Page 68 of Dangerous Obsession

Vikingcheckedthemonitoron the wall next to the back door. Dulce rocked slowly side to side with a sleeping Carter tucked safely to her chest. Her parents stood on either side of her. Cole was behind all of them, his back turned, covering their six, scanning the area for threats. Nothing or no one would get past him.

Beep, beep, beep, beep. Viking entered the four-digit code on the panel and swung the door open. Cole knew the code, but they agreed it was safer for Viking to let them in. He kept a keen eye outside as they entered the building, then he secured the door behind them.

Dulce handed the baby to Cole, flew right past Viking with a quick, “Hey, Viking,” and headed straight to Marigold to pull her into a hug.

“How are you doing?” She held her at arm’s length. “And be honest.”

“Not good. I’m sick with worry for Shayna.” Marigold reached out and stroked her hand over Carter’s downy hair. “This whole mess is all because of me.”

“Wrong,” Viking said. “This whole mess is because of Barnum. Got it?”

She heaved a big sigh and nodded. “Got it.” She lifted to her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and whispered, “Thank you.”

He whispered back, “You’re welcome.”

Not for one fraction of one second would he allow her to blame herself.

“I didn’t expect you guys to come.” She turned to Dulce’s parents, who were both smiling at them. “I’m sure you have other things you should be doing.”

Sebastian and Hanna wrapped her in a group hug. He stepped back, and Hanna kept her arm around Marigold’s shoulders.

“We’re exactly where we want to be.” Hanna gave her a comforting squeeze.

“You’re family, kiddo.” Sebastian gave an affectionate tap to the end of her nose. His tender smile belied the powerful man beneath the surface.

“Thank you for coming.” Viking shook Sebastian’s hand and hugged Hanna. “Marigold, why don’t you, Hanna, and Dulce hang out in your office while I show Cole and the senator the damage?”

“Can you hold this little guy for me?” Cole handed Carter to Marigold. He knew that cuddling a sleeping baby would be an effective way to calm her nerves during such a stressful situation.

“I would absolutely love to.” Marigold nestled the infant close. He squirmed, she adjusted his blanket around him, and he settled. She lowered her nose to Carter’s head, closed her eyes, and drew in a deep breath. She smiled up at Viking. “Best smell ever.”

POW!That smile and the pure love she displayed for the baby sent a surge of longing straight to his heart that was so powerful it nearly knocked him back a step.

Viking had always envisioned himself having a family—but in more of an abstract someday-when-the-time-is-right kind of way. Well, that someday was here, the time was right, and Marigold was his future.

“We’ll be up front if you need us.” He gave her a quick kiss, then he, Cole, and the senator headed out to the retail area. “Marigold let her employees know the shop would be closed today. She told them there was a break-in but didn’t provide any details. And she definitely didn’t tell them about Shayna.”

“All of her people have been checked out, correct?” the senator asked.

“I had our techs do a new deep dive on all of them, and they all came back clean.” Cole said. “Marigold wasn’t a fan of the idea. She felt like she was being disloyal to her employees. But my beautiful bride convinced her it was the best way to keep them and her safe.”

“My daughter can be very persuasive when she wants something.” Sebastian rubbed the back of his neck.

“Don’t I know it.” Cole wove his way around a clothes rack. “The car Barnum is driving is too old for GPS, so Sammy was unable to track him that way. If he has a phone, I’m guessing it’s a burner. She’s created a program that can track it, but only after he initiates a call or text to one of our cell phones.”

“Does that include Marigold’s cell?” Sebastian asked.

“It does.” Cole nodded. “You said you found Shayna’s cell phone on the floor of the window display area?”

“We did. The screen’s cracked, and it won’t power on.” Viking indicated to it on the front counter.

“That’s a shame. Would’ve been nice to be able to track her cell.” Cole looked around the retail area.

“I have no doubt he’ll be calling very soon.” Viking was counting on it.

“How did you manage to cover the window already?” Sebastian’s shoes crunched over glass as he moved to the front door.

“The owner of the coffee shop down the street had some plywood leftover from a project.” Viking wound his way around a circular clothes rack and stopped by the window. “He helped me board everything up until we can have the glass replaced.”

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