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He can protect anything except his heart
Leese Phelps’s road hasn’t been an easy one, but it’s brought him to the perfect job—working for the elite Body Armor security agency. And what his newest assignment lacks in size, she makes up for in fire and backbone. But being drawn to Catalina Nicholson is a dangerous complication, especially since it could be the very man who hired Leese who’s threatening her.
What Catalina knows could get her killed. But who’d believe the sordid truth about her powerful stepfather? Beyond Leese’s ripped body and brooding gaze is a man of impeccable honor. He’s the last person she expects to trust—and the first who’s ever made her feel safe. And he’s the only one who can help her expose a deadly secret, if they can just stay alive long enough...
Praise for New York Times bestselling author Lori Foster
“Best friends find hunky men and everlasting love in Foster’s latest charmer.... Her no-fail formula is sure to please her fans.”
—Publishers Weekly on Don’t Tempt Me
“Foster brings her signature blend of heat and sweet to her addictive third Ultimate martial arts contemporary.”
—Publishers Weekly on Tough Love (starred review)
“Emotionally spellbinding and wicked hot.”
—New York Times bestselling author Lora Leigh on No Limits
“Storytelling at its best! Lori Foster should be on everyone’s auto-buy list.”
—#1 New York Times bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon on No Limits
“Foster’s writing satisfies all appetites with plenty of searing sexual tension and page-turning action in this steamy, edgy, and surprisingly tender novel.”
—Publishers Weekly on Getting Rowdy
“Foster hits every note (or power chord) of the true alpha male hero.”
—Publishers Weekly on Bare It All
“A sexy, believable roller coaster of action and romance.”
—Kirkus Reviews on Run the Risk
“Steamy, edgy, and taut.”
—Library Journal on When You Dare
Under Pressure
Lori Foster
www.millsandboon.co.uk
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Table of Contents
Cover
Back Cover Text
Praise
Title Page
Dear Reader
Under Pressure
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Built For Love
Dear Reader
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
Extract
Copyright
Dear Reader,
I’m so excited to introduce Body Armor, my new series, featuring some heroes who might seem familiar, plus a cast of all-new characters I hope you’ll love as much as I do.
Those of you who read Fighting Dirty, the last book in my Ultimate series, will remember Leese Phelps, the MMA contender who’d decided to apply the skills he’d honed in the MMA ring to a brand-new job as a bodyguard. In Under Pressure, Leese has become a key security agent at the Body Armor agency—but he’s about to take on his toughest assignment yet when he’s hired to protect Catalina Nicholson. Because the more time he spends unraveling Cat’s dangerous secrets, the more attracted he finds himself. Now he’s not sure what’s in more imminent danger—Cat’s life or his own heart...
I hope you enjoy Leese and Cat’s romance, plus the bonus novella “Built for Love”—about another tough, honorable hero and the woman who holds her own with him—at the end of the book. And of course, you’re always welcome to reach out to me. I’m active on most social media forums including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Goodreads, and my email address is listed on my website at www.lorifoster.com.
Happy reading!
Under Pressure
Lori Foster
CHAPTER ONE
LEESE PHELPS STOOD in the cold early evening air, his breath frosting in front of him. Lights at the nearby bus station blinked in an annoying mismatched pattern. A cascade of foil Valentine’s Day hearts hung loose, almost touching the ground. Not exactly romantic, but then, he wasn’t in a romantic mood.
Behind him, completely hidden in the shadows, his friend Justice complained, “My balls are freezing.”
Still watching the surrounding area, Leese said, “You should try wearing underwear.”
“The ladies would complain. They like me commando.”
Leese started to smile, until a shadow shifted from the right side of an alley that bisected the station from a cheap hotel. He said, “Shh.”
“This is it?” Justice whispered. “You see her?”
“Quiet.” Leese pressed farther back into the darkness, his gaze alert, his senses zinging.
A woman, small in stature, emerged dragging an enormous suitcase with a broken wheel. As it tried to pull her sideways, she relentlessly forced it through slush and blackened snow. Her narrowed gaze scanned the area with nervous awareness.
Leese didn’t move, but still her attention shot back in his direction. She stared, watchful and wary, until he stepped out.
Trying not to look threatening, Leese propped a shoulder on the brick facade of the vacated building. He glanced at her, then away, as if dismissing her.
She continued to stare.
Now what to do?
“What’s happening?” Justice whispered.
“Nothing. Be quiet.”
The girl wore jeans with snow boots, a puffy coat that covered her to her knees and a black stocking cap pulled down to her eyebrows. Straight brown hair stuck out from the bottom.
When she finally looked away, it was to drop the suitcase and whip around, facing the way she’d come.
Two men stepped out, followed by a third.
