Close Contact

Yeah, not a good time for that particular memory.

“Did you have company?”

“I don’t think so.”

“You don’t remember?”

“I can’t remember much of anything.”

“Then how do you know—”

“No one comes out to the farmhouse,” she snapped. “But I already told you, if someone did, I do not remember it.” Temper brought her forward in her seat. “I can’t remember anything. Especially not how I ended up sleeping on the ground in the middle of the night!”

Okay, so he had to admit, all in all that sounded like more than alcohol. Hell, had someone actually drugged her? If so, how and when? Most likely on a date.

Or had she trolled another bar?

Narrowing his eyes, Miles said, “I know you haven’t been to Rowdy’s lately.” Where they’d met. It was a nice place, small and with enough regulars that spiking a drink wouldn’t go unnoticed. That brought up another idea. “Switched to a less reputable bar?”

Still breathing hard from her rant, she settled back, and after visibly collecting herself, she shook her head. “No.”

That clipped voice didn’t deter him from his questions. “Any boyfriends been around?”

She gave another sharp shake of her head. “I don’t have a boyfriend.”

“No one?”

Glaring, she repeated, “No one.”

“Did you piss off your newest bed partner, then?”

“Miles,” Sahara chided mildly.

“It’s a legitimate question.”

Maxi scowled at him. “No bed partner.”

“You’re telling me that in the two months since I’ve seen you—”

“There’s been no one.” Belligerent now, she muttered, “Not since you, and you were a long shot. Sort of a last hurrah.”

She kept saying the craziest things. “I have no idea what that’s supposed to mean.”

Sahara interrupted with “Look at yourself, Miles. With all her new obligations, she obviously didn’t mean to get involved, but then, I’m sure she didn’t expect to meet you.”

“Exactly,” Maxi stated, as if vindicated.

His temples started to throb. “Exactly what?”

Helpfully, Sahara explained, “Oh, sweetie, you were supposed to be a one-night stand. Not a repeat performance.”

Maxi nodded. “But what woman could resist coming back?”

Raising her hand, Sahara said, “I could, but then, I’m used to being surrounded by—” she flapped her hand at Miles as she searched for the words “—by temptation. Body Armor is the place to go for sexier protection, you know.” Then sotto voce, she added to Maxi, “I’m trying to cement that brand for the agency. So far, I’m meeting resistance.”

Sahara’s typical blunt approach might have insulted someone else; after all, she now knew something very personal and private about him. He couldn’t blame Maxi for sharing, not when Sahara had a way of getting the details out of people. Plus, Maxi was obviously out of sorts, therefore easily susceptible to Sahara’s not-so-subtle digging. At the moment, though, offense was the last thing he felt. Everyone at the agency was used to Sahara’s informal and often intrusive manner. It went hand in hand with a lot of caring, making her a most unusual but likable boss.

After rolling his eyes at Sahara, Miles turned to Maxi. He wanted to believe everything she said, he really did. He’d even admit that she looked sincere.

Problem was, he knew her sex drive matched his own, and he sure as hell hadn’t been celibate.

Maybe this time she’d hooked up with the wrong man. Had she played around and then tried to call it quits, but unlike Miles, the new guy knew where to find her and, in a sick way, had insisted?

He hated that thought. His natural instinct was to protect women, never to abuse them. His reaction to Maxi had honed that instinct to a razor’s edge.

Still, facts were facts. Why would a total stranger drug her only to leave her outside? That didn’t make any sense.

But a pissed-off lover? That at least explained a motive, if the guy had only wanted to fuck with her.

Miles gently lifted her chin. Caution filled her big dark eyes, but she didn’t pull away. Checking for any other signs of injury, he tipped her face first one way, then the other. He didn’t see any bruises, but that didn’t mean much. He hated to ask, but he had to know. “Are you hurt anywhere else?”

Her tongue touched over her dry lips. “I don’t think so.”

Did she understand what he was asking? “I mean—”

“I know what you mean.” She spared a brief glance for Sahara, then lowered her voice. “I don’t think anyone...touched me. Not that way.”

Matching his voice to hers, he whispered, “You checked?”

She nodded. “As best I could. I mean, I was still wearing my shorts. And my...my panties weren’t twisted or anything.” She bit her bottom lip. “If anything like that did happen, I’d know, right?”

