Liam’s stomach rolled as heat washed over him. He wanted to throw up. Had he eaten something bad on base? The disgusting feeling filled him again. He almost stopped his truck, but he kept going, pushing through as he drove to Lorelei’s house. He’d wanted to treat his girlfriend, but now he’d be on her floor in the bathroom hugging the toilet.

He made it to her street and it was like he’d hit a brick wall. Air was sucked from his lungs when he saw a car that didn’t belong parked in front of her house. It was crazy that he was suspicious of a weird car, but that wasn’t the most distressing thing. The door to Lorelei’s house was open, setting off even more alarm bells. He wanted to jump out and rush in, but he parked his truck two houses over. He eased out, making as little noise as possible. Before he shut the door to his truck, he grabbed his Glock, making sure it was loaded. He also grabbed his thigh harness and slipped it on. He’d left it out because he wanted to adjust and clean the harness before bed tonight.

He moved slow and steady, paying attention to everything. The sick feeling was gone and now he wondered if it wasn’t sickness, but some connection he had with Lorelei that had set him off.

When he looked through the kitchen curtains, he saw nothing. He made his way slowly around to the front of the house, glancing in the windows. The locks he’d repaired were working against him. He could have silently slid into one of the windows in the kitchen and no one in the house would have known.

When he edged around the corner and glanced into the living room window, rage so hot it almost made him shout filled him. Going in angry wouldn’t do him any good. He settled, studying the situation. There were two guys, one of them big, the other smaller. They were looking at Lorelei like she was a piece of meat.

Think. Ghost’s voice filled his head. He wanted to rip these guys apart, but he needed to remain calm so he made no mistakes. He slowed down and watched for a moment as he studied the information in front of him.

He had to disable one of the men. His opportunity came when one guy left the room where Lorelei was. Liam moved quickly and efficiently. He entered the house by the front door that had been left open, making close to no noise. He slipped into the hall where the other guy had disappeared. Liam pushed down his rage and focused on the mission and snuck up on the jerk heading to Lorelei’s bedroom.

He didn’t have time to ask this idiot what he was doing. The man had to be on the floor, his lights out, so he could save Lorelei.

Liam moved like lightning, striking the man fast and efficiently. Though he didn’t care if the guy hit his head on the way down, he didn’t want to make any noise, so he grabbed the guy and lowered him to the floor. He had zip ties in the pocket of his holster since they’d been working with their hands bound today. He cinched the ties around the jerk’s wrists before heading to the living room.

The sound of Lorelei telling the guy to go to hell warmed his heart. She wasn’t giving up though her situation was desperate. He liked the fight she gave.

“You’re gonna regret hitting me, little girl. I’m gonna be rough on you. You’re gonna be sorry,” the guy drawled, his accent thick.

“Not as much as you’re going to regret touching me,” Lorelei spat back.

Liam moved into the room so neither Lorelei nor the asshole heard. He could tell by the way Lorelei was holding her hand that she was hurt. Her ankle looked puffy, but otherwise she looked okay. Her clothes hadn’t been tugged off or ripped, so though this guy was threatening to do something, he didn’t think the man had accomplished anything yet.

“Now, time to get rid of your pants,” the asshole said.

Liam reached for the man and grabbed the collar of his shirt, yanking him back. He yelped like a stuck pig, which he was. Then Liam threw him to the floor and popped him on the side of his head with a balled fist. The man was out.

The sound of sirens hit him as he pulled out a zip strip. He secured this guy’s hands behind his back before he took the gun from his holster and ejected the clip, emptying the chamber, setting the whole thing on the table so the cops could see his piece and know he wasn’t armed.

Lorelei was crying, the sound breaking his heart. After he placed his gun and clip on the table, he dropped to the floor beside her and cupped her cheeks.

She moved fast, climbing on his lap as she screamed and sobbed. All the emotions she’d held in check as she kept it together, telling the asshole off, came out. He cradled her, keeping his own emotions under control as he pulled his phone out and sent a text to Ghost. About to get arrested or at least taken in. May need some help.

He sent Ghost his location then put his phone in his pocket and made sure his hands were visible. He’d left the door open when he’d come in and he prayed the cops didn’t come in with guns blazing. His phone buzzed, but he ignored it. Car doors slammed closed out front and he knew he needed to talk to the cops, but he didn’t want to let Lorelei go.

“Hey, the police are about to come in and they’re going to want me to go with them.” He kept his voice low, not wanting to upset her even more.

She shook her head. “No, don’t leave me.”

He kissed her forehead and tried to let her go but she clung to him with her good hand. Her fingers twisted in his shirt and he couldn’t leave her here with this asshole.

“Don’t leave me,” she cried out.

The crackle of a loudspeaker hit him before the cop’s voice sounded. “You need to come out with your hands up.” A few seconds passed, and the voice asked. “Are there any weapons?”

Liam tried to stand but Lorelei clung to him, not letting go. He changed tactics and adjusted her as he picked her up and carried her outside. Her injured hand was limp in her lap, but her other hand still clutched his shirt. He towed the door open, pushing it wide with his knee, and stopped in plain view of the cops.

“Hey, she needs an ambulance,” Liam called out.

The cops adjusted, but they looked nervous. The last thing he wanted was Lorelei being shot.

“Put the woman down,” the cop said.

Liam was glad he’d zip-stripped the fuckers who’d tried to hurt his woman. Even if they woke up, they’d be disabled.

Lorelei’s grip tightened, and she buried her head against his chest. His heart filled with love for her.

“Listen, babe, I need to set you down. Those cops are nervous, they aren’t used to facing people like me, and situations like this. I'll need to set you down for a few.”

