Scorpio Sons 1: Colton (6 page)

"Alyssa, darling, I know you feel grateful to Mr Blake, but you can't just hire someone off the street. There are all sorts of security issues…"

"Please, Alzhir. I'm really frightened. I know things like this happen to people in the public eye, but I never expected it to happen to me. I feel safe with Mr Blake. I'm sure he'd do a wonderful job. Look what he did for free? He'd be even more vigilant if he was being paid."

Her little-girl act didn't sit well with Colt but he could see it was having its effect on Akabar. The man was literally melting under the force of those fluttering eyelashes.

Colt decided to enter the negotiation with just the right incentive. "I'm regularly contracted out for this kind of job. My credentials are excellent, and my brother's are even better."

"I was actually thinking of assigning you two of my men until we found out who has targeting you."

Alyssa literally quailed as she looked at the two bully-boys standing at-ease behind Akabar.

"But I can see you have your heart set on your rescuer, so I'll have my people make enquiries. If Blake checks out, you may have him and his brother. But if he doesn’t, you're not to complain, do you understand? Your safety is my first concern now. It isn't enough that you
feel
safe with your bodyguards. You have to
be
safe."

Alyssa beamed at the Mogul brightly. "Thank you, Alzhir. I'll be very relieved knowing Mr Blake is protecting me. Will he and his brother take the room next door that the other guards used?"

"Alyssa, Alyssa, you're like an incorrigible child. I haven't
agreed
to this yet. Please be patient."

Colt bit down on his tongue to bridle his fury. Akabar's condescending tone enraged him. Men like this saw women as no more than stupid ornaments. If he cared for Alyssa at all, it was only for what she brought to him with her looks and talent. He didn't feel strong emotion for her. He couldn't. The Guild weren't human, after all. They didn't feel as humans felt; and they certainly didn't experience empathy for the race they worked so hard to dominate.

"I don't want to be left unprotected tonight. I still have to go to my coaching session after dinner. Can he stay until … until something more permanent is sorted out?" Alyssa pressed.

Colt was starting to see that she was not some frightened little lamb. When she wanted something she pulled out all stops to get it, even if it meant playing the airhead and putting up with Akabar's condescension.

And she wanted him. That shouldn't feel as good as it did.

"Blake, are you happy to remain on duty until something is arranged? Alyssa is in a very vulnerable situation at the moment. The semi-finals of the singing contest are in a few days. She'll get through to the finals, of course, but it's still stressful for her. This incident can't be allowed to upset her chances."

"I was on leave for a few days anyway, so yes, I can stay. My brother's between jobs at the moment. I know he'll be happy to have the work. I'll get in touch with him immediately. We won't let anything stress Miss Aimes anymore than it already has."

"Good, then if you'll step outside and give my man your particulars, we'll make every effort to give Alyssa what she wants. Gentleman…?"

It was a none-too-subtle hint that he wanted some time alone with Alyssa. Though Colt hated the idea, he knew he couldn't stand in Akabar's way. At least if Colt was on the other side of the door he could hear her if she needed help.

With as much grace as he could muster, he left the room with the two bodyguards and abandoned Alyssa to his greatest enemy.

CHAPTER FIVE

An hour later, Alzhir was gone and Alyssa began preparing for her coaching session. She was singing the song that had won her place in the competition, one she'd written when she first came to Los Angeles. It was about Colt, but the last thing she wanted was for him to realise that fact.

Her skin still crawled from Alzhir's deep kisses. He had seemed so upset by what had happened to her, so determined to keep her safe, that it had felt wrong not to allow him those few liberties. After all, if not for his men, she would likely be dead or a captive by now. However, having Colt back in her life made her even more convinced that she couldn't let her relationship with Alzhir become physical. It would be tantamount to prostitution in her eyes.

By the time she'd gobbled down the chicken salad delivered to her door, she was ready to go to the studio where she'd meet her coach. At least he was a professional song-writer and knew what he was talking about. She'd valued his input, especially at the beginning of the contest.

At the appointed time, a knock at the door told her Colt was ready to accompany her to the appointment. Her heart did a happy-dance in her chest at the thought. For four long years she'd thought him gone forever. Now he was back in her life again. It was a dream come true. And even though her suspicions had been raised by the detective's insinuation that his presence at the scene of the crime was more than pure chance, she knew at the deepest level of her being that Colt meant her no harm. Whether it was simply fate, blind luck, or a carefully engineered event undertaken for reasons she didn't yet understand, it didn't change the fact that Colt was her protector. Had always been her protector.

But the man at the door wasn't Colt, even though he looked very much like him.

"Miss Aimes, I'm Connor, Colt's brother," he introduced himself, his Irish lilt seductive. He was dressed in the obligatory suit and tie, complete with earpiece, which all bodyguards wore.