“I assume so.” Miles wanted to check for himself, but he could just imagine how that’d go over.

Sahara probably wouldn’t give him the privacy for it anyway.

So if she had been drugged—then what? She’d have to open up first instead of denying any involvement, but if he could find the guy, he’d annihilate him, no problem.

Because he didn’t want this to get personal, he told himself he’d feel the same for any woman. “You’re sure you don’t remember anything else? No other clues? No one I should check out?”

Nodding at Sahara, Maxi said, “Nothing that she hasn’t already told you.” Shivering again, she sipped the hot coffee.

It wasn’t cold in the office. In fact, beneath his hands her thighs felt warm. Reaction, then. To the upset of thinking she’d been roofied, or because she had been roofied?

The urge to gather her close strained him. Only the hard reminder that she’d left his life as quickly as she’d entered it kept him somewhat impersonal. “We’ll find out what happened.”

Relief washed over her, making her go limp. She looked down, gulped a few quivering breaths and nodded. “Thank you.”

The tears in her voice nearly undid him.

It must have affected Sahara, too, because even though she’d refused to give them privacy moments before, she now said softly, “I’ll be right back,” and then she slipped from the room, closing the door behind her.

Silence stretched out.

As Miles watched, Maxi banked the desperation and forced herself to calm. It surprised him when she said, “You’ve gotten bigger.”

He lifted a brow. Now that they had a moment alone, that was all she had to say to him? Or was she just hoping for a distraction? “I’m not fighting anymore. Now I eat what I want.”

“But you’re not heavy.” Her warm gaze moved over his shoulders. “You’re still as chiseled as ever. Just...bigger. Bulkier.”

He shrugged. “True.” He’d had plenty of time to exercise and lift weights, especially since the Body Armor agency kept a state-of-the-art gym with every type of equipment a fitness buff could want. After all, bodyguards had to stay in shape. Plus, beating a heavy bag helped rid him of his anger.

Or so he’d told himself.

At the moment, the anger seemed dangerously close to the surface. “A lot can change in two months.”

Guilt brought color to her face, so she didn’t appear as pale. She turned away before saying, “I should apologize—”

“You made it clear there was no commitment.” That was usually how he liked it. Just not this time.

“I know, but... It’s just that I had so much to deal with and...” She blew out a breath. “I was tempted to lean on you.”

He waited, but when she said nothing else, he frowned. “That would have been so bad?”

She choked. “You can’t tell me you’d have wanted that.”

“I don’t think you have a clue what I wanted.” Mostly because she’d never bothered to ask.

“Look at yourself,” she said, almost in accusation.

Sahara had said the same, and he still didn’t know what it meant.

“You can have anyone you want. I had no reason to think you’d want me, especially with all my...chaos.”

Chaos? He started to ask, but she cut him off.

“I figured it was better to go before I got rejected.”

With quiet anger, Miles said, “I wouldn’t have rejected you.”

“You can’t know that when you don’t understand what my life is like.”

He’d already said too much, more than he’d meant to, so Miles shook his head. “Suit yourself. But now that you’ve explained and had your coffee, you need to go to the hospital.”

She groaned.

“If what you said is true—”

Insulted, she asked, “You still doubt me?”

“—then you know someone probably roofied you.” Yeah, he had doubts. Too much of her story didn’t add up. If she claimed to have an angry ex, or if she’d been in a club, it’d make more sense. Either way, they’d know the truth soon enough.

Until then, he had an opportunity to turn the tables on her. He’d be accessible, he’d help her, but she’d be the one left wanting.

Sahara reentered with a soft throw blanket. Miles had no idea where she’d found it, but she handed it to Maxi.

Miles drew it over and around her shoulders. “Who would want to hurt you?”

She thanked him, then said, “I have no idea. I don’t have any close neighbors, no recent involvements.” Her gaze flashed to his. “Well, except for you.”

“That was months ago and we weren’t all that involved.”

She looked ready to toss the coffee in his face. “If I go to the hospital, someone will recognize my name and tell my brother.”

“Your brother?”

“He works in the ER. Nevar isn’t exactly a common last name, so he’ll know I’m there, and then he’s going to ask a lot of questions I can’t answer, and probably try to insist I should sell the house.”

