Hard As Ice (Fortis Series 1) (16 page)

When he returned to the hospital, she was asleep. So he settled into a chair with his phone to finally listen to the voice recording of Nia’s conversation with St. Clair, caught off their surveillance recordings. Evan clenched his jaw at the worry and fear that was palpable in her voice. After three reviews, he tossed aside his phone in frustration.

Surprisingly, Evan also managed to sleep that night for a few hours, waking at dawn as one of the nurses stopped in for a regular checkup. Evan used the opportunity to wash up a bit, then grab a large cup of coffee.

He was reviewing the various files on the other Worthington employees, sent by Lucas and Tony when Nia woke up. She immediately tried to sit up, but winced in discomfort.

“Hey, let me help you.”

He closed the laptop and leapt to her side so she could use his arm as leverage.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“Where else would I be?” mumbled Evan, noting the confusion on her face.

“What time is it?”

“Almost eight in the morning.”

She looked up and down at him then around the room.

“Did you stay here last night?”

“Of course I did. You almost got hit by a truck, Nia. I wasn’t going to leave you.” Evan clenched his jaw. His tone sounded harsher than he intended. But it bothered him that she would expect less from him in the role as her new lover.

“I was going to call my friend Lianne. But I guess I fell asleep,” she explained, sounding apologetic.

That annoyed him even more. She thought he only stayed out of obligation, because no one else was there. He cleared his throat, biting his tongue. Now was not the time to think about his bruised ego.

“Are you in pain? Do you need anything? The nurse left some pills in case you need them.”

She shook her head then grimaced.

“No, I’m just sore. Pretty minor considering what could have happened. I guess I was lucky.”

They were interrupted by another nurse visit. Evan left the room so Nia could get showered and dressed in the comfortable gym clothes he had brought for her. The doctor on call arrived a short time later, officially releasing her from their care. Evan drove her home and Nia used the time to call her office and her friend Lianne. He was surprised she didn’t also call Nigel St. Clair. Or would she only do so in private, he wondered with a sharp bite of annoyance.

At her apartment, Evan got her settled on the couch. He would have preferred she stay in bed to ensure a good rest, but Nia insisted she wanted to be in the living room. It didn’t seem to matter. After some orange juice and toast that Evan made quickly, she fell into a deep sleep bundled in a blanket, and with daytime television playing in the background.

He spent a few hours sitting at her dining table working until he got a call from Tony.

“Are you alone?” the agent asked right away, his tone suggesting it was essential.

Evan checked in on Nia, still resting comfortably.

“Give me a sec.”

He left the apartment to stand out in the building’s small hallway. It was the middle of a school day, so the area was quiet.

“What’s up?” he demanded.

“We found a bug on Nia.”

“What? Where?”

“It was in her bag. Her laptop power cable. It’s one of those transmitters disguised as an adapter. Clever, but pretty basic stuff. It has wireless Internet transmission built in, powered by the adapter itself. So the receiver could be anywhere.”

“Son of a bitch!” cursed Evan. “How did we miss it the first time?”

“We did the initial sweep early in the morning last Wednesday. She wasn’t in the office yet, so she would have had the power cable with her,” Tony explained. “Ice, it explains how they knew about the jewels, the delivery, and the code to the safe. They would know everything she’s discussed in her office. Or anywhere her laptop was powered by the cable.”

Their suspect pool was now extensive.

“Did you find any others in the building?”

“No. We’re doing a second sweep now, but it looks like just Nia so far,” confirmed Tony. “We’ll check all the other laptop equipment tomorrow when everyone is back in the office.”

“Okay, leave the device intact. We don’t want to tip our man that we’re on to him,” Evan instructed. “But now we’ll know everything they’re hearing. Is there a way to trace the signal back to the receiver?”

“I’ll check with Raymond and Lucas.”

“Okay. Now we need to go back to the beginning and start over,” Evan continued. “Our suspect list is wide open again, including whoever installed their security system. We can’t afford to overlook any options at this point. She could easily have been bugged from the outside for an undetermined amount of time.”

“Got it, Ice. What about Nia?”

“I’ve got her. All of our new information points to her being uninvolved. But, clearly, she knows something or has talked to someone that’s made her a threat at this point. So, she’s now an asset, and her protection is now our top priority.”

“Under your cover?” the agent asked.

Evan closed his eyes.

“Yes, we continue the cover. I’ll take her to Virginia through the weekend to work on my dad’s collection, just as planned. She’ll be safe there, and I’ll have more time to find out what she knows. It still may be valuable to solving the mission.”

