CHAPTER NINETEEN
Caine watched Tia cuddle Sarah and walk towards the window. The baby cooed and giggled as she looked up at Tia adoringly.
“She’s good,” his mother said very softly. “Sarah likes her.”
His mother was standing beside him and speaking to him under her breath. Tia wouldn’t be able to hear them, but as a wolf shifter, Caine could catch every syllable his mother uttered. It was one of the games she used to play with him when he was young to train his wolf senses. She would speak in a very low voice, with the barest movement of her lips, and he had to repeat her sentence back to her. Amanda was a human woman raising a wolf pup all by herself. She knew she had to hone her son’s wolf senses so she devised games to train the boy. She did a good job. Caine’s wolf was strong, fierce and lethal.
Caine saw his mother staring at Tia, but he also caught her shrewd, sidelong glance at him.
“Yes.” He tried not to give anything away but his mother knew him better than anyone else.
“So she’s our bodyguard, eh?” Amanda said.
“Yeah. She’s from Chase Security. One of Nathan’s staff.”
“Nathan Chase...” Amanda mused. “I think I met him at one of your company functions. Very nice man.”
“Yes. His firm is now providing most of the security personnel for the hotel.”
“Hmmm.” Amanda stared at her son for a beat and tapped her chin. “You know, I think I would like to have a bodyguard with me round the clock.”
Caine’s eyes bugged. “But you...”
“She can help me with Sarah.”
“But you insisted you didn’t want a nanny...”
“Tia is a bodyguard, not a nanny. Sarah and I could do with a bodyguard, but I have no use for a nanny,” Amanda sniffed.
Caine narrowed his eyes at his mother. “What are you up to, Mom?”
“Me? Nothing.”
But he caught the gleam in her eye.
“Your old room is still nicely furnished. I didn’t move anything,” Amanda went on. “Tia will be very comfortable there.”
“I don’t know...”
Amanda raised a finger. “Listen, I only want Tia. Don’t go asking for another bodyguard from Chase Security. Only Tia can sleep in your old room.”
Caine was about to ask why but decided against it. He already knew the answer just by looking at the smug, triumphant expression on his mother’s face.
His mother had seen the way he looked at Tia. Amanda could see right through him. She knew he was attracted to Tia, and she could tell how much he wanted her.
Shit, did his mother know that they had slept together?
Amanda seemed to know everything. He could never hide anything from her. He had learned that at a very young age. His mother could sniff out his lie the instant it was out of his mouth.
Over the years, his mother had nagged at him to find a nice girl and settle down. But he had never found a woman he wanted to settle down with. Plus, he had been so busy with work.
“Sarah likes her. So do I.” Amanda noted matter-of-factly. “And...so do you.”
“I...”
His mother tsked. “Don’t deny it.”
Caine shook his head and laughed. “You want round-the-clock security, eh? I’ll have to talk to Nathan.”
“Tell him I only want Tia,” she emphasized.
Caine rolled his eyes at his mother. “I know what you’re doing.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She didn’t bother hiding her smirk as she left the room. “Sarah is in good hands. I’ll be in the kitchen.”