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  Noble Brit

  In the Shadows - Book 9

  P. T. Michelle

  Limitless Ink Press

  Contents

  Noble Brit

  Copyright

  Noble Brit Summary

  1. Chapter One

  2. Chapter Two

  3. Chapter Three

  4. Chapter Four

  5. Chapter Five

  6. Chapter Six

  7. Chapter Seven

  8. Chapter Eight

  9. Chapter Nine

  10. Chapter Ten

  11. Chapter Eleven

  12. Chapter Twelve

  13. Chapter Thirteen

  14. Chapter Fourteen

  15. Chapter Fifteen

  16. Chapter Sixteen

  17. Chapter Seventeen

  18. Chapter Eighteen

  19. Chapter Nineteen

  20. Chapter Twenty

  21. Chapter Twenty-One

  22. Chapter Twenty-Two

  23. Chapter Twenty-Three

  24. Chapter Twenty-Four

  25. Chapter Twenty-Five

  26. Chapter Twenty-Six

  27. Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Other Books By P.T. Michelle

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  Noble Brit

  In the Shadows - Book 9

  In the Shadows Series

  Reading Order

  * * *

  Mister Black (Book 1 - Talia & Sebastian, Part 1)

  Scarlett Red (Book 2 - Talia & Sebastian, Part 2)

  Blackest Red (Book 3 - Talia & Sebastian, Part 3)

  Gold Shimmer (Book 4 - Cass & Calder, Part 1)

  Steel Rush (Book 5 - Cass & Calder, Part 2)

  Black Platinum (Book 6 - Talia & Sebastian, Stand Alone Novel)

  Reddest Black (Book 7 - Talia & Sebastian, Stand Alone Novel)

  Blood Rose (Book 8 - Cass & Calder, Stand Alone Novel)

  Noble Brit (Book 9 - Mina & Den, Stand Alone Novel)

  Black and Red (Book 10 - Talia & Sebastian, Stand Alone Novel - Coming December 2019)

  * * *

  Note: Mister Black is the only novella. All the other books are novel length.

  DEAR READERS: The In the Shadows series must be read in the following order: MISTER BLACK, SCARLETT RED, and BLACKEST RED. Sebastian and Talia’s happy-ever-after is contained within books 1-3. Cass and Calder’s epic love story follows in books 4-5 with GOLD SHIMMER and STEEL RUSH. Be sure to read books 4-5, since you’ll also get to visit with Sebastian and Talia as they play key roles in Cass and Calder’s story. The rest of the books in the series: BLACK PLATINUM, REDDEST BLACK, BLOOD ROSE, and NOBLE BRIT are all stand alone novels.

  Sometimes it takes losing yourself to find the right person to put you back together.

  Copyright

  Blood Rose - Copyright 2019 by P.T. Michelle

  * * *

  All rights reserved. This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook cannot be re-sold or given away to others. No parts of this ebook may be reproduced, scanned or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  To stay informed when the next P.T. Michelle book will be released, join P.T. Michelle’s free newsletter.

  * * *

  Cover credit: Cover designed by P.T. Michelle

  V06232019

  Noble Brit Summary

  Dennet Barasa. British. Former MI6. Bodyguard. Controlled and cool under pressure, he's about to meet his match in a petite heiress, who will be his toughest assignment yet.

  * * *

  When I lost everything I ever cared about, guarding the Blake family became my life. I’ve spent years protecting the wealthy family like they were my own.

  * * *

  Until I was assigned Mina Blake.

  * * *

  Beautiful and intelligent, she’s infuriatingly stubborn as she challenges me. She’s also a delightful storm, tearing up the roadblocks around my heart faster than I can rebuild them.

  * * *

  But someone is after Mina, and as the danger closes in from all sides, I’m finding it harder to separate my head from my heart.

  * * *

  She is everything I thought I would never have in my life. And I will do whatever it takes to keep her forever.

  * * *

  Dear Readers: NOBLE BRIT is a stand alone story set in the IN THE SHADOWS world.

  * * *

  IN THE SHADOWS SERIES:

  * * *

  Mister Black (Book 1 - Talia & Sebastian, Part 1)

  Scarlett Red (Book 2 - Talia & Sebastian, Part 2)

  Blackest Red (Book 3 - Talia & Sebastian, Part 3)

  Gold Shimmer (Book 4 - Cass & Calder, Part 1)

  Steel Rush (Book 5 - Cass & Calder, Part 2)

  Black Platinum (Book 6 - Talia & Sebastian, Stand Alone Novel)

  Reddest Black (Book 7 - Talia & Sebastian, Stand Alone Novel)

  Blood Rose (Book 8 - Cass & Calder, Stand Alone Novel)

  Noble Brit (Book 9 - Mina & Den, Stand Alone Novel )

  Black and Red (Book 10 - Talia & Sebastian, Stand Alone Novel - Coming December 2019)

  Chapter One

  Mina

  “Meeeeena” The haunting sound carries on the cold wind lifting my hair and whipping it around. I halt my brisk walk and pivot, quickly shoving the long strands away from my face. That…sounded like my name.

