Protecting Lyndley Read online

  Protecting Lyndley

  a U.S. Marshal series

  By

  Amanda Bennett

  Copyright© 2014 Amanda Bennett

  All rights reserved

  Cover Art: Robin Harper w/ Wicked Cool Designs

  This book is a written act of fiction. Any places, characters, or similarities are purely coincidence. If certain places or characters are referenced it is for entertainment purposes only. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. This book is not allowed to be offered for sale, discounted, or free on any sites other than Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iBooks. This book may only be distributed by Amanda Bennett, the owner and Author of this work.

  Other books by Amanda Bennett

  Time to Let Go

  The Broken Series

  Beautifully Broken ~ Breaking Beautiful ~ Unbreakable Hearts

  Misguided Heart

  The Raine Series

  This Love of Mine ~ This Trust of Mine ~ This Heart of Mine

  Faithless

  Forever and Almost Always

  Upcoming Releases by Amanda Bennett

  Chasing Carson (US Marshal Series #2) SUMMER 2014

  This Courage of Mine (The Raine Series #4) SUMMER 2014

  The Likeness Within (Within Me Series #1) SUMMER 2014

  This Obsession of Mine (The Raine Series #5) LATE SUMMER 2014

  For every person who has ever been lucky enough to feel the sheer raw passion of desire and love all wrapped into one, and to that one person that can make a person come undone with just a look.

  Acknowledgments

  To my beta readers, Kayla Kennedy, Kristy Davidson, Cami Krystyniak, Emma Clifton, Mechelle Lovell Jackson and Catherine Roberts. Thank you so much for all that you do for me. Y’all are amazing beyond belief and you all push me to stay on track and I love you for it.

  To all my amazing new and current friends on FaceBook, Twitter, Goodreads, and Instagram, thank you so much for all the support and love you show me each and every day and for spreading the word about my books.

  A huge thank you to my Indie author friends, y’all are an amazing bunch of girls and I am very blessed to know and consider you all my friends.

  To all the amazing bloggers out there, thank you for helping spread the word about my books and for being so awesome. It is much appreciated.

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  Sixteen

  Seventeen

  Eighteen

  Nineteen

  Twenty

  Twenty-One

  Twenty-Two

  Twenty-Three

  Twenty-Four

  Twenty-Five

  Twenty-Six

  Twenty-Seven

  Twenty-Eight

  Twenty-Nine

  Thirty

  Thirty-One

  Thirty-Two

  Thirty-Three

  Thirty-Four

  Thirty-Five

  Thirty-Six

  Thirty-Seven

  Thirty-Eight

  Thirty-Nine

  Forty

  Forty-One

  Forty-Two

  Forty-Three

  Forty-Four

  Forty-Five

  Forty-Six

  Forty-Seven

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  I never imagined my life turning out the way it had thus far. Life can be a tricky road to navigate. Unfortunately, I had to find that out the hard way. I never took for granted the things I had or the people that completed my life, until the day I was forced to abandon everything.

  I wish I could tell you that I was at least happy to be alive and well, but I would be lying. I missed my family and friends terribly, but to keep them safe this was what had to be done, for now. At least I wasn’t alone in the situation, but I almost think being alone would be better than the hell I was currently living in.

  One

  Lyndley

  I glanced at the clock on the far wall, letting out a loud huff when I realized I had once again worked well past my usual quitting time. It was almost eight o’clock and I could hear my stomach getting ready to eat me alive if I didn’t feed it soon. I hadn’t eaten anything since this morning and I was slowly starting to regret that decision.

  I gathered my belongings and made my way out to the elevators. I searched the office for any signs of life, but came to the quick conclusion that I was the only one left in this dreadful place. The elevator binged and the doors slowly crept open a few seconds later. I drug my exhausted body inside and pressed the button for the lobby.

  My heavy lids just so happened to look up just in time to see my co-worker and best friend, Reese, come running for the elevator. A sly smile sneaked across my lips as I pretended to rapidly push the door close button. I could see the smoke billowing from his ears as he ran as quickly as possible to catch the doors before they closed. Little did he know that I had actually been pressing the door open button the entire time. Seconds later, he came sliding between the metal doors, coming to a stop right next to me.

  “You suck, whore.” His hand came down across my ass a little too hard for my liking, but it was all in good fun.

  I rubbed my ass cheek with my free hand, all the while laughing in his direction. “You’re such a little girl. Like I would really intentionally close the doors on you. What are you doing here so late? Claire is going to kill you. You know that right?”

  “Yeah yeah, I know. I had one last case I needed to get finished before court tomorrow morning. I called and told her I would be late, but I didn’t think it would be this late. Speaking of being here late, why are you still here?”

  “Ugh, Mr. Cooper had me finishing up discovery for the Nelson brother’s case. We have court at nine in the morning and he wanted everything to be perfect. We can’t take any chances on this case.” I gave Reese a serious glance before the doors slid open to the lobby.

