Guarding Her Heart: A Christian Romance (BlackThorpe Security Book 1) Read online

  Guarding Her Heart

  By

  Kimberly Rae Jordan

  Copyright ©2015

  Kimberly Rae Jordan

  A man, a woman & their God.

  Three Strand Press publishes Christian Romance stories

  that intertwine love, faith and family.

  Always clean. Always heartwarming. Always uplifting.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic or mechanical without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations being used in reviews or articles about the book.

  This is a work of fiction. The situations, characters, names and places are products of the author’s imagination, or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to locales, events, actual persons (living or dead) is entirely coincidental.

  This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment and may not be re-sold or transferred via any method to any other individual. If you are reading this eBook and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please respect the hard work of the author who has spent many hours creating this story for your enjoyment and purchase your own copy of this eBook. Please do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials by illegally downloading or sharing this eBook. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

  Available Titles

  By Kimberly Rae Jordan

  (Christian Romances)

  ~*~ BlackThorpe Security ~*~

  Guarding Her Heart

  ~*~ The McKinleys ~*~

  This Time with Love

  Forever My Love

  When There Is Love

  ~*~ Home to Collingsworth ~*~

  Home Is Where the Heart Is

  Home Away From Home

  Love Makes a House a Home

  The Long Road Home

  Her Heart, His Home

  Coming Home

  ~*~ Those Karlsson Boys ~*~

  Waiting for Rachel

  Worth the Wait

  The Waiting Heart

  Marrying Kate

  Faith, Hope & Love

  A Little Bit of Love:

  A Collection of Christian Romance Short Stories

  For the latest news on releases and sales for Kimberly Rae Jordan’s books, please sign up for her newsletter.

  http://eepurl.com/WFhYr

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  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

  Epilogue

  NOTE FROM KIMBERLY:

  Thank you for downloading Guarding Her Heart! I hope you enjoy reading Than and Lindsay’s story. In addition to Than and Lindsay, there are several characters appearing in the BlackThorpe Security series who first made an appearance in The McKinleys. Though this is a standalone story, your reading experience can be enhanced by first reading The McKinleys series.

  Book 1 – This Time With Love –is available from Amazon for just $.99.

  Click here to buy or borrow it free with Kindle Unlimited.

  1

  Than Miller stared at the report on his screen and managed—just barely—to bite back a curse. Aggravation rode him hard these days. Everything annoyed him, and his teams’ latest security job was no exception. If he thought it would make a difference, he’d fly to Europe to give the snotty rich kid a piece of his mind.

  As it was, they had two groups of guys on the kid who was determined to try to slip away from her bodyguards at every opportunity. She knew about the main team, but they hadn’t told her about the ghost team that was also in place. Than wondered briefly if her father would consider tagging her with a GPS chip. It would make it a whole lot easier to keep track of her.

  But then they weren’t in this business for the easy assignments—which is what these babysitting-type jobs should be. They got hired because they were the best, and this girl’s father was paying the big bucks to make sure his little princess stayed safe while she and her friends romped through Europe during their spring break. He had a funny feeling his guys were going to be asking for raises after this gig.

  A knock on his door drew his attention from the report. Surprise shot through Than when he saw Lucas Hamilton standing in the doorway. Though he looked an awful lot like his twin brother Lincoln, Lucas’s more reserved appearance was always a dead giveaway to which twin he was dealing with.

  Than pushed back from the desk and walked around to shake the man’s hand. “Afternoon, Lucas. This is a bit of a surprise. Everything alright with Lincoln?”

  “Lincoln is doing fine as far as I know.” Lucas unbuttoned the jacket of the light gray suit he wore and smoothed his hand over his paisley blue tie. “I’m actually here about Lindsay.”

  Than’s eyes widened. Well, that was even more surprising than seeing Lucas at his door. He motioned to the chair in front of his desk. “Have a seat.”

  After sitting back down, Than pulled his chair forward and leaned his arms on his desk. “So how can I help you with Lindsay? And does your sister actually know you’re here?”

  Lucas shook his head. “Nope. But at this point, it doesn’t matter.”

  Than frowned. It sounded a bit like Lucas was going to try to force his sister to do something. That boded well for pretty much no one involved in the situation. From his rather limited experience with the woman, Than had still managed to pick up on the fact that Lindsay Hamilton let no one call the shots. “Does Brooke know about this apparent death wish you have?”

  Lucas grinned at that. “Yeah, and it’s been our first major argument since getting married, but hey.” The man’s broad shoulders lifted in a shrug. “I’m a big brother, and my protective streak is well documented when it comes to those I love.”

  Being a brother himself, Than understood that streak. “And now you want to drag me into this mess?”

  “How do you know it’s a mess?” Lucas asked with an arched brow.

