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Chief Compton mention who at the bureau he spoke with?” Nate asked.
    Kaycie turned and faced him. Her icy gaze said she hadn’t forgotten he was in the room.  
    “He didn’t mention any names.”
    She turned her back and resumed the argument over her protection.  
    “Enough.” Nate grew tired of the loud debate. “You were followed by a black Mercedes today. It picked you up here, tailed you to the church and then to the cemetery. I have the license number and will check it out tomorrow.” Kaycie opened her mouth, but he continued, “Until we determine if your kidnappers and the girl’s death are related, one of us will either be at your side or close by.”
    “I’ll agree to this if we dig into the human-trafficking angle.” Kaycie’s jaw was set. Nate remembered that look.
    Nate didn’t hesitate. “You got it.” He smiled at her surprise.  
    “I can put out some feelers.” Tyrell took a long draw from the beer can. “Don’t know that we’ll hear anything. These rings are hard to pin down. I read an article in the newspaper right before the Super Bowl. Some of these bastards are transient. They pick up and move to the next big venue at the first sign of trouble. But in this case, I’m leaning toward thinking this is a hometown syndicate.”
    “It’s one of the fastest-growing, most lucrative crimes around. I need help, and Lord knows I appreciate you believing my theory.”
    “Marcus says he has time to spare, and so do I,” Nate addressed her. “Tyrell will help when he’s not on bodyguard assignment, which he has tonight. I’ll take the first watch. Marcus, can relieve me in the morn—”
    “Excuse me.” Kaycie’s forehead wrinkled with a full-blown frown. “I understand I’m in danger. Somebody wants to get their hands on me, and I can use your help. I’m moved and grateful you guys are willing to step up after all these years, but...”  
    Nate waited for a protest. She proved his premonition when she pointed a long slender finger at him.
    “You are not staying inside my apartment.”  

Chapter 8
    Kay rolled onto her back and lay there in the dark on her cool sheets. She turned on the bedside light for the fourth time and cursed that she couldn’t get Nate out of her head.  
    The medallion hung around her neck as a reminder to protect her heart at all costs. Tonight it weighed heavily on her chest, bringing back memories best left in the past.  
    Marcus had free time? She’d heard he refused the money from his wife’s life insurance, sending it instead to her family. What had he been doing with his life before Nate put him on the payroll?
    The thought of being indebted to Nate pushed her blood pressure through the roof. He wasn’t the prince on a white stallion, riding in to save her. He was a heartbreak waiting to happen. He’d blow through like a whirlwind and be gone just as fast. She’d read that romance book. It had a happy ending. She didn’t.  
    Tyrell, Marcus, and Nate had stayed for hours, laughing at her when she’d called them Wolfe’s Pack for the first time in ten years. The four of them had discussed different schedules and ways to keep her safe. Surprise of all surprises, when she said who she suspected was behind the kidnapping attempt, they’d believed her.  
    She’d almost asked if any of them still had their Saint Jude medal. The protector of lost causes. She’d given each of them one at graduation, hoping it would help keep them safe. Oh, they’d made fun of her, but each left for their tour of duty wearing one around their necks. Her heart clutched. Nothing had protected sweet Jake.  
    She’d dated Nate exclusively, and the other three men made sure nobody else looked at her. Of course, her tutoring skills kept them eligible for football and helped hone their protective instincts. Good men, all of them.  
    No. The one who kept her awake was far from good. He slept outside her apartment in his pickup, sweating out the night during the