Rage (Benson Security 3)

“You don’t say that to Soph. That’s favouritism, that is,” Jack said.

Isobel ignored him and reached for her daughter.

She shook her head as she gnawed at the donut. “Stay, Clam.”

“That’s brilliant.” Jack snorted a laugh. “Hard shell. Brainless. Looks like snot. It’s the perfect name for him.”

“Jack!” Isobel glared at her son.

Callum cocked an eyebrow in Jack’s direction before placing Sophie on a kitchen chair. “You need to stay here. I have work to do.”

“Wanna go with Clam,” Sophie said.

“Callum,” Callum corrected. “And you can’t. You need to have breakfast.”

She opened her mouth to protest, but shut it when Callum shook his head.

“I wish she’d do that for me,” Isobel said.

Callum straightened and turned his attention on her, suddenly making her feel naked. Not a good feeling while she was in a room with her two children. His eyes darkened as though he could read her mind.

“You sleep okay?”

Isobel nodded. It had only been a couple of hours, but it’d been sound. “What’s with this basement, anyway? Was your granddad one of those doomsday people? Have you taken over where he left off? Are you sitting around down here waiting for the world to end? Is this what you’ve been doing all these months? You’ve been in here burrowing like a mole and preparing for Armageddon?”

“No.” His lips twitched as though he might risk a smile, but it passed, making Isobel crave hearing his deep, rich laughter again. “My grandfather was the mole. This is his panic room. He wanted one after I was captured in Iraq. He thought there should be a safe place for me if I ever needed one.”

She jerked back. “You were captured?”

“I was only held for a few days before my team got me out.”

Suddenly, the fact that the underground mini-apartment seemed more lived in than the house upstairs made a lot more sense. “This is where you live, isn’t it? You don’t sleep in the bed upstairs. That’s why it was so neat.” He’d been hiding. From life and from himself.

Callum cleared his throat. “My team, I mean, the security team I used to work with are here.” His voice was husky.

Isobel flushed and felt herself leaning towards him. Just hearing that tone made her skin ache to be touched. Which she shouldn’t allow. She stepped away from him.

“A whole team? I thought maybe one person.” She couldn’t risk any more people. She couldn’t. “I thought it was just one person coming to do you a favour.”

Callum dragged a hand through his hair, which made his T-shirt tighten over those impossibly buff shoulders of his. Why did he have to be so damn hot? It wasn’t fair. Where she had stretch marks on her stomach, he had washboard abs. Where she had cellulite on her thighs, she was sure he had only toned muscle. She was at least ten pounds overweight and had given up on ever losing it, whereas he looked like there wasn’t an ounce of fat anywhere on him. It wasn’t fair. Why did she have to crave the touch of a man who made David Beckham look ordinary?

“I don’t understand why they’re all here.” Callum’s tone was even, which made her pay closer attention. She got the feeling that whatever he was about to tell her was far more important than he was letting on. “I was partner in an international security firm. I managed the London office, and the people upstairs are the team I was in charge of. They’ve come here to help us get to the bottom of your situation. They want me to come back.” He sounded bewildered.

“The whole team are here? All of them?” Isobel was horrified. “They’re here like this is a proper job? I can’t afford to hire a security team. You have to send them away.”

“Mum,” Jack said.

“No, Jack, you know I’m right. I can’t owe anyone else. I can’t.” She looked at Callum. “Send them away.”

“No. We need them, and you don’t have to pay anything.”

She balked. “You’re paying?” She shook her head. “I can’t allow that. Things are complicated enough between us without involving money.”

“Nobody’s paying, you damn stubborn woman. They’re doing it…out of the kindness of their hearts. I think. It doesn’t matter. They don’t want money. And they’re the best in the business. Trust me. We need them, and they will find out what’s going on here.” He took a step towards Isobel, and she felt the room shrink until it was filled with only him. “These people will watch our backs. You and your kids are still in danger. To send them away would be gross stupidity.”

“You think I’m stupid?” Seriously? He was insulting her? Now? When she was barely holding it together?

“I didn’t say that.” The vein in his temple began to throb. “But you don’t have the common sense God gave a goldfish.”