belonged to. I didn’t know who—” Emotion choked off the colonel’s words. He pressed his fist to his lips, grasping for the fortitude to finish delivering the bad news.
Zy stood in shock, his gut twisting. The man’s only daughter, Hunter and Logan’s sister…
Another guy came in behind the colonel—big, blond, badass, and totally pissed off. Deke Trenton, Kimber’s husband. “She’s gone. She dropped the kids off at preschool, then made a trip to the grocery store…and didn’t come home. A courier delivered this thirty minutes ago.”
They all crowded around as he whipped out a picture of Kimber, her auburn hair tangled, her big eyes red rimmed, with a gag over her mouth, her hands tied behind her back, and a gun to her head.
Oh, holy shit.
“We’ll get her back.” Despite having gone ghostly pale, Hunter found his voice. “We’ll do whatever it takes—”
“You’re fucking right we will,” Deke spat. “I want my kitten back. Jack and the rest of the Oracle team are at our offices strategizing. Any help you can spare…”
“You’ll have it,” Hunter promised. “We need to lock down the rest of the wives and kids.”
“Fast,” the colonel managed. “Before it’s too late.”
The older man ducked out, looking as if he could barely keep himself together.
Deke didn’t look much calmer. “Thanks for whatever you can do.”
“Fuck that, she’s our sister. We’ll devote day and night to saving her.”
Kimber’s husband nodded, then he was gone. Silence prevailed for a protracted moment. Then Hunter swallowed, collecting himself first. He turned to ice in an instant. Logan lived up to his fiery temper, grabbing an eraser from the nearest whiteboard then throwing it violently. His empty coffee mug followed next, shattering against the wall.
Before he could toss anything else, Joaquin stepped in. “We don’t have time.”
“I know. I fucking know. Goddamn son of a bitch!”
Hunter and Joaquin raced out the door, already strategizing to keep all the others in their family safe. Logan fumed, trying to gather himself, his lungs working like a bellows.
“I’ll come with you,” Zy offered. “I’ll devote all my energy—”
“No. This shit is centered around Valeria Montilla. Trees and Kane are going to protect and relocate her pronto—and we’ll be monitoring every step. But none of that will mean shit if you can’t figure out our mole. Two fucking weeks—max—or they’re both off the fucking payroll and we bury them professionally. If you fail, we’ll do the same to your fucking ass, too.”
Logan tore out of the conference room, slamming the door behind him. After some shouting in the hall and more door slamming in the distance, the office fell silent.
Two weeks? Zy cursed. He had to start planning and setting some wheels in motion now—or they were all fucked.
LOOK FOR ZY AND TESSA’S STORY COMING LATE 2020!
Want to see how Alpha operative Cutter Bryant and starlet Shealyn West fall in love? Get sucked into the sexy, high-octane, suspenseful Devoted Lovers series!
DEVOTED TO PLEASURE
Devoted Lovers, Book 1
By Shayla Black
Available now!
Click here to order!
A bodyguard should never fall for his client…but she’s too tempting to refuse.
Bodyguard and former military man Cutter Bryant has always done his duty–no matter what the personal cost. Now he's taking one last high-octane, high-dollar assignment before settling down in a new role that means sacrificing his chance at love. But he never expects to share an irresistible chemistry with his beautiful new client.
Fame claimed Shealyn West suddenly and with a vengeance after starring in a steamy television drama, but it has come at the expense of her heart. Though she's pretending to date a co-star for her image, a past mistake has come back to haunt her. With a blackmailer watching her every move and the threat of career-ending exposure looming, Shealyn hires Cutter to shore up her security, never imagining their attraction will be too powerful to contain.
As Shealyn and Cutter navigate the scintillating line between business and pleasure, they unravel a web of secrets that threaten their relationship and their lives. When danger strikes, Cutter must decide whether to follow his heart for the first time, or risk losing Shealyn forever.
EXCERPT
“Cutter?”
She sounded unsure. Was she afraid of the dark? Of what had happened with her blackmailer earlier? Or what might happen between the two of them next?
He moved closer slowly, giving her plenty of time to back away. “I’m here.”
Shealyn allayed his worries when, instead of retreating or flipping the light switch beside her, she reached for him, fingers curling around his arm like she was grabbing a lifeline.
Cutter edged into