Elle James - Full Force

Declan chuckled. “We’ll get her to the nearest hospital if she starts showing any signs of deteriorating health.”

The technician shrugged. “Have it your way.” He closed his kit and loaded it into the emergency vehicle. The two other technicians who’d gotten the stretcher out put it into the back of the ambulance and eventually the three of them drove away.

Emily turned and stared at the wreckage of her car. “I don’t suppose I’m going to get that out of the ditch anytime soon,” she said.

Again Declan chuckled. “No. The only thing that’s going to get that vehicle out of the ditch is a tow truck.”

Emily sighed and turned to Declan and Mustang. “I take it you’re my ride.”

Declan nodded. “However, you do have a choice between riding with me—” he tipped his head toward Mustang “—or with Mustang.”

Emily’s eyes narrowed as she stared from Mustang to Declan and back.

Mustang found himself holding his breath. He didn’t know why, and he didn’t know the woman, but he wanted her to choose him.

Though she was soaked with the equivalent of swamp water, he had come this far to save her. He didn’t want to let it end there.

For several seconds Emily chewed on her bottom lip. Then she drew in a breath, let it go on a sigh and nodded at Mustang. “I’ll ride with Mustang,” she said softly.

“Well then, let’s get you to Charlie’s place. It’s not too far down the road. That way you can get out of those cold, wet clothes. It’s starting to get chilly outside,” Declan said.

Emily nodded, a shiver shaking her frame.

Declan grinned. “I’ll see you there.” He spun on his heels and hurried toward his truck.

When Mustang tried to steer her toward his truck, Emily dug her heels into the pavement. “I can’t leave my purse and keys in the car.” She started toward the wrecked vehicle.

“I’ll get them,” Mustang insisted. “Stay here.”

He dropped down into the ditch and found his way into the damaged vehicle. After pulling the keys from the ignition, he took longer than he wanted to find the purse. Finally, he had what he needed and returned to Emily’s side.

Mustang handed her the purse and keys, gripped her elbow and led her to the passenger side of his pickup. He opened the door to assist her into the seat.

She put her foot on the running board and it slipped, causing her to fall back into Mustang’s arms.

He held her until she had her feet firmly on the ground again. “You all right?”

She nodded. Color rose up her neck and into her cheeks. She reached this time for the handle inside the cab of the truck and helped pull herself up into the passenger seat.

Once Emily was settled, Mustang reached around her and clicked the shoulder strap of the seat belt across her lap. As he retracted his elbow, it brushed gently across her breast and he quickly mumbled an apology. A blast of electricity shot through him.

Emily’s breath hitched, as if she’d had a similar experience.

Mustang jerked his arm back and stepped away from the side of the truck, slamming the door firmly. He rounded the front of the vehicle and climbed into the driver’s seat. Without another word, he started the engine and pulled out onto the road. The shock he’d felt had to have been static electricity. There could be no other explanation. There was no way he’d felt a connection with the cold, wet woman who’d showed a remarkable amount of spirit and courage in her escape from her captor. Mustang barely knew the woman.

They’d gone maybe a little more than a mile when Mustang pulled off at a large, impressive stone wall and wrought-iron gate. Declan’s truck had just pulled through onto the estate and he waved his hand out the window for them to follow.

Mustang drove through and the gate closed slowly behind them.

Emily had heard Grace talk about her new employer, Charlie, or Charlotte Halverson, the widow of a wealthy philanthropist. Grace had gone on and on about the beautiful estate and how kind and caring her employer was to her collection of employees.

Having been the most recent recipient of Charlie’s kindness, Emily was anxious to meet the woman. If Charlie had not sent Mustang out to help, Emily was absolutely certain she would not be alive to appreciate the beauty of Charlie’s estate at that moment.

She glanced toward the man beside her, studying him in the light from the dash.

He was tall, with broad shoulders and a ruggedly handsome face. Something about his stoic countenance tugged deeply at Emily’s insides. Or perhaps she was just grateful he’d arrived when he had and saved her from being shot. Either way, she felt closer to this man than any other stranger she had ever met.

Chills rippled through Emily. She fought to keep her teeth from chattering. Her clothes were damp, and she smelled like swamp water, but she couldn’t help that.

“S-s-so you work for Charlie?” she asked.

Mustang gave a curt nod. “Yeah.”

“W-w-what do you do for her?” Emily wrapped her hands around her arms and shivered in her seat.

He adjusted the thermostat on the dash to make it blow blessedly warm air. “She hired Declan and then he brought the rest of our team on board. I guess you could say we are kind of a security agency.”

“Does the agency have a name?” Emily asked.

Mustang smiled. “Declan’s Defenders.”

“So, Declan is your leader?” Emily asked.

Mustang nodded. “He was our team lead before. It just seemed natural for him to be lead of Declan’s Defenders.”

“Before?” Emily stared across the console at the man driving.

Mustang’s jaw tightened. “We were in the marines together.”

Emily nodded silently. She should have recognized his military bearing. The man didn’t have an ounce of flab or fat on him. And when he stood, he held himself straight, shoulders back and head held high, the countenance and bearing of someone who had been in the military, living under strict rules and guidelines.

Mustang shot a glance her way. “So what did you do to piss someone off enough that they want to kill you?”

Emily shook her head. “I have no idea,” she said.

“I seriously doubt it was a case of road rage,” Mustang noted.

Emily snorted. “Well, if it was road rage, he did a good job of it. He ran me off the road.”

“And chased you down with a gun.” Mustang’s brows dipped. “If I’m not mistaken, that man spoke Russian. And when I tackled you, you spoke in Russian, as well. What’s up with that?”

Emily ran a hand through her hair and stared out the window beside her. “I’m a Russian interpreter. No, I’m not Russian, I’m American, but I studied Russian in high school and college. I also studied abroad in Moscow for a semester. Now I teach Russian at Georgetown and I translate for people who speak Russian.”

“Was the guy who tried to kill you one of the clients you translated for?”

Emily pressed her lips together. “You know as much as I do. The man wore a ski mask. I couldn’t tell you if he was one of my clients.” A shiver shook Emily so hard her teeth rattled.

Mustang glanced at her again. “You’re cold.”

She nodded.

“Sorry, I should have given you this earlier.” He reached over the back of the seat, grabbed a blanket and threw it across her lap. “Wrap yourself in that. You need to warm up.”

Emily picked at the blanket. “I hate to get it all wet and smelly.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’ll wash.”

Mustang followed Declan’s taillights as they twisted and turned on the tree-lined road leading to Charlotte Halverson’s massive mansion.

Emily wrapped the blanket around her lap, thankful for the warmth. She would be sure to wash and return it when she got back to her apartment. Then she’d begin the hassle of getting her car repaired or replaced. In the meantime she was dependent on Charlotte Halverson and Declan’s Defenders to get her around. And she was thankful they’d come through for her when she’d needed them.