Grayson's Angel_Brotherhood Protectors World Page 5

  “We’ll be fine. I’m waiting on information from my brother. When I get it, we’ll come up with a game plan. I might need your help when I go after Rovshan.”

  Before Hank had time to respond, the door to the Al’s Diner opened. Kara’s gasp told Grayson who had walked through the door. A tall, skinny man dressed in an expensive suit came in, flanked by two men wearing velour tracksuits.

  Rovshan surveyed the diner, and when his eyes landed on Kara, an evil grin formed on his face.

  Grayson hadn’t seen Rovshan Nikitovich in person before. A few days earlier, when he was watching the news, he’d seen a report claiming Rovshan didn’t know his father was trafficking women and children. He explained that he had his own business dealings and didn’t need his father’s money.

  Rovshan’s father no longer had any money. The FBI had frozen the accounts associated with the Nikitovich family.

  Grayson could feel the anger vibrating off Kara’s body. The air had become thick with tension. The smirk on Rovshan’s face made Grayson want to punch the Russian in the face. The information Grayson had uncovered about Rovshan indicated that he enjoyed doing the killing himself. They needed to stay on their toes and not understatement him.

  Under the table, Grayson squeezed Kara’s knee. “Don’t act like he’s winning. That's just fuel to men like him. Try not to look upset or show that he’s getting under your skin.”

  Instead of sitting at the table the waitress pointed him to, Rovshan headed toward their table. He was favoring his right leg. That must have been where Kara had stabbed him with the scissors. Underneath the smug smile, Grayson could sense a cold-blooded killer. Rovshan was used to getting everything he wanted. Kara had interrupted his plan, and he looked to be seething.

  Grayson could see Rovshan clenching and unclenching his hands as he walked toward the table. The man’s right hand sported fresh cuts. Grayson had a feeling the cuts were from hitting Kara’s dad. They needed to find him soon.

  Hank’s hand reached under the table. Grayson knew he was putting his hand on his gun, preparing for the worst-case scenario.

  “You must be Kara Davidson,” Rovshan said. He reached his hand toward her. “I’m sorry for your issue yesterday. I talked with the sheriff this morning. If there is anything I can do to help you, let me know.”

  Kara ignored the outstretched hand. Instead, she gripped her steak knife. Her knuckles were turning white from the force she was using. “Where’s my father?”

  An evil laugh erupted from Rovshan’s mouth. “How would I know where your father is? Rumors around town say he was a lowlife. Maybe someone did you a favor and killed him.” Rovshan raised his hand and stretched out his fingers, showing Kara his bloody knuckles. “You would then be in debt to that person for taking the lowlife off your hands.” He shrugged.

  Kara lunged from her seat, trying to get to Rovshan with her knife. Grayson grabbed her around the waist and dragged her to the other side of the bench.

  “I will kill you,” she threatened.

  Everyone in the diner became quiet at Kara’s declaration. All eyes were focused on Rovshan and Kara.

  Grayson exited the bench to give Rovshan his full attention. “I think it’s time you leave and go back to Vegas.”

  Rovshan glared at Grayson. “I think I like the view in Eagle Ridge.” He deliberately looked around Grayson and gave Kara a once-over.

  Hank stood next to Grayson to block Rovshan’s view of Kara. “I agree with Grayson. It's time you leave town.”

  Kara touched the back of Grayson’s shoulder and whispered into his ear, “Let’s finish our meal and ignore these lowlifes. He’s trying to get a rise out of us, and it’s working.”

  Grayson and Hank stood a second longer, staring Rovshan down, before they sat with Kara in the booth.

  “Can’t wait to s—” Rovshan didn’t get the words out before Grayson leveled a punch into the man’s stomach.

  Grayson didn’t even use his full force since he was sitting in the booth. He couldn’t wait for the man to threaten Kara again. He was normally so calm in high-pressure situations. Something about Kara brought out a different side of him that he wasn’t used to.

  Grayson’s punch dropped Rovshan to the ground. His thugs dropped next to him and helped him up.