  “That’s right. How’s that going? Do they still have that detective tailing you?”

  “Unfortunately. Speaking of which.” I scanned the lobby for my new best friend, Detective Dawson a.k.a. Detective Snarky. He was usually waiting for me on his perch right outside of the elevators. Since we first got the case file for the Nelson brothers, two of Chicago’s biggest crime lords, every lawyer on the case had been assigned a police tail.

  “I don’t see him anywhere, Lynd. You want me to walk you to your car?”

  I wanted to say no, but the logical side of me thought that it probably wasn’t a bad idea. “Yeah, please. That’s really weird that he’s not out here.” I grabbed Reese’s arm to stop him before we left the building. “Let me just call him real quick to make sure everything is okay.” Reese nodded and took a seat on one of the plush leather chairs in the lobby.

  Detective Dawson’s phone rang four times before going to voicemail. I left a brief message and made my way over to where Reese was sitting. “He didn’t answer. Can we just wait ten minutes or so and see if he calls back?”

  “Of course. Let me call Claire real quick to let her know.”

  I nodded, and took a seat next to Reese. I met Reese the first day of sixth grade when my family up and moved to Chicago f
rom Arizona. We moved into the luxurious neighborhood of Hyde Park, and Reese just so happened to live three houses down from us. On my first day of school, practically all of the girls didn’t like me. They already had their cliques, and I just didn’t quite fit in being the new girl and all.

  I was wandering the halls trying to find my locker, when Reese walked up to me and introduced himself. He was one of the popular boys, having played football with all the guys since they were little. He befriended me, no questions asked, and we have been best friends ever since. Eventually some of the girls saw that I was okay to be friends with, and given that I had absolutely no interest in any of their boyfriends, I quickly made some new friends.

  Claire didn’t start going to school with us until our sophomore year. Knowing what it felt like to have every girl in school dislike you, I instantly found myself offering up my friendship to Claire. She was a super sweet girl with a personality exactly like mine.

  We weren’t your typical girls. We were more or less tomboys so we found ourselves with quite a few guy friends, Reese being our go to guy, of course. Reese and Claire didn’t start dating until our junior year of high school. I had made a bet with Reese about a month into our sophomore year that he and Claire would end up dating, even though he swore it would never happen and he didn’t feel that way for her. Needless to say, it was a bet I easily won.

  They were your typical high school sweethearts, and one of the only couples to make it past graduation. When all three of us decided to attend the University of Chicago together, Reese and Claire didn’t wait long to get engaged. Literally two months later, he was popping the question. Leave it up to Reese to not make it the most romantic gesture, even though I warned him that he needed to make a big deal about it.

  Instead of rooming in the dorms, my parents thought it would be safer if I moved into a house close to campus. They bought me a small three bedroom just a few blocks from my childhood home where they still lived, and without question I immediately invited Claire to live with me. We had a blast living together and Reese had become a permanent staple in our house.

  We finished our four-year degree only eight months ago, and Reese and Claire eloped about two days after we were done. Reese and I both interviewed for the same internship at Cooper, Cooper and Atherton the day after his wedding, and instead of only hiring one of us, they hired us both. It helped that we both graduated with honors and were continuing our law degrees at the same university that we started out at.

  It didn’t take long for Claire to score a prestigious internship either. A competing firm up the road from where we worked quickly scooped her up, and she was easily fitting right in. Now I was stuck living alone and dreaded going home on a daily basis. Reese and Claire couldn’t afford to stay in Hyde Park, given the fact that they were both making next to nothing, but they managed to find a place only ten minutes away from me.

  “You okay over there?” Reese’s voice broke through my revelry and I was suddenly on edge.

  “Yeah, I think so. I can’t believe he still hasn’t called or shown up. I don’t know what I should do to be honest.” This was out of character for Detective Dawson, and that had me worried. If anything ever came up, I usually received a call from him or the agency, but tonight, nothing. “Do you think you could walk me to my car?”

  “Of course. Come on, baby girl. I’ll protect you.” Reese held out his hand and I took it without hesitation.

  Our parking lot was behind the building and even though we were in one of the nicest neighborhoods of Chicago, I still had a target on my back because of this case. My boss kept telling me to not worry too much about it, but I always had a bad feeling in my gut whenever I left the building.

  I glanced around the lot like Detective Dawson had taught me, and didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. Reese must’ve realized what I was doing because he slowed down, never leaving my side. I reached in my purse to retrieve my keys when a car alarm not too far in the distance began echoing off of the concrete walls surrounding us.

  Reese and I picked up the pace a little bit and before I knew it, we were at my car. “Thanks for walking me, Reese.”

  “You know I would do anything for you.”

  “I know.” I smiled as I stood on my tiptoes to plant a chaste kiss to his cheek. Reese stood at six feet two inches, but compared to my five feet eight inches, I felt like a tiny person.