  People brush past in both directions on the busy Manhattan sidewalk. The end of the day is upon them. As is mine. When a woman knocks my shoulder as she strides by, I glare after her and zip my thin coat tighter against the frigid air.

  Turning back in the direction I’d been heading, I frown at the clouds above as they quickly blot out the last bit of afternoon sun’s warmth. I’d been looking forward to checking out a couple of new shops all week. I’m not letting this suddenly crappy weather ruin the little bit of “me” time I’d carved out. I have forty minutes before I have to pick up Josi from daycare, so I’m making the most of it. Just two more blocks.

  The last of the sun fades, heralding a vigorous gust of wind whistling fiercely in and around the tall buildings. Its intensity carries with it an eerie, sing-song rhythm along with the darkening sky.

  “Meeee-na, Meeee-na, Meeee-na.”

  I pull the coat’s collar tight around my ears and focus on the shop windows as I pass. Anything to distract me from the feminine pitch. It’s so achingly familiar, an unbidden shiver runs the full length of my spine.

  “I’m losing it,” I murmur and stop in front of a boutique custom shoe shop. As I force my gaze to focus on the high heels in various fall shades so I can tune out my hearing, a woman’s reflection in the glass jolts at my racing heart.

  Mom?

  I gasp and glance across the street. A layer of sweat quickly coats my body, and despite the cold making my teeth chatter, I dig my nails into my palms and scan for my mom’s thin frame, blond hair, and cool blue gaze. A part of me dreads the moment I’ll find her standing in the crowd, while the daughter in me is desperate to know the image in the glass was real and not some figment of my imagination.

  My gaze darts back and forth, and I blink to ward off the sudden wooziness in my head. She’s gone. I know this. Why am I even hoping for a glimpse? Closing my eyes for a brief second, I sigh, then start walking. At least I don’t have to dodge around so many people now. For whatever reason, everyone seems to be heading toward the steps down to t
he trains.

  Why are they all going there at the same time? Is a bad storm coming? I look up and find the clouds churning a dark, angry brew. Just as I pick up my pace, someone calls in a raspy voice, “Mina!”

  I stop, my heart thudding. My whole body jerks to the crazed rhythm as I slowly turn.

  My mom is standing across the street.

  Her loose-fitting dress is covered in soot and half her face too. She looks thinner, her hair a dirty, matted mess. But it’s the sight of the smoke slowly rising off her clothes and hair that makes me start to shake.

  “Come to me,” she says, lifting her hand.

  Her voice is as clear as if she’s standing right in front of me, yet she’s a good thirty feet away. You know this is wrong, Mina. This isn’t real. You need to run. Now!

  Gulping out a sob, I take off toward the closest train station. Tears blur my vision and my toes jam painfully into the points of my high heels, but I don’t care. I can’t deal with my own fucked-up mind right now. That woman is a mirage, conjured by wistful thoughts and regrets.

  I reach the entrance to the subway, but before I can descend, someone yanks my arm and a scream tears out of me.

  Molten heat radiates from my mother’s tight grip. Even through my jacket, I can feel my arm singeing. “You’re hurting me!” Pain blurring my vision and scared out of my mind, I try to tug free, but only manage to drag the searing heat along my arm.

  “Stop...” she snaps on a harsh wheeze. Anger flares as she tries to catch her breath. With each rise and fall of her chest, her face cracks, the fissures widening, exposing burning embers shimmering beneath the surface.

  Tears track my cheeks. “Let me go,” I plead, trying once more to pull away from the pain.

  “Stop running, Mina!”

  What does she mean? The sharp smell of charred flesh makes my stomach roil. Is it hers? Or mine? How did she survive that explosion? And where has she been? Self-preservation trumps my need for answers, and I finally yank free of her hold. The moment I pull away, Mom’s gaze narrows and her face cracks all the way across. I gape in terror, frozen in place by the horrifying sight. My mom reaches for me once more, but the moment we connect, she explodes. Screaming, I jump back, my hands flying to my face to shield it from flying bits of fiery, bloody flesh and bone.

  I yank awake on a low, horrified wail and quickly shove the blanket off to smack at imagined hot embers still scalding my skin. Sitting up on my couch, it takes several breaths to calm down as the low hiss of the warm fire in the hearth buzzes in my ears.

  “You’re awake,” I say to myself on a relieved rasp and shake out my hands, trying to get a grip on my emotions. What the hell was that? That dream was a straight up horror freak show!

  Josi’s steady breathing in the baby monitor is the only comforting thing in the room, so I focus on the sound for several seconds to help me calm down. “Love you, Josi-Bean,” I whisper my appreciation.

  Raking my hands through my damp hair, I stand and approach the mantle to stare at a picture of my mom. “You might be gone, but your presence still lingers around every corner.” The reflective glass impedes my view, so I pull it down. Sliding the photo from behind the glass, I set the empty frame back. The fire below pops and crackles. Normally it would evoke fond childhood memories of campfires with my rowdy older brothers and parents at the Hamptons in the fall. Instead, tonight I wiggle my nose to rid it of the burning wood smell and study the thin blond woman in a couture dress. Her light blue eyes are sharply aware as she smiles for the camera while holding my baby girl.