  “I think it’s time you leave before we call the sheriff,” Grayson stated. He picked up his fork and started to eat his food, not paying any attention to the man wheezing on the floor.

  “You hit him,” one of the velour-clad thugs said.

  Grayson looked around the diner. He knew the locals would side with them. “I have a feeling the people in the diner will have a different story.”

  Before he turned and left the table, he said to Kara, “You will be my wife by the end of the week.”

  When Rovshan was out the door, Kara turned and glared at Grayson. “Why the hell were you allowed to punch the fucker and I wasn’t?”

  Hank and Grayson both laughed at her statement. Just like that, the tension was gone. All the customers went back to enjoying their meals, and no one paid them any more attention.

  “Your hands are too delicate to get hurt.” Grayson heard her mumble about it not being fair. “You can be mad at me later. We need to head out of town. It’s going to take us a few hours to get to the cabin. I have a feeling they’ll follow us, and we’ll need to shake the tail before heading there.”

  “Why don’t we take a gun and kill him? Everything would be over then.”

  Grayson shook his head. “We can’t go around killing people. There are laws we need to follow to make sure we don’t end up in jail and Rovshan goes to jail instead.”

  Hank put on his cowboy hat before exiting the booth. “I couldn’t agree with you more. Once I head to the ranch, I will give the team a heads up on your situation. Send me a copy of the intel your brother gets. Tell him hi.”

  Grayson took care of the tab, and they left the diner. He pulled Kara into his side and had his eyes peeled down the street, looking for anything out of the normal. When the streets looked clear, they headed toward the car.

  They had parked a few blocks away, hoping to hide the vehicle. A cold April wind blew a few flurries of snow through the air. Grayson could feel Kara shivering next to him. When they rounded the corner, Grayson pressed a button on his key fob the start engine, wanting to get the car warm ahead of time.

  Two seconds after pressing the button, the truck in front of them exploded. A bright light flashed before they heard the loud bang of the truck exploding. The force of the explosion sent them flying backward.

  Time seemed to slow down. The only thing going through Grayson’s mind was how he could save Kara. He could faintly hear Kara calling his name. It sounded like a whisper. He was sure it was due to the explosion damaging his eardrums. Grayson reached out and grabbed Kara’s hand so he could pull her into his chest. If she were molded to his chest, she wouldn’t hit the pavement with the force they were traveling.

  His butt hit the pavement first. Grayson prayed Kara was okay. With his arms wrapped around Kara, he couldn’t use his hands to break the fall. His head hit the pavement with a thud, and everything went black.

  Chapter 8

  Three days had passed since Grayson’s rental truck exploded in front of Kara’s eyes.

  Grayson had taken the brunt of the fall when he pulled her to his chest. The explosion was so loud that it rattled all the buildings in a two-mile radius.

  Kara felt eyes on her after the explosion. If Hank hadn’t shown up, Rovshan would’ve used the explosion to kidnap her again. Grayson came to a couple seconds after his head hit the pavement. He refused to go to the hospital.

  Kara protested. She wanted him to go to the hospital in Bozeman and have a CAT scan. Grayson compromised and saw a doctor at the local clinic. He had a mild concussion and would need someone to check on him throughout the night. His knee, which had been injured in his last mission as a SEAL, had been wrenched when he hit the ground.
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  Kara and Grayson had come to a comfortable normal in the three days they’d been staying at Hank’s cabin. In the kitchen, Kara was working on dinner. She was making a cheese lasagna with salad, while Grayson worked on his laptop. Each day, they took turns cooking. The previous night, he had made pasta carbonara, with noodles from scratch. His cooking was unbelievable.

  She looked up from stirring the red sauce when she heard Grayson swear under his breath.

  “Did you get the information we have been waiting for?” Kara asked. She was nervous to find out what Grayson’s brother could dig up.

  Grayson didn’t look up from his laptop. She could hear his fingers tapping on the keyboard at a rapid speed. She assumed was he was communicating back and forth with his brother.

