They drove to Bozeman and found a cozy Italian restaurant with dim lights, big comfortable booths, and a fantastic menu. They ordered wine but didn’t open their menus, choosing instead to do just as he’d suggested: Kiss. Though they kept the kisses chaste, short, as appropriate as they could for a public place, there was no mistaking the need shooting through both of them. Each time his lips claimed hers, Lana’s heart skipped a beat and she resisted the urge to slide her tongue into his mouth and take what she desperately wanted.

“What’s your schedule all week?” he whispered, his eyes on hers, their faces close together.

“I’m not sure. I’m trying to set up a visit to the children’s hospital and a hockey clinic for kids, but those things won’t actually take place for a couple of weeks.”

“So you might have some free time to play with me.” He didn’t state it as a question and she was a little bit mesmerized by the intensity in his eyes.

“Um…yes. I could definitely find some free time to…play.” She was grateful for the arrival of the food their server had recommended so she could think about something other than him. He was a little intoxicating, the way he seemed so focused on her. She liked it—hell, she liked everything about him—but it made her nervous because she wasn’t used to being pursued by someone who wanted something other than sex. Casual sex was easy, but this was far more complicated and she didn’t know exactly what to do next. She longed to call Kate or her friend Shannon, but there hadn’t been time and she didn’t have much privacy.

They’d just about finished eating when Mark’s phone rang and he frowned as he glanced at the screen. “It’s Hank…I should answer.” He picked up. “Hey, man… What? When? He okay? No, we’re in Bozeman… Yeah, we’ll pay and head back right away. No problem.” He hung up and looked at her. “Someone threw a Molotov cocktail through the window at the house.”

“What house?” Lana’s heartbeat kicked up a notch.

“The cabin. Where you and Aaron are staying.”

“Oh my god! Is he okay?” She dug her phone out of her purse and saw several texts from Aaron.

“He’s okay, but apparently he’s just hired the Brotherhood Protectors to make sure they don’t try again and to find out what the hell is going on—and Montana asked if I wanted to jump in on this one.”

Her eyes flew to his. “You’re going to be Aaron’s bodyguard?”

“Looks that way.” He left money on the table. “Ready?”

They were quiet on the drive back to Eagle Rock. Mark’s thoughts were running a mile a minute, trying to figure out who might be after Aaron and who knew he was in Eagle Rock. Lana was on the phone with Kate for part of the drive, deciding whether or not to make a public statement about the attack. By the time they got to the house, all traces of intimacy between them had dissipated and she was out of the truck by the time he stopped.

Watching her hurry into the house left him mildly irritated, but he didn’t have time to dwell on it as Montana met him in the yard.

“Tire tracks look like whoever it was took off on an ATV,” he said.

“One person?”

“One set of tire tracks, and they were careful not to leave prints in the snow.”

“The house okay?”

“Yeah, Aaron seems to be more than a pretty boy. Put out the fire and called 911 in short order. I got someone over here to board up the front window but I’d like to leave you and Duke here tonight to keep an eye on things.”

“Absolutely.” Mark hadn’t met John Wayne “Duke” Morrison yet, so Montana made introductions as they came up with a plan for the night.

“We’ll regroup tomorrow, see if we come up with any more information,” Montana said before he headed out.

Mark checked the plywood covering the window to assure himself it would get them through the night before walking into the house. Voices were coming from the kitchen and he joined Aaron, Lana and Duke.

“You want some coffee?” Lana asked as he came in.

“Yeah, that’d be great. Thank you.” He nodded at Aaron.

“The only suspect right now is the soon-to-be ex-wife,” Duke told Mark. “He can’t figure out how she would’ve found him, but he says there’s no one else.”

“I’m right here,” Aaron interjected smoothly. “I didn’t tell anyone where I was going except my coach, and he knows I came here specifically so no one could find me.”

“Would he tell your teammates? Friends?” Mark asked.

Aaron shook his head. “I don’t think so. Coach knows I need to get my head on straight while I’m here, so my location has been kept quiet.”

“What about your friend, Jake?” Lana asked. “It’s his house, right? Would he have told your wife?”

Aaron laughed. “He hates Joyce as much as I do. He wouldn’t tell her shit.”

“So we’re nowhere.” Mark shook his head.

“Montana and the others will work on finding out who’s responsible, but we’ll make sure nothing happens until they do.” Duke looked around. “I’d like to do a perimeter search every hour or so, make sure no one’s lurking.”

“I can take the first shift,” Mark said.

They moved off to discuss their plans for the night and Lana headed upstairs to change into sweats and a T-shirt. Having Mark in the house 24/7 was going to be a huge distraction for her. She liked him way too much and trying to think about anything else would be nearly impossible. Kate and Aaron both had given her the option of leaving, saying her safety was more important than the job, but she wasn’t afraid. Especially not with Mark and Duke here. Aaron seemed pretty sure of himself as well, so she wasn’t inclined to run. She had a job to do and was determined to do it; she just hadn’t expected Mark to be in the picture like this.

