If You Only Knew

Chapter Four



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RAYNA POPPED FROM the flaps of a large box against the wall and struggled to climb over the side. With halting movements and eyes that didn’t quite focus on him, she shoved herself onto the carton beside the one she’d been hiding in. He hurried to catch her in case she fell, reaching her as she flung her legs over the side and slid off the edge with a small squeak. Before he’d even set her on her feet, she latched on to him around the neck and hugged him as though her life depended on it.

Her eyes shone with the drug’s effect, and her pupils were dilated. Her body trembled against his, unleashing waves of protectiveness in him that destroyed any ability he might have had to stay detached. The drug likely still influenced her emotions, and she’d been scared and traumatized. It didn’t matter—he wanted to believe some part of her was glad to see him.

He wrapped her tightly in his arms and inhaled the sweet scent of roses that always clung to her hair and skin. As though she’d never left him, her presence—her need for him—filled that gaping hole in his chest. Hard telling how long he would have held her like that, but all too soon she pulled away.

“How did you know I was still here?”

He gently touched her lip where the skin was torn and swollen, and he bit back the angry epitaph that came instantly at the thought of someone hurting her. Barely resisting the urge to pull her back into his arms, he retrieved the two-inch glass shard from his pocket. “I broke this out before Andre saw it. If you’d have gone through that window, there’d have been blood on this glass.”

A deep sigh escaped her, and she groaned. “Great. If you hadn’t been here, they’d have figured that out too.” Her jaw set in a firm line, she pinned him with a glare. “What are you doing here, anyway? I said not to come.”

“You said it wasn’t worth it for me to come. Maybe it’s not worth it to you, but trust me, sweetheart, it’s worth it to me. Besides, I don’t take my orders from you.”

Just like that, the mirage of the perfect life they might have had was gone. Damn it to hell. His relief at finding her safe made him forget for a moment that she’d cut him loose. He no longer had the right to hold her in his arms and feel her molded against his body. The thought of kissing her senseless until she forgot her fears and focused only on him was nothing but a fantasy. He turned toward the stairs before his disappointment could give him away. An irrational anger reared up within him… at her… at the situation… but mostly at himself. God, man, get a grip.

“Let’s get the hell out of here before Andre and the rest of those scumballs figure out what really happened.” Ty took the stairs two at a time and listened for the soft padding of her bare feet as she followed. On the top landing, she brushed against his arm, and a familiar jolt of longing landed in his gut. Shaking it off, he bent to whisper in her ear, “Stay behind me and keep moving. If I go down, you don’t stop.”

Her nod was nearly imperceptible as her eyes searched his. Was it concern for him that made her breath catch as she held his gaze? Or more of the drug’s handiwork? Either way, now wasn’t the time to give in to the soft question in her eyes, so he used the anger churning just below the surface. Slamming his foot into the door, he splintered the casing and the wood around the lock sending the door flying outward into the room beyond.

He surged through the opening and spotted Mikhail running toward them, his hand inside his jacket where Ty had seen the bulge of a shoulder holster. He launched himself at the Russian and took him down hard. The man was quick for his size, and he rolled away and came right back to his feet. He drew his gun, but didn’t follow through. No doubt he had orders to keep them alive. Ty kicked the weapon from his hand, and it slid across the room as he swung around and landed a right cross on Mikhail’s jaw.

He didn’t even wobble—just grinned and continued to advance. Ty’s reach was longer, and he dealt an uppercut to the Russian’s chin, then danced out of his way. The man still showed no reaction to the beating he was taking. Ty didn’t need to be told he’d be in serious trouble if Mikhail touched him with one of his powerful fists.

The shot rang loudly from close at hand. Mikhail jerked and fell backward, surprise and pain twisting his features. Blood seeped down the front of his shirt from a large hole in his left shoulder.

Ty spun around. Rayna lowered the gun and stumbled toward him. He took the weapon from her outstretched hand. “Nice shot.”

