Heather Woodhaven - Protected Secrets

A female officer she didn’t recognize rounded the corner. “Ma’am, I’ll need some identification.”

Delaney displayed her badge and pulled out the rest of her ID. “I’ll need the same from you.”

The officer smiled and complied. “We heard you would arrive soon. I guess we’ll let you take it from here. I’ll be honest, though. I was looking forward to this assignment when I saw the cutie I’d be protecting.”

Delaney felt her eyes widen at the unprofessional admission but said nothing. If this woman had been a fellow deputy, she might’ve pushed the issue. The officer waved her forward, and Delaney knocked on the door.

When it swung open, she fought to keep her face neutral. Bruce Walker looked nothing like the older man she’d imagined. At approximately six feet tall, a good five inches taller than she was, with wavy brown hair that barely curled over the top of his ears, light green eyes and olive skin, the man couldn’t have been more than thirty-five at the most. He was the owner of the software company? That meant he was as smart and capable as he was handsome. But while certainly attractive, she wouldn’t dare refer to him as a cutie. His professional demeanor, broad shoulders and rugged good looks demanded a much stronger descriptive word.

She held out a hand and Bruce’s own hand enveloped hers. “Deputy US Marshal Delaney Patton.”

He held her fingers for a moment and tilted his head. “Have we met?”

Her neck grew hot, and she dropped the stalled handshake before she could reflect on how his touch made her stomach flip. “Not likely,” she said. The one thing she’d excelled at was remembering a face. The skill helped when tracking down fugitives but wasn’t going to help tonight when she tried to fall asleep. Bruce’s green eyes were unforgettable.

“Sorry. You look familiar to me. I—”

“Daddy!” A high-pitched squeal and thundering footsteps came from the living room.

Bruce squatted down and caught the running toddler in his arms before standing up. “This is Winona.”

“Winnie,” the little girl announced, her forehead creased in stern rebuke.

Bruce nodded. “But as you can tell, she likes Winnie for short.”

“Bye, cutie-pie.” A voice rang out. Delaney turned around to see the officer wave goodbye at the little girl. So that was the cutie she’d meant. Delaney’s cheeks heated at her mistaken assumption.

“Winnie, honey, this is Mrs.—” Bruce’s eyebrows rose and he leaned forward toward her. “Sorry. Could you repeat your last name?”

“It’s Miss Patt—actually, Deputy Marshal Patton.”

The little girl’s face scrunched up in confusion. Delaney tried to smile but could feel her face fighting against it. Seeing the girl was like a punch to the stomach. The little one had to be the same age as her daughter would be.

She consoled herself with the fact that her newborn had had dark hair and the darkest blue eyes she’d ever seen, nothing like this child’s light brown hair and sky blue eyes. Winnie wasn’t her little girl, but her mind kept drifting, wondering if the couple who’d adopted her daughter lived somewhere in town—maybe next door, across the street, ten or fifteen minutes away. So close, yet with no way of reaching her, it might as well be another country. She steeled herself to focus on the present or she’d be useless.

“I guess the official name is pretty long,” Delaney added. She’d never had to work with children before. “How about we keep it simple and you can call me Delaney?”

Winnie smiled shyly before she burrowed her face into her daddy’s strong shoulder. “Come in,” Bruce said. He turned and walked into the living room with a glance over his shoulder.

The living room took Delaney’s breath away. Thick carpet soft enough that she was sure she could sleep on the floor without a pillow or blanket, a brown leather couch with thick teal blankets adorning each armrest, a wooden coffee table covered in both nonfiction tomes and picture books, and a fireplace at the opposite end of the room. If this was any indication of what the rest of the place was like, the house could serve as her dream vacation spot. Ceiling-high windows on either side of the mantel showcased a yard with a willow tree, an oak tree, sunflowers as tall as her witness, bird feeders and a wooden deck. A hummingbird zoomed up to one of the flowers, stole some nectar and darted away.

“I’m surprised they were able to send someone so soon,” Bruce said, setting Winnie down. His phone vibrated. “Excuse me. My attorney said he’d get in touch and help walk me through this process. My company is in a very fragile state—”

So no one had let him know yet that he’d have to leave all his electronics behind. Did he even know they would need to leave, that they had a safe house waiting for them? She’d yet to see it, but knew without a doubt it would pale in comparison to his home.

Bruce held his phone up. From Delaney’s vantage point she could see his entire screen had turned blue with white letters. Don’t Open Your Mouth.

Delaney spun, assessing the windows and the exits. She locked the front door. “We can’t afford to wait for the rest of the team.” She leaned over furniture as she pulled down all the blinds over the front windows. The windows by the fireplace were without window coverings. “You have less than five minutes to grab a bag for you and your daughter. You’re not safe here.”

TWO

Bruce tried to keep his voice light, especially since Winnie stood next to him, but he struggled to keep his temper down. “I’ve spent the entire day away from my daughter. I’ve given the same statement over and over. They must’ve shuffled me around to a dozen people. The police have caught the shooter.”

Bruce didn’t even want to say Andy’s name at the moment. The less he thought about what happened, the better he’d function. Max had been their security guard since Bruce opened the company. He felt a great sense of personal loss at the man’s death, and it was all he could do to keep it together. “Can we take the panic down a notch?”

He paused as he thought about the warning on his phone. If Andy was in jail, then who’d sent the message to his phone? Maybe it was a relative or a girlfriend wanting to make sure her man didn’t stay in prison. Though if that was the case, bringing in the Marshals to watch over them seemed a bit much. Delaney was acting as if he was in immediate, life-threatening danger. “Is there something I don’t know?”

She flashed him a look of pity, but before he could react, her pretty features hardened. “Normally, you would’ve been briefed by the Assistant US Attorney before I showed up, but we’re on an accelerated schedule. Everyone is in catch-up mode. By Monday night, I’m sure all of that will have happened, but for now, you need to know my job is to keep you safe. There is a suspicion that the shooter has ties to a very dangerous group.” She glanced down at the tactical watch on her wrist. “I’m giving you three minutes to grab what you need, or we leave with nothing and my team picks your clothes.”

Bruce pulled his head back at the ultimatum. He could challenge her, but he could already see that she wouldn’t back down. If the authorities thought Andy had dangerous allies, maybe he should get moving.

She stepped closer and lowered her voice. “Wouldn’t you rather be safe than sorry?”

Her close proximity, gorgeous blue eyes and hushed voice soothed his nerves somehow. He took a step backward and smiled at Winnie. “Honey, go get your Lovey.” While she ran for the blanket she insisted on sleeping with every night, he headed to his room and grabbed his biggest duffel bag. He darted from his dresser to the bathroom to Winnie’s room.