She was looking up at him, her eyes glassy. The tremble of her lips twisted his heart. He lowered to his knees and tried to set her on the walkway that stretched from the street up to her front door. Lorelei reached up and pulled him down for a kiss. There was a world of love in that kiss. It may have been short, and it may have been awkward, but that was Lorelei showing him how she felt.

“I love you,” Liam said as he set her down and lifted his hands.

The cops looked like they didn’t know what to do. One of the cops approached, Liam could see the sweat trickling down the side of his face. He wouldn’t fight this guy because there was no point.

“I’m going to cuff you, sir,” the officer said.

“There’s no reason to,” Lorelei begged.

“Ma’am, I need to cuff him. There was a report of a man entering your house with a gun.”

“To save me.” Her voice rose with each word.

“Lorelei, look at me.” Her gaze whipped to his. He hated how her pupils were blown out, she looked afraid and maybe a bit in shock. “It’s okay. I don’t mind being handcuffed. Once the officers go into the house and see the other two, it will be okay.”

“They were—oh God. They…” A shudder ripped through Lorelei and his heart broke. He wanted to tell the cop to go to hell and pull her close, but the cop took his right hand and slapped the metal cuff around his wrist. Then he went for Liam’s left arm and just like that, he was cuffed by a cop. Hopefully this mess wouldn’t take too long.

A truck pulled up. It was Ghost and Rayne who had her lips down in a frown. Liam could see Ghost saying something to her, but since the windows were up, he couldn’t hear what was being said. He guessed it was something along the lines of Ghost telling Rayne to stay put and her telling him to shove it or something like that. She was feisty, just like Lorelei.

Ghost opened the door of his truck and Rayne rolled down the window on her side.

“Have ya’ll called an ambulance for that poor woman?” Rayne called out.

The cop next to Liam rolled his eyes.

“You really should call an ambulance for her, and you should check on the two guys who tried to kill her,” Liam said to him.

The cop met his gaze and narrowed his eyes. “There’s two more in there?”

Liam gave the officer a smile. “Yes, two. And she needs medical treatment. Oh, and my gun is on the table, clip out.”

“Are they armed? And what about your gun?” The cop seemed a little panicked.

“I knocked them out and put zip ties on them. They won't be able to use my gun with their hands cinched with zip strips.”

The cop’s eyes went wide before he pressed the button on his shoulder mic and asked for an ambulance and backup.

Liam held the cop’s gaze. “I’ll do whatever you need me to do, but she needs to be safe. Let Rayne, the woman in the truck, take care of her.”

The cop glanced over his shoulder and frowned. “It’s too risky.”

“That guy over there, he won't hurt you. He’ll probably help you.”

“Military?” the cop asked.

Liam nodded. “Yeah, Army.”

The cop’s lips twisted before he gave Liam a quick nod. The man turned before he slid his gun into his holster. He marched over to the truck and started talking to Rayne. Liam couldn’t hear what he said, but in two seconds Rayne was out of the truck, racing to Lorelei.

Liam tried to catch Lorelei’s gaze, but she really was in shock now. “Lorelei, Rayne will take care of you.” His lover glanced up, her brows pinched tight, but she looked out of it. “She’ll stay with you, won’t you, Rayne? You’ll stay with Lorelei?” He glanced up and met Rayne’s gaze. A serious look passed over her face before she dropped to the ground next to them.

“I’ll stay with you, Lorelei. We’ll get you to the hospital and get you checked out.” Rayne touched Lorelei’s shoulder. His woman jumped but settled once she saw Rayne.

“They can’t hurt Liam,” Lorelei said.

“I know. And they won’t. We’re here now and we’re going to take care of it,” Rayne said.

An ambulance showed up and two more cop cars. The cop led him over to a car but didn't put him in. His hands were still in cuffs, but they weren’t looking at him like he’d tried to kill Lorelei. She’d been loaded onto a gurney and was being asked a bunch of questions. Rayne hadn’t left her side.

He wanted to be with her but throwing a fit would only make it take longer. Watching her being put in the back of the ambulance hurt, but seeing Rayne get in with Lorelei eased his soul a little. The doors shut with a thud and his heart lurched. It felt like everything good would be ripped away from him again.

As the ambulance was pulling away, a cop came over and removed the handcuffs. “You’re free to go. We found out those two guys were the brothers to one of the men killed in the robbery of the bank where she works. Our captain at HQ recognized the last name of the robber and her name. He was at the court house and heard her testimony today. Said she’s brave.”

Liam grunted. “Dammit, I wish I would have killed them now.”

The cop shook his head. “No, because then we’d have to arrest you. Don’t worry, we’ll keep them locked up and they won’t be free for a long time.”

Worry filled Liam. Scum like these guys got out all the time. Ghost came over and stood beside him, crossing his arms over his chest.

“What the fuck was up with that text. I almost had a heart attack.”

He shrugged. “Sorry. I didn’t know what the cops would do or think.”

“Jesus, kid. It’s always the quiet ones.” Liam laughed, and Ghost rolled his eyes. “Rayne’s been texting me. Lorelei is doing good. She’s worried about you, but I told them you were free now. She’s going to want you at the hospital.”

“I gotta stay and lock up the house.”

Ghost held out his hand. “Give me your house key and I’ll do it.”

“What about Rayne?”

“She’s resourceful.”

Liam lifted his brows. “Resourceful?”

Ghost chuckled. “She’s strong, plus, she’s not going to leave Lorelei’s side until you get there, if then. She’s like that, all mother bear and all.”

“She’s a good woman,” Liam said as he pulled the house key off his keyring.

Ghost laughed and slapped him on the back. “Damn straight. She’s the best. Now get out of here and go find your woman. She’s probably wanting you by now.”

Liam turned to leave but spun back around. “Hey, Ghost, thank you.” They did a little fist bump thing, and he took off in his truck, making good time to the hospital where they’d taken Lorelei.