She was an excellent shot and could have hit the man anywhere she chose, so he had to assume the shoulder was what she’d been going for. He’d have done it differently, but then he was still pissed that Rayna had been kidnapped and subjected to harsh treatment.

He turned back to Mikhail, sitting braced against the wall, trying to staunch the flow of blood from his wound. “The good news is you’re going to live. The bad news is you need to be quiet for a while.”

Mikhail glared defiantly.

Ty swung the barrel of the gun into the side of his head and he collapsed, sliding sideways to the floor. Rayna came up behind him as he rifled the unconscious man’s pockets for his cell phone and lifted the extra magazine from his holster. Gingerly, he flexed his right hand. Now that the adrenaline had receded, he was beginning to get a good idea how sore it would be.

“Are you okay?” The concern in her eyes echoed her question as her hand on his shoulder trembled. Her inner turmoil was no doubt the only thing keeping her from collapsing in total exhaustion.


He’d seen battle-weary members of Joe’s team with that same look. The stilted movements and eyelids that blinked independently of each other. She was shutting down, and he had to get her out of here before that happened.

“Let’s go.” Ty stood, grabbed her hand, and pulled her with him through the house and out the front door. He hesitated a split second before he headed for the back of the house and the alley beyond. When in doubt, always take the alley.

Rayna held back, and her faltering steps slowed him. Being barefoot wasn’t helping the cause either. Ty shoved the gun into the belt at his back and swept her into his arms.

“What are you doing? Put me down.” She squirmed and pushed against his chest.

“I’m trying to get us both out of here alive, so stop fighting me. You can get as far away from me as you want when this is over.”

The look she shot him was surprised, hurt, and angry. She opened her mouth as though to respond, then closed it and looked away.

Instantly sorry for hurting her, he wished she’d call him on it so his disparagement would somehow be justified.

A car roared to life at the end of the alley and rolled toward them. Ty studied it closely. It was a dark blue, late-model Toyota—probably a rental car, by the look of it. Not Boris’s car, but it was a little too coincidental that it appeared in this alley at this particular moment. He switched directions and hurried back the way he’d come, but stopped short when he recognized Boris’s Lexus as it turned into the other end of the alley and sped toward them.

The driver of the car behind them revved the engine and laid on the horn.

“What the hell? It can’t be…” Ty turned to stare at the windshield of the Toyota that was now speeding toward them. The sun’s glare kept him from seeing who was inside, but the scene had a certain familiarity about it. What were the chances? Almost negligible. Still, if there was any chance at all, he needed to get the hell out of the way.

“Can you run?” He glanced down at Rayna’s anxious face.

“I think so.”

He set her down in the grass, then took her hand, and they raced toward the vehicle with the blaring horn. When they passed it and kept on going, the tires squealed and slid on the blacktop as the driver slammed on the brakes and skidded the car around.

When the vehicle pulled alongside them again, the driver slowed and threw open the front passenger door. “Get in, damn it! They’re gaining on us.”

Ty’s suspicions were confirmed by the voice he’d recognize anywhere, and he slid into the front seat, jerking Rayna onto his lap. He slammed the door and his old partner, Nate Sanders, hit the gas, sending the car lurching forward.

The man behind the wheel was a big guy, six-five at least. His shoulders and biceps bulged through his T-shirt. His light blue eyes, barely discernible beneath the brim of his A’s baseball cap, held more than a tinge of excitement, as though he lived for this sort of thing. That he did, Ty knew only too well.

“Nate? What the hell’s going on?”

“Hang on a minute, buddy. Let me lose these goons first.” Nate jerked the wheel and sent the car sideways out of the alley and onto the street. He straightened it out expertly and jammed his foot on the gas. The car shot forward. At the end of the block, he executed another skid and made the corner just as Boris’s car came into view in the side mirror.

“Ha! Amateurs!” Nate slapped the steering wheel.

Rayna jumped, and Ty held her tighter in his arms. Her heart pounded a wild rhythm against his chest, and her face had turned an ashen gray.

