The Guardian: DARYL (Cover Six Security, #2) Read online

  THE GUARDIAN: DARYL

  Cover Six Security #2

  Lisa B. Kamps

  THE GUARDIAN: DARYL

  Copyright © 2019 by Elizabeth Belbot Kamps

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the express written permission of the author.

  Cover Six Security™ is a fictional security company, its name and logo created for the sole use of the author and covered under protection of trademark.

  All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation to anyone bearing the same name or names, living or dead. This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to any individual, place, business, or event is purely coincidental.

  Cover Design by Jay Aheer of Simply Defined Art

  https://www.simplydefinedart.com/

  Cover Six Security Logo Designed by Benjamin Mangnus of Benjamagnus Design Ltd.

  http://www.benjamagnus.com/

  Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Other titles by this author

  Special Acknowledgement

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Epilogue

  Special Acknowledgement

  The Defender: RYDER preview

  PLAYING THE GAME preview

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Other titles by this author

  Dedication

  For my husband, Jack, who kept me sane during this one and knew

  when I needed that extra push to keep me going...

  And who promised me a really long vacation, just because!

  I love you, Honey Bear!

  When do we pack our bags?

  Other titles by this author:

  COVER SIX SECURITY

  Covered By A Kiss, A CSS Novella, Book 0

  The Protector: MAC, Book 1

  The Guardian: DARYL, Book 2

  The Defender: RYDER, Book 3

  THE BALTIMORE BANNERS

  Crossing the Line, Book 1

  Game Over, Book 2

  Blue Ribbon Summer, Book 3

  Body Check, Book 4

  Break Away, Book 5

  Playmaker, A Baltimore Banners Intermission Novella

  Delay of Game, Book 6

  Shoot Out, Book 7

  The Baltimore Banners: 1st Period Trilogy

  Books 1-3 Boxed set

  The Baltimore Banners: 2nd Period Trilogy

  Books 4-6 Boxed set

  On Thin Ice, Book 8

  Coach's Challenge, A Baltimore Banners Intermission Novella

  One-Timer, Book 9

  Face Off, Book 10

  First Shot At Love, A Baltimore Banners Short Story

  Game Misconduct, Book 11

  Fighting To Score, Book 12

  Matching Penalties, Book 13

  THE YORK BOMBERS

  Playing The Game, Book 1

  Playing To Win, Book 2

  Playing For Keeps, Book 3

  Playing It Up, Book 4

  Playing It Safe, Book 5

  The York Bombers Boxed Set 1

  Books 1-3

  Playing For Love, Book 6

  Playing His Part, Book 7

  THE CHESAPEAKE BLADES

  Winning Hard, Book 1

  Loving Hard, Book 2

  Playing Hard, Book 3

  FIREHOUSE FOURTEEN

  Once Burned, Book 1

  Playing With Fire, Book 2

  Breaking Protocol, Book 3

  Into the Flames, Book 4

  Second Alarm, Book 5

  Feel The Burn, Book 6

  Coming Soon

  STAND-ALONE TITLES

  Emeralds and Gold: A Treasury of Irish Short Stories (anthology)

  Finding Dr. Right

  Time To Heal

  Dangerous Passion

  Dangerous Heat

  Illicit Affair

  Coming Soon

  Want to receive updates on my releases, preorders, and sales? Then follow me on BookBub.

  And be sure to sign up for my monthly newsletter, Kamps' Korner, for exciting news and sneak peeks! You don’t want to miss it!

  Can't wait for the newsletter? Want exclusive content before anyone else? How about fun, games, and giveaways? Then please join me and a great group of readers and fans at Kamps Korner on Facebook.

  Special Acknowledgement

  The idea for the Cover Six Security series came about when I started the Chesapeake Blades series—particularly book 2, Loving Hard. And the more I played around with it, the more it drew me in.

  I had the story ideas. Names for the guys on the team. Their backgrounds. I was ready to go, my fingers itching to get the words on paper.

  What I didn't have was a name for the security company. Ideas came to me, only to be deleted because...well, frankly, because they stunk. Then I got stuck.

  Like many authors, I have a fabulous reader's group on Facebook: Kamps Korner. And that's where I turned to for help. I threw the question (okay, I begged) to the greatest bunch of readers I know—and they totally came through for me!

  There were dozens of suggestions, all of them fantastic—which led to another dilemma: how do I pick one? There were a few that really stood out so I did what any smart author would do: I created a poll and let the readers pick...

  And Cover Six Security was born.

  Thank you to everyone who offered suggestions—there were so many great ones! And special thanks—and my undying gratitude—to Elizabeth Roney and her Marine husband for the wonderful suggestion! It totally fits. And in Elizabeth's words: "He [her Marine husband] said it would be a good pick up line explaining to the ladies what cover your six means!"

