“Gladly,” Kylee said, a lot more spunk in her voice than Chandler had planned on. Good girl. She grabbed Chandler’s phone and brought it to him. He set the poker on a nearby entry table and took the phone with his left hand. He waited until Kylee picked up the man’s other pistol, walked up closer, and pointed it at him. Her hands shook, but only slightly. She was far enough back that the man couldn’t touch her, but a shot at that range wouldn’t miss.
“You’re so impressive,” Chandler told her.
She smiled. “I’d happily shoot this jerk who tried to kill us twice earlier today and was willing to murder us while we slept.”
Chandler didn’t know if she really would shoot, but he was proud of her spunk. He traded his pistol to his left hand and his phone to his right. He hit Papa’s number with his finger. Cradling the phone in his neck, he transferred the pistol back to his right hand. The guy didn’t attempt to move. His hand and the hit to his abdomen must’ve been hurting him really bad, or maybe two guns pointed at him and the fact that he’d just given away his employer’s name told him he had failed. Maybe Olivet Seamons was so evil the man would rather be imprisoned than deal with her repercussions.
“Chandler?” Papa’s voice was rough as if he was sleeping, but he sounded fully awake. “You okay?”
“I just took out the man who tried to shoot us twice and has been following us. He broke into our hotel room. Can you send someone you trust to apprehend and interrogate him? He somehow got away from the police at the airport car rental.” Chandler raised an eyebrow to the man on the floor.
“I hid under a car and waited until they gave up searching.” The man looked proud that he’d done something right.
“I’m on it,” Papa said. “Do you know how he tracked you?”
“We do now. I’ll take care of the tracker and get Kylee someplace safe until the plane is ready.”
“I’ll see if I can accelerate the plane’s departure. I’ll be in touch. Good job.”
“Thanks.” Chandler hung up and smiled at Kylee. “Papa’s sending someone, then we can get away from this filth.”
“I’m looking forward to that,” she said.
Her radiant smile stole the oxygen from his lungs. She should be quivering under the covers crying with all she’d been through, but here she was smiling and impressing him even more. If only she wanted to date him like he did her.
Chandler sensed movement. He turned as the guy pushed off the floor with his good hand and crouched as if to spring. Chandler swept the poker off the floor, dropping his gun while he was still down low. He swung into the movement like he was chopping wood at an angle. The metal iron collided with man’s head as he leaped forward. Chandler felt the contact all the way through his arms. The guy went down in a heap, and he didn’t move.
Chandler pushed the hitman over onto his back. His eyes were closed, but his chest was moving up and down. He bent down low and put his hand to the guy’s nose. Creepy Eyes was breathing.
Straightening, he looked at Kylee. Her eyes were wide, and she clung to the gun. “Sorry,” she squeaked. “I said I’d shoot, but I didn’t even react. You reacted, though. You’re more than a lacrosse superstar, aren’t you?”
Chandler chuckled. It was nice she knew more than most people did about his family and their training, but she had no idea the full extent.
“I’d much rather be playing lacrosse than fighting with a fire poker,” he told her.
She grinned. “Well, you look great doing either.”
His chest warmed and the appreciation in her dark eyes stoked that warmth into a flame. He didn’t like hurting someone with a fire poker, but somehow it had brought the sparkle back into Kylee’s eyes. Maybe she wasn’t interested in him and thought he was a playboy, but then again … maybe she was interested and if he could put her fears of him being a heartbreaker to rest, they might have a chance.
He had at least the next few days to get through to her. The world’s safety was hanging in the balance. Chandler was too focused on the dark-eyed beauty smiling at him to worry overly much about anything else. Thankfully, Papa and his family would worry enough to make up for him being distracted.
ChapterEight
Kylee was so worn out by the time they talked to the investigator, gathered their things, waited for an Uber, drove to a small commuter airport, and waited in a plush executive hangar for their chartered plane to arrive that she could hardly function. Chandler stayed right by her side and was kind and attentive. He was some kind of superhero in her book. She still hated that he was a womanizing charmer, but she could completely understand how no woman could resist him and those blue eyes of his. He protected her like he was an expert military man with a fire poker, looked incredibly handsome doing it, and treated her as if she was the only woman in the world. She knew the last one wasn’t true, though, and she wasn’t going to open her heart to him again only to have him promise to text and call and never follow through. But she could sure appreciate him.
Chandler escorted her up the steps of the small jet. It had seats up front for the co-pilot and pilot and then eight plush burgundy seats lined up two by two in the back.
The pilot explained the small bathroom and how the toilet worked and then returned to his pre-flight checklist. Kylee sank into a chair, tightened her seat belt, told Chandler thank you, and was asleep before they left the ground.
A hand on her arm stirred her. She looked into those brilliantly blue eyes and was lost to anything but Chandler Delta.
“Hey,” he said softly, his gaze roving over her face as if he was more taken with her than she was with him. That was ridiculous. No wonder women went gaga over him. Not only was he a superstar, but the way he made her feel with one touch or glance was off the charts. How could she keep resisting him?
“Hey,” she repeated, straightening and hoping she hadn’t drooled. “We almost there?”
“Yeah. We’re landing outside of Denver. It’s a couple hours' drive to our valley.”
“I remember,” she said.