  “Alright baby girl, get in your car and head straight home. No stopping.”

  “Yes, Sir.” I mock saluted him and began laughing. Reese opened my door for me and I quickly climbed behind the wheel. “I’ll text you as soon as I get home. Tell Claire I say hi.”

  “I will. Bye, Lynd.”

  I reached for my seatbelt as I watched Reese walk around the front of my car and in the direction of his. The second my seatbelt clicked into place, I heard a loud gunshot. My first instinct was to duck, but as soon as I saw Reese’s limp body fall to the ground, I began to panic. I whipped the seatbelt off of me and reached for the door handle, but stopped dead in my tracks.

  A dark hooded figure stood in front of Reese’s lifeless body, staring in my direction. My hands flew up to my mouth, for what reason I wasn’t sure, but I knew that the man in front of me was coming for me next. I turned over the key, bringing the engine to life. I was now staring down the barrel of a forty-five contemplating my life and what my next move should be.

  Two

  Ky

  This was the tenth time my phone rang while I was working out. Apparently whoever it was couldn’t wait. I carefully set the weights down and wiped down my sweaty face and made my way out to the living room where my phone sat. Sure enough ten missed calls, and every single one of them from my boss. I quickly listened to each individual message, and then called him back.

  “Took you long enough, Wakely. You’re being called up. It’s your turn to take one in.”

  I shook my head in anger, “You’ve got to be kidding me? Tom, I didn’t sign up for this shit.”

  “Well, actually you did. When you decided to become a U.S. Marshal, that’s exactly what you agreed to.”

  I let out an aggravated sigh before responding. This was one time I didn’t want my temper to get the best of me. “Alright, what’s the job?”

  “It’s a girl in the city. The law firm that she has been working for is currently taking on the Nelson brothers’ case. She was the assistant attorney on the case and just witnessed her co-worker’s murder. She’s not privy to what exactly is going to happen with her, but we figured we should inform you first. There’s just one catch, Wakely.”

  “Oh, please do tell.” I said sarcastically.

  “You’re going to have to go undercover and pretend to be her husband.”

  My mouth fell open in shock. I had been lucky so far as a Marshal. I hadn’t had to take a witness into a safe house, and I sure as hell hadn’t had to pretend to be married to anyone. I was seriously starting to rethink my decision to accept the job. “Fantastic, Tom. Anything else you wanna tell me?”

  “Actually, yeah. You both have to move to New York for a bit.”

  “You have got to be fucking kidding me right now. Tom, do you know what I’m dealing with right now? Fuck!”

  “Need I remind you about the job that you decided to do? This is the job Wakely, so take it or leave it.”

  “Fine. I’ll see you soon.”

  “Talk to you then.”

  I hung up and chucked my cell phone across the couch. I had only recently moved to Chicago when I found out about my promotion, and now I was being forced to leave everything I was building for myself, to what, take care of some entitled princess because she can’t hack it in the big bad world?

  I knew I was being a prick about the whole situation, but that’s just who I was these days. Since my fiancé walked out on me eleven weeks ago, I had become that bitter, asshole that wanted nothing to do with anybody. And I meant anybody.

  All I wanted to do was hit the sack and
leave this day behind me. Of course the bottle of Jack that I had consumed earlier in the day, was starting to wear off. Since Olivia left me, I found myself drowning my sorrows in whatever bottle of booze I fancied that day. I knew I had an issue, but the numbness that the alcohol brought me, far outweighed the negative consequences that could come along with my drinking.

  I must’ve dozed off for a bit, because I woke up to my alarm blaring in my ear louder than usual. I groaned loudly as I tried to lift my heavy as sin head. The hangovers were slowly starting to get worse as the days and nights passed by in a blur, but it never stopped me from repeating the process every night or day.

  I silenced my alarm and rolled off the couch grasping my pounding head between my two hands. I felt like shit and was in some serious need of food, but it would have to wait. I moseyed on into the bathroom turning the shower to scalding hot, and slipped in.

  I let the billowing steam rush around me, engulfing me in a moist, comforting blanket of sorts. My head fell forward on my arm as I leaned against the cold tile wall, letting the steady stream of water rush over every inch of me. If I were lucky, maybe one day it would just wash away my sins. I thought back on my conversation with my boss and let out an exasperated sigh. I was not in the mood to deal with this shit tonight, or in this condition.

  The water slowly began turning cold and that was my cue to get out. I washed up as quickly as I could, knowing that the water went from lukewarm to ice cold in a matter of minutes. I rinsed off and jumped out of the shower just in time. I didn’t waste any time getting dressed and heading to the office. I knew if I was any later than I already was, Tom would have my ass.

  As I parked in the lot, I quickly took an ibuprofen and downed a full sixteen-ounce bottle of water that I had stashed in my car, along with a water bottle of Vodka. You never know when you might need a little pick me up. Just as I shut my truck door, I heard Tom’s voice calling out to me from a few parking spaces down.