She studied him closely, trying to see just how similar the twins were. Connor wore his hair buzz-cut, which made the angular planes of his face harsher than his brother's. His eyes were the same light brown but they didn't seem as direct and intense. The bottom lip, which on Colt was plump and slightly protruding, was thinner and more severe on his brother. All in all, the whole package, though similar, was not the same.

Stepping in close, she took the man's hand and breathed in his scent. Just like Colt, the only artificial smell about him was soap. But where the clean-man smell of Colt sent her blood pressure soaring, this man's scent did nothing for her.

"Nice to meet you, Connor. Please call me Alyssa. I feel like I know you already. Colt's told me so much about you."

Connor's eyebrows went up, just as Colt's did when he was surprised, but they didn't disappear under hair. Instead, they seemed emphasised by the gesture, especially the scarred one.

"Colt isn't usually very chatty about our past. What did he tell you?"

"That you were twins separated at birth by a mother who took him to Canada and left you in Ireland. That you didn't know each other existed until you met in Afghanistan. That neither of you are happy with your parents for keeping that secret."

Connor smiled a ready-grin that was attractive but didn’t curl her toes. "Aye well, he sure enough covered it then. It was odd to suddenly find yerself with a brother when all your life you'd felt alone. That's why I came here to be near him. To make up for lost time, if you know what I mean?"

They began walking down the corridor towards the elevator. She imagined Colt wouldn't be too far away. He said he'd take her to the studio. "If I suddenly found I had a long lost sister, I'd feel just the same way. Are you alike in personality?"

"Compared to other people, aye we are. But I'm more cheerful than he is, more out-going. That's why it surprised me he told you about us. He's not the chatty type. I'm more aggressive than he is, too. Got a bit of a temper. I like to fight for the hell of it. Used to be a cage-fighter back in Dublin. And I like the company of pretty ladies such as yerself, where Colt prefers his own company. The weird thing is, I'm usually the leader, and Colt the loner, but when we're together he's the leader."

"Maybe he was born before you." She gave a little laugh. Connor was easy to talk to and flirted outrageously, but she didn't get the sense that he was particularly drawn to her. It was likely he used that Irish charm on any female who caught his eye.

As the elevator pinged, she saw Colt striding towards them, his easy grace leaving her breathless. Or was it how well he filled out his suit? All she'd seen him wearing before were jeans, tee-shirt and black leather jacket. He scrubbed up just fine, she was pleased to note.

He didn't smile as he approached. Instead, he seemed moody and preoccupied, casting glances at Connor and her as the three of them entered the car.

"Been chattier than usual with the wee lass have you, me boyo?" Connor asked playfully.

"She asked, I told," he growled, rolling his shoulders as if he was preparing for a fight.

"See what I mean? Not the sociable type, me brother. But salt o' the earth, all the same. He lives by a moral code, did he tell you?" Connor was teasing Colt, and she didn't understand why. But she watched Colt bristle and scowl defensively.

"
Though shalt not kill
is not one of his Ten Commandments," Alyssa said, tongue-in-cheek, hoping to ease Colt's mood.

"That one got left off the list for all of us," Connor quipped.

Colt tensed and Connor caught himself, as if he'd said something wrong.

"All of us?" she asked.

"Aye," he said too fast. "The rest of the family. We're a brawling bunch. Uncle Rory's inside for murder. Our great-granny was hung for killing her lover. That's what I meant."

It was all a lie, and Connor was obviously not much good at it. Another difference between the two brothers. So who were the
all of us
that he was talking about?

She was pleased when Colt took her elbow possessively as they left the elevator. Though Connor fell in on her other side, he didn't attempt to touch her. Never had she felt so small and so protected, the two giant men prowling at her side, attracting more than their share of female attention. Had it been like this with her last two bodyguards? No, definitely not. But then, those men hadn't looked like two gorgeous bookends with plain little her huddled between them.

Neither man was particularly talkative as they climbed into the back of the limo. She noted that her usual driver was missing. Still in shock, she imagined. This driver seemed to have nothing to say to her, so she sat quietly in the male-dominated space and tried not to purr every time Colt's arm brushed against hers.

Colt was ready to let his cat loose by the time they exited the limo. He'd been only too aware of the easy camaraderie that had developed too quickly between Alyssa and Connor. She obviously found his charm hard to resist. And he knew snapping and sulking wouldn't win him any prizes with her, but Colt couldn't stop himself behaving like a jealous idiot.

In the elevator he'd scented the air. Her arousal was sweet and tantalizing, but was it for Connor, him or both of them? What about his brother? Was he feeling the pull of Alyssa, like iron filings to a magnet? He couldn't tell. Connor liked women, flirting with them easily. Was Alyssa just another woman to him?