The third smiled at her. “Going somewhere, Cat? Without saying goodbye?”
Suspicions confirmed, Leese watched Catalina Nicholson take a defiant stance. That didn’t surprise him. As soon as he’d been given this assignment, he’d learned what he could of her.
She came from a wealthy family of lawyers and CEOs, people with far-reaching political and business connections. They were the movers and shakers of the world, influencing other powerful people effortlessly.
But Catalina had bucked convention by becoming an elementary school art teacher, something her family hadn’t liked. She clearly enjoyed her luxuries, but wanted to earn them herself. Some inheritances helped to pave the way on that, but from all reports, she’d proven herself to be headstrong and independent. Small in size but not in attitude.
Here, in the slums of Danbrook, Ohio, she was far away from her usual routine of dealing with middle-class families and their grade-school children.
“That’s right, Wayne,” she said, her voice strong. “I’m leaving.”
“I don’t think so,” the man called Wayne said, and his two cronies moved to surround her. “Not just yet. Not until you pay up on all those promises you made.”
Strangely enough, Catalina looked back at Leese again, her expression a touch desperate.
Even from a distance, he felt her silent request for help.
“Stay put unless you see that I need you,” Leese told Justice. He was pretty sure he could handle things without drawing his gun, but there was always a chance he’d cause a ruckus and then, to protect her, they’d need to make a run for it. “Be ready with the car.”
Justice grumbled, “I miss all the fun.”
His boots crunching in the frozen snow, Leese headed toward her in a casual stride.
Relief took the starch out of her shoulders. If he could defuse things without violence, that’d be for the best. Right now, the bus station was all but empty. But if a brawl broke out, for sure it’d draw attention from somewhere.
As he approached, the men all went still, watchful, before deciding he didn’t matter.
Idiots.
Leese stepped up in front of her, blocking the pushiest guy, forcing him back a step.
“Hey!”
“Excuse me.” Insinuating himself between her and the big goon, Leese insulated her from trouble, then turned to face her. Catalina was probably a foot shorter than him, and even in the thick coat she seemed slim all over. She tipped back her head and stared up at him with big blue eyes that were both wary and defiant.
By silent agreement, she trusted him, when that was the very last thing she should have done. No wonder he’d been sent to her.
Leese hefted her bag, which weighed a ton, and maintaining the casual vibe said, “This way,” indicating where he’d been standing watch.
Without bothering to look at the other men, she drew a careful breath, braced herself and nodded in agreement.
Insane. The woman had no self-protection mechanism. She didn’t know him from Adam, but was willing to blindly saunter off with him.
When he’d been assigned this case, not once had he expected it to be this easy. On the contrary. Everything he’d been told had led him to believe it would be a total pain in the ass to keep her safe.
She took two steps.
The closest goon said, “This is bullshit.”
Pausing, Leese huffed out a breath. “Let it go.”
“The hell I will.”
Hearing the elevated voice, he turned just in time to dodge a thick fist. Still holding her bag, Leese landed a knee to the man’s midsection, then flattened him with an elbow to the chin.
The guy’s eyes rolled back and he collapsed like a rag doll, one leg bent awkwardly beneath him, his jaw slack.
Eyeing the remaining two, Leese popped his neck and waited. “Anyone else?”
Being wiser than they looked, they declined further violence.
As the downed man came around with a groan, Leese backed up with Catalina. “Get your friend out of the slush, before hypothermia sets in.” It was so bitter cold, it wouldn’t take long for the elements to affect a body, especially when drenched in wet snow.
While Wayne remained hostile, the other man rushed forward to help his friend back to his feet. Tottering, he made his way to a curb where he slumped, still unsteady.
There were no more smiles when Wayne said, “She owes me.”
“How much?” Paying off the guy would be easier than debating it on such a bitter night, and more expedient than refusing them with his fists.
Wayne’s eyes narrowed. “Not money.”
“Ah, well, I can’t even up with you, then. Guess you’re out of luck.”
Jaw grinding, Wayne glared at him. “I gave her a place to stay. I fed her. Bought her those boots and coat—”
“And you figured on getting paid how?”
Throughout it all, Catalina stayed behind him.
Wayne growled, “She knows what I expected.”
Leaning around, tone apologetic, Catalina whispered, “Yeah, about that... I never planned to sleep with you, Wayne. I’m sorry. I promise I will repay you, I just can’t right now. But I do have your address, so—”
“Fuck you,” Wayne snarled.
Growing impatient, Leese said, “Apparently that’s not happening.” He set down the suitcase and pushed aside his open coat, showing the Glock in a belt holster at his side.
The men stared uneasily. Catalina sucked in a startled breath.
Ignoring those reactions, Leese looked at her boots, then lifted the collar of the coat, examining it. While they were decent protection against the elements, they weren’t high-end items. Probably bought at a discount department store.