Every word out of her mouth told him something new about her. Her definition of “chaos” was starting to make sense. “Maxi—”

“I’m feeling better.”

She wanted to avoid her brother that badly? Or maybe none of it was true and she didn’t want it proved.

Trying to be the voice of reason, Miles lifted her wrist to show her how her hands still trembled. “Better,” he agreed, because she was no longer curled in on herself, “but still pretty shaken. You haven’t regained all your color, and your eyes aren’t completely clear. You have to get checked.”

Sahara spoke up. “Miles is right, but I can offer an alternative. Body Armor has a private physician available to clients with special circumstances. I believe you qualify. You’d see her at a very secure, nearby location. Does that suit you?”

Nodding, Maxi said, “That would be so much better, thank you.”

Miles stared at Sahara. “You’re just full of surprises.”

“You’ll learn everything as we go along.” She strode around her desk to her seat, saying, “I assume you’re happy to take the case?”

“Happy?” He snorted. “No.”

She arched her brows. “But you’ll do it?”

Pretending to think about it, he gave Maxi a long look. “That depends.”

Exasperated, Maxi stood.

Since he didn’t move, she ended up very close to him, his face aligned with her hips.

As he slowly stood, too, he said, “You’ve probably figured out that we have a history together?”

“Yes,” Sahara said, her tone dry. “I did pick up on that.”

“An intimate history,” he unnecessarily stated.

Maxi stiffened. “This has nothing to do with that.”

“No?” Miles wouldn’t let her rile him. After two months of missing her, he’d finally resigned himself to never seeing her again. Yet here she was, not only seeking him out, but in trouble.

Sahara rolled her eyes. “I understand this situation is unique, so please, Miles, there’s no need to explain further.”

“Well, let me explain,” Maxi said. “I came here to hire him, not just to get him back in my bed.”

Not just to get him in bed? Bemused, Miles stared down at her. She said that as if she hoped to accomplish both. “Since you’re the one who kicked me out of it, I didn’t think you had.”

Her back went so straight she looked ready to crack. With a rush of heat flushing her face, she plunked the coffee cup down on the desk. “I didn’t kick you out,” she stated, her hands fisted. “We were casual at best—”

“By your insistence.” To Sahara, who had paused with a finger over the intercom button to listen to their byplay, he said, “I didn’t know she had a doctor for a brother, or lived in a farmhouse, or that she had property. Hell, I barely knew her name.”

Maxi gasped.

He continued anyway. “No personal questions were allowed.”

“I never heard you complain!”

He’d complained plenty...in his own head. From the beginning, Maxi had struck a chord. The sex was unparalleled, yet after having her only three times, she’d cut ties.

He’d wanted more.

Apparently she hadn’t.

On only one night had he managed to break down a few of her walls...and that was the last he’d heard from her. He’d awakened the next morning to an empty bed.

“If I’d wanted to see her again,” Miles said, keeping Maxi’s gaze trapped in his, “I had no way of getting hold of her. That was her plan, of course.”

Sahara smiled. “She’s here now. I imagine you’ll get to know her quite well during this assignment.” She pressed the button and said to Enoch, “Get hold of Dr. Brummel and tell her we need an appointment immediately. Let me know as soon as you have a time arranged.” With that done, she took her seat, steepled her fingers and looked at each of them. “As Miles put it, he already knows you intimately, and because this will be a job that requires him to stick close to you, that’s bound to be a benefit. Who’d want a complete stranger underfoot?”

Maxi looked away without replying.

“While it’s true I like to offer sexier agents, actual intimacy with the client is generally taboo—”

Miles snorted. “The horse is out of the barn on that one.”

“—but I’m feeling so much animosity that I’m not sure if it’d even be an issue.”

Still Maxi stayed silent, not issuing a single objection. So did she want him back in her bed?

Did he want to be there?

Damn straight. Knowing that this time it’d be on his terms only made the idea hotter.

Unaware of his mental ramblings, Sahara asked, “Is there going to be a problem with the two of you getting along?”

Now that he had the bare bones of a plan, Miles said with confidence, “Not for me,” as if he could be totally impartial.

Ha! He could deny it all he liked, but in his gut, he knew he’d already staked a claim to Maxi. Even though it appeared she’d gotten into trouble with another man, he still wanted her.