When they'd left the elevator he'd intentionally taken her elbow in his hand, not caring if Connor saw it as a claiming action, or that it wasn't the behaviour of a bodyguard. Alyssa was his. He didn't care if she laughed with Connor, or his brother flirted with her, Alyssa belonged to him. But being stuck in that limo with her sweet scent surrounding him, the touch of her arm against his, he was ready to implode. He'd been in her company for a mere few hours and he was already so aroused he wanted to drag her into the nearest alley and take her.

But that wasn't what he wanted with Alyssa. Because this wasn't just sex. He wanted more from her than that. So much more, that it was distracting him from his job, his duty.

As soon as they'd delivered her to the studio and had checked that there was only one door, he and Connor stationed themselves outside it. Relieved to have her scent gone, but at the same time bereft by its absence, Colt tried to reconcile his feelings. Heaven rolled up in Hell: That about covered his emotional/instinctual reaction to this one, sweet woman. And he didn't know what to do about it.

"I can see why you're attracted to her," Connor said companionably as they stood guard.

He groaned. That wasn't what he wanted to hear. She couldn't be for
any
of them. Alyssa was
his
alone.

"You feel it then?"

"Feel it? What, uncontrollable lust that turns me into a complete dick? Not likely. That's your terrain, boyo, not mine. Would I enjoy fucking her, absolutely. Do I need to have her? No. Although if she's offering…"

He laughed out loud when Colt flattened him hard against the wall. "I'm playing with you, boyo. Can't you tell? And just to ease your mood a wee bit, I got no sweet scent of arousal from her until you came on the scene. If I'm the test case, I think we can safely say that if she's one of ours, then she's not for
all
of us. You sent the DNA sample up to Coop?"

"Yeah. He'll get back to us as soon as he knows anything. So… you don't feel it? You sure you're not just telling me what I want to hear?"

"I can't imagine feeling about any woman the way you do about the wee songbird, but if I did, I'd be tearing your throat out just for looking at her. I don't share. Ever. So, no, you can safely say I'm not just telling you want you want to hear."

Feeling lighter than he had since Chase had first suggested Alyssa might feel drawn to all of them, he grimaced a smile and let Connor slide down the wall onto his feet again.

Connor made much of straightening his suit and tie. "And just so you know, you make a habit of ramming me into walls, boyo, and I'm gonna have to break the habit for you. Painfully. Got it?"

Colt grinned. "I hear you, bro."

When the studio door finally opened again an hour later and Alyssa walked out, he couldn't help smiling at her. For a moment, she simply blinked at him, as if stunned by what she saw. Then she grinned back at him, the tiredness she'd shown as the door opened, instantly gone.

"How'd it go?" he asked, wrapping one arm around her back to guide her towards the front door of the small music studio. It felt too good to have her beside him again.

"Much of a muchness. We're going over old ground with one of the songs I sang in the auditions. I'm starting to worry it's getting stale."

"I noticed a guitar in the corner of your room. Would you play it for me?"

She blushed and looked away. "You wouldn't like my sort of music."

"You don't know that. I saw a gangbanger hanging on your every note a week ago."

Connor shot him a look that said he'd given them away, but he was too happy to care.

"You mean a member of a street gang? Really? How did you see that?"

"You were on TV in a shop window," he admitted reluctantly. Now he could see what Connor was eyeing him about.

"You saw me on TV? I thought you hadn't seen me since that night?" She looked startled and a little cautious.

"I never said that. That was what was so weird about seeing you in the limo today. I hadn't seen you for four years, and then there you were on TV one week, and in a limo in person, the next. That's freaky."

She nodded, still not quite satisfied. Connor raised his eyes skyward when he looked over Alyssa's head at Colt. All he could do was grimace back in apology. Connor was not the only one putting his foot in it around this girl.

"Well, if you'd like to hear the song, I suppose I could play it for you when we get back. I've got an interview at a local radio station early tomorrow morning, but after the day I've had I doubt I'll be able to sleep if I go to bed early, anyway."

Connor wriggled his eyebrows suggestively at him and Colt snarled silently back.

Alyssa must have sensed their wordless communication because she looked up and frowned. "Do you two have twin telepathy going on or something?"

Connor barked out a laugh so loud the receptionist at the front desk looked over at them in surprise.

"Real professional, bro. Remember we're still auditioning for this gig," Colt threw at him good-naturedly.

"Your mood has improved since I went in for my session. What gives?"

Colt shrugged and tried to look innocent.

Connor stifled another laugh. "He's realised he has nothing to be jealous about. I'm gracefully ceding the field."

Alyssa nearly choked on a cough. Her wary gaze turned up to Colt and he wanted to sink into the floorboards.

"Mary Mother of God, are you two for real? Alyssa, newsbreak, my brother fancies you, and you fancy him. Stop sniffin' around each other and just get down to it. You'll both feel better for it."

Alyssa looked ready to say something and then shut her mouth with a snap. Then she started again, but with the same result. With each attempt she grew a little pinker.