THE HERO I CAN’T RESIST

  HOPE FORD

  CONTENTS

  1. Zach

  2. Skyler

  3. Zach

  4. Skyler

  5. Zach

  6. Skyler

  7. Zach

  8. Skyler

  9. Zach

  10. Skyler

  11. Zach

  12. Skyler

  13. Zach

  14. Skyler

  15. Zach

  16. Skyler

  17. Zach

  18. Skyler

  19. Zach

  20. Skyler

  21. Zach

  22. Skyler

  23. Zach

  Epilogue

  Also by Hope Ford

  JOIN ME!

  Be a Hottie!

  About the Author

  The Hero I Can’t Resist © 2025 by Hope Ford

  Editor: Kasi Alexander

  Proofreader: Nicole Graf

  Cover Design: Cormar Covers

  Cover Model: Beau Finney

  Cover Photographer: Michelle Lancaster, @lanefotograf

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  CHAPTER 1

  ZACH

  The last time I saw her, she was a kid. She was a tomboy who trailed after her five older brothers and swore to anyone that would listen that she was going to marry me someday.

  I was a twenty-something-year-old and was too busy and too dumb to pay her any real attention.

  Now her older brother, my best friend and business partner, wants me to protect her.

  “Check your phone,” Logan orders me.

  I hesitate. My gut has never steered me wrong, and right now it’s screaming that this is something big and not to be taken lightly. I should hand this job off to Alex. He’s solid. He’s a good bodyguard and has plenty of military experience.

  Even though I know I shouldn’t, I open the video Logan just sent me, and immediately I forget how to breathe.

  The woman staring back at me is not a kid. She’s a grown, curvy woman. She has her hair twisted up in a messy knot, flour on her cheek, and she’s giggling at something off camera. For the first time in my life, I can’t look away from a woman.

  A thousand questions go through my head, but I know I can’t ask Logan any of them. He’s overprotective of his sister.

  I can just imagine how it would go if I asked him if she was single.

  “Zach,” Logan says.

  I force my eyes off my phone and look at my friend. “What does she need protection for?”

  Logan growls. “She’s been doing these silly videos, and now she has a stalker.”

  My heart starts to race, my blood starts to boil, and I’m fighting to remain calm. I start to ask and then stop and clear my throat before trying again. “What do you mean a stalker? And what is this?” I ask, holding up my phone.

  Logan shakes his head and waves his hand around. “It’s ClipClap.”

  I am trying to keep the frustration out of my voice, but it’s getting hard. “Logan, I know it’s ClipClap. I know what ClipClap is. I mean, what is it? Does she do videos like this all the time?”

  He rolls his eyes. “It’s her job… I mean, that’s how she makes her money, and no matter what my brothers or I say, she won’t quit.”

  I cross my arms over my chest. “What do you want me to do? Find the stalker and neutralize him?”

  He blows out a breath. “If only it was that easy. I’ve had the team working on it, and they said that whoever it is has a VPN set up, and we can’t trace the IP address.”

  I turn away from Logan and walk over to the big window. Logan knows me, and there’s no hiding from him, but the last thing I need is for him to know I am attracted to his sister. “So what’s the plan?”

  I can hear the frustration in Logan’s voice. “I have to finish this last mission for Walker. I don’t have a choice, but I can’t just leave my baby sister unprotected.”

  I’m taking the job. I took one look at her and decided that, but I don’t want to seem too interested. “Logan, we’re just getting Stronghold started. We have so much to do and⁠—”

  “Miller is paying the bill. He put up two hundred and fifty thousand dollars to keep our sister safe.”

  I turn and look at him in shock. I know Miller. He’s Logan’s older brother, and I knew he had money, but I didn’t realize he had that kind of money. “Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars?”

  He shrugs. “He’s a millionaire. He wanted to invest in Stronghold, and when I told him I wanted to do it on my own, this was his way of keeping our sister safe and helping me out.”

  I think about my sister Abby. If she was in danger, I would do—or pay—whatever necessary to do to make sure she was safe.

  We’re a start-up. We really aren’t in a position to turn down paying cases, but getting paid for this doesn’t sit right with me. “I’m not taking any money. I’ll do it for free.”

  As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I know it was the wrong thing to say. Logan is instantly curious. He tilts his head. “You want to turn down the money?”

  I shrug. “It’s your sister, man. She’s your family.”

  He nods, crossing his arms over his chest. “That’s what I told Miller.”

  “And? What did he say?”

  He chuckles. “He charmed the bank, got the routing number, and deposited the money into Stronghold’s account this morning.”

  Relieved, not because of the money but because we are definitely taking the job, I shrug. “All right. Did you do the intake paperwork, or do I need to do it?”

  He shakes his head. “I haven’t done it yet.”

  I walk over to my desk, which is stacked with boxes and paperwork. “Okay, I’ll get a packet and head over. Can you send me the address?”

  Logan holds his hands up and shakes his head. “I’m going to go over there and talk to her before I go out of town.”

