Wanted by the Warrant Officer

We passed a field with several horses, and I spotted a bunch of cows in the distance. The stories Deacon had told me about the ranch he’d grown up on filtered through my half-asleep brain as Merrick pulled up in front of a sprawling one-story house. I started to have a sneaking suspicion about where he’d brought me. “Hey, Merrick. Where are we?”

“Deacon’s ranch,” he answered before climbing out of the car.

“I thought you were taking me to a...a super-secret safe house or something,” I hissed as I undid my seat belt, flung my door open, and rushed after him.

He paused and looked at me over his shoulder. “I told you I was taking you somewhere safe. Deacon would want you here, and you’ll be out of harm’s way. Seemed like a no-brainer to me.”

I gave him a pointed stare. “But Deacon’s parents are here, right? They look after the place for him when he’s gone.”

There was zero hint of understanding in his dark eyes. “And?”

“I’ve never met them before.” When he still didn’t seem to get why I was freaking out, I added, “I don’t even know if Deacon told them anything about me. You’re basically dropping a stranger off on their doorstep.”

I was surprised by Merrick’s grin since I’d only seen him smile at his wife and newborn son. But then I was even more blown away when he said, “It’s not as though you’re going to be a stranger for long. I’m sure they’ll end up being your in-laws sooner than you think.”

8

Deacon

I was in my car and about to head straight to LA when my phone rang, and I saw Merrick’s number pop up. Since he was keeping an eye on Piper, fear shot through me. I’d been in such a rush to get home as early as possible that I hadn’t had a chance to check in on her. I punched the answer button on the steering wheel. “Is Piper all right?”

“She’s safe,” he assured me. “I just tucked her away at the ranch with your parents yesterday morning.”

“She’s safe,” I repeated. “Meaning there was a problem?” My hands gripped the steering wheel so tight, my knuckles turned white. I changed course and headed toward the ranch, my foot dropping like lead onto the accelerator.

“She suspected someone was stalking her.”

“What the fuck?” I shouted as I picked up more speed.

It was late afternoon, so it’d been around thirty-six hours since he’d dropped her off. It ate at me that I hadn’t been able to get to her sooner, but I knew this was what I’d signed up for. I wouldn’t always be there to protect my woman. But I took comfort in the fact that my dad was a dangerous motherfucker when he needed to be. Both from his time in the Navy and being a rancher with land to protect. It was why I’d instructed Merrick to take Piper there if something came up.

It wasn’t a long drive to the ranch from the base, but this time, it felt like an eternity. I wanted to call Piper, but Merrick would have more necessary details for me.

“I didn’t wait to confirm, just took her to your place. I haven’t had a chance to comb through much video yet. But I flagged a couple of people who seemed overly interested in her and ran checks on them. I’ll send them over as soon as we hang up.”

A baby cried in the background, reminding me he’d done me a huge favor taking time away from his wife and brand-new baby to take care of Piper. So, I swallowed the impulse to chew his ass out for not spending all his time trying to figure out who was after my girl.

“Thanks,” I said instead. Despite being on the verge of flipping my shit in an epic way, I meant it. I owed him.

“We’ll call it even,” Merrick grunted as if reading my thoughts. “But don’t expect me to be your chauffeur when you’ve knocked up Piper.”

Another time, I would have laughed, but I was too worried about my woman. The gravel road at the entrance to the ranch came into view. “Gotta go.”

“Let me know if you need anything else.”

“Hooyah,” I replied.

I drove down the road a little faster than normal, leaving a cloud of dust and rocks in my wake. But I slowed near the door so the truck didn’t slide dangerously and risk injuring myself.

Opening my door, I called out for Piper as I climbed down from the extended cab. Then I jogged to the wraparound porch and up the steps. The handle twisted easily, and I growled at the fact that it had been unlocked, which meant the security system wasn’t engaged.

“Piper!” I shouted as I stalked into the house. It had an open floor plan, so I immediately spotted her sitting at the kitchen table with my dad.