Falling for the Billionaire's Daughter - Lori Ryan Page 0,35

a really general description of a blue sedan. The stepdad said he swerved before the car hit them so there was no transferred paint or anything like that, but there’s also no mention of tire marks on the road or anything.”

“So the other driver was never found?”

Samantha shook her head. “Nope. No other witnesses. Nothing.”

Kaeden frowned. God, he wished he could get Joy to open up to him about this.

Samantha put her hand on his shoulder. “You should make sure she knows we’re here for her if she wants our help.”

Kaeden nodded, but he wasn’t sure he bought it. Sure, Samantha probably meant the words on some level, but really, why would they help Joy? They didn’t know her the way he did.

And he’d seen what people meant when they gave false platitudes and offers to stick by your side. When push came to shove, that shit just didn’t stick.

But that didn’t mean he wasn’t ready to help Joy. He knew once his decision was made, he would stand by it. He’d be with her now through whatever was coming her way. And Samantha was right. He needed to let her know that.

“So, you know by now that I’m completely inappropriate and I have no boundaries, right?”

Kaeden didn’t love where this was headed. He kept his eyes on the fire, not on Samantha.

She plowed on. “Okay, good, right, so that’s covered. But here’s the thing. You’ve been part of us for awhile now, but you haven’t actually let yourself be part of us, you know?”

Nope. Definitely didn’t love it.

“Logan tried that too, when he came back from serving overseas. Thought he could keep his distance. It didn’t work for him.” She turned to Kaeden. “Though I have to give you props, you’ve really held out longer than he did. I mean, two years with us, Kaeden, and until this trip, you were really going strong.”

He looked her way. Until this trip? What the hell did she mean?

She grinned, leaning toward him. “You’re cracking. Not only with us but with Joy.”

Kaeden wanted to tell her that was bullshit. No, he actually wanted to walk away without saying anything.

He didn’t. He respected Samantha. He wouldn’t treat her that way.

When he didn’t respond, she didn’t seem to be bothered.

“So, here’s where we get to the really inappropriate part,” she said.

“Samantha,” he growled in warning. He might respect her but he really didn’t like where this was going.

“I know about your involvement in Alyssa Moore’s case.”

Kaeden felt all the air go out of him. He didn’t ask how Samantha knew. She could access anything she wanted to, pretty much. Her work for the FBI proved that.

“What do you think you know?” he asked instead, grinding the words out.

“I know you tried to help her. And I know you witnessed the attack, I can only guess how that would have affected you. The man was your platoon leader.”

Kaeden didn’t respond. Darryl Kelley had been more than that. He’d been a mentor, someone Kaeden looked up to in the Corps. In life. The day Kaeden walked in to see him assaulting one of the women under his command had destroyed so much. Everything. His faith in people. His belief in the Corps. In the brotherhood, the family he’d found among the men and women he served with.

“You stopped it,” Samantha said gently.

He had. He’d stopped the worst of it anyway. He’d escorted Alyssa to safety, kept her covered until he got her back to her quarters so no one would know her shirt had been torn off her and her pants had been undone.

He’d stayed with her there, standing outside the shower room as she scrubbed herself clean. He’d known she was washing away any evidence but there had been no stopping her.

What followed next had nearly destroyed his career as thoroughly as it had destroyed his confidence in the system and in the people he’d respected and served alongside.

“I did.” It was all he could say.

“I get why you won’t want to let anyone get close to you again,” Samantha said, this time reaching out and touching his arm.

He pulled back and crossed his arms. He didn’t have to be a shrink to know it was a classic back off signal. He was being an ass and he didn’t care.

If Samantha was fazed by his move, she didn’t show it. “Logan did the same thing when we started to get close. It scared the hell out of him and he thought he was protecting me