Karen Anders - Special Ops Rendezvous

“Dr. John Owens.... I’m his sister.”

Chapter 3

The fact that he had his forearm snug around her throat and her waist, his warm, hard chest against her back made her lose focus for just a second. She’d thought last night about all that warm skin that she’d had her hands on. She’d even found it extremely difficult to get to sleep not only because her dear brother had been murdered, but because memories of touching Sam had plagued her. He was a very attractive man, his chiseled features memorable. He had a set of blue eyes that were intense, focused with a lethal edge, and a full bottom lip that was distracting all on its own but, when matched with his perfect bow of an upper lip, made a deadly combination. Very gorgeous, very kissable. The memory of the shape, size and feel of his body was burned into her mind. She wasn’t at all worried that he was going to hurt her. She didn’t know how, but she just knew.

“If you could let go of me, we can discuss this. I mean you no harm, Sam.” Damn, he was tall, six two to her five ten. The arm around her waist was immovable. He was holding her so tight against him, she could feel the beat of his heart against her back. Her backside pressed up against his muscular hips.

He released her and she turned to face him. Sam just stared at her and she couldn’t blame him. He looked so confused, his blue eyes full with a sense of betrayal. She did feel very guilty about that. But she wanted to understand who this man was and why her brother had been so insistent that she follow him and, if the need arose, protect him. That made her pause because Sam Winston looked as though he could quite easily take care of himself. He screamed warrior in a potent way that made her only want to get closer to his dangerous edge.

In the short period of time that she’d known him, she was beginning to understand why her brother cared about Sam so much. Her brother was the kind of man who worried about all his patients, but he considered Sam special because of what had happened to their father. Now she understood why her brother was so keen on helping Sam.

“You’re Dr. Owens’s sister? Let me see proof.”

His eyes were hard and filled with a distrust that Olivia totally understood. “I’d have to get my purse in the living room.”

He nodded sharply and followed her out there. Picking up her handbag, she reached inside and snagged her wallet. Dragging out her license and P.I. ID, she handed both to him.

He studied them. “They look legit, but in my line of work, I can never take anything at face value. People disguise themselves and fabricate identities as easily as breathing.”

He handed the IDs back to her. “I don’t understand why you’re here.”

“I know you don’t. But, in light of my brother’s death, you can’t blame me for being cautious about you.”

He ran his big hand over his dark brown hair buzzed close to his scalp, his blue eyes wary and stormy. “Dr. Owens never mentioned a sister,” he said.

“That’s because my brother didn’t talk about his personal life with his clients. The only proof I can offer you is the truth. John Owens was my brother. He left me everything as I am his only family, including the keys to his practice. I control all his files, notes, tapes, everything.”

He let out a heavy breath. “I guess for the time being, I’ll have to take your word for it.” He shifted, his eyes still wary, but now there was sympathy there and what looked like...guilt. “I’m so sorry about your brother. I know what it’s like to lose people close to you. I just lost a buddy of my own. We’d been through a lot together and he was like a brother to me.”

She nodded. “Mike Harris. I always do my homework on a case, and I read all about you and your family in the paper. I’m sorry about your loss, too, Sam.”

He closed his eyes for a moment, the pain and the loss clearly on his face as he nodded. The distress in his voice and his eyes wasn’t an act. She was very good at reading people. A sudden ache constricted her throat at the fresh memory of just speaking with John two days ago. His warm voice and the way he’d always given her a quick hug whenever they parted. Tears welled up in her eyes as the emotions rushed over her in a terrible sense of loss.

Sam’s expression relaxed, his blue eyes going soft with his compassion as he reached out and squeezed her shoulder.

“Before Mike shot my mother, I would have sworn with total confidence that he wasn’t capable of doing something that horrible. He was not just my friend,” he said with conviction. “We were comrades and we’d been through more than normal men ever go through. I thought our bond was unbreakable. I can’t count the times he’d saved my ass and the times I’d saved his. So it was natural to invite him into my life.”

Her reaction to Sam was so visceral. On every level. Yesterday before she’d met him, she had thought he was a head case that could be a bit out of control, maybe even broken. But then she’d talked to him, seen the terrible scars on his back, the remnants of his agony. When he’d woken from that nightmare, the fear stark on his face, everything in her galvanized into a hard ball of need to help him any way she could.

“He took advantage of that for the sole purpose of murdering my mother.” Sam’s voice broke and she reached out and touched his shoulder. He sidestepped her hand and paced away. “After Mike shot her, I questioned everything I knew.”

He paused and she could see how he was struggling with Mike’s betrayal. Even more surprising was her need to comfort him, but he wasn’t allowing that. She was so happy that Mike Harris had failed. Olivia was a big supporter of Sam’s mother. She thought Kate Winston was a wonderful vice president. Of course, she had voted for her and would vote for her whatever office she was running for. She was one of those no-holds-barred politicians and she told it like it was. But Olivia wasn’t going to gush all of that to Sam. She could only secretly hope there would be an opportunity to meet her.

He set his hands on his hips and faced her squarely. She appreciated his honesty. She didn’t think Sam had anything to hide, really. John was tight-lipped about Sam’s circumstances. Her brother was always aware of his patient’s confidentiality, so Olivia was really in the dark here about Sam. She would have to rely on her own interviewing skills to decipher what was going on with this guy.

“I assume you suspect I had something to do with your brother’s death and that’s the reason for this subterfuge.”

He wasn’t one to pull punches, but she guessed that was true because he was a Ranger and those kinds of guys hit things head-on. There was something unsettled in his eyes, something apprehensive, with just a touch of fear there, too.

“No, going undercover was John’s idea, Sam. He wanted you to be safe, but he didn’t want to break or damage your trust with him. So he asked me to be totally discreet. I got a job at the spa to stay close. But I will admit that after my brother’s murder, the thought had crossed my mind. My brother asked me to follow you for a reason. Now I wonder if it got him killed.”

“You don’t think I killed him?”

“He was concerned about you, Sam. He thought you needed protection. Why would I think such a thing?”

“Because I wasn’t sure. Olivia, I have memory loss and sometimes I black out and do things I don’t remember.”

“You didn’t kill my brother. I don’t believe that.”

“Thank you for that.” He glanced away, then back. “Dr. Owens hired you to protect me?” That made him smile wryly. “Damn, Dr. Owens,” he said, shaking his head. “He thought I needed protection...yet he was the one who suffered for trying to help me.”