  I nod, pick up a packet, and walk toward him. “I’ll go with you.”

  He puts his hand up to my chest and stops me. “Not so fast.”

  I’m tense and on edge because now that I know that Skyler has a stalker, I don’t want her to be alone for another second. “What do you mean, not so fast? I can’t protect her if I don’t go over there.”

  “I need to talk to her first.”

  “Logan... What’s going on?”

  He shrugs. “Look, she’s not going to be happy about this. As a matter of fact, it’s probably going to turn into a big argument, so I need to break it to her easy.”

  I’m practically vibrating with a need to get to her. “What’s there to talk about? She has a stalker and needs protection. She has to know with five older brothers that you all are going to step in.”

  Logan starts to laugh. “Zach, I don’t think you get it. Sky isn’t the same little twelve-year-old you remember. She doesn’t just do what we tell her anymore. She’s twenty-five and does what she wants.”

  Twenty-five. She’s ten years younger than me. I mean, I knew that, but this is the first time that I’ve ever done the math. She’s too young for me. She’s the sister of one of my best friend’s. She’s off-limits…

  “Plus…” Logan starts and then trails off.

  I look at him pointedly. “Plus what?”

  He clenches his jaw. “Well, so, my brothers and I always gave her shit about the crush she had on you. I’m sure you don’t remember that, but anyway, we sort of tormented her about it. Uh, to the point where she flipped out on us, and after that, we promised we’d never bring you up again… So I’m not sure how she’s going to take this.”

  Stunned, I sit down on the edge of my desk. Fuck, she doesn’t even want to hear my name. How am I supposed to protect her?

  Logan sighs. “Look, it will be fine. Give me an hour. Go home and pack a bag. I’ll text you Sky’s address, and by the time you get there, it will all be worked out.”

  “I’ll be there in an hour.”

  Logan takes his keys out of his pocket and strides to the office door. He stops suddenly and turns toward me. He gives me a look. “This is my sister, man.”

  I swallow. The weight of it all is heavy, but I know the importance of this assignment. Logan knows I do or else he wouldn’t ask me. “I know. I’ll protect her with my life.”

  His shoulders sag with relief, but he instantly tenses again. He gestures to me. “Hey, can you do something about that?”

  Confused, I ask, “Do something about what?”

  He rolls his eyes. “Come on, Fabio. All women turn to goo around you. Turn down the charm.”

  I choke out a laugh. “Not once in my whole life has anyone thought I was charming.”

  He waves his hand around. “You know what I mean. Women fall at your feet, pretty boy. I need you to tame it down. Protect my sister.”

  Normally, I’d tell him to fuck off, but this is his sister we’re talking about. “Got it. Like I said, I’ll protect her with my life.”

  Satisfied, Logan nods and h

olds up a finger. “One hour.”

  As soon as he walks out of the office, I pull my phone out of my pocket and watch the video in its entirety. Skylar is making s’mores cookies, and when she takes a bite, my dick twitches in my pants as I watch her lick her lips. I’m not sure how I’m going to survive this job, but I knew the second I looked at her that I had to take it. I’m not going to let anyone touch her… no one but me.

  CHAPTER 2

  SKYLER

  “It’s not happening,” I tell Logan.

  He just smiles at me, and that smile grates on every nerve I have. I’m wiping down my kitchen counter, letting my anger fuel me. I’m scrubbing, huffing, and puffing. There’s no way I can give Logan what he wants.

  He just told me that my other brother, Miller, had hired Logan’s company to serve security detail for me. I point a thumb to my chest. “I don’t need security. I’ve called the local police department. They will handle it.”

  “Sky bug…”

  The nickname from my childhood has me drawing up. I raise my hand. “No, you’re not going to call me that. I’m a grown-ass woman, Logan, and I can make my own decisions.”

  He leans a hip against the island counter. “Sis, I don’t think you understand. He’s making threats on all your profiles. He’s hinting that he knows where you live. It’s better to just nip this in the bud.”

  I stare back at him and debate whether I should tell him that flowers were delivered to my house just yesterday. The card wasn’t signed, but I have a feeling it’s from the man that has been tormenting me online. I don’t want to appear weak, but more than that, I don’t want my big brother to worry. He’s supposed to be going on a mission out of the country today. “Bub, don’t worry about me. You need to be focusing on your mission.”

  He clasps his hands together in front of him and stares at me wide-eyed. “Listen, I will be able to focus on my work if I know you’re safe. If you’re here alone, I’ll worry the whole time.”

  I lift my hand and shake my finger at him. “Oh no, you can’t do that, Lo. You can’t guilt me into doing what you want.”

  “Sky… please. I don’t ask much of you, but I’m asking for this. If the asshole isn’t caught by the time I get back, I’ll take over your protection detail.”

  I tilt my head and look up at him. I know I’m not going to win this. Logan is just one of five brothers, and if I tell him no, the other four will be here before the afternoon is over. “I’m not saying yes, but what exactly would it entail?”

