Switched

She crossed her arms over her stomach until every muscle in her body practically dared him to make another mistake. “Go ahead.”

He waded in even though he knew the smartest thing was to knock her out with the gentlest tap possible, drag her out the door and rush her to safety. But if his dating etiquette ticked her off, he could only guess how she’d react to a physical solution to their current problem.

He’d already dumped a few sins at her feet. Lying to her had seemed like the safest bet at the time. Now not so much.

Then there was the problem of Royal listening in through their private communication circuit. He’d ride Aaron about the date-gone-wrong for years unless Aaron took the focus off the personal conversation and put it back on the mess swirling around them.

“Not a word.” He whispered the command and knew Royal understood when he chuckled over the comm, then mumbled something about Angie wanting him. Right, as if that woman was even on his radar at the moment. “Silence.”

Risa’s eyebrow shot up in a perfect angry teacher glare. “Did you just tell me to shut up?”

“Definitely not.” Hard to explain he was talking to the guy at the other end of a listening device. Better to look like a total jerk than expose every aspect of the operation at this tenuous stage. “I specifically did not use those words. I’m not a total idiot.”

“Really?”

It was time to calm the situation down before she went into ballistic mode. Aaron went with the simple truth. “It’s dangerous here.”

“In the bathroom?”

“You need to see the bigger picture here.”

She exhaled in that you-are-annoying way women telegraphed so well. “I have no idea what that means.”

“The danger is in every inch of this building.”

“This is the strangest excuse for a noncall ever. If you didn’t want to go out again, you could have just said—” Her words cut off at the sound of the sharp whack against the outside wall.

One of his hands went to her mouth, and the other cradled her head from behind. “Quiet.”

This time she followed his direction. Her big eyes popped open even wider as she nodded.

“Someone is out there.” He stalled by stating the obvious. It gave his mind a second to run through the memory of the building’s floor plans.

She held up two fingers.

“What?” He eased his hand away from her mouth.

Her bottom lip trembled. Other than that, her mouth barely moved as she whispered, “They’re huge.”

“What are we talking about?”

“On the elevator. Two men and they’re big. Like the size of a small shed. And pretty scary. Did I mention that?”

Tension rolled across his shoulders and cramped the nerve at the back of his neck. “Did they threaten you?”

“Didn’t say a word. Didn’t really have to. These guys are imposing. I’m thinking any woman alone and without a gun or a massive boyfriend would run.”

Aaron’s muscles unclenched but not much. He still had to hope the two she described were the same two guys he’d been following and not a second muscle team. “I need to get you out of here.”

“There’s a stairwell.”

Her skin had paled to the hue of crisp white sheets. Every few seconds a fine tremble moved through her body and vibrated under his hand. He knew she had to be terrified, but she didn’t curl into a ball or so much as whimper. He found that strength more attractive than her long legs and sexy smile, though those sure were impressive.

The twinge of guilt over not calling her back as promised, as he had intended to do before work kicked up and pounded him, turned into a crashing wave. Any man would be lucky to get another date with her and he’d blown the chance. The least he could do was get her out of the building while he figured out the threat level.

“Stay here.” He eased away from her and slipped across the floor in soundless steps. “Royal?”

When Aaron didn’t get a reply, he tapped on the earpiece. He’d just reached the door when it slammed open and into him. The force shoved him back against the wall. His gun jerked from his fingers and clanked against the tile floor by his feet.

The doorknob jabbed into his midsection as he bit back a curse. One of the men he’d seen from the elevator shoved his weight against the door, banging on his thick body until Aaron thought his chest would cave in. The move stole his breath, trapping his hands in front of him and pinning his back to the wall.

He shifted and shoved, trying to get traction and a better grip, but the metal door crushed his gut, and his strength proved useless. Blackness raged through his veins as his gaze bounced between the vulnerable woman frozen in place in the middle of the room and the muscle trying to knock him unconscious with a door.

The sudden roar of Royal’s voice echoed in Aaron’s ears, but he couldn’t make out the words. All Aaron heard was the rush of his own breath as it moved through him. His brain scrambled for a backup plan.

“Double up.” It was their code for assistance, but Aaron wasn’t even sure he said the words out loud. The doorknob connected with his gut once again and knocked the air right out of his lungs.

The attacker’s friend moved into the room, his shoes quiet against the floor but his shoulders knocking against the door frame. Risa hadn’t exaggerated. He had a thick neck and biceps that kept his arms from lying close to his side. From this distance, it was clear the guy engaged in some serious training. The type that included flipping tractor tires. This guy obviously was in charge.

The man didn’t even spare Aaron a glance. He aimed the gun directly at Risa’s head. “Enough.”

Aaron blinked, knowing he was the intended recipient of that message. “What do you want?”

“Her.”

“Me?” Risa squealed the question, her voice bouncing off the walls.

The attacker held out a beefy hand in Risa’s direction. “Time to go, Angie.”

Risa’s fingers tightened on the edge of the stall door until her knuckles turned white. “I don’t—”

Her gaze raced to Aaron’s face. He nodded, letting her know she could answer. The longer they dragged this out, the better chance Royal could burst in with reinforcements.

Risa swallowed hard enough for her throat to move. “Who’s Angie?”

The leader shook his head as he took a step in her direction. “We’re not doing this.”

“You have the wrong woman.”

“And you’ve wasted enough of my time.”

Risa shook her head, her bewilderment obvious in every part of her body and in her voice. “What is happening here?”

“You don’t get to ask questions.” The leader pointed at Risa before sparing Aaron a glance. “Who are you?”

“I work at Craft. The lady and I met at the party downstairs and came up here for some privacy.” Aaron went for a guy-to-guy moment but knew he’d misfired when a feral smile spread across the leader’s face.

The guy took his time on a visual tour of Risa’s body. “Nice.”