Nate floored the gas pedal, and when the car stopped fishtailing, it accelerated down the street. Four blocks later, he made a sharp right turn into oncoming one-way traffic. Rayna gasped and hid her face in Ty’s neck as Nate used the brakes and gas to thread his way through the cars that honked and swerved in front of them. Two more left turns put them on a quiet residential street. Nate pulled over, left the car running, and watched in the mirror. A few minutes later, apparently satisfied they’d lost their tail, he killed the engine.

Ty opened the door and tried to deposit Rayna on the seat as he scooted out from under her, but she scrambled out right behind him.

“Please… don’t leave me.” She stood, unsteadily.

He put his arms around her and let her lean back against him. “I’m not going anywhere.” He watched as Nate climbed out the other side. “Nate, what the hell are you doing in LA?” Ty already had an idea what brought his ex-partner here, and it made him boiling mad.

“The least I could do was come lend my old partner a hand.” Nate closed the driver’s door and rested his forearms on the roof of the car.

“Cut the crap. You knew exactly where to find me and who the bad guys were. What’s up?”

Nate exhaled slowly as he resettled his baseball cap. “Friend of yours called. Joe Reynolds. Said you were going up against that Russian SOB… and why.” His gaze shifted to Rayna before he turned to look down the street. “I got the first plane out of Portland, arrived about an hour before you did, and followed you.”

Ty had suspected as much. Joe talked a good game, but the bottom line was, he didn’t trust Ty—at least not with Rayna’s life. He couldn’t decide if he should be pissed or grateful. Behind his back, Joe called in the cavalry—Ty’s ex-partner, no less—someone he’d purposely left out of this whole mess.

He gritted his teeth, biting back his snarky reply. Nate was just the messenger. Taking it out on him wouldn’t be fair. The guy had dropped everything, gotten on a plane, even though he hated to fly, and come to help an old friend. It was highly likely, if Nate hadn’t shown up when he did, there would have been bloodshed in that alley.

Ty didn’t intend to think that one through. He was grateful for Nate, but it still ate at him that Joe had gone behind his back. Apparently, his leaving was long overdue. Just one more thing to finish—deliver Rayna safely home before he moved on. His arm tightened around her waist protectively.

Rayna looked at him, concern drawing her brows together. “Are you going to introduce me to your friend?”

Ty cleared his throat. “Sorry. Rayna, this is Nate Sanders. We were partners a few years ago when we both worked for the Portland Police Bureau.”

She blinked and stared at Ty. “You were a cop?”

“And a damn good one too.” Nate stepped around the front of the car and extended his hand.

“I’m pleased to meet you, Nate. Thanks for your help, and I’m sure, when Ty remembers his manners, he’ll thank you too.” She elbowed him none-too-gently in the ribs.

Nate snorted. “Don’t worry about it. Ty always was kind of a loner. Apparently, he hasn’t changed all that much since he wouldn’t accept help from his friends back in Montana. That left me the only one available to come bail his ass out.”

The truth grated on him, but Ty forced himself to smile. “Would you two like me to walk down the street so you can talk about me behind my back?”

Rayna grinned at Nate, leaning back against Ty again. “Of course not. We have no problem talking right in front of you.”

Nate chortled and some of Ty’s annoyance faded away. “You know what they say about payback.”

“That’ll have to wait, buddy. We need to get out of town.” Nate walked around the car, swung the door open, and slid behind the wheel.


Ty slipped his arms around Rayna’s waist and kept her from moving away. “How do you feel? We should hit the ER before we leave town.” Something was going on with her. Not knowing what drug Andre used on her, he couldn’t be sure. She might just be in shock, but some outside influence was responsible for her on-again off-again moods. Not that he minded when she wanted to be close to him, but the other side of that was going to be a bitch.

“I’m still woozy, but I’m a lot better. You know how I feel about hospitals, Ty. I think I just need some sleep.” Her smile was a little lopsided.