  He heaves himself up onto my kitchen counter, and I lean against the counter across from him. He leans his elbows on his knees. “Well, let’s see. We will have someone move in⁠—”

  I interrupt him and point at the ground. “Move in here? Into my house?”

  He rolls his head and laughs. “Yes, that’s how it works, Sky. He would move in here. He would have full access to your phone, emails, social media accounts. Hopefully, this will just last a few days. Or a few weeks max. We find the stalker, neutralize him, and you can go back to your life of, well, doing whatever you do.”

  And there it is. Logan and the others don’t understand my work. They don’t realize how much I love baking and that I love sharing it with my audience. They think I’m just playing around. They have no idea how much time goes into it. And they don’t have a clue that I make a helluva living doing it.

  “Doing whatever I do?” I repeat.

  He jumps off the counter. “Don’t be like that. Look, I have to leave soon. Can you just do this… for me?”

  I cross my arms over my chest. “Who is it? Who drew the short straw and has to come and protect me?”

  “We didn’t draw names or anything like that. Zach took the⁠—”

  “Zach!” I screech. I push off the counter and pace across the kitchen. “Nope. No way. It’s not happening. Forget it.”

  “Sky—”

  I hold both hands up, shaking my head, backing away from my brother. He’s crazy if he thinks I’m going to let Zach Campbell anywhere near me. The man makes me crazy. I haven’t seen him in person in years, but the majority of my childhood I spent crushing on him. When I became a teenager, it was way more than a crush. I was obsessed. I thought about him all the time, searching for things about him on social media or online. It wasn’t until I left Whiskey Run and went to culinary school that I was finally able to let go of it. There’s no way he can move in here.

  “Forget it, Logan. It’s not happening.”

  I no sooner get the words out and my doorbell rings.

  Logan looks at me with guilt on his face. “Sis…”

  I feel as if my eyes are about to pop out of my head. “Oh my God, is that him? Is he here? What’s he even doing here, Logan? I thought he was working for Walker. I thought he was a silent partner or something.”

  He stands to his full height and puts his hands in his front pockets. “He completed his last mission for Walker. He’s my partner with Stronghold Security, and you’re our first case.”

  “Case? I’m not a case,” I tell him.

  He comes toward me and puts an arm around my shoulders as the doorbell rings again. “Sis, please. Just do this for me. I can’t leave knowing you are in trouble. Zach is my best friend, and he will protect you.”

  I pause, and Logan walks with me to the front of the house. All I can do is stare at the door and think that Zach Campbell is on the other side. I want to throw up. Heck, I may just pass out. I come to a halt right before we get to the door. “I don’t think this is a good idea. Please, Logan, I’m begging you. There has to be another option.”

  He lifts his chin and lets out a breath. “Sis, I never tell you what my missions are. I don’t ever want you to worry, but I’m also not allowed to tell you all the details.” He shakes his head. “What I can tell you is this is a big one. It’s dangerous, and it’s out of the country. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone, but I do know that it’s going to help me if I know Zach is here with you.”

  And just like that, I know I have to go along with this. I don’t want to because it’s going to be really embarrassing. It’s like I get around the man and make a fool of myself. I want to stomp my feet and refuse to do this, but I know I can’t. I clench my eyes shut, and when I open them, there’s no hiding the worry from my voice. “I love you, Logan Brody. I’ll go along with this even though I don’t think it’s necessary, but I need you to promise me that you’ll come home.”

  He hugs me tightly. “I promise, sis.”

  As soon as he pulls away, he opens the door. I can’t stand here. I’m not ready to face Zach Campbell. As my brother greets Zach, I’m gone, almost sprinting through my house back to the kitchen. I need to bake. That always makes me feel better.

  CHAPTER 3

  ZACH

  The door opens, and I’m holding my breath, excited to see Skylar. It took me no time to pack, and the rest of the time I spent watching more of her videos.

  Fuck, she’s amazing.

  I hurried over here, wanting to see her, to hear her giggle and watch her bite her lip when she concentrates. But instead of seeing Skylar, I’m looking at Logan.

  He looks worried, and my stomach drops. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  He ushers me inside. “Nothing. She took it as well as I expected.”

  “But she agreed,” I insist. There’s no other option. I’m not leaving here.

  He nods. “Yeah, she agreed.”

  I drop my bag by the door and look around. When I pulled up to the small house with the white picket fence, my heart started to race. In the past, I would have been freaked out by the cozy feeling this place invokes in me, but not today. No; right now, I feel at peace.

  I look around her home, and it’s a perfect reflection of her. The lighting is soft, throws tossed over the back of the couch, stacks of books, warm wood, and it smells of vanilla and cinnamon. Every bit of it wraps around me and fills me with a warmth I haven’t felt in a long time.

  “Where is she?” I ask.

  Logan looks around the empty living room. “Uh, probably in the kitchen. That’s where she spends most of her time.”

  I look at him expectantly, and he turns. “Come on.”

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13