The chemistry was as strong as ever. He knew it. He felt it.

Given that she’d noted small changes in his physique, he suspected she felt it, too.

He hadn’t been good enough to continue seeing, but now she wanted him working for her, and possibly more. He was definitely the safer bet for her, since he’d never coerced a woman in his life, and he sure as hell wouldn’t drug anyone.

Not liking the idea of her with another man, he cut off that thought.

“I realize this is a horrible imposition,” Maxi said, staring up at him. “The thing is, I came to you specifically because I know you and I trust you—”

“There’s more about me that you don’t know,” he corrected. “But you’re right to trust me.”

She looked ready to argue that point, but instead she rested against him, her forehead on his sternum, her small body leaning into his.

CHAPTER TWO

SURPRISED BY THE sudden affection—or was it simple need for comfort?—Miles put his arms around her. She felt soft and warm, and damn, he couldn’t help but react. The stirring came from deep inside him, along with a need to coddle her. “Hey, you okay, babe?”

Nodding, she whispered, “Honest to God, Miles, I don’t have the energy to fight.” She moved even closer. “Someone did something to me. I don’t know who it was, or why, and it’s so blasted scary. All I know for sure is that it wasn’t you, because you would never hurt me.”

She’d rejected him, so why did her trust make him feel so damn good? “No, I wouldn’t.” He was glad she understood that, but he was also pissed at himself for upsetting her more after what she’d been through.

Even if she lied about seeing another guy or being at a bar, he couldn’t bear seeing her like this.

They’d hash out everything, but not until she was in fighting form. “I’m sorry.”

She tipped her face up to his. “That’s what I was going to say.”

He pulled a leaf from her hair. “I’ve never seen you messy before.” It made her somehow seem more vulnerable.

“Well, get used to it. I mean, I’m not usually this messy. But with the farmhouse now, and all those cats, it’s tough to stay stylish.”

“Farmhouse?” he asked. And cats?

“I inherited it from my grandmother.”

He wanted to know everything about her, and now he had his chance. It was a shitty situation, but it was all he had, so he’d work with it. “It’s a nice place?”

“Shoot no. It’s a pit.”

So she hadn’t wanted him to see it...yet some other guy knew where to find her? Leaning closer to her ear, he said, “You should have come to me privately. Body Armor isn’t cheap.”

“I know. I can afford it.”

“Yes, she can,” Sahara said, proving she hadn’t missed a thing. “I already discussed all that with her while we were waiting for you to arrive.”

With his arms still around Maxi, his hands moving up and down her narrow back, Miles glanced at Sahara. “All what?”

“Ms. Nevar not only inherited from her grandmother, but her mother, also.”

In one morning, Sahara had learned more about Maxi than he had after sleeping with her on three separate occasions. “Does that mean your mother passed away, too?”

“Yes.”

To lose two people so close together was truly tragic. “When did they die?”

“Not long before I met you.” She snuggled in again.

Damn, that felt right, always had, and for now at least, he had the excuse he needed to hold her. Sure, he was still pissed. She’d gotten him interested and then disappeared on him, and apparently had still been playing the field. Since he had, too, he’d feel like a hypocrite. Only, he hadn’t been the one to call it quits with her.

Given that she’d suffered the loss of two family members before hooking up with him, Miles wondered if he’d only been a distraction for her. A way to cope with her grief. That would explain why she’d been so withdrawn, why she’d given herself physically while holding back emotionally.

It didn’t explain why she’d jumped from his bed to the bed of some nameless asshole who’d doped her.

Sahara asked, “Were your mother and grandmother together when they...?”

Maxi shook her head. “Mom died under anesthesia during a procedure a few weeks before my grandma.”

“And your grandmother?” Miles asked.

“She fell down her steps and suffered a severe head injury. No one found her until it was too late.”

“Damn.” He stroked up and down her back, noticing that he could span her shoulder blades with one hand. The scents of earth, warm skin, shampoo and woman filled his head. “I’m sorry.”

She tilted back to look up at him again, her chocolate eyes bruised and worried. “There are reasons I didn’t tell you any of this.”

Right, because she hadn’t planned to stick around. Now that she needed him, would she finally open up? It wasn’t the time to press her. “We can talk about all that after we’ve gotten you settled.”

