The day sped by quicker than Joslynn ever expected as they waited for any word from O’Connor. Chip’s phone had gone off several times, but each time it had been with information from his buddy in Pittsburgh. By three o’clock, her anxiety was starting to grow and nothing Chip could do was easing it. Grabbing her phone, she thought again about calling Kathy. Instead, an unanswered call caught her attention.

They hadn’t left the room and her phone had been at arm’s length the whole time. How had she missed a call? The only time she could think of was that the call had come through during her shower. She’d expected to shower alone, but Chip had joined her, quickly changing the plans for a quick shower to shower sex.

Looking down at the screen, she recognized the number. It was Mr. Esposito—Sal’s father.

“Chip.” She glanced over at him where he worked on her laptop. “He called.”

Rising from his chair at the small table, Chip crossed over to sit next to her on the bed. “Put it on speaker and play it.”

She didn’t want to hear what Mr. Esposito had to say but the message might hold something that could help them, so she pressed play.

“Our talk before the trip must have fallen on deaf ears. You’re under direct orders to follow every order given to you. Sal’s willing to give you another chance, but I’m not as lenient. If you’re not back at the hotel by three, he’ll proceed without you and the girl will take your place. This business is too important to let some selfish bitch destroy all we’ve worked for. Three o’clock or consider yourself fired and all contracts breached and voided.”

She dropped the phone onto the bed before she ended up throwing it across the room and rose from the bed. That asshole thought he could just order her to sleep with strangers and she’d do it. She might have been eager about the job, wanting to prove she could make it at a fast-paced firm, but it wasn’t worth her self-worth. Even if Chip hadn’t shown up in Ireland when he did, she wouldn’t have gone back to the hotel. She’d have found another way.

“It’s two-forty.” She dragged her hand through her hair, trying to determine if there was something she could do to save Kathy.

“You’re not thinking about going back, are you?” Chip came to stand next to her.

“No.” She turned to him. “Why haven’t we heard from O’Connor? What is he doing?”

“I don’t know but I’m going to call him about the message. It’s clear he’s talking about Kathy.” He pressed his lips to the top of her head.

Before she could say anything, his cell phone vibrated next to the laptop, catching their attention. “Maybe that’s O’Connor now.”

She could at least hope and with a little extra luck, he might have some good news, too.

Chip stepped away from her and went to the table. As she watched him, her own phone buzzed, alerting her to a text message. Pulling her gaze from him, she wandered toward the bed, expecting to find a message from Annie.

As she looked down at the screen, she was surprised to find Sal’s name above the message. Fucking bitch. Without an offering, I’ll lose this contract. If you’re not here in ten minutes, I’m coming for you. I know you’re with that freak.

“Chip.” Since she hadn’t been listening, she didn’t know who he was talking to, but whoever it was could wait. He needed to see this. At least he needed to know about the threat; she didn’t want him to see the freak part. Sal had always called him degrading names like that, but to her, Chip wasn’t anything like Sal claimed.

“O’Connor, hold on a sec.” Chip tipped the phone away from his mouth. “Jos, what’s wrong?”

“If I’m not at Sal’s hotel room in ten minutes, he’s coming here.”

Chip pulled her close and grabbed her phone from her hand, reading the text message. So much for trying to protect his feelings. Luckily, seeing the whole thing didn’t seem to faze him. “O’Connor, we got another communication, this time from Sal.”

“Where’s Kathy?” She looked up at him. If Sal was freaking out, that had to mean Kathy was gone. Was she safe?

“O’Connor has her at the station. It took longer to locate her, which is why we haven’t heard from him. She called home and her father has a ticket on a flight for her this evening. One of the officers will escort her to the gate and make sure she gets on the plane safely,” he assured her.

“I’m in the lobby.” O’Connor’s voice came through the phone’s speaker.

Catching a glimpse of herself in the mirror, she realized she was still only wearing his T-shirt. She pulled away from Chip as he ended the call and glanced around the room for her jeans. “Need to get dressed.”

“Damn right. No one gets to see your beautiful body, except me.” He tipped his head toward the chair where her clothes lay. “Throw on your jeans, but keep my shirt on. I love how it looks on you.”

