“Yeah,” Taylor said in a shaky voice.
“It was nice seeing you? What the fuck was that?” Eagle growled.
Taylor hadn’t even caught that part. Wouldn’t most people say it was nice to meet someone? Shit, now she was really freaked.
“What was he wearing?” Eagle barked. “I’m almost there. I’ll see if I can find him in the parking lot and have a chat with him.”
“Gray shirt, overalls, baseball cap,” Taylor told him. She was relieved he hadn’t asked her what the man looked like. Most people wouldn’t have thought twice about their question, but it was obvious Eagle knew better.
“I think he had brown hair,” she offered. “I couldn’t see much of it because of the hat. And he had on white tennis shoes.”
“Okay, baby. I’m about to turn into the parking lot.”
“He smelled,” she whispered.
“What?”
“Smelled. I recognized it. Like the care center. I immediately thought about the creepy guy who sat next to me in the courtyard . . . but it can’t be him, can it?”
But instead of reassuring her, Eagle said, “I’m going to hang up now. I’m here, and I’m going to look around before coming up. I’ll text you right before I knock so you’ll know it’s me. Okay?”
“Okay. Be careful.”
“Always,” he said, as she’d known he would, then hung up.
Taylor backed away from the door and held her phone to her chest. Her heart was beating a million miles an hour.
Why would the man from the care center come here? How did he know where she lived? Was there even a connection? Maybe the man really did work for the apartment complex . . .
Nothing made sense—and that scared the shit out of Taylor.
She stared at the door from inside her apartment and prayed Eagle would hurry up.
Eagle wasn’t happy that Taylor was freaked. When he’d left her that morning, she’d been sleepy and sated. She had no problem with her memory, but he was more than willing to remind her each day that he was the man in her bed. Every morning, as soon as they were both awake, he immediately said, “Good morning, Flower,” and the relief and love in her eyes almost did him in.
He knew it was love. Because he felt the exact same way. Neither had spoken the words, but he couldn’t deny the feeling was there.
Hearing her call him by his given name had jolted him out of the mellow mood he’d been in all morning. She never called him Kellan, and he’d known immediately something was wrong. He hated the way her voice had quivered; he’d been moving before he’d even thought about it.
The rest of the guys were out working, so he didn’t have them for backup. His only thought was to get to Taylor. But now that she was once again locked behind her door, relatively safe for the moment, he took the time to call Gramps as he slowly drove around the parking lot, looking for anyone matching the description Taylor had given him.
“Hey, Eagle. What’s up?” Gramps said as he answered the phone.
“I need your help. And the other guys too.”
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know. Maybe nothing, but I’m not willing to risk Taylor’s life.” He explained about Taylor calling him, and how she had a feeling the man who’d claimed to be maintenance was the same man who had creeped her out when she’d visited the dementia center.
“I’m in the parking lot,” Eagle told his teammate. “I’m going to look around, but I could use some help.”
“You got it. I’ll call Bull and Smoke,” Gramps promised without hesitation. “I’m finishing up a call, but I’ll be there as soon as I can. You going to be all right until then?”
“Yeah. Taylor is in her apartment, so she’s safe enough for the moment. Thanks, Gramps.”
“You don’t have to thank me,” Gramps told him. “See you soon.” Then he hung up.
Eagle hadn’t seen anyone who remotely resembled the maintenance man, which was a clue in itself. If he really had been an employee of the apartment complex, he’d be around somewhere. Knocking on someone else’s door, getting more supplies from a vehicle or a storage room, something. But the only people he’d seen walking around were obviously residents.
Though, Eagle also knew the man could’ve changed clothes to blend right in. Because Taylor couldn’t identify him by his features, Eagle was at a definite disadvantage. It wasn’t a situation he found himself in very often, and he didn’t like it. Not at all.
He sent a quick text to Taylor.
Eagle: Everything’s okay. I’m waiting for my team to help me scope things out. You all right?
She responded immediately.
Taylor: Yes. I’m okay. I feel kind of stupid, actually. I’m sure he was probably just the maintenance man. I’m sorry for bringing you out here on a wild goose chase.
Eagle’s plan had been to wait for the guys and search every nook and cranny of the apartment complex and the surrounding area, but he needed to take a second and talk to Taylor face to face.
Eagle: I’m coming up. I’ll be there in a minute or so.
Then he headed up the stairs, taking them two at a time, and he was in front of Taylor’s apartment within forty-five seconds. He took a deep breath before he knocked, trying to get himself under control. Her panicked call had shaken him more than he cared to admit.
He’d faced down terrorists, murderers, and people whose only goal in life was to kill others . . . but Eagle didn’t think he’d ever been as scared as when he’d realized Taylor was alone in her apartment with someone who may or may not want to hurt her. He had no idea who might want to harm his Taylor—if that was the case—but he was going to do everything in his power to keep her safe.
He was Delta. Special Forces. He and his team had the training and the ability to do what it took to make sure no one touched her, but . . . how did you fight a ghost? Taylor couldn’t describe the man, and being able to identify him by the way he smelled wasn’t exactly going to work in a manhunt.
Eagle rapped three times on Taylor’s apartment door. “Tay? It’s me, Eagle. Open the door, Flower.”
The second he said their code word, he heard the locks disengage. Then she was in his arms. Eagle walked her backward, not letting go, and kicked her door shut. He looked around and didn’t see anything that seemed out of the ordinary. He breathed out a sigh of relief and buried his face in her hair for a moment.
As usual, her curls were in disarray, and for a second, Eagle pictured her lying hurt and unmoving on her floor, those beautiful curls surrounding her head like some sort of macabre death halo.
Shaking his head, Eagle refused to think about Taylor’s life being snuffed out. No, he’d just found her. He wasn’t losing her now.
He pulled back and put his hands on either side of her head. She looked up at him, holding his wrists in a tight grip. “You’re okay?” he asked, needing it to be true.
She nodded.
“Tell me what happened. From the beginning.”
“There was a knock on the door. I knew it wouldn’t be you because you always tell me when you’re coming over, and I couldn’t imagine who else it might be. I looked through the peephole and asked who it was. He said he was with maintenance and was here to change my air filter. So I let him in. He looked the part, Eagle. And he had one of the flyers that have been posted everywhere around here for the last few days, letting us know someone would be by. I wouldn’t have opened the door if I didn’t believe he was who he said he was.”