Definitely not worth Catalina prostituting herself.
He withdrew his wallet and pulled out a few hundreds. “This will have to suffice.” He folded the money, walked up to Wayne and held it out.
After a ripe hesitation, Wayne took the cash.
With a dose of menace, Leese warned, “Don’t come after her again.”
Wayne nodded, said something low to the uninjured man and the three of them retreated behind the tall buildings.
Leese felt Catalina retreating as well.
Out of patience and feeling stern, he faced her. “Don’t run.”
Eyes huge, her face pale except for the pink of her cold nose, she swallowed hard. “You were sent to bring me home, weren’t you?”
Body Armor, the agency where he worked, had sent him...but his job was to keep her safe, period. “You don’t have to be afraid.”
With a shake of her head, she stepped back.
Leese saw it in her eyes; she would run. “Don’t.”
She whirled to flee and plowed headlong into Justice. The impact was solid enough that she bounced back, her feet slid out from under her on the icy surface and she landed flat in the frozen snow. Given the way she wheezed, she’d knocked the wind out of herself.
She didn’t sink in the snow as the other guy had. Nope. She might as well have hit solid ground. At least he didn’t have to worry about her getting hypothermia.
Leese knelt beside her. “Shh.” He cupped the back of her head. “Hold still.” To Justice, he said, “You were supposed to wait at the car.”
“I saw it was clear and wanted to hurry you along.”
Justice was still learning patience. He was here today with Leese to get a handle on the job. So far, he failed with flying colors. “Carry her bag to the car. We’ll be right there. And, Justice, stay sharp, and stay with the car.”
On his way past, Justice told her, “Sorry about that, honey. Didn’t mean to startle you.” He carried the bag as if it weighed nothing, but then, Justice was a six-foot-five former heavyweight MMA fighter made of solid muscle.
Drawing her into a sitting position and raising her arms over her head, Leese said, “Take it easy. You’re all right.”
She sucked in a strained breath, coughed and wheezed again.
“Running into Justice is like hitting the side of a mountain. Did you hurt anything?”
She got her breath back with a vengeance. “Who are you people?”
Her hat had come loose and silky brown hair tangled around her face. With very cold hands, Leese brushed it back. Gloves would have been nice.
But gloves skewed his accuracy whenever he needed to draw his weapon.
He never discounted that possibility, so no gloves.
“I’m a bodyguard with the Body Armor agency. I was hired to keep you safe.”
“Oh God.” Elbows on her knees, she dropped her head forward and rocked in agitation.
Sitting in the cold was not his idea of fun. “You’re okay?” Instinct had him rubbing her back. She didn’t seem to mind.
“Yes.” She lifted her head and pinned him with her gaze. “You don’t look like any bodyguard I’ve ever seen.”
“Seen a few, have you?”
“Too many. They’re pretty obvious, but not you. You don’t fit the mold at all.” She studied his face. “How did you find me?”
Leese was unaware of any mold, but he also knew Body Armor was vastly different from most other agencies. “I was told you were in this general area. It’s a small town. Newcomers draw attention.”
“I was two towns over the last time bodyguards found me.”
So others had been sent to protect her, but she’d deliberately lost them, then tried hiding again? Leese wasn’t sure what was going on, but he had an objective, and he’d see it through. “I showed your photo around and tracked you here.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Since when do bodyguards track people?”
Since clients paid a small fortune to make it happen. Balanced on the balls of his feet, Leese let his wrists rest over his knees. “I learned a lot of neat tricks,” he told her.
“Like?”
So she wanted to have this whole conversation while exposed to the elements? Appeared so. “Like how to locate people.” He stood and pulled her to her feet.
She strained away. “What are you doing?”
Her unmistakable panic helped him to rein in his impatience. “Your seat is probably damp by now. The back of your coat too. You need to get somewhere warm and dry.”
“Where?”
“Let’s go to the car and we’ll talk about it.”
She balked. “So you’re taking me home?”
That sounded like an accusation. Leese tried to ignore the cold. “Is that where you want to go?”
Her brows lifted. “Not really, no.”
“Okay then, want to clue me in?” His balls were starting to freeze.
Puzzled, she narrowed her eyes on him. “You weren’t told to take me anywhere?”
“I’ve only spoken to my boss, and she said to keep you safe, period.” Why did he feel like he might be missing the big picture here? “That’s the beginning, middle and end.”
Incredulous, she asked, “For how long?”
He shrugged. “My understanding is that it’s pretty open-ended at this point.” Given her reactions so far, he could see why those who cared about her assumed she’d need protection.