  “Oh, let me recap. It involves telling Lindsay to do something. You’ve had a fight about it with your beautiful new bride. And now you’ve actually resorted to coming to me for some part of this. I’d say it’s officially a mess. And that’s the polite term for it.”

  Lucas laughed as he slouched into the chair. “I really do need your help. I know there’s stuff between you and Lindsay but, from what I hear, you’re the best person to help me out.”

  “Okay.” Than let out a long sigh and settled back, intertwining his fingers across his abdomen. “Lay it on me.”

  Lucas sat forward. “Lindsay has decided to go on a mission trip with a group from our church.”

  Than wondered if his eyebrows had completely disappeared into his hairline at that comment. “A mission trip?”

  Lucas nodded. “They’re going to go to the Philippines for two weeks.”

  “The Philippines? What are they going to do there?”

  “The plan is to help a small mission with a school and orphanage. Do some buil
ding and help them with whatever else they need.”

  Than let the information sink in. Just going on his own interactions with her, it didn’t seem like something Lindsay would be interested in. However, he’d seen a different side to her while on the island for Brooke and Lucas’s wedding. She’d been more relaxed and had clearly doted on her nephew, Danny, and even Brooke’s niece, Sarah. It had been an interesting view of yet another side of her personality. One of these days, he might have the complete picture of the woman who’d intrigued him to no end.

  “So what is it you need me to do?”

  “I want you to go with her.”

  Lucas’s direct statement had Than straightening. “Go with her? On a mission trip?”

  “I am not comfortable sending her halfway around the world without someone to keep an eye on her.”

  “Wouldn’t that be the responsibility of whoever is heading up this trip?” Than asked.

  “Someone whose only job is keeping an eye on her. I know the Philippines is a relatively safe country, especially where they are going, but that doesn’t mean there’s no risk involved. After what happened with Lincoln, Mom is a little reluctant—make that extremely reluctant—to let any of us too far out of her reach. I’ve told Lindsay that if she’s determined to do this, then—for our mom’s peace of mind—she’s going to have a bodyguard go with her.”

  “And she agreed to that?”

  Lucas hesitated. “She’s coming around.”

  “So do you want me for the job or one of my men?” Than asked, pretty sure he already knew the answer.

  “You. Even mentioning to Mom that I’d send a bodyguard with her wasn’t enough. It was only when I said I’d try to get you to take the job that she finally relented.”

  Than gave an exasperated shake of his head. “Lincoln has no problem with me. Your mom trusts me—and apparently so do you since you’re here—but you’re asking me to trek halfway around the world with the one person in your family who definitely does not like me.”

  “Yep. That’s about the sum of it.” Lucas leaned back in his chair, apparently at ease now that he’d gotten it all off his chest. “I’ll pay whatever it takes to get you to do this for us.”

  “Will that include funeral expenses and a trust fund for my family when Lindsay sends me back in a body bag?”

  Lucas chuckled. “If I didn’t think you could hold your own against her, I wouldn’t be here. And this is what you do, after all, right? Deal with people who don’t always want to be under the watchful eye of a bodyguard?”

  Given the report he’d been reading earlier, Lucas was right about that. But was he willing to risk it and spend two whole weeks with this woman? He was pretty sure Lucas didn’t have any idea exactly what he was asking of him. No one did. Than wasn’t one to tout his failures when it came to women…especially the one that he just couldn’t seem to get out of his mind.

  He’d gone on three dates since that memorable evening with Lindsay eight months ago. But he’d finally tossed in the towel and stopped asking women out. It wasn’t fair to the women when he spent most of the evening comparing them to his date with Lindsay. Inevitably, his thoughts would drift to why she had turned him down for a second date. And then he would wonder why he even cared… It was a vicious cycle that had gotten worse with each date, so he’d just stopped trying.

  “Is the mission team okay with me coming along?” It wasn’t like he was a regular church attender, even though his parents were. He always seemed to be able to find more important things to do on Sunday mornings than drag himself out of bed to sit in a pew.

  “I’ve spoken at length with the mission team leader about the situation. He was a little concerned that having you along would upset Lindsay but seems to understand where I’m coming from. Obviously, if the worst should happen, Lindsay would be the most valuable person because of her potential worth from a financial standpoint, so the guy understands my concern. And while I don’t like using my money to manipulate situations, I’m not above doing it for my sister’s safety. A good portion of the money needed for this trip is coming from the charitable arm of Hamilton Enterprises.” Lucas paused. “Anyway, Mark—the mission team leader—said he’d pray about it. He called me this morning to let me know that he’d also talked to the people at the mission center in the Philippines and it would be fine for you to accompany Lindsay.”

  Lucas seemed about to say something more but when he didn’t, Than asked, “Have you run my name past Lindsay yet?”

  Lucas shook his head. “I wanted to make sure you’d actually do it before I dropped that little bomb on her. No sense in riling her up if I didn’t know for sure you’d take the job.”