  I remember that moment so clearly.

  After Josi’s christening was over, Mom saw the photographer coming, so she took my baby out of my arms and turned to pose for several shots. The moment the photographer moved on to take photos of other guests, she immediately handed Josi back to me. That photo of Isabel Blake with her first grandchild, Josi, ended up in the next issue of NY Style Magazine. And, of course, my mom made sure I had a framed copy.

  I rub my thumb over my mother’s face and realize just how true that old saying about hindsight is. With time and distance, the 20-20 sharpness can haunt you with vivid clarity. “I know you had your bitchy moments,” I murmur and lift the picture up so we’re at eye level. “But how could I have been so blind to not see how truly self-serving you were?”

  The dead don’t answer. They just haunt your mind on an endless loop with all the things left unsaid.

  As I toss the photo into the fire, Josi sighs and rolls over in her crib, her movements coming through the speaker clearly. I glance down at the sweet image of her clutching her blanket in the monitor’s video display on the coffee table, and as a smile tilts my lips, I notice I have a new text on my phone.

  Hey, girl. Stopped by, but you weren’t home. Just wanted you to know I’m thinking of you. Give me a call when you get a moment.

  My gaze strays to the kitchen table where I’d unwrapped the gift I found at the front door with a red and white striped bow. Whenever I’ve needed cheering up, Laura always found a way to remind me that she’s there for me. This went all the way back to middle school where she dressed up as a candy cane with me in a school play just to support my crazy effort to get to know the lead of the play, Parker Hudson.

  I pick up my phone and tap out a quick text.

  Thank you for being so thoughtful and such a wonderful friend. I’ll give you a call next week when I’m feeling better.

  You’d better. Rest up and take care of yourself. Kiss Josi for me.

  I send her a kiss emoji and set my phone down, glancing at the tea. A couple weeks ago, she’d left me an Earl Grey set. And today it’s a chamomile blend. It’s totally like her to never say a thing about it, but it was so sweet to think of a way to help me relax. I’ll have to drop off a gift for her one day soon, just because.

  I pick up my mug of chamomile tea and mutter, “I wish I could sleep as soundly as my baby.” Taking a sip of the now cool tea, I sit on the sofa and lean back, tugging the blanket onto my lap. Normally I’d pick up my sketchpad and go to town with my charcoal pencil, drawing images of things I’d seen throughout the day: people, animals, nature. But I just haven’t had the energy lately. Too little sleep has messed with my creative mojo, taking away the one relaxation tool that had always worked for me.

  The photo I tossed into the fire has turned to ash on top of all the other photos I’d already dropped into the flames before I fell asleep. Yawning my tiredness, I shake my head. “That’s the last one in the house, Mom. I need you out of my head once and for all.”

  Chapter Two

  Den

  “You’ve got a solid plan, Gavin,” Sebastian says as his half-brother pushes his seat back from the conference room table. “It’s just too fast for all that you want to do. Adding an additional person and stretching out the implementation to six months from your proposed three should make the transition smoother.”

  “I appreciate your thoughts.” Gavin shakes his dark head and stands, sliding his phone into his pants pocket. “Though it really pisses me off that Dad asked you to be here for this meeting. It’s like he just can’t let go of the fact you turned him down to take over once he retires. I’m doing my best to let that go, but he’s got to stop being so damn controlling and let me run Blake Industries the way I see fit.”

  “It’s still Adam’s company.” Sebastian rises to meet Gavin, using his couple of inches height over his brother to his advantage. “He’s not retired yet. If I hadn’t attended today, you would’ve missed out on some salient points. I’ve had years to build my business. BLACK Security is thriving and expanding, so check your ego and take the free advice. That will make Adam happy, and once he sees you’re willing to listen to other viewpoints, he won’t keep bringing me into meetings where you’re planning to make big changes across the company he spent a lifetime building.”

  A text from a London number draws my attention from their debate.

  Den! Hey, mate. It’s been a bit.
I need to have a chat with you. You’ve got my number now, so ring me.

  The moment I see the text, my chest tightens with unbidden anger. Why the hell is Hugh trying to contact me? I haven’t heard from him since my MI6 days. Whatever he wants, I’m not biting. Since I didn’t return his voice message from a week ago asking me to get in touch with him, that should’ve been my answer. He needs to stop. This time, I block his number, then slide my finger across the screen, deleting the message with ease. Shifting my gaze to Talia, I tune back into the brothers’ conversation.

  She’s calmly gathering papers and putting them in folders as if she’s not really paying attention to their discussion, but I know she’s listening intently. Her mere presence keeps the brothers’ tones even, and I mentally snort at how completely unaware they are of this fact. Talia wants all the Blakes, half or otherwise, to accept each other. With such strong personalities, Sebastian and Gavin will continue to knock heads from time to time, but Talia’s the one who will bring them back to seeing reason if necessary. She might be a Blake only by her marriage to Sebastian, but she is absolutely the family’s Queen.