Rowdy and Dash hung around.
“So,” Alice began. “I have an idea how we could draw out the bastards without putting Rowdy at risk.”
“No,” Reese and Rowdy both said at the same time.
Dash wisely stayed out of it.
“Instead of DeeDee luring Rowdy, I could lure Hickson.”
“No,” Reese emphasized more firmly.
“And ‘bastards’ sounds funny when you say it, Alice. It doesn’t suit you.”
She glared at Rowdy for that bit of censure. “Cheryl will be calling me. We all know she’s been pulled into the scheme, that she’s being used. I won’t leave her to deal with that alone, and they’re probably going to insist on seeing me personally. So why not—”
At her dogged persistence, Reese thought his head might explode off his body. “No, and no.” Dear God, even hearing her speculate on such a thing made his guts twist in dread. “You’re not going anywhere without me.”
She folded her arms over her chest. “I need to know that Cheryl is safe!”
Reese leaned into her temper. “Trust me to take care of it!”
She jabbed a finger toward Rowdy. “Why doesn’t he have to trust you to handle things?”
Dash snickered but cut the sound short when the front door opened, and a large man walked in. In a single glance, Reese took his measure, making note of everything.
A black T-shirt, bulky from a Kevlar vest underneath, was tucked into casual tan slacks. He hadn’t even tried to conceal the black leather holster that held a Beretta, or the utility belt loaded with extra magazines, a stun gun, a baton and a knife.
From the corner of his eye, Reese saw Rowdy pull Alice behind him. Dash joined him, and together they protected her with a solid wall of male muscle.
Cash, unaccountably, sat up but made no move to attack.
His gun already in hand, Reese stepped in front of them all.
The big man looked from Reese’s face to the gun, and back to his face with chilling indifference. “You’re protecting her?” And then, looking past Reese: “Alice, he’s protecting you?”
Son of a bitch. Reese kept his aim steady. He had a good idea who had just come calling. But he wasn’t at all sure how he felt about the impromptu visit.
* * *
OOPS, ALICE THOUGHT as she recognized that whiskey-smooth voice.
New levels of testosterone throbbed in the air, along with razor sharp tension.
Rowdy tried to shrug off her hands when she gripped his shoulders and peered between him and Dash. She saw the fair, straight hair, still a little too long, and those incredible golden eyes.
Gratitude welled up anew, and a smile threatened, but Alice didn’t dare. Not just yet. Not while Reese stood there, armed and dangerous.
Licking her dry lips, Alice nodded. “I believe he is, yes.”
He accepted that without question, saying casually to Reese, “Put the gun away.”
“I don’t think so.” A muscle ticked in Reese’s clenched jaw. “Who the hell are you, and what do you want?”
Alice skirted around Rowdy so she could whisper to Reese, “Put it away before he puts it away for you.”
If anything, Reese became more aggressive in stance and attitude. He stepped in front of Alice again.
“Sorry, Alice, but insulting a man’s ability definitely won’t help.” Unconcerned, as if Reese, Rowdy and Dash were no threat at all, he came farther into the room, walking to the couch to sit down.
Okay, so she could see him discounting Dash. Not that Dash wasn’t big and rock solid, but he didn’t have the same level of...menace, maybe, that Reese and Rowdy exuded.
Still, Dash was an imposing male. Not as imposing as Reese, of course, but—
Cash, who’d watched the proceedings with interest, didn’t appear to mind sharing the couch. Those piercing golden-brown eyes took in the dog, scratched under his chin without a word, made a friend.
Cash thumped his tail in open welcome.
That should have put Reese at ease, but apparently he didn’t trust Cash’s judgment any more than he did Alice’s.
“You’ve got two seconds to explain,” Reese told him.
Those compelling golden eyes came back to Alice’s face.
He smiled.
And she felt more flustered.
“First a cop, and now these two.” He nodded toward Rowdy and Dash. “You’ve been getting around, Alice.” Pleasure took the threat from his compelling stare. “I like it.”
A blush crawled up Alice’s neck and spread out over her face. “Oh, um...” Again she tried to squeeze out from between the men, but Rowdy held her back. She gave up. “They’re just friends.”
“But the big one is more?”
Lord, they were all big, but she knew who he meant.
“Damn right I am,” Reese said.
Feeling very self-conscious, Alice gave a small nod of agreement.
His smile widened into a grin. “You’re allowed, you know. And you more than deserve a little fun.”
The easy demeanor didn’t reassure Reese at all. “Who the f**k are you?”
Sitting back, arms stretched out over the back of the sofa, muscled thighs relaxed, he took Reese’s measure. “I’m Trace.”
Finally, Alice thought, she could rid herself of the last big barrier between herself and Reese. As dangerous as the night would be, as surprised as she was by the unexpected visit, she was thrilled that Trace was here.