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Jethro held her much as Mac did himself. He surrounded her. She was tucked into the curve of his body, the loose t-shirt and cotton pants she wore doing nothing to dispel the sensual, erotic sight of Jethro wrapped so snugly around her.
They were all dressed in comfortable clothing. Jethro was in sweats and a gray t-shirt. Mac himself still wore his jeans, a shirt, and sneakers.
They were prepared, though the odds were that they were prepared for nothing. But Keiley had refused to undress. The stark fear that had filled her eyes when he suggested it had prompted him to let the subject go.
He watched curiously as Jethro shifted, drawing Keiley closer, her head tucked beneath his chin, his hand pressing against her stomach, drawing her tighter into his thighs.
He should be jealous, Mac thought. No one had ever held Keiley like that with the exception of himself. And he was observant enough to note the fact that Jethro was holding her as he had never held another woman in Mac’s presence.
He rubbed his finger thoughtfully over his cheek, wondering at the lack of jealousy, the lack of possessiveness. He was like a dog over a bone when it came to other men being around Keiley. He knew the strength of his possessiveness where she was concerned and he knew he should be worried that it was absent now.
What the hell was up with that? he wondered. He was sitting here, watching another man hold her, and he was as aroused as he had been watching Jethro go down on her earlier that night.
He breathed out heavily and stared toward the heavily curtained window reflectively. For the past ten years, Jethro had almost exclusively been the third he brought to the bed with his lovers. For some reason he seemed to provide the perfect counterpoint that Mac had been looking for to bring to his women. Mac cared for them; Jethro lusted. Gentle dominance and dark power, that was what they provided as a team for the lovers they had shared.
They were partners at the Bureau, the perfect team for the investigations they worked. They were also the perfect team for the women they shared.
And now, the woman they loved.
The insight came to him slowly as he turned his gaze back to the bed. Jethro was beginning to care for Keiley, and Mac hadn’t expected that. But neither was he regretting it, nor was he worried about it.
Especially now. She was protected in ways he couldn’t protect her on his own, and in the past years he had worried about that. Providing the protection she would need if one of his past investigations ever managed to come back and haunt him as it was now.
The Playboy was good. Damned good. And he had so far eluded every law enforcement officer who had investigated the individual cases. And with each successive strike, he was growing more violent.
“We’ll protect her, Mac. ” Jethro’s voice was a quiet whisper, pitched just low enough to keep from disturbing Keiley. “He won’t get away this time. ”
Mac stared back at his partner, seeing much more than he bet Jethro thought he could see. Mac could sense the emotion in the other man, the same fiery response to Keiley that Mac had known since the first day he met her. There was no turning away from her. There was no chance to avoid the effect she had on a man once he touched her. There was only the sure and certain knowledge that life would never be the same without her.
“Yes, we’ll protect her,” Mac agreed, feeling the burning rage building inside him once again.
Tonight had been too damned close.
“You need to train her to work with us,” Jethro said then. “Teach her how to protect herself and how to back us up. ”
“Teach her how to stay put,” Mac muttered.
“She’s never going to stay put. You know better than that. You’re her husband. Her heart. She’ll no more stay put than you would. Think about that one. ”
Mac grimaced tightly, knowing he was right.
“She’ll follow your lead, but she’ll never let you lock her away. She proved that tonight, and we all nearly paid for it. Teach her, Mac. Or I will. ”
Mac stared back at his friend through the darkness of the bedroom, discerning the shadow of his body alongside Keiley’s and the glitter of his eyes.
There was nothing to be heard outside but the sounds of the night. Beyond the locked bedroom door, Pappy lay on guard, an early warning should anyone breach the house again. But he still wondered why the animal hadn’t sounded the alarm sooner. That question and the determination in Jethro’s voice pricked at him.
Keiley was smart enough, in control enough, to back them up if she had the proper training. But there was no time to train her properly.
“We’ll take turns covering her,” he finally said softly. “Instruct her as we can. But this isn’t going to go down easy, Jethro, I can feel it. He took a chance last night and got away with it. He’ll make a move again soon. ”
“And he’s escalating,” Jethro murmured. “The next move could be completely unlike the ones he’s made before. We need to keep her in the house. Keep the windows shuttered. ”
Mac let his gaze drop to Keiley. How long could he keep her out of sight and still draw the stalker in?
“He knows we’re on guard now,” Mac murmured. “If he’s smart, and we know he is, he’ll wait and watch. ”
“So will we. ” Jethro’s voice was pure death. “This time, we’ll get him. ”