He frowned, even as the sadness in her eyes tore at his heart. “Okay, but if you’re not a hundred percent tomorrow, I’m finding you a doctor.” Maybe it was crazy to wait, but he knew what hospitals did to her, and it wasn’t pretty. She’d told him the story one night as they’d walked around the lake trail.

Ten years ago, her parents were run off the road by a drunk driver. On life support in critical care, there was nothing she could do for them. When the doctors said her parents were brain-dead and would never wake up, she couldn’t even make the decision to let them go. She was only thirteen. They’d have to wait until her older brother, Charlie, could get home from Afghanistan. They were the only family her parents had left.

The military machine grinds slowly sometimes. Four days and nights she stayed with them, unable to leave them alone. It became a place of nightmares and death to her. Ty wouldn’t make her go to a hospital now unless it was absolutely necessary. Walker was a trained medic. He could take care of her when they got to where they were going.

She turned her head to look at him. “Thanks for coming for me. I wasn’t sure you would.”

Ty snagged her hand and squeezed while he held her gaze. “You cut me loose—not the other way around.” He pushed her toward the car before he could say something he’d regret, opened the back door, and silently appreciated her long, tanned legs as she glided onto the seat. Then he climbed into the front.

About the time Nate turned north on I-5, Rayna lay down on the backseat and was soon sound asleep. Ty studied her every few minutes, making sure she was still breathing normally. The enormity of the danger she’d been in, and knowing it was his fault, turned his stomach sour. He didn’t like not knowing what Andre had shot her up with. Despite her combat training and the fact she could hold her own in most situations, he couldn’t rid himself of the need to take care of her. Let it go, man. She doesn’t want you.

The problem was, now that he’d held her in his arms again, his heart was in serious denial.

“She means a lot to you.” Nate checked the rearview mirror again.

Ty tore his gaze from Rayna and focused on the man he still thought of as his partner. “I’m sorry you got dragged into this, Nate.”

“Nobody dragged me. I came of my own free will.” He glanced sideways at Ty. “Tell me you wouldn’t have done the same for me.”

Ty ran a hand across the nape of his neck. “Okay. Enough said.”

“Why’d you quit, Ty? I should kick your ass for leaving me hanging like that. I bet it had something to do with that FBI agent, and I know you thought you were protecting me by not letting me in on it, but damn it, we were partners, and you had no right.”

“The less you know, the better.” Ty shifted his gaze to the backseat again.

Nate chuckled and shook his head. He pulled his hat off for a second, then replaced it. “I’m going to find out, buddy. You know that, right?”

Ty raised an eyebrow. “Sure. You’ve already learned so much, and it’s only been six years.”

“Hey. Bite me, a*shole.” Nate’s grin took the sting from his words.

“It’s good to see you too. Thanks for your help today.”

Nate’s grin widened. “Aw, now, you waited until the little lady went to sleep so she wouldn’t know she was right about you remembering your manners.”

Ty hid his grin. It wouldn’t do to encourage the guy. “Where are we headed, anyway?”

“Portland, of course. Uncle Leo’s house. Joe will pick you up there day after tomorrow.”

Ty pursed his lips. They’d taken Bree and the baby to Nate’s uncle’s house to hide them from the Russian Mob. The joke had been on Ty, though. Hiding hadn’t been part of Bree’s plan.

Nate scrutinized him until Ty turned away. “Think I’ll get some z’s. Wake me when you want to switch.” He leaned his seat back, careful not to crowd Rayna, and crossed his arms over his abdomen.

The way his insides were churning, Ty wouldn’t be sleeping anytime soon, but Nate was just a little too curious, and Ty was way too tired to keep his emotions from being displayed on his face. He trusted his partner with his life, but he wasn’t giving him information that could destroy him the way it had Ty. He wouldn’t do it.

As soon as he got Rayna to Portland and Joe picked her up, Ty was done. She wanted him out of her life, and he’d oblige her. Maybe he’d go back East… or overseas. A person could lose themselves in Bangkok or Hong Kong. He’d always wanted to go to Australia. The possibilities were endless.

Surely, somewhere along the way, he’d be able to forget her.