“Look, Ice, I’m not second-guessing you. But you could step back now. Once we tell her we know how they got into the safe and that the hit and run was deliberate, I’m sure she’ll cooperate. And the rest of the team can provide round-the-clock protection. She’d never have to know you’re Fortis.”

It made sense. It might work. But Evan dismissed it. There was no way he was giving Nia’s safety over to someone else now, not even some of the best men he’d ever worked with.

“We won’t tell her anything. She’s discovered something valuable, Tony, but she hasn’t told anyone, not even her boss,” Evan explained. “If Nia was aware the same person who has set her up for the theft is also trying to take her out, she’d never give up what she knows. Otherwise, she’d have said something already. I’m our best chance at answers.”

“Got it,” repeated Tony. “I’ll update the team. When will you leave for Virginia?”

“Sandra had booked us on a commercial flight for tomorrow evening. But I’ll have her change it to a private charter earlier in the day. I’m anxious to get her out of Boston until we know what we’re dealing with and how big this thing is.”

The call ended soon after, yet Evan stood outside Nia’s front door for a few minutes longer. The rationale he’d provided Tony for why he needed to keep his cover was very real and valid. But there was more to his motives than he was willing to admit, even to himself.

All of the feelings and desires he had been fighting since he met Nia James were now slowly bubbling to the surface. They were raw and intense, filling him with a mix of excitement and apprehension, entwined with his need to protect her from any further threats. It was a potent combination that left Evan more unbalanced that he’d ever felt before. He didn’t know what it meant or what to do with it, but there was one thing he was clear about. Nia James was his responsibility, and no one would ever harm her again under his watch.

“This is crazy, Nia. You barely know this guy and he’s moved you into his house,” Lianne summarized over the phone. “In another state, no less.”

Nia bit the inside of her cheek. She could hardly argue since it all seemed bizarre to her as well. The last two days were a complete blur of rushed decisions, and here she was.

“He hasn’t moved me in,” she clarified. “I’m working on his account.”

“In his bedroom? That’s some account,” Lianne quipped.

Nia smiled.

“You know what I mean. I was already scheduled to spend a few days here to go through his collection, Lee. So it’s not really a big deal.”

“Yeah, well, you should be at home recuperating. I didn’t even get to see you before you left.”

“I know. But honestly, it’s nothing. The bruising looks worse than it really is. It hardly hurts anymore,” Nia explained. “I’d be ready to go back to work on Monday anyway.”

“When will you be back in Boston?”

“I’m not sure. Tuesday? Maybe Wednesday? Evan refuses to let me do anything other than walk to the bathroom so far, so we won’t get to his mother’s house to start the work until Sunday.”

“Okay. I want you to call me the minute you arrive home.”

“I will, I promise.”

They spoke for a little while longer. After they hung up, Nia sat back on the couch in Evan’s living room and looked around. It was hard to believe she was here. Everything since Tuesday evening was difficult to comprehend. Those last few moments crossing the street were still hazy, except for the image of Evan running toward her, and the sound of a revving engine. Nia could only assume that instinct had kicked in causing her to dive away from the accelerating vehicle at the last second. Otherwise, there was no telling what kind of injuries she could have sustained, if she survived at all.

What Nia hadn’t told anyone, was that she had a nagging feeling that it wasn’t a random accident. Her talk with Nigel that afternoon was just too coincidental. Then, there was the heated conversation Chris had outside the warehouse. Had he seen her walking away? There was the very real possibly that someone at Worthington knew she was asking questions and wanted to stop her. They might want to shut her up, if they thought she knew something. Just like they had shut up Matt Flannigan. Once you’ve stolen jewelry worth thirty million dollars, what are two murders instead of just one?

Suddenly, Evan’s suggestion that she take advantage of their planned trip to Virginia so she could recuperate for a few days seemed like a really good idea. It would give her time to think things through and decide what she would do next. If Evan thought her acceptance was out of character, he didn’t say.

When she spoke with Edward after being released from the hospital on Wednesday morning, he was already aware of her accident. So it was no surprise to him that she needed to be off for a few days. He was supportive of her opportunity to leave for Virginia, but insisted she do client work only once she was fully recovered.

Originally, Adam was to accompany Nia on the business trip to provide administrative support. But with Nia out of the office for a week or so, they agreed it would be best if he stayed in Boston to help keep their other projects on track. She could bring in a local consultant for a few hours if needed.

