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Her eyes widened before agreeing. "Fine, but why can't I at least go in and pack my ownbag?"
Against his better judgment, he compromised. "Fine, have the driver pull into the garage. We can close the door and never be seen by thephotographers."
McLean answered, "The garage is detached. We'd have to make a run for it. It's no bigdeal."
Fuck, he felt trapped. "Fine, you two run in and grab what she needs, but don't be in there too long. I need to go see someone who's gonna help us with theinvestigation."
Khloe grabbed his hand, ready to pull him along. "You can comein."
Uncharacteristic anxiety helped him yank his hand back. "No, Ican't."
Confusion clouded her gaze. "But..."
He tried to reassure her by cupping her face as he replied. "I can't explain now, Princess. Just know that I can't have my picture splashed around on social media orTV."
If anything, she looked more confused, but McLean seemed to accept his explanation. "You stay here. We'll be back in tenminutes."
Ryder bit his tongue as Trevor stepped out and then reached back to take Khloe's hand to escort her inside. Only once they had disappeared did it dawn on him that they could be walking into a trap. The stalker had entered two private locations of hers already. What if he was waiting inside for them now and she was indanger?
With each minute that ticked by, he got more anxious. He felt neutered and he hated it. He was the one who was always in control, yet he sat trapped in a car in Malibu, California, unable to get out without putting his picture intocirculation.
He had just sent a text to Trevor's phone when he saw them exiting the front door. Nothing looked amiss. He exhaled the breath he hadn't realized he washolding.
Trevor was schlepping a huge roller suitcase behind him and went to the back hatch door to secure the load before hopping back in the vehicle. Khloe was sandwiched between the menagain.
"Everything okay in there?" he asked when they'd gotten in, forcing his usual calm into hisvoice.
"Yeah, fine, but Khloe packed heavy for the trip to D.C. tomorrow. If you're sticking around, we should contact Ricky to have him get you on the same flight as us tomorrow. He flew out a day in advance to make sure everything is ready at thatend."
Ryder's anxiety intensified. "Who the hell is Ricky and why are you going toD.C.?"
The Volkovs may not know who he was or exactly which organization he worked for, but it didn't take a rocket scientist for them to figure out he'd been working for an American agency. Washington would be brimming with eyes, looking for him in hopes of receiving a sliver of the big bounty on Ryder'shead.
Things were going from bad toworse.
Unaware of his internal struggle, Khloe rattled on, excited she was to take her turn on the red carpet again–yet another place an active duty undercover agent could nevergo.
"...sinceDirty Businesswas set in D.C." She turned to him then, a shy, almost wary expression in her eyes. "I thought maybe we could go visit Jaxson, Chase andEmma."
She'd left any reference to Black Light out, of course, but he knew exactly what she meant. An idea took hold. He'd have to give Davidson acall.
Ryder looked over Khloe's head to the taller guard on her other side. The men exchanged a knowing look as Ryder explained. "Don't worry about my flight. I'll probably fly separate and meet youthere."
She was a smart cookie. "But we haven't even told you when the flight was yet. How could you know you couldn't takeit?"
In that moment, he almost came clean. He hadn't thought this through. A deep sadness formed in the pit of his stomach as he faced reality headon.
There was no way he could form any sort of relationship with Khloe Monroe. Not with the enemies he'd made in his lifetime. If it wasn't the Volkovs, it would be any number of other equally horrific criminals, more than happy to fuck with someone he cared about. It was why most agents stayed single. Why they didn't formattachments.
Ryder Helms was a time bomb. The only question was when, not if, his dangerous career would blow up, potentially taking out the woman looking at him expectantly. The woman he finally admitted to himself he cared deeply for. She'd wormed her way past his defensessomehow.
His instincts had been right. He should have turned Davidson down when he'd asked him to help with Khloe's security. If the petite woman had been hurt by his disappearance in February after only three hours together, how would she take his ultimate desertion once they caught herstalker?
He needed her to stop looking at him with those puppy-dog eyes ofhers.
He needed to holdher.
Ryder scooped her tiny body into his arms, pulling her to sit in his lap as the driver picked up speed as they merged on the highway headed north. He hugged her so tight she mewed, safe for the moment in the cocoon of hisarms.
