Broken: (McIntyre Security Bodyguard Series - Book 3)
Broken
McIntyre Security, Inc.
Book 3
by
April Wilson
Copyright © 2016 April E. Barnswell/
Wilson Publishing
All rights reserved.
Cover Design Copyright © 2016
by April E. Barnswell
Published by
Wilson Publishing
P.O. Box 292913
Dayton, OH 45429
www.aprilwilsonwrites.com
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the author. The only exception is brief quotations to be used in book reviews.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. All places and locations are used fictitiously. The names of characters and places are figments of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to real people or real places is purely a coincidence.
Dedications
To my darling daughter, Chloe Elizabeth
To my sister and BFF, Lori Holmes
To all the wonderful people in the world who have read and enjoyed my books. I heart you all! Thanks for making my dream come true!
Books by April Wilson
McIntyre Security, Inc. Series:
Vulnerable, Book 1
Fearless, Book 2
Broken, Book 3
Books 4 and 5 (coming 2017)
Table of Contents
Dedications
Books by April Wilson
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Two Weeks Later
Thank you!
Coming Next
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1
One of the perks of working in the security business is that I get paid to shoot guns and kick ass on a regular basis. I couldn’t ask for a better job, and today’s no exception. Later this morning, after I drop off my charge at her day job, I’ll be heading to the company’s private shooting range for my weekly mandatory practice. And later this afternoon, I’m scheduled to test the physical combat skills of two new recruits back at the office. We don’t mess around at McIntyre Security – we keep our skills sharp. Plus, it’s a lot of fun.
I’ve made it my mission in life to keep my skills sharp because, as the youngest of seven kids – the youngest girl, no less – I’m constantly being tested. Not so much by my two big sisters, but by my four hot-headed brothers, who are all pains in my ass. One of them – the eldest – also happens to be my boss, and he’s got to be the biggest pain of them all.
My alarm clock goes off again, and I hit the snooze button for the umpteenth time. I’d really like to throw the damn thing across the room. I’m lying here trying to convince myself I don’t have a hangover for the third day in a row, but I’m not making much progress. It’s my own damn fault. I shouldn’t have had those last three beers last night. I should have stopped way before that.
I’ve dallied so long in bed that I’ve only got thirty minutes to shower, dress and get upstairs to the penthouse apartment to pick up Beth and take her to work. Normally I don’t cut it quite this close, but I knew this morning was going to be rough. I’ve been struggling more than usual lately, and that pisses me off. I don’t want that asshat Logan Wintermeyer to have this much effect on my life six years after he fucked me over – literally. Damn it! After seeing him at my brother’s birthday party a couple weeks ago, I’ve been reliving that nightmare like it’s some perverted loop stuck in my head.
Every time I close my eyes, I see that damn video, like it’s burned into my memory. I’ve tried to put it behind me, but I can’t. I keep reliving the humiliation, the gut-wrenching sense of betrayal. I can see myself clear as day, losing my virginity to someone who turned out to be an asshole. Someone I thought I loved – someone I thought loved me too. I was so young and naive – so stupid! I deserve what happened. I deserved to be made into a viral laughingstock.
Feeling sick to my stomach, I haul my sorry ass out of bed with twenty-seven minutes to spare and stumble into the bathroom. My head’s pounding and my mouth feels like it’s stuffed with cotton. That’s what I get for drinking too much last night. For the third night in a row, I came home after work and drank way too much – alone – in a futile attempt to forget about that damn video. It didn’t work.
After I use the restroom, I strip off my T-shirt and underwear and climb numbly into the shower. The water’s scalding hot, but I don’t mind. Even six years later, I’m still trying to wash away the sick memories of that night.
Closing my eyes, I lean into the spray, letting the hot water soak into my bones and muscles. I try to still my racing thoughts, telling myself it’s in the past. What that bastard did to me doesn’t define me. It doesn’t make me less of a person. He was the asshole. But I’ve never had much luck. The memory eats away at my soul. Seeing myself like that, seeing the raw emotion on my face, knowing how he humiliated me afterward – it eats at me! He used that video against me, out of spite... God! I could kill him! I want to smash my fists into his face until my knuckles crack and bleed. And more than anything, I hate being unable to do a damn thing about it. I had my day in court, and I lost.
I slam my fist into the tile wall and choke back a cry as a jolt of pain streaks up my arm. I hate this! I hate feeling like this! After letting out one throat-ripping scream of frustration, I grab the bottle of shampoo and take my anger out on my hair. But scrubbing my scalp until it hurts only makes my headache worse.
When I climb out of the shower and comb through my wet hair, I realize how long it’s grown. I can’t decide whether to cut it or just let it grow.
I guess I just don’t care enough either way to make a decision.
