Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 110360 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 441(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110360 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 441(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
Lofton winced, causing the blonde to shout, “Get out!”
I headed for the door, more than ready to follow that order. However, when I yanked it open, I almost plowed into Leo, Johnson, and Apollo.
“Perfect timing,” I said.
Johnson leaned around me, peering inside. “She better not be crying because of you.”
I shrugged. “She didn’t like the truth.”
“Goddamn it,” Leo whispered, damn near knocking me off my feet as he shoulder-checked me on his way inside.
“Ms. Beck,” he said, his voice gentle and calibrated. “I’m Leo James, owner of Guardian Protection. Collin at Arrow Security briefed me on what you endured last night. We got here as quickly as we could.” He stopped several feet away before dropping into a squat, putting himself at her eye level. “My team would like to express our sincere condolences. You have my word that we will stop at nothing to keep you safe during such a difficult and dangerous time.”
I clenched my jaw so hard that it ached. Ever the professional, he was sanding down the edges and softening the reality I’d just been vilified for saying out loud.
Our client sniffled and lifted her head. “Thank you. Please call me Lofton.”
Little Miss five-foot-nothing offered him a tight grin. “Wonderful. Now that we’re all friends, can you remove this asshole before I’m forced to do it myself?”
I fought the urge to roll my eyes.
He sighed. “I see you’ve met Devon.”
“Oh, is that his name? We wouldn’t know. He didn’t bother introducing himself when he stormed in and started laying down rules.”
Leo hummed. “We’re all furious with the LAPD’s mishandling of this situation. What Devon lacks in personality, he more than makes up for in competence. He’s the best in the business, with a résumé built on protecting A-list clients.”
It was client. Singular. But if he wasn’t about to go into detail, I wasn’t about to correct him.
“Do you mind if my men come inside so we can all sit down and have a conversation? It’s not safe here, and we need to move swiftly to get you to someplace more secure.”
The blonde slanted her head. “I don’t know. Is Devon capable of a civil conversation, or do we need to hear the rest of his rules first?”
“Brooke, stop.” Lofton said, rising off the couch. “We don’t have time for this. If it was that easy for him to get up here, then we need to get the hell out before whoever is after me figures it out too.”
Relief washed over me. At least she was rational. That was more than I could say for myself at the current.
“Please come in,” Lofton said before turning her attention back to her friend. “Go get Zoey. I hate to wake her, but if we need to leave, she needs to be ready.”
For once, the blonde didn’t offer any attitude and did exactly as Lofton instructed.
Must be nice.
Johnson and Apollo filed inside, pausing as Leo gave quiet introductions. Once the meet and greet was over, we followed her into a connecting room where they settled around an ostentatious dining room table. Lofton sat at the head, Leo to her right, Johnson to her left with Apollo beside him. I stood guard in the doorway, keeping Lofton in my direct line of sight.
Leo spoke first. “I understand your home was broken into a few weeks ago.”
“I wasn’t there, but they ransacked my bedroom and took a few pieces of jewelry.” Her blue eyes drifted my way, lingering for too long, well past the point of comfort.
What she was searching for I had no clue, but my face was expertly blank so there was nothing to be found. Avoiding eye contact, I lifted my gaze over her head, keeping her in my periphery.
“Then I highly recommend you don’t go back there for a while,” Leo told her. “Do you have anywhere you’d like to go? I can’t make any promises, but we can send a security team out.”
She slid her attention back to Leo and shook her head. “Actually, yes. My family has a small farm in Dollton. It’s basically the middle of nowhere, about two hours west of Nashville.”
Now that piqued my attention.
Nashville?
As in Tennessee?
As in thousands of miles away?
Meaning, I could get in, do the job, collect a fat check, and not have to spend the next few months in this Godforsaken town?
Sign me the fuck up. Hell, I’d convert my entire wardrobe to orange and learn old Rocky Top if it got me out of there.
“Out of the city is a necessity,” I interjected. “Out of state is even better.”
All eyes slid my way.
Johnson leaned back in his chair and smirked. “Oh yeah, why’s that?”
I didn’t need to explain it to him. However, after I’d been a dick and broken confidence with the client, he was offering me a chance to redeem myself—at least in her eyes.