With a sigh Nia stood up and walked across Evan’s apartment in Alexandria to look outside at the tranquil view of the Potomac River, separating Virginia from the District of Columbia. Other than the impressive view, a two-bedroom condominium was not at all what she had expected.

After the lavish hotel room and mansion-like beach house on the Vineyard, Nia had imagined much of the same for his home. Particularly after the experience flying there from Boston in a private Cessna jet. Instead, his apartment was normal. It was beautifully done inside, with top-of-the-line appliances and finishes. The location and view were stunning, with a large patio and plenty of building amenities from what she could see. But it was hardly the extravagant home of a very wealthy trust-fund kid turned CEO of the international family business.

Interim CEO, anyway.

Remembering their plans for the evening, Nia checked her watch. It was time to get in the shower. After two days of coddling, Evan finally agreed to let her out of the house. They were meeting a couple of his friends for dinner. She went into the bedroom to decide what to wear.

From the moment they had arrived at the apartment on Thursday afternoon, Evan had put her things in his room. Nia hadn’t objected. She wanted to be there. After their weekend together, it seemed silly to pretend otherwise. Right now, he made her feel safe and secure, and she appreciated it. Even sleeping in his arms felt good, though he padded a thick blanket around her to ensure she wasn’t bruised further through the night.

Not ready to wear anything fitted against her hip, Nia laid out a long sundress made of soft, brushed linen. In the bathroom, she peeled off the yoga pants and T-shirt to look at the right side of her body in the large vanity mirror. Her skin was still marred with rough abrasions on the hip and along her upper arm near the shoulder. The large bruises were now an angry dark-blue, but definitely starting to fade. She poked the largest running down the side of her bum. It was still a little tender to the touch, but it no longer hurt to sit or walk.

Nia relaxed her arms and looked at her full body naked, still uncertain of how the hell she had gotten herself into the current situation, or what she could do to get out of it. The one thing she knew for sure was that she was
not
going be someone’s victim or scapegoat. Never again.

 

 

Evan returned home from work a short time later to pick her up, driving his sleek, white Aston Martin sports car. He gently helped her get seated before they got back on the road.

“How are you feeling?” he asked.

“Pretty good, almost human,” she described honestly.

“Have you been taking the painkillers?”

It was the same question he’d asked every few hours since she got out of the hospital, even though she stopped taking medication after Wednesday.

“I’m fine, Evan. Really.”

He looked skeptical, but left it alone.

“Is everything okay at work?” she asked.

Today was the first time he’d left her side since the incident, and only for a few hours in the afternoon. She wondered at his ability to run a company while playing babysitter to his . . .
What? Girlfriend? Lover?

“It was fine, just a couple of meetings I needed to attend. Though I could have joined them from home by video conference,” he reminded her.

She rolled her eyes, having had this conversation a few hours ago. He had argued that it was too soon for her to be alone; she had won.

“So, tell me about your friends?” she asked, changing the subject.

“Lucas and Sam? They work together running a security company,” he explained. “Luc and I met years ago when he did some work for DaCosta. I met Sam through him a while back.”

“Are they single, married?”

“Dating, sort of,” he replied with a sly smile.

“Sort of? What does that mean?” Nia asked, laughing.

He shrugged.

“It means I can’t really keep track of who they’re seeing, so I don’t try.”

“Ahhh, I see. They’re playboys.”

“Lucas, definitely. He’s way too pretty for his own good.”

“Prettier than you?” she teased.

Evan laughed, giving her a humble glance. She caught a glimpse of his dimples.

“Much prettier! But Sam’s too ornery to be a player. He just has odd taste in women.”

Nia was intrigued.

“In what way?”

“I don’t know. I’ve only met a couple of his dates, and both struck me as not very bright. I think he prefers them that way so he doesn’t have to take them too seriously. But you’ll see for yourself soon enough.”

She shrugged, thinking it was going to be an interesting evening.

“What about you, what’s your usual type, Evan?” she asked, suddenly wondering if she would be like the other women he’d introduced to his friends.

He gave her an assessing look.

“That’s not a fair question, Nia.”

“Why? I won’t be offended. I met your ex-fiancée, remember. And we had nothing in common, looks-wise anyway.”

Evan paused in thought before answering in a quiet voice.

“I’d say I’m attracted to many types of women, physically. But I’ve mostly dated the more understated, causal types. Low maintenance.”

Classy, demure like Mikayla Stone-Clement, the woman he loved and wanted to marry. Nia refused to look away or feel hurt by his words. She’d asked the question and he was being honest.

