Two for Protection Read Free

blanket. Pictures of
her childhood lined the hall, beginning with baby pictures and ending with her
most recent two, graduating from college and accepting her position in Texas.
All of it gave the illusion of a happy family. In reality, she’d never gotten
along with her mother, hence the reason she’d taken the job in Texas leaving
behind the wonders of Alaska. Despite the past, relief to be home filled her
and for a brief moment replaced her fear.
    “My
name’s not Tina.” His jet-black hair and bright green eyes were the first thing
she’d noticed when they were in the truck, but now she saw the deep contours of
muscles under his shirt. The stubble teasing along the line of his jaw gave him
a rough, manly look.
    “I’ve
gathered as much, but you haven’t told me who you are yet.” He went to the
table where he’d tossed his bags earlier.
    As she
watched him, she caught a glimpse of a gun, the holster peeking out from
beneath his shirt. Fear tore through her, forcing her backward. She stumbled as
she tried to get away, then bumped into the wall causing a picture frame to
crash the floor, sending broken glass across the rug.
    “What
the hell?” He spun toward her.
    “You
work for him…” She managed to get away from the wall, taking another step back
only to have a large wedge of glass slice through her foot. Warm blood pooled
in her sock and she gasped in pain.
    “I
work for no one. Now do you want to tell me what the hell is going on, or are
you planning to stumble around in that glass until you’ve bled yourself dry?”
He reached back and snatched the first aid kit from the bag. “My name is
Thaddeus Brown, my friends call me Tad. Now come sit down and let me look at
your injuries.”
    Tad
Brown…Brown, where have I heard that name?
    She
wracked her memory trying to come up with the answer. It wasn’t until the
firelight reflected off the symbol on the first aid kit that she realized who
he was. The outline of a bear head with a paw print circling it, the initials
K.B. just below the bear’s head. She recalled the rumors of the Brown family,
assassins who could shapeshift into bears. Had Jeffery hired him to kill her?
    “You’re
from the island…”
    He nodded.
“My family owns the island. Lisa told you about us?”
    “No,
but I know about your family. I’m Lisa’s daughter Courtney, and you have no
right to be here. Leave, now.” She stiffened her back, trying to establish some
control.
    “I
save you from the blizzard, and you’re going to throw me into it. Ironic. You
don’t get your hospitality from your mother, that’s for sure.” He took a seat
in front of the fire, the first aid kit in his lap.
    “I
know all about your family, and I want nothing to do with any of you.”
Throwing him out in the blizzard wouldn’t kill him if what she’d heard was
true.
    “Ahhh,
gossip at it’s best, I’m sure. Not everything you hear about my family is true.
Ask me whatever you want and I’ll tell you what I can to put your mind at
rest.” He patted the seat next to him. “Let me help you.”
    “You’re
assassins. I can’t trust you. Jeffery hired you to kill me, didn’t he?”
    “Assassin.
Where would you get that idea?” He laughed, shaking his head. “I don’t know
anyone named Jeffery. Now sit.”
    “I was
a reporter with Nome Report before I moved to Texas. I heard about your family
while I was there. You must have someone keeping your secrets because all the
stories any of the journalists turned in were squashed before they could ever
be printed.” She leaned against the wall, taking the weight off her injured
foot.
    “Can
you keep a secret?” There was a spark of lightness in his eyes. “I am a
bear shifter, that much is true. Yes, we have an insider at the Report to keep
our secret from becoming public knowledge. But we are not assassins.”
    There
was a truth to his words that she could feel in her bones. If he wanted to kill
her, he’d had plenty of