* * *
When the private elevator deposits me in the foyer of my brother’s penthouse apartment a few minutes later – at eight on the dot – I’m hit instantly with the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. That improves my entire morning. I need caffeine like I need air to breathe. I’d make it myself in my own apartment two floors down, but why bother when I know I can get a cup of the good stuff up here? My brother’s roomie and right-hand man, Cooper, grinds his own freaking beans. Not me. I’m too impatient.
As I walk into the spacious kitchen, I’m hit with a whole lot of PDA. Beth’s seated on a barstool at the breakfast counter, and my brother Shane is standing in front of her, right between her knees, leaning into her for some serious lip action. His hands cradle her face, and his lips are molded to hers as he practically inhales her.
Twenty years into his sentence, Kline was let out early for so-called good behavior. And that’s how my brother met the love of his life – when her brother, Tyler Jamison, hired McIntyre Security to protect Beth. As they say, the rest is history. My brother took one look at Beth and he was a goner. She had him wrapped around her little finger in no time.
Beth seems to be recovering pretty well from the showdown with Howard Kline. He came after her with the intention of killing her, but Shane was waiting for him, and he ended it once and for all, with a bullet to the guy’s brain.
They’ve been through a lot. And I’m happy for them. I really am. Beth has an engagement ring on her finger now and she’s deep in wedding planning mode. But still, it’s way too early in the morning for me to deal with all this lovey-dovey crap, especially on an empty stomach. “Hey, Princess. Do you guys mind? Take it to your bedroom, will ya?”
Beth jumps, looking flushed and guilty as hell as she pulls back from Shane. “Oh! Hi, Lia!” she says breathlessly as she peers around Shane, trying to look innocent. Her smile falters a little, though, when she sees me. Yeah, I know I look like crap this morning. I have dark circles under my eyes. That’s what drinking too much and getting just three hours of sleep will do to a person.
My brother glances back at me, annoyance written all over his face. “Yes, I mind. This is our home, Lia. If I want to kiss Beth, I will.” He looks stern, but he doesn’t fool me.
“You call that kissing? It looked to me like you were trying to swallow her whole.”
He gives me a long suffering look. “My, aren’t you funny this morning.”
Naturally I ignore him and take a seat beside Beth at the breakfast counter.
They’re both dressed for work, Shane in his white shirt and charcoal gray suit and tie – honestly I don’t think he owns any other color suit – and Beth in a pale yellow, sleeveless fitted dress, her long blond hair drawn up into a carefree ponytail. As always, she looks effortlessly gorgeous. And so girly. Now that my blond hair’s growing out, she and I look like we could almost pass for sisters. Actually, since she’s marrying my brother, I guess we really will be.
I’m surprised Shane’s still here. He’s an early riser, like before-the-crack-of-dawn-early, so he’s usually long gone by the time I come up to get Beth. “Why are you still here?” I ask him. “Should you be at the office by now, bossing people around?”
“Good morning, sunshine,” Cooper says, eyeing me from across the kitchen.
I hadn’t even noticed Cooper over by the stove, which just proves how out of it I am this morning. Some bodyguard I am. I wave half-heartedly. “Hey, Coop.”
Cooper pours a mug of coffee and hands it to me. “Looks like you got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, kiddo.”
“Don’t call me that.” At twenty-two, I may be the youngest person in the room, but I’m not a kid. I scowl at him, then take a sip of the hot black coffee and groan. Pure liquid gold. “Thanks, man.”
“You’re welcome.” He hands me a plate of scrambled eggs, bacon and toast. “Maybe hot food will improve your disposition this morning.”
“I’d better get going,” Shane says, checking the time on his chunky Rolex watch. He pockets his keys and phone, then leans down to kiss Beth’s forehead. “I’m meeting Jonah Locke and his manager at the house they rented in Lincoln Park.”
Beth looks at me and grins conspiratorially. “Do you need any help, Shane? Lia and I could come with you.”
Shane chuckles at her less-than-subtle offer. “Thanks, sweetheart, but I think I can handle one rock star on my own.”
As he heads to the foyer, Shane pauses to look back at me. “I want you here for dinner tonight, Lia. Official business. Seven sharp.”
I scowl at him. He knows I hate hobnobbing with clients. “Why me?”
“Just be here.” And then he heads out the door and is gone.
“Jonah and his manager are coming for dinner tonight,” Beth says, as I inhale my breakfast.
I met Jonah Locke briefly in Shane’s office last week, and yeah, the guy’s fucking hot. Like total sex-on-a-stick hot. Surprisingly, he seemed pretty chill for a rock star who makes the headlines every time he sneezes. “Why does Shane want me here? I’m not exactly the best dinner company.”
Beth shrugs. “You’ll have to ask him.”
I swear Beth knows more than she’s letting on, but before I can pry it out of her, she hops down from her seat and runs off to brush her teeth. The traitor.