  And it totally is—as you'll see in several of the upcoming books!

  Elizabeth and your Marine husband—this one is for you! Thank you <3!

  Prologue

  She stood in line with the other passengers, patiently waiting to board. The urge to look over her shoulder was strong but she ruthlessly pushed it away. Nobody had followed her—she had checked and double-checked. Checked again before she made her way through security four hours before the flight was scheduled to take off.

  Had wandered around the airport, searching for anyone who appeared out of place. For anyone who seemed to be searching for someone else.

  Much like she was.

  But nobody was following her. She'd lost them a few months ago, had managed to get away before they noticed her. She had time now, time where she didn't have to constantly look over her shoulder.
<
br />   But how much time? Weeks? Months? Maybe. Enough time to allow her to take this quick trip.

  Enough time to find the man her father trusted.

  The line started moving, the passengers around her laughing and talking, their voices filled with excitement. She reached the gate agent, showed her the ticket and her passport. Held her breath, waiting.

  But the gate agent only glanced at the passport, gave her a quick smile and nodded. Relief went through her and she hurried down the jetway, the floor bouncing beneath her feet. Of course the agent wouldn't question the passport. Why would she? She had already cleared security, had made it this far with no issues.

  But she'd still been nervous, afraid the document would be studied too closely. Worried that they'd pull her out of line and question her—or worse.

  She glanced at her ticket, looked up to study the seat numbers as she made her way along the plane's narrow aisle. Her seat was near the back, against the window. She would have preferred an aisle seat—she didn't like the feeling of being blocked in with no way to escape—but this would have to do. She slid into the seat, tucked her backpack under the chair in front of her, and quickly fastened her seatbelt. Around her other people were doing the same—but they were with their friends. Families. Loved ones.

  She was alone. More alone than she'd ever been.

  She turned her head to the side, looked out the window as the baggage handlers loaded luggage into the plane. Suitcases of all colors and sizes, one after another. She didn't bother searching for hers—she didn't have one. Everything she needed, practically everything she owned, was safely stored in the backpack by her feet.

  A sudden wave of uncertainty washed over her and she nearly jumped to her feet, feeling the need to flee. She took a deep breath, fought the urge to run from the plane. She didn't have a choice, not anymore. She had to see this through. It was too important not to. She needed to do this. Needed to find the man her father trusted.

  And then...she wasn't sure what she would do then. She had no intention of talking to him. Not yet. She just wanted to see him. Study him. Make up her own mind before she approached him.

  Yes, her father trusted him. But she didn't. How could she, when she didn't know him? When she had never met him?

  But time was running out. She would have to make a decision, and soon. She couldn't keep running the way she'd been for the last three years. Couldn't keep looking over her shoulder and jumping at every shadow, real and imagined. The time was coming when she wouldn't be able to manage on her own. When she would need help, more than even her father could give her. In fact, this trip had been her father's idea. If not for his insistence, she wouldn't be going.

  But she was. She didn't have a choice. She needed to find the man her father trusted so much.

  And then she needed to decide for herself if he had the power to slay dragons—

  Or if he was nothing more than a myth. Nothing more than a fantasy she had carefully—desperately—built up in her mind.

  Chapter One

  The blonde was watching him.

  Daryl "Zeus" Anderson raised the tall glass to his mouth and studied her over the rim as he took a long swallow. Sure enough, she looked away as soon as their eyes met. And shit, was that actually a blush creeping across her face?

  It was either that, or she'd gotten sunburned sometime in the last hour she'd been sitting under that shaded canopy reading a book. It was one of those e-readers that didn't require you to turn any real damn pages so he couldn't tell if she was actually reading—or just pretending to read.

  Because yeah, she'd pretty much been watching him for the past hour, ever since he'd strolled out to the bar for a serving of the hair of the dog that bit him in the ass last night.

  And this morning.

  Daryl glanced at his watch and frowned. No, make that this afternoon.

  Fuck.

  What the hell had been in those damn drinks they'd been tossing back last night? Nothing he could taste, he knew that much. No rum. No vodka. No whiskey. Or maybe it had been a combination of all three, the taste cleverly disguised by the other ingredients.

  Whatever it was had been lethal—and dangerous, because they'd gone down smoother than water before sneaking up on him and kicking his ass three ways from tomorrow. He hadn't lost control—he never lost control, it was too damn risky in his line of work. He remembered everything that happened—maybe a little too well because the sight of Chaos doing the limbo under those two beach bunnies wasn't something he wanted to remember but he couldn't seem to get out of his mind. He hadn't tossed cookies, hadn't passed out, hadn't staggered back to his bungalow—at least, not much.

  But damn if his head hadn't come close to exploding when he finally rolled out of bed two hours ago with an extreme case of cottonmouth and clothes that looked like they'd been slept in for a week. Water had taken care of the cottonmouth and a shower and change of clothes had taken care of his appearance. But the head? Yeah, there was only one thing that could take care of that and he held the remedy in his hand.