  When he finally looked up, his eyes held pity. “Yes.”

  Kara turned the stove to warm then started around the marble island, but before she could reach him, Grayson lowered the lid to his laptop. His brows were drawn together, and his fists were clenching and unclenching.

  “Why did you close the laptop? What are you trying to hide from me?”

  Grayson reached up, pinched his brow, and dragged out her name. “Kara…”

  “That is my name. Now tell me what that laptop has to say.” She had her hands on her hips, and her right foot was tapping against the tile floor.

  “I’m not sure how to tell you this.” Grayson waved his hands at the computer. “This report will change everything you know.”

  “Was I adopted?”

  “No.”

  “Was I kidnapped at a young age?”

  “No.”

  “Am I part alien? I did one of those DNA spit tests. Part of my DNA came back unknown. I could be an alien.”

  “The information in the report explains why Rovshan wants you as his bride.”

  Grayson pulled her into the living room. When they reached the brown leather couch, he sat down and tugged her onto his lap.

  “I don’t know where to start.” Grayson’s voice was reserved, unlike that of the man she had been around the last three days. That man headed into things full force and took charge.

  Kara rested her head on his chest, taking in his masculine smell. “Please tell me what is going on.”

  “Do you know much about the history of the ranch you grew up on?”

  Grayson’s question brought up a memory she hadn’t thought about in years. When she was younger, her grandfather used to tell her tales about hidden treasures buried somewhere on the farm. She and her grandfather would spend Sunday mornings after church looking for the treasure.

  Kara’s grandfather had passed away when she was ten. The thought of finding the treasure didn’t mean as much without her grandfather to share it with. She had stopped looking for it once he was gone.

  “My grandfather would tell me stories about hidden treasure on the ranch. Mom used to laugh and tell him to stop believing old wives’ tales.”

  Grayson shifted on the leather couch and wrapped his arms around her tighter. “They weren’t old wives’ tales.”

  A bubble of laughter erupted from Kara. “You're telling me there is a treasure.” She was gasping for air from her laughter. “Then why the fuck is my father trying to sell me for a debt?”

  “The ranch is yours, not your father’s.”

  Kara must have heard him wrong. “Can you repeat that?”

  “Your mother’s side of the family knew about the treasure, which is actually a gold mine. Your grandfather knew exactly where it was, but your family always kept it close to the chest and didn’t talk about it.” Grayson took a deep breath. “Your mother never told your father about the gold mine. The mine was exhausted many years ago. From what Noah could find, there is no gold left, but the money from gold sales was put into a trust.” He ran his hand up and down her back before continuing. “The trust is paid out monthly. Your father has been taking your money.”

  “I don’t understand why Mom would keep that from me.”

  “Noah sent me the Cliffs notes on how the trust works. The ranch is always passed down to the children. The spouse that marries into the family doesn’t get the ranch, only a stipend from the trust.”

  At the end of her mother’s life, she didn’t mention that the ranch would go to Kara. Instead, she made Kara promise to be there for her dad, and that was why, when he called, Kara had come running to fulfill her mother's wishes.

  “Why was my father suddenly trying to marry me off?”

  “When you marry, you get a lump sum from your trust for you and your husband.” Grayson pinched the bridge of his nose. “The lump sum is close to one hundred million dollars.”

  Kara could not believe the story Grayson was telling her. Her grandpa on her mother’s side had filled her with all the old wives’ tales, but why had no one told her about the trust?

  “Are you sure? We never lived like we had money.” Kara could remember her parents fighting about her father’s gambling troubles. There were times her dad would disappear for days. Mom always said he was away doing things for the ranch. But Kara knew that wasn’t true. When he returned, her mother and father would fight for days.

  “The ranch is in your name. Noah checked the accounts. Your fortune is close to a billion dollars. You are paid one hundred million if you get married. Didn’t you ever wonder why the ranch is called Montana Gold?”

  “Grandpa said the ranch was named after the golden sunsets.”

