Protecting His Kidnapped Family - Leslie North Page 0,16

our destination by nightfall,” he said to her over his shoulder. “Keep your mind in the present and stay alert to what could go on right here and now.”

7

Late that afternoon, they were still walking through the forest. Based on the low angle of the light through the trees, the sun would be setting soon. Noah adjusted Gracie on his chest and continued through the brush. It was surprising how normal it felt now to have a baby strapped to him like this.

My baby.

The words created a weird pull around his heart before he brushed them aside. He needed to stay clear and focused on the danger here, not fixated on how good the warmth of Gracie’s little body felt cradled against his. He still couldn’t quite get over how easily she’d taken to him, how trusting she was now, snoozing away with her tiny thumb stuck in her mouth. He’d been a bundle of nerves holding her at first, afraid he’d drop her or hurt her or somehow otherwise prove himself as incompetent in this situation as he feared he was. But she’d just snuggled in, no fear or hesitation at all. Like he was someone who deserved to be her daddy and not some idiot who didn’t know what he was doing.

And speaking of being an idiot, he still wasn’t sure how to handle this awkward as ass business between him and Serena either. Co-parenting wasn’t a term he’d ever associated with himself. He’d planned to stay single and stay sharp for his job for as long as possible and worry about the rest later. Messy, confusing stuff like family and relationships and the future hadn’t been on his radar at all.

Except the future was suddenly now and what the hell was he supposed to do with that?

At least Serena didn’t seem bothered by it all. He hazarded another glance over at her where she was trailing along, face turned up toward the sun, looking blissful despite everything. For a crazy second, he almost reached over to brush the long dark hair from her eyes and see that smile of hers turned toward him, but stopped himself. He had no business touching Serena Carson. For one, she was his mission. And for two, until they sorted out all this mess with Gracie, he needed to keep a safe distance from her, physically and emotionally.

And sure, he’d held her in his arms the other night when she’d had that nightmare. That was just asset management, as the guys at SSoF called it. Making sure things with the mission ran smoothly. Strictly business. Yep.

Maybe if he repeated that to himself enough times, he’d actually believe it.

Thoughts tangled and twisted in his brain, Noah almost missed the sound of an approaching vehicle on the road nearby. Navigating their way through the rainforest was easier with some type of landmark to use for orientation, so he’d followed a path through the trees that gave them some cover, but still allowed him to track the roadway as needed. Now, though, he began to doubt the wisdom of his decision.

Noah put out a hand to stop Serena where she stood, then held a finger to his lips while the SUV passed by them. Black with tinted windows, from what he could see through the leaves. How much could the passengers in the SUV see of them, in turn? His instincts went on high alert. The vehicle sped past without slowing and he released his pent-up breath. Okay.

“Keep going,” he whispered low to Serena.

“Do you think that’s them?” she asked, following him further down the path.

He glanced back at her. “Not sure, but after what that guy told me about the roadblocks, we can’t be too careful.”

Twenty minutes later, the same black SUV drove past again in the opposite direction and that was when Noah knew for sure that they were in trouble. “Dammit.” He tugged Serena’s arm to pull her to the other side of him, putting his body between her and the road. The SUV slowed near their location and the driver’s side window lowered. Noah held Gracie tighter against him with one arm while keeping Serena behind him with the other. He didn’t like being exposed like this. He’d figured the rainforest would give them sufficient cover, but he’d been wrong. The SUV pulled over to the berm and the engine cut.

Shit.

“Over there,” he hissed to Serena, pointing to a thicket of vegetation nearby. “Hurry!”

They barely made it into hiding before footsteps