Padding back downstairs, laptop in hand, she found Mark cleaning a gun on the living room table. Aaron and Duke had disappeared, so she sat on the chair across from him, watching him.

“Are you comfortable around guns?” he asked softly.

She nodded. “I’m not particularly afraid of them, but I have a healthy respect. My dad always had guns in the house when I was growing up, so I can shoot a .38 and a .22. I don’t know anything about the guns you see on TV, 9mm’s or any of that, but I don’t think I need to.”

“Good to know.” He nodded.

“Is that yours?”

He shook his head. “I don’t travel with mine. I have a .357 at home but crossing state lines with a firearm is more hassle than it’s worth, especially since I was only supposed to be getting a feel for the area and what the Brotherhood Protectors do—it never occurred to me something would come up that I might need it for.”

“I’m sorry. I feel like you wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for me.”

He didn’t look at her, but his voice was low and deep. “Baby, there’s nowhere I’d rather be. The idea of you—and Aaron too—being here unprotected, in the middle of nowhere, doesn’t sit well with me.”

“You’re a good guy, Mark.” She got up and leaned over, placing a chaste kiss on the side of his face. “I’m going to make some hot chocolate. Want some?”

“Sure.” He smiled as their eyes met.

He watched her disappear into the kitchen and wondered what made her tick. She might be a little awkward and unsure of herself, but she hadn’t hesitated to say she would stay despite someone going after Aaron tonight. Unless they were after her, but that made no sense. She didn’t have any crazy ex-boyfriends and he’d already spoken to Kate about past clients who might have a score to settle, but she’d sworn there was no one. That left Aaron, and though he didn’t know the guy, his gut rarely steered him wrong; it was currently telling him Aaron wasn’t hiding anything. The soon-to-be-ex-wife was the most likely suspect, so catching her shouldn’t be a problem unless she’d actually hired professionals to take out her husband. That might be a problem.

By the time Lana reappeared with two mugs of hot chocolate, he’d finished cleaning the gun and stuck it in the holster around his waist, washed his hands and done a quick scan of all the doors and windows. They’d done it twice already, but there was no room for error when it came to Lana and Aaron’s safety, especially not on his watch.

“I want you to sleep dressed tonight, okay?” he said, catching her eye.

She frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Shirt, pants, socks. Leave a pair of shoes or boots at the foot of the bed. What you’re wearing now is fine, but if they were to throw another Molotov cocktail, or something worse, you need to be able to get out of the house quickly and it’s cold outside.”

“You really think it’ll come to that?” she whispered, her brows drawing together worriedly.

“No, but it’s best to be prepared.”

“Okay.” She swallowed. “Are you going to stay up all night?”

“Duke’s catching a few hours’ sleep now and I’ll sleep when he gets up. Swede and Montana will be back in the morning, so we can regroup, and Aaron said he’d be up early as well.”

“I feel somewhat useless,” she admitted.

“You’re not useless,” he said with a faint smile, “but there’s nothing for you to do.”

“I don’t think I can sleep with all this going on,” she admitted.

“You’re welcome to stay up with me,” he responded, gently laying one of his hands on hers. “I wouldn’t mind the company.”

“I have lots of work to keep me busy,” she said.

“Okay. I’m going to do a perimeter check and I’ll be back in no more than ten minutes. If I’m not, do not come looking for me—go wake up Duke. You understand?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Ten minutes,” he repeated as he pulled on his coat and gloves.

Lana watched the clock on her laptop intently once Mark went outside. This was nerve-wracking and she didn’t like it. Not only was she a little scared, she was worried about him. How the hell had he managed to get under her skin like this in such a short time? He’d already become important to her, even though she was determined to let him think all she was interested in was sex, but she didn’t like the thought of someone ambushing him. After five minutes, she put her laptop aside and began pacing in front of the fireplace. At eight minutes, she stood by the window looking out. When he’d been gone nine minutes, she gripped her phone tightly in her hand and looked between the front door and the stairs, where she would run to Duke if she had to.

She took a few steps in that direction and paused as she thought she heard something, a scraping sound on the front porch. Her heart kicked up a beat and she took a deep breath to keep herself from shrieking. She heard the noise again and the clock on her phone marked the next minute. Shit! Whatever was outside the door was getting louder and she backed up inadvertently, craning her head, trying to listen.

“Damn, it’s cold as fuck out there!” Mark came through the door in his socks and she just stared at him.

“It was ten minutes!” she barked out, glaring at him. “I was worried! I was about to go upstairs! Why didn’t you call out to me?”

He looked at her in surprise. “You were worried about me?”

She narrowed her eyes. “You told me ten minutes. It was exactly ten minutes. I was about to run up the stairs—don’t freak me out like that!”

“Sorry, honey.” He reached for her, pulling her against him. “I got on the porch at nine minutes, but I had to take my boots off—they were caked in ice.”

“That’s the noise I heard.” She sagged against him. “And yes, I was worried about you.”

“That’s sweet.” He pressed his cold lips to hers.