“But that’s just it. I’m not going to be settled for a while.” Stepping away from him, steadier now, she straightened the throw over her shoulders. “I don’t know what’s going on at the farmhouse, but I don’t think it’s going to be resolved in a day, or even a week. I’ve already had the county police out there for other incidents, and they’ve found nothing. I can’t keep pestering them when I have no proof of anything.”

Maybe the new house had spooked her. Unfamiliar places could do that. You heard and saw things that you didn’t recognize. So far her issues didn’t require a bodyguard, but he’d be happy to personally ensure her safety. “You didn’t need to go through the agency. I could just take a look around—”

Maxi put her shoulders back again. “I want to hire you to stay with me so that someone else is there when things happen. And something will happen. It always does. But I can’t ask you to do that unless I’m paying.”

Because she didn’t want to get personally involved? Too bad. It was his turn to set the tone of their relationship. “What kind of things?”

“I don’t even know where to start.”

“Do you want to sit back down?” By the second, she looked stronger, but it still worried him. If what she said was true, every minute they waited to see the doctor could be critical.

“Not a bad idea,” Sahara said. “It shouldn’t be long before Dr. Brummel can see you, but you should rest until then.”

Maxi shook her head as she paced. “I need to keep moving.”

Staying out of her way, Miles leaned against Sahara’s desk and folded his arms. “Okay, then let’s start with what happened last night. You said other things had happened, but waking up outside, the loss of memory, that was a first?” God, he hoped so. If she’d gone through that before and hadn’t come to him—

“That’s the only time it happened or I’d have been here sooner.” She hugged her arms around herself. “I was dealing okay with everything else. Sort of, anyway. But last night... I don’t ever want to go through that again.”

“You won’t.” He’d see to it.

Sahara got up to refill Maxi’s coffee. “What kind of other things?”

She gratefully accepted the coffee. “I know some of it will sound odd, like I’m imagining things. I swear I’m not. There’ve been sounds that startled me in the middle of the night and left me spooked. Weird noises, not like the house settling. I know that happens. This was more like...someone was actually in the house, walking around. Only, when I check, I can never find anything, and the doors and windows are always still locked.”

He could think of a dozen ways to explain that. “Could be a raccoon in the attic.”

Maxi shook her head. “No, I have my fair share of issues with critters, believe me. But I’m pretty sure raccoons can’t drive.”

Sahara and Miles looked at each other.

Maxi started pacing again. “I woke up one morning and my car was parked in a different spot from where I’d left it. I know because I always park it in the same place.”

Houses made noises. He could discount that, especially since even she said she hadn’t found anything. But this? “Someone moved your car?”

“It didn’t move itself.”

“Could you have left it in gear or something?” Sahara asked. “Was it on a hill?”

“It was moved from the driveway facing the house to the side yard turned away from the pond. Not on a hill.”

“And you’re sure you didn’t—”

“What?” she challenged, glaring at Miles. “Stagger in drunk and park in a stupid place that didn’t make any sense and then—of course, because I was so drunk—not remember it?”

He’d have to see the area before he could come up with an explanation for that one. “I wasn’t accusing you of anything.”

“I think you were.” She glared a second more, then turned away. “Ever since then I’ve kept it locked.”

“You probably should have been doing that anyway.”

Another red-eyed glare. “Sometimes things in the barn are rearranged from how I put them. Equipment and stuff.” She paused by the window to look out. “One morning when I got up, I found the water turned on full blast in the kitchen sink. It had overflowed all over the floor.”

“That’s what you were cleaning?”

“No, that was a week ago. Last night I was doing a bigger job, scrubbing everything, including the oven. But I’m having a hard time getting ahead when a bunch of random, weird things keep happening.”

Sahara sat back in her chair. “Well, if I believed in the paranormal, I’d say you have a ghost.”

Maxi rubbed one eye tiredly. “I don’t believe in ghosts, so I need to find out what’s really going on. I didn’t know where to go. There’s no one else I trust. I didn’t want to bother you, Miles, but waking up on the ground, with everything so pitch-black I could barely figure out where I was, well, I don’t mind telling you, it scared me half to death.” She shuddered. “I haven’t been back to the house yet, but I do need to go there because the cats will be waiting to be fed.”