* * *
I gulp my last swallow of coffee and set my mug down with a satisfied thunk. “Thanks for breakfast, Cooper.”
He nods at me, and then stands there scrutinizing me as I rinse off my plate and cup and put them in the dishwasher.
He’s staring, and that makes me uncomfortable. “What?”
He crosses his arms over his chest. “Nothing.”
Liar.
“Did you get enough to eat?” he says.
Cooper’s old enough to be my father, and half the time, he acts like he is. It pisses me off because I don’t need another parent. I have two as it is, thank you, not to mention six siblings who think it’s their God-given right to boss me around.
“Yes, dad.”
“Don’t get mouthy with me, young lady.” He reaches out and grasps my shoulder before I can walk away. “You doing okay, kiddo? You’ve seemed off the past few days. Ever since Shane’s party.”
I shake him off. Cooper knows damn well I’m not all right, and he knows why. He saw Logan that night at Rowdy’s, and he knows exactly what that asshat did to me. He’s probably even seen the video, or at least part of it, and that skeeves me out. “I’m fine.”
“Don’t forget, you’re due at the shooting range at nine-thirty. Don’t be late.”
I salute him. “Yes, sir!”
“Don’t be a smart ass, young lady.”
Chapter 2
“Are you okay?” Beth asks as we pull out of the parking garage and head downtown to her bookstore.
A couple months ago, my idiot brother bought Clancy’s Bookshop for Beth – one of the largest independent bookstores in the country. This bookstore is her favorite place on Earth – her happy place. Before meeting Shane, she used to spend Friday evenings downtown by herself, hanging out at Clancy’s, browsing books, especially romance novels. It’s where they met, so I guess it was some kind of grand gesture of affection on his part to buy the place for her. The store’s located right in the heart of downtown Chicago’s main shopping district on N. Michigan Avenue. The building alone is worth a fortune. He paid cash for it and put it solely in her name, no strings attached. It was certainly one hell of a gesture on his part! His attorney gave him grief over it for weeks.
Am I okay? No, I’m not.
I look over at Beth, trying really hard not to glare at her just to shut her down, because she doesn’t deserve any shit from me. She’s been nothing but good to me since the day we met. She means well, but I’m tired of people asking me if I’m okay. “I really wish everyone would stop asking me that.”
She smiles, but it’s a sad smile. The girl wears her heart on her sleeve. “I saw what happened at Rowdy’s,” she says. “I saw how you reacted when you saw that guy. And I saw Jake chase him out of there. Who was he? I asked Shane, but he wouldn’t tell me. He said I had to ask you, so... I am.”
I grind my teeth. I really hate people knowing my personal business, and that goes double for my past. But this is Beth. She’s the best friend I have. Hell, she’s the only friend I have, so
I can’t afford to fuck this up. “The guy you saw that night – his name is Logan Wintermeyer. He was my... first boyfriend.” And last.
“When was this?”
“High school. I was sixteen.”
She looks surprised. “My God, what did he do? You looked absolutely gutted the other night.”
I swallow the rock hard lump in my throat. I’ve never willingly told anyone about this before, never opened up to anyone other than my family and Cooper. I don’t know if I can do this.
I keep my eyes glued to the street as I dodge downtown morning traffic. “He, uh... we had sex.” My heart’s beating so hard I think there’s a chance it might burst. “I didn’t know at the time, but he videotaped the whole thing. I was on top, and it was pretty raw stuff. It was my first time, and it was really awkward. I didn’t know what I was doing, and it hurt. It was a disaster.”
“A couple days later, when I found out he was cheating on me with another girl from school, I broke up with him. I was furious at him, and I made a scene in the school cafeteria in front of all his friends. He was really pissed at me for embarrassing him in public. He got back at me by posting the video on one of those amateur porn sites. It went viral, to say the least. It had been viewed millions of times before Shane managed to get the video taken down.”
I finally muster the courage to look at Beth just as the blood drains from her face and her blue-green eyes widen. “Oh, my God,” she breathes. “I remember that video – that was you?”
I nod. Probably half the world watched me lose my virginity and then cry about it.
“Oh, Lia, I’m so sorry. I can’t believe he did that to you. Was he charged with anything? Isn’t that a crime?”
“Technically, yes it was, because I was a minor. But he claimed he didn’t do it – that he didn’t set up the video camera. He said one of his buddies did it as a prank. Shane did everything he could, brought in all kinds of attorneys, but we couldn’t make any charges stick. Shane did get a court injunction, though, ordering all copies of the video to be pulled off the Internet. It resurfaces from time to time, but Shane’s IT department has bots watching for it, and when they find it, they take it down. I’m pretty sure Logan still has a copy, although the judge ordered him to delete all of the copies he had.”