  “What are the dates?”

  For the next half hour, the two of them hashed out the details of the trip including what Lucas expected of Than.

  “You’ve been to the Philippines before?” Lucas asked when Than revealed more than just a passing knowledge of the country.

  “I’m actually half Filipino.” Than turned around a family picture he kept on his desk. “My mom is from the Philippines.”

  Lucas picked up the picture and examined it. “Really? How did your folks meet?”

  “Dad was stationed at Clark Air Force Base back before it closed. He attended a church outside of the base where my mom also went. The rest—as they say—is history.”

  “Well, now I feel even more confident in my decision to send you with her. Plus, it gives more weight to why you’re the best man for the job. Do you speak the language?”

  Than nodded. “Mom made sure I learned at a young age. All us kids are bilingual. Although, to be honest, English is spoken pretty much everywhere there.”

  Lucas set the picture back on the desk. “You have a lovely family.”

  “Thanks. They’re a pretty decent bunch.”

  As he pushed up from his chair, Lucas said, “Thank you for being willing to take this on. I know Lindsay can be…difficult at times, but I hope this trip will help her see there’s more to the world than the sphere we tend to operate in because of our wealth. I know that my trip to Africa with Brooke was an eye opening experience. I’m hoping it’s the same for Lindsay.”

  Than stood and walked around the desk to join Lucas. “I’ll talk with Marcus and Alex about the timing of this just to be sure they have nothing on their schedule for me. As long as I have some sort of internet and cellular connection, I should be fine.”

  Lucas stuck out his hand. “Thanks again, Than. I appreciate all you’ve done for our family, and even though Lindsay might not say it, I know she does, too.”

  After shaking the man’s hand, Than stood for a moment with his hands on his hips, staring at the doorway Lucas had disappeared through, marveling at this latest turn of events. He had to admit, he was doubtful that this was actually going to happen. Once Lindsay got wind of what her brother was planning, Than was fairly certain she’d veto it all.

  As he walked back to his desk to give Alex a call, Than realized the thought filled him with more disappointment than it should.

  ~*~*~

  “You hired who?” Lindsay stared at Lucas. She’d known from the minute he’d walked into her office that she wasn’t going to like what he had to say. She just hadn’t known exactly how much she wasn’t going to like it.

  “You heard me.” Lucas settled into the chair across from her desk. “And before you get all twisted out of shape, there are some pretty compelling arguments as to why it should be him.”

  “Really?” Lindsay crossed her arms and glared at Lucas. “Do tell.”

  “First, Mom finally backed down on her objections to your plans when I suggested we approach Than about going with you. Knowing he’ll be there with you will give her peace of mind.”

  Lindsay gave him that point. Her mother had been anything but supportive of her decision to go on this mission trip. She’d thrown every argument in the book at Lindsay, so hearing that her mom had dialed it back when told Than would accom
pany her was rather surprising.

  “Second, Than is actually half Filipino—his mom is from there—which means he knows the culture, the country, and the language. With that knowledge, he’ll be able to analyze potential threats much more quickly and easily.”

  “I still think you’re overreacting,” Lindsay murmured with a frown. “Do you really think the church would send a group of its people into a dangerous place?”

  “No. I’m sure they wouldn’t, but there are pockets in that country where extremists are known to be. And things can turn on a dime. I just want to know that should things go bad, you’ve got someone by your side to help you and give you the best chance to get out safely.”

  Lindsay really thought Lucas was just being overprotective and controlling. More understandable was her mother’s concern. Sylvia Hamilton had endured a lot in the past year and even though Lincoln was technically safe now, she’d still lost her son. When the news of Lincoln’s death had reached them, the grief had been immense. Discovering that he had survived the crash had been welcome news, even though it had been overshadowed by the realization that he’d lost his memory, so Lindsay understood why her mother worried about something happening to her and Lucas. She hadn’t been all that pleased that Lucas and Brooke had decided to go to Africa as part of their honeymoon, but after Lucas had promised to check in each day, she’d relented.

  So if taking Than along was what would ease the fear her mom had for her safety, well, Lindsay would just have to accept that. She still wasn’t one hundred percent sure why she was going on this mission trip. The first time it was announced at church, she’d felt a strong urge to join the team. Initially, she’d brushed it aside. After all, she would be the first to say her faith wasn’t what it should be. Going through the motions was more her style. But she’d felt the pull to be a part of this mission trip, unlike anything she’d ever experienced before.

  Convinced that they’d laugh at her request to join, she’d still taken the time to speak to the team leader to feel him out. Surprisingly enough, he’d been more receptive than she’d thought he would be. And Lucas, too, had been supportive for the most part. The roadblocks had come primarily from her mom. Once she’d heard of Lindsay’s plans, her mother had demanded that she back out.