The Agent's Redemption (Special Agents At The Altar 4) by LISA CHILDS

sounded surprised, or maybe he was just a better actor than Jared had realized. “Why would someone do that? Unless...”
    Jared waited—as the man wanted him to—in the dark as night began to fall.
    Harris clicked the lock on his rental car and opened the driver’s door, spilling light onto the driveway. “Maybe you two are already engaged...?”
    Jared shook his head. “I haven’t seen Becca in years.”
    “She never told you she had your son?” Harris shook his head. “Maybe she’s more like her sister than I realized. Alexandra had her secrets, too.”
    “Yes, she did,” Jared agreed. She should have told her family that Harris was abusing her. “Remember to text me your fiancée’s phone number.” He didn’t give a damn if the guy sued; he was going to warn the woman.
    And the minute Harris drove away, Jared called back the protection duty he’d released when he’d arrived. He needed protection on Becca and Alex 24/7—even when he was around them. And still he worried that it might not be enough to keep them safe.
    * * *
    H ER HANDS SHAKING , Rebecca pulled the blankets over her sleeping son. He’d fallen asleep in his bed even though there’d been a killer in their house. He obviously felt so safe that he slept peacefully.
    Rebecca would never feel safe again. She shivered and considered crawling into bed with her son—to hold him. But he didn’t need comfort. She needed comfort.
    And a gun. The front door creaked open again, unsettling her. But instead of hiding in her son’s room, she hurried down the hall to the living room. Jared stood inside. Alone.
    “Is he gone?” she asked.
    “Yes.”
    “But you can’t guarantee that he won’t come back,” she said. She couldn’t stay here. “Alex and I will have to leave.”
    “I called back the protection detail,” he said. “You’ll be safe.”
    She would feel safer if he stayed, too. But she’d already told him he couldn’t spend the night. “Alex fell asleep,” she told him.
    He glanced down at the game their son had left on the floor. “He seemed so excited about his present.”
    “He was. He is,” she assured him. “But he’s had a lot of excitement today. It must have exhausted him.” She glanced down at the gift Jared had chosen for their son. “Is that really a toy?”
    “I didn’t steal it from the Bureau,” he said, his lips curving into a slight smile.
    “Too bad,” she said. “If it was real, we could have hooked Harris up to it.” Just saying the man’s name brought back all her fear and anger and frustration. And as the emotions overwhelmed her, tears stung her eyes, and she began to tremble.
    Instead of offering her the comfort he once had, Jared walked back toward the door. He was leaving?
    Of course she’d told him he couldn’t stay, but that had been before her sister’s killer had paid her a visit—taunting her to get engaged. So he could kill her like he had Lexi, like he had all those other women.
    Instead of opening the door, Jared turned the dead bolt. “The protection detail is out there,” he said. “But I’m still not leaving.”
    She uttered a sigh—of relief. Then she was in his arms. She wasn’t sure which one of them had moved—him or her. But she clung to him.
    One of his hands was on her back, holding her to him. The other was in her hair. He tipped her head back, and then his mouth covered hers. This was no tentative kiss. But even their first kiss hadn’t been tentative. It had been like this one—explosive: making her heart beat fast and erratically. Making her head light and her body heat and tingle.
    Nobody had ever kissed her like Jared did—passionately, thoroughly. And nobody had ever made her feel like Jared did—passionate and desperate.
    Desperate for his kisses. Desperate for his love. But she’d never had his love. And now she didn’t even have his kisses as he pulled back.
    “I’m sorry,” he said between pants for breath. “I—I didn’t mean to do