couldn’t think of anything worse than sitting around a table with his best friend and the woman he’d been hired to protect – who he was developing some seriously hot fantasies about – and acting as though everything was completely normal.
“You go ahead, I really have to work.”
She was curled up on the sofa with a cup of tea in one hand when they entered, the Virginia Woolf book in the other. Noah’s gut did a funny twist and drop.
“Gray.” She stood, putting the book aside and walking towards her brother. Noah’s guilt went through the roof. He’d kissed her. He’d touched her. He’d stripped her shirt from her body and taken her nipples into his mouth. If she hadn’t made the comment about sex being just what she needed – to forget the hell her life had become – he would have made love to her. After Gray had trusted him with this job.
Noah turned away, striding into the kitchen and making a coffee. Once it was done, he went to the stairs. “I’m going to do the rounds.”
“What kind of burger?” Gray called.
“You two eat. I’ll grab something from the fridge later.”
If Gray thought it was strange, Noah didn’t care. It was better than sitting across from his best friend knowing how pissed he’d be if he picked up on the obvious chemistry between Max and him, a chemistry Noah was doing his level best to fight. If only he knew for sure his level best would be good enough!
