Page 55 of Her Guarded Hero

“I wanted to point to where my village is.”

“You don’t have to. Can you just tell me how long it normally takes to get from your village to this hacienda?”

“A little less than an hour.”

Dalton’s hopes were dashed. If they usually made it by truck in an hour than hour, then it was going to take five to six hours to get here in this mess. The only good thing was that the storm seemed to be abating.

“When they get here, you’ll need to stay, you understand that, right?”

“He is bringing many men from the village. They will be here very fast.”

Sure, they would.

“Normally they walk when they come here, instead they will run. Even in the mud, they will come fast. Two of my brothers have been killed trying to rescue me.” Her chin trembled. “I am his only daughter. Their only sister.” She shoved her face into her hands.

“Mama?” The little boy pulled his little sister with him. The little girl stared up at him for just a moment, her brown eyes now curious, not filled with fear.

“Come here baby,” Carmelita said. Then the three of them wrapped their arms around each other and gave one another comfort.

“You are good children. Soon you will meet your grandfather,” Carmelita said as she peppered them with kisses.

Dalton had to look away from the touching family scene. Why couldn’t Lacey have protected Reagan the way this woman cared for her children?

“I’m going to keep watch. You and your children stay here, okay?”

“Yes.” She didn’t look up, she just nodded, holding her kids close.

Dalton went outside the room and took position at the end of the hall. He crouched down and settled in along the inside wall right before the ornate bannister. From that location he could still see anyone who might start to come up the stairs. There was something soothing about having higher ground.

He looked over his shoulder at the closed bedroom door. The elephant in that room had been the little girl, maybe not an elephant, more like a little Hello Kitty. She hadn’t been much bigger than Reagan.

Did every single thing, every single time, all circle back to Reagan? He blinked rapidly, his eyes getting gritty, probably from all the sweat and grime. But the little girl hadn’t had blue eyes, they’d been brown, not quite like Aurora’s but similar.

Dalton rested his head against the wall, three days with barely any sleep came crashing down.

“Suck it up,” he growled under his breath.

Aurora. Her name and face played through his mind like a siren’s song.

For five long months he’d done everything in his power to keep his mind on the present, on anything but that small oasis of time that could never amount to anything. Hell, he’d even volunteered to do an assignment with Zed and his Night Storm team in Virginia.

He heard a subtle sound, and in seconds, he made it to the room where Carmelita and her children were. Was that a giggle? Was that even possible?

He slowly opened the door and peeked in. Yep, Carmelita had her son smiling and her daughter laughing. He quietly closed the door and went back to his post.

He surveyed the bullet ridden first floor, ensuring that there was no sign of movement.

He looked at his watch. Only ten minutes had passed since Carmelita had called her father. Twenty minutes had passed since he’d been informed that Griff was on his way. He figured he had another forty-five minutes of waiting for his teammate.

A picture of Aurora, soothing Aladdin flashed, unbidden, into his mind. She was magical, the way she could soothe and bring comfort. He let his head drop against the wall, enjoying the small hurt. He’d been able to bury so much of their time together for months, but not today, why not today?

He smiled grimly.

Gee, could it be the way that Carmelita’s family had died trying to rescue her? Wasn’t that like the Dressler’s, Erwin and poor Hal? Then there was the fact that the little girl’s eyelashes were as long as Aurora’s. God, he had it bad.

Great. He wasn’t really happy about all this alone time in his own head. Even the five months since he left Tahoe he’d done everything possible to keep busy so that he didn’t have to think. And he sure as hell hadn’t wanted to feel.

Fat lot of good that had done him. And now, after seeing Carmelita with all that compassion and bravery, how could he not think of Aurora? Dalton took a deep breath and repositioned his rifle so that he was ready if anyone made a move downstairs. He kept a keen watch on everything, but his thoughts turned inward, back to his last time intimate time with Aurora.