Protecting Cheyenne (SEAL of Protection Book 5) Read Online Free PDF Page B

said again in the low commanding voice that, in the past, women had a hard time disobeying. “Look, you’re wasting my time. I’m a bomb ordnance technician, if anyone is going to prevent that bomb from going off and killing you, me, and anyone else nearby, it’s going to be me, so for God’s sake stop backing away from me and let me help.”
    Cheyenne stopped, surprised by his words and the tone of his voice, and let the man get closer to her. As he came up toward her, she whispered, “I don’t want you to die.”
    “I’m not going to die if you let me take a look at that bomb. If you don’t, then we’ll both definitely die because I’m not leaving you.” Dude was slightly surprised at the words that left his mouth. It wasn’t like him to be reckless, or to let himself be swayed by a woman, but there was something about the bravery and self-sacrifice of this woman that touched him deep inside. She had been one hundred percent honest with him, he could tell. She’d honestly rather just lock herself away in a back room and let herself be blown up, then allow anyone the chance to help her, just in case she couldn’t be helped. It wasn’t acceptable in Dude’s eyes.
    Dude reached out and took her arm, or what he thought was her arm…it was hard to tell since it was under miles of duct tape, and steered her toward the back of the store. “You’re right though, we have to get away from the windows up front, come on.”
    Cheyenne let herself be led away from the front of the store and the officers and onlookers that had congregated there.
    Dude led the woman into the small room behind the meat counter. He helped her lean against one of the butcher tables where the meat was packaged and stared at the tape around her body, trying to work it all out in his head before he tackled it physically.
    “Talk to me,” Dude said to the trembling woman now standing in front of him. “Tell me what they said as they put this on you and how it’s attached.”
    Cheyenne didn’t like the fact this man was here with her and in such horrible danger, but she didn’t know what else to do. She really didn’t have a choice. He seemed to know what he was doing. She couldn’t get the tape off herself, and she certainly couldn’t disarm the bomb. She took a deep breath and did as he ordered. Maybe, just maybe, she could give him something that would help get the damn bomb off of her.
    “He didn’t say much. He asked me to hold it in my hands, which I’m still doing, and they started with the tape. Once I was mostly taped up, he flicked a switch near the bottom, and then taped me up some more. I can feel it ticking against my body.”
    The man hadn’t looked her in the eyes since they were in the aisle; he was wholly focused on the contraption and her mummified body, as if he had x-ray vision and could see under the tape.
    “I’m afraid I might hurt you trying to get some of this tape off,” Dude started to tell her, looking up in surprise when the woman let out a sharp laugh.
    “I think the tape will hurt less than the damn bomb going off…go ahead, do your worst.”
    Dude looked up at her for the first time. She was splattered with blood, a tear had escaped from her right eye, and she had what looked like the beginning of a black eye, but she was still standing there in front of him, with a bomb strapped to her chest, and making a smart ass comment. Amazing.
    “By the way, my name is Dude.”
    Cheyenne sighed, did it matter? Yes, she thought it did matter. “Dude?”
    Knowing she’d probably ask, Dude had purposely given her his nickname. “Yeah, it’s a nickname. When my buddies in boot camp heard I’d spent most of my time in high school surfing, instead of studying, the name stuck.”
    “What’s your real name?”
    “Faulkner. Faulkner Cooper. What’s your name, hon?”
    “Cheyenne Cotton,” she told him softly.
    “Well, Cheyenne, let’s get this thing off of you.” Dude pulled a chair over toward her