  When Kara’s grandfather had passed away from a heart attack, the foreman on the farm, Josiah Anderson, took the place of a fatherly figure. Josiah taught her how to ride a bike and a horse.

  “Rovshan is marrying me for the hundred-million-dollar payout?”

  “We haven’t been able to find proof. But two weeks ago, he flew into Bozeman. A day later, it was rumored that he was getting married. Noah hasn’t been able to find any proof that your father talked to Rovshan, but he was able to hack into Rovshan’s servers and found your father's debt. He owes Rovshan close to ten million dollars. His monthly stipend plus yours that he steals is only ten grand.”

  Kara couldn’t believe her father would sell her for money. She also couldn’t believe he was taking money from his own daughter each month to spend gambling.

  “When I was running from the church, Rovshan talked about killing my father.”

  Kara shifted on Grayson’s lap. She heard his groan before she felt his hard length on her bottom. The thought that she was making him hard set her body on fire. Kara had never had a man respond to her like Grayson did.

  “Your father made a deal with the Russian mob. What else would you expect?” Grayson shrugged. “Once the wedding was complete, Rovshan would have had the only thing he needed to access the money. Your father would no longer be any use to him. He used your father as bait.”

  Kara had been worrying about her father since she’d been kidnapped. Hank had called Grayson the previous night to say his men hadn’t seen her father yet. Rovshan and his men were staying at the local hotel. They hadn’t made any attempt to head up toward the cabin.

  Grayson had also checked in with the sheriff to find out if they could tie the bomb to Rovshan and his thugs. He said they all had an alibi for when the bomb could’ve been planted on the car. No one was able to pin anything on Rovshan and his men.

  “I will not stay hidden in this cabin for the rest of my life. I need to get back to Denver in three days.” Kara was sick of jumping every time she heard a sound. “When are we going to come up with a plan?”

  “Tomorrow we’ll head into town and meet with Hank, Taz and Bear at Al’s Diner. Hank took a contract out of state to help protect a politician’s daughter. Bear is his only employee able to help.”

  She could only hope Rovshan and his men would make their move the next day. She wanted to go out to the ranch to see how it was doing and if the ranch hands needed anything. Kara couldn’t believe the ranch was in her name.

  “You said there was a trust and
will. Was your brother able to get copies? I’m still in shock that the ranch came to me and not Dad. The money I’ll believe when I see it with my own eyes.”

  “You can look at the will and trust later. There’s more.”

  “Give it to me.”

  “The foreman on the farm has been helping your father move your money into his father's account.”

  “Can we stop him?”

  “Already done. We closed the account in your name, created a new one, and contacted the trustee for Montana Gold. Over the past few years, your father has taken around two hundred thousand dollars from you.”

  Kara was speechless. The more she heard what her father had been doing, the more upset she got. Not only had her father called and ask her for the only savings she had when he was in trouble, he’d also taken the money that was hers from the ranch.

  “If we can take down Rovshan and his men tomorrow, can I pay you and your friends to help me find my father?”

  She didn’t know how her father was going to react when the money he was taking from her stopped. Kara needed to sit down with her father and figure out what she could do to help him with his addiction.

  Grayson’s lips were turned down in a frown. “You are not going to pay me to help find your piece-of-shit dad.” When she went to respond, he held up his hand. “No good father would steal from his only daughter. After we take Rovshan out, you and I are going to have a good sit-down discussion with your dad. I also have a lawyer looking over the trust to see what you can and can’t do.”

  Kara had never had a man stick beside her before. She’d only met Grayson a few days ago, and he had risked his life twice already to keep her safe. Deep down, Kara was starting to develop feelings for Grayson, and she couldn’t hold them back any longer.

  Flinging her arms around his neck, she leaned in and captured his lips. Grayson ran his hands through her hair and deepened the kiss. Kara shifted to straddle his lap then ground her pelvis against him.

  Grayson groaned. He stood and, with Kara’s legs wrapped around his waist, headed down the hall. Moonlight filled the hallway, lighting their way to the bedroom.