“You just like that he’ll know I’m yours if I’m wearing our shirt,” she teased, tugging on her jeans. “Do you think Sal will…” She let her words trail off. Sal was an asshole used to getting his way. If this was what he wanted, he’d go to any length to get it. Even coming after her. He’d never learned to face consequences for his actions. In the past, she’d thought it was because his father was trying to make up for not being there when Sal was young. Now she realized they were one and the same. Mr. Esposito knew what Sal was going and supported it. She wasn’t sure if the older man had done the same things, but she wouldn’t put it past him. The recent events had been enough to show her what a sleaze ball she’d been working for.

“How have I been so blind? I should have seen what kind of men I was working for—what kind of man I agreed to marry. Part of me knew Dad wouldn’t approve of Sal. It’s why I’ve been holding off taking him to meet my parents. I just never realized it was this bad.”

“Jack voiced his concerns about why you were hiding this man away from the family.” She turned back to the bed to find Chip sitting on the edge, lacing up his boots. “It was unlike you to keep something like this from Jack. He was concerned for you. Especially since whenever he mentioned Sal, you’d change the subject.”

“I didn’t.” She thought back to the conversations she’d had with her brother. “Shit. I didn’t realize I was.”

A knock at the door had Chip stand, his body stiff, fists clenched. Just by looking at him she could see the change in his demeanor. He no longer looked relaxed, but on guard. It was likely O’Connor was at the door, but on the off chance it was Sal, Chip would be ready. The question was, would she be?

* * *

Twenty minutes of Jos pacing the hotel room had Chip ready to bust. He needed to ease the tension within her but with them stuck in the room with O’Connor there was little he could do to distract her. Seeing her wound so tight made him edgy. It was a new experience for him. Anytime he had gone on a mission there was a game plan; he knew what their mission was and what steps they’d take to accomplish it. Now he had to wait for Sal to make the first move. There wasn’t enough evidence or crime for the Garda to arrest Sal. If he attacked or tried to kidnap Joslynn, that would be enough for O’Connor and the other Garda stationed around the hotel to take him into custody.

“He should be here by now.” Jos glanced out the window again.

“Maybe he’s all talk.” Chip leaned against the wall, watching the door, expecting a knock at any moment.

O’Connor stepped away from the door where he’d been talking on the phone in hushed whispers. “He’s rabbited. Caught sight of one of my guys.”

“What?” Jos snapped.

“I’ve got guys tracking him.” O’Connor slipped his phone back into his pocket. “I need to get out there. I’ll be in touch. If you can get an earlier flight back to the States, take it. We’ve set up an alert on his name, so if he’d try to check in at the airport, we’d be notified. I can assure you he’s not leaving the country tonight.”

“I’ll call the airlines and see what can be done.” Chip moved away from the wall and held out his hand to O’Connor. “Thanks, man. I appreciate your help.”

“Anytime. Next time you’re in my homeland, let it be under better circumstances.” O’Connor shook his hand and glanced toward her. “Madam, it was a pleasure meeting you.”

“You, too.” She paused by the window as Chip saw O’Connor out.

“Jos.” Chip came up behind her, resting his hand on her shoulder. “This isn’t over.”

“It should have been.” She leaned back against his chest. “This should have been a simple operation that ended with him in cuffs. Now who knows where he is?”

“Maybe it’s better this way. Now we can deal with him back in Pittsburgh. Turns out they already have a warrant for his arrest.” He spun her around to face him.

“Arrest warrant? For what?” Her eyes widened as she stared at him.

“Attempted murder.” His hands slid down her arms, comforting her. “There’s a woman who had a similar experience with him a couple of months ago. When she refused to do what he wanted, he tried to kill her.”

“Months ago. Why is this just coming out now?”

“She’s been in a coma since it happened, and woke up only a few days ago. I don’t know all the details, but we can find out when we get home. What I’m trying to say is, Mr. Esposito isn’t going to be able to make these charges go away.” He pulled her against his body and wrapped his arms snug around her. “This will be over soon and he’ll never hurt you, Kathy, or anyone else again.”