  Another swallow then he placed the glass down and shifted on the barstool, his gaze casually drifting over to the blonde. She had the e-reader held up close to her face, giving him a chance to study her without being too damn obvious.

  He didn't remember seeing her before. She hadn't been in the crowd of onlookers at Mac's sunset wedding yesterday evening and he'd pretty much scanned the faces of every resort guest who had tried to get closer to see what the hell was going on. It was a damn wedding, what the hell else did they need to know?

  Sure, maybe the bridal party was a little unorthodox. Not the bride or the groom, or even the bride's mother or groom's father, who stood as matron of honor and best man. It was the rest of the bridal party that no doubt helped draw attention to them. Who wouldn't look at the ten men, all obviously former military, all dressed in khaki shorts and relaxed island shorts, flanking the wedding couple? It wasn't like they didn't stand out. Especially here, at this secluded Caribbean resort.

  But it wasn't like any of them had any say in the matter. Tabitha "TR" Meyers—no, not Meyers, her name was MacGregor now—had wanted all of them to join her and Mac when they tied the knot. Saying no wasn't an option. Then yesterday morning, before the wedding, her mother had suggested they all dress in those damn matching outfits and actually be a part of the ceremony.

  Daryl had opened his mouth to say oh hell no but Boomer had beat him to it. Mac didn't have to say a word—the expression on that scarred face of his said it all.

  They'd dress in those damn outfits and be part of the wedding or else. Coming from Mac, the or else was a threat to be ignored at their own peril.

  They had definitely drawn attention, although the curious resort guests had tried to remain discreet about it. Daryl had still checked everyone out, and he hadn't been the only one. Crowds, even small ones, were always an unknown.

  The blonde hadn't been part of the crowd and he was pretty damn sure he would have noticed if she was—even if she wasn't really his type. Not that there was anything wrong with her, because there wasn't. Straight blonde hair ending in a blunt cut just below her shoulders. Long legs. Lean build with just enough tone to advertise the fact that she did something physical. Maybe the gym, maybe not. Average height—from what he could tell from where he was sitting. Average build. Not thin but not quite as curvy on the top as he preferred. Yeah, he was a tits guy. Sue him.

  He reached for the beer and took another swallow, still studying the woman. What the hell was it about her that kept drawing his eye? Was it just because she kept watching him? Would he have noticed her if she didn't keep looking this way?

  Like right now. Their gazes caught again and damn if she didn't look away and pull that e-reader up to hide her face.

  And that's why he was drawn to her. She was...he was going to say coy but that was the wrong word. Coy implied making a pretense of being shy. Coy was playing a game—like his wife used to do every damn time she wante
d something. If that didn't work, she'd turn on the fucking faucet and cry until she got her way. Until—

  Fuck. Why the fuck was he even thinking of Melissa right now? That was nine years ago. A lifetime ago.

  He bit back the scowl thoughts of his wife brought—thoughts and a shit-ton of bad memories he didn't want to face right now—and glanced over at the blonde. Sure enough, she was watching him again. And apparently he didn't hide that scowl well enough because her eyes widened and she quickly looked away, started gathering her things in a pile and shoving them in a tote bag.

  Enough of these damn games. The blonde was cute, a perfect distraction to derail the sudden dark turn of his thoughts. He was on this island paradise for another twenty-four hours and there was no rule saying he had to spend it alone. If he had a chance for company other than the guys he'd come down here with, he was going to take it.

  He slid off the stool and made his way over to the shaded canopy just as the blonde pushed to her feet. She tossed the bright-colored tote bag over her shoulder, turned around, then froze when they came face-to-face.

  "Hey." Daryl nodded and offered her a smile. And fuck, he must look worse than he thought because those eyes of hers—a gorgeous hazel ringed in green—widened and for one fleeting second, he caught a glimpse of fear in their depths.

  He automatically stepped back, not wanting to scare her any more than he already had. Or maybe it was just his imagination because the fear he'd seen was gone, replaced by nothing more dramatic than caution. Fair enough. Caution showed she had enough common sense to be leery when a strange guy approached her, even if she had been checking him out for the past hour.

  "I'm Daryl." He started to offer his hand, reconsidered at the last second because she still didn't look all that comfortable. And hell, had he completely misinterpreted those glances she'd been shooting his way for the last hour? Yeah, probably, because she looked like she was ready to bolt. Or maybe even swing that damn tote upside his head, with the way she kept squeezing the braided handles in one fist.

  Maybe if she could see his eyes, she wouldn't look so damn worried. He pushed the sunglasses up, forced himself not to wince when the sun sliced across his abused retinas. "Would you like to grab a drink? Maybe a bite to eat? My treat."