But to be sure, at the first opportunity he’d give Sahara a call and have her fess up all the facts. Sahara Silver, the new owner of Body Armor, did like to do things her own way—and it was never conventional.
Catalina kept her gaze locked with his while working out something in her mind, and suddenly she stiffened. “Oh my God.”
“Problem?”
Her hair whipped around as she searched the area again.
Who was she looking for? “Catalina—”
On a heartfelt groan of despair, she gripped the front of his coat. “You’ve probably led him to me.”
Leese didn’t know who she meant, but he saw honest fear in her expression. “Let’s get out of the area, somewhere safe.” He noticed that she limped a little as he led her quickly to where Justice waited with the car. “We’ll talk more once I know you’re secure.”
Justice sat behind the wheel of the black Lexus SUV, the engine running, so the car would be warm.
Catalina balked again at the sight of him, then squared her shoulders and hastened her pace.
“You don’t have to worry about Justice.” Leese reached the SUV ahead of her and opened the back passenger door. “Colorful as he might be.”
She said, “He’s fine.”
Right. Height and a brick build were enough to make Justice intimidating, but he also had black-as-sin eyes, a dark Mohawk and a goatee badly in need of a trim. His earliest fighting days had left him with a crooked nose from too many breaks and a right ear thickened from too many hits.
Overall, despite his massive size and capability, Justice was easygoing and considerate—especially to pretty girls.
“Let’s lose the wet coat, okay? You’ll be more comfortable.”
She bit her lip, then quickly stripped her coat off. Leese took it from her as she climbed in.
She was so skittish that he didn’t trust her to stay put and he definitely didn’t want her trying to hop out of a moving car. Still holding the door open, he said, “Scoot.”
“What?” Catalina pushed back her hair and blinked at him in question.
Rather than explain again, Leese took the expedient measure of getting in next to her, forcing her to make room for him. He watched her rump as she quickly crawled across the seat, moving as far from him as she could get.
As he draped the coat over her lap, he told Justice, “Go,” and to Catalina, said, “Buckle up.”
“Where to?” Justice asked.
“Head for the highway.” Because she hadn’t done it yet, Leese reached around Catalina and buckled her seat belt, then tucked the coat around her again. “We’ll go south.”
She pressed back in her seat. “Where’s my suitcase?”
“In back,” Justice told her, taking several peeks at her in the rearview mirror.
She confirmed that by twisting around to look in the cargo area. When she saw the battered suitcase, she dropped back into her seat and closed her eyes. “Thank you.”
“Welcome.” Then to Leese, he asked, “We expecting more trouble?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“Yes,” Catalina said. “Expect it, because it’s definitely coming.”
Leese shared a look with Justice, but both chose to stay silent. As they drove out of the small town, the streetlights faded away and only the headlights of the SUV and the few other cars on the road lit the area.
After about twenty minutes, Catalina slumped in her seat and yawned. “I don’t suppose you have anything to eat?”
The guys shared another look.
Justice said, “Sorry, no. I take it you’re hungry?”
“Mmm. I haven’t eaten since lunch yesterday.”
If true, that sucked, but Leese shook his head at Justice. “Don’t stop yet.”
“If I can’t eat,” Catalina said, “then do you mind if I nap? I’ve been even longer without sleep and now that I’m warm, I’m having a pretty hard time keeping my eyes open.”
Every minute with her got more confusing. “Why haven’t you slept?”
“I was planning my escape from Wayne’s little cult. He considers himself this benevolent guide, but he’s actually just creepy. I had to sneak out a window. Should have known he’d find out.”
Tension knotted the muscles of Leese’s neck. “You were in a cult?”
“Well, not an official cult or anything. Those are off in the woods or something, right? But Wayne has this weird setup where he takes in people in need.”
“You?” he asked with clear disbelief, because her family connections alone would forever keep her out of the category of “in need.”
She rolled one shoulder. “I had to lay low for a bit.” Rather than expound on that, she went back to explaining the setup. “So Wayne has these two big Victorians and a bunch of people stay there on a temporary basis. Homeless guys, alcoholics, a few addicts. Mostly men, but there was this older prostitute too. She helped me get away because, according to her, she didn’t like the competition of having another female around. Guess she had a thing for Wayne. He’s the only one who paid much attention to me.”
“He bought you clothes?”
“The coat and boots, yeah. See, we all had to take turns keeping up the property. Clearing the front walk and driveway and stuff like that. I was the youngest and healthiest one there, so I volunteered to help the others. Only I didn’t have the proper shoes and my coat was cloth and often got damp, so Wayne took it upon himself to replace them.” She worried her fingers over the zipper of her coat. “He took a lot for granted, trying to give me gifts and getting enraged when I refused them. I’m not sure what he expected...well, I assume he eventually expected sex. I mean, that’s obvious, right?”