Her shoulders slumped in defeat. More evidence of how far gone her brother and husband had been.
And their greed had put her and Aaron right in the bull’s-eye of danger.
TWELVE
Setting aside the slip of paper he’d found hiding in the bottom of the zebra bag, he slid over along the edge of the bed and placed his arm around Olivia’s thin shoulders. She looked pale and wan, as if she might pass out at any moment.
“It’s okay.” He tried to sound reassuring even though he knew this new evidence wasn’t going to make things any better for them. Finding the information was one thing. Figuring out the next step in bringing down the Blake-Moore Group was something else.
“It’s not,” she whispered. He felt her draw in a deep breath and rest her head against his shoulder. “Tim and Colin are dead, and for what? Money?”
Five million was a life-changing amount of cash, but frankly, he didn’t get it, either. Especially because Olivia had claimed the Blake-Moore Group paid her husband a decent salary. He rubbed his hand up and down her arm. “I’m sorry they dragged you and your son into this.”
She sniffled and he felt awful knowing she was crying. “He never loved me or Aaron.”
He couldn’t find the words to argue, because her late husband’s actions spoke for themselves. No man should ever put his wife and son in danger the way Tim Habush had. No man should sacrifice his entire family for the contents of a bank account. Five million was nothing compared to a wife and child, especially considering the guy hadn’t lived long enough to spend a dime.
He couldn’t understand why Tim had thrown away the precious gift of his family, but Ryker was very glad to be with Olivia now. And he was more determined than ever to keep all of them—Olivia, her baby and Aaron—safe.
Duncan poked his head through the connecting door. When he saw Olivia in Ryker’s arms, his brow raised and he flashed a knowing grin, then quickly disappeared.
“I wish Tim had been more like you, Ryker.”
Her statement caught him off guard, and an unexpected flash of longing hit hard. His feelings for Olivia and Aaron were getting out of control. He cared about her, about them, far too much.
He tried to remind himself about how he’d gone down the path of having a family with Cheri and Cyndi. How they’d been killed before he’d had a chance to know what having a real family of his own would be like. Growing up in the foster-care system, he’d dreamed of having a family. But since losing Cheri and Cyndi, he had no interest in trying again.
Last Christmas he’d silently promised to find Olivia and her son, in order to help keep them safe. The way he wished someone had helped Cheri and her little girl.
After finding Olivia, he’d learned to admire her strength and courage. Her sweetness when she talked about her baby. She was everything he’d once liked about Cheri, only more.
Unable to think of a coherent response, Ryker bent down to press a kiss to her temple.
Olivia shifted in his arms, tipping her head back to look up at him. For a long moment their gazes clung, her eyes searching his. His throat seemed to have stopped working, along with his brain, since he couldn’t think of anything to say.
She reached up and cradled his cheek with her palm. “You are a wonderful man, Ryker. I’m so blessed God sent you to come and find me.”
Her gratitude battered the wall he’d built around his heart, knocking several bricks loose. He dropped his gaze to her lush mouth. Before he could blink, she drew his head down so she could kiss him.
Their lips clung, then melded together in a heart-stopping caress. Her sweet taste made him long for more.
Not just having her in his arms, which he absolutely wanted, but having her, Aaron and the baby in his life.
The thought brought him up short. Olivia must have noticed, because she broke off the kiss.
“Sorry, I don’t know what’s wrong with me.” She looked adorably flustered, but he didn’t like the self-recrimination in her eyes.
He finally found his voice. “There is absolutely nothing wrong with you, Olivia.”
She grimaced. “Except that I keep kissing a man who has been nothing but kind to me.”
He threaded his fingers through her chin-length dark hair. “I’ve imagined kissing you several times. You’ve just been brave enough to take action.”
“Yeah, right.” She rested her hand on her belly. “I highly doubt there’s a man out there who dreams of kissing a pregnant woman who resembles a baby whale.”
He placed his hand over hers. “You’re beautiful, Olivia. Don’t sell yourself short. But you need to know that being in danger like this heightens emotions that wouldn’t normally develop on their own.”
She frowned. “Duncan put his life on the line for me, but I don’t feel this way toward him.”
He was ridiculously pleased at her assertion, but knew she was oversimplifying the situation. “But I was the one who found you first. If the situation was reversed, and it was Duncan who came after you, I think you’d be sitting here right now with him.”
“No.” The stubborn glint was back in her eyes, and he was a bit relieved that she seemed to have momentarily forgotten about the bank-account numbers that had sent the Blake-Moore mercenaries gunning for her. “I wouldn’t.”
He didn’t believe her, and decided it was time to change the subject. “We can talk more about this once you and Aaron are safe. For now, I need some time to discuss our next steps with Duncan.”
“I want to give the bank information over to the Blake-Moore Group. Once they have what they’ve wanted all along, they’ll leave