“But I think that’s because I was gone a lot, always traveling overseas. I thought that I was being smart to date that type of woman. Low maintenance, so she’d be content to wait for me, put up with my long absences. Which is ridiculous. And probably why my engagement to Mikayla would never have worked. Every woman wants her boyfriend or husband to be there for her.”

She didn’t know exactly what he was trying to say.

“In my head, women like you, Nia, were not in my best interest.”

“What?” she scoffed. “What’s that’s supposed to mean?”

“Seriously. It may be primitive and chauvinistic but what can I say? Women that look like you have men chasing after you left, right, and center. Why on earth would you settle for a man who was never around? Seemed like a dumb choice and a recipe for disaster.”

Nia just looked at him, speechless. Did he really believe that?

“You’re basically saying that a woman’s ability to be committed and faithful is dependent on how she looks or dresses?” Nia demanded, incredulously.

“Those weren’t exactly my words. But, look, I’m just explaining to you what my type used to be and why,” he added, obviously aware of how it sounded. “Clearly, I’ve evolved a little since then.”

“Oh great. All the way from Neanderthal to early Homo sapiens. Good to know.” He just laughed in response. “Explain to me your evolved thinking?”

“It’s simple. I decided to go after what I want, not what I think I need.”

“Are you saying you dated women you didn’t want before because it was safe?”

“Of course I was attracted to them on some level. I loved Mikayla. I still do and probably always will. But now I realize that the things I love about her make a great friend, not necessarily a girlfriend or a wife,” he said, and glanced at her sheepishly, with a shrug. “Perhaps it was a little safe.”

“And the part about women who look like me?” Nia probed.

“You know what I mean.”

They pulled up to the valet area of a casual steak restaurant.

“Not really, but I assume you mean
not
understated.” she mumbled, trying really hard not to feel insulted. “High maintenance?”

Evan handed over the keys to an attendant and then helped her out of the car.

“No, Nia, you are definitely not understated,” he finally replied, pulling her into a gentle embrace. “You’re bold, way too sexy for my sanity, and so stunningly gorgeous that it hurts my eyes.”

He kissed her, slow and deep.

“And not at all high maintenance. Now, stop asking silly questions,” he added before taking her hand to walk into the restaurant.

His friends were already at the table when they arrived. And as Evan suggested, there were two women with them. Lucas Johnson and Sam Mackenzie stood to meet her, then introduced their dates, Cierra and Angel respectively, both very beautiful girls, if not a little young. Nia resolved to sit back and listen to the conversation and observe Evan in his regular environment.

The first thing she noticed was that all three men were built like warriors. Lucas was the smallest, yet still an inch or so north of six feet with lean, hard muscles clearly visible through his golf shirt. Nia had thought Evan was big, but Sam was just massive. He was at least a couple of inches taller, with hulking shoulders and arms the size of tree trunks. All together, they were an impressive group, if not a little scary.

Evan’s description of Lucas was very accurate. With his rich brown skin and a trimmed goatee, he was very handsome in a boyish, fun way that suggested he preferred naughty over nice. He was also charming and funny, constantly teasing both his friends. Nia could see that he and Evan were very close.

Sam was an odd one. With his sun-bronzed pale skin, sky blue eyes, and golden brown hair, he was also quite attractive, but in a fierce, bad-ass way. While he certainly wasn’t as easygoing as Lucas, Nia picked up on his sarcastic, dry humor right away, accentuated by his deep Scottish accent. That was mostly because she could relate to it. And something about him also reminded her of Evan. Maybe the serious intensity that seemed at the core of his personality?

“How are you feeling, Nia? Evan mentioned you had an accident recently?” Sam asked her as the others were deciding which dessert to order after their main course.

“I’m doing okay. Not quite one hundred percent, but close.”

“Good. I hope he’s taking care of you?”

She looked over at Evan who was debating something with Lucas.

“Yeah, he’s been great.”

Sam nodded, and the conversation swung in another direction while the group ordered and enjoyed a collection of cakes.

“We’re going to the bathroom, Nia,” stated Cierra, Lucas’s date sometime later. “Come along.”

Nia smiled at Evan and joined the other women. Though she had no need to use the facilities other than to refresh her lip gloss, it would have been rude not to go. On the way back, she was stopped by a light hand on her shoulder.

“Nia James?”

She turned around to find the last person she expected to see outside of Bloomfield, Michigan. The medium-height blonde looked very much the same as she did eleven years ago when they were both sophomores in high school.