Chapter Twelve
Seth
My new assignment was keeping one of the most arrogant CEOs I’d ever met safe. Brodie Chase’s multimillion-dollar company made self-sealing washers, but from how swollen his head was, you’d have thought he was Hugh Hefner.
He gave his wife, Lola, a surly glance as she walked beside him. “Baby, don’t walk too close to me.” He ran a tanned hand over his silver hair, gold rings gleaming from every finger.
Lola grimaced but slowed her stride, shooting me an embarrassed look. “He likes the pretty girls to think he’s single.”
“Really?” I’m sure I sounded surprised.
“He likes to flirt.” She gave me a feeble smile. “He says it’s fun, that’s all. No harm.” She frowned. “No harm done.”
Luckily, I had my sunglasses on so she couldn’t see the disgust for her husband in my gaze. I made sure to keep my face blank. Her husband entered the hotel first and let the door almost swing closed on Lola. I grabbed it quickly and held it open for her, and she smiled weakly. She wasn’t a flashy type; her wool skirt was below her knees and her hair mousy brown. I suspected she’d met and married dear Brodie when they were both poor, but now he seemed to think he was a little too good for her. It was obvious in how he barely seemed to remember she was around, unless she accidentally cock blocked him.
I spent the next two hours sitting in a large banquet hall in the hotel, off to the side, while Brodie droned on and on about how terrific his washers were compared to others on the market. I was here because he’d received a couple of vague death threats during the last few months. That wasn’t that unusual for someone in his tax bracket, especially considering how obnoxious he was. But he’d wanted a higher caliber of security than the one provided by the hotel. So there I sat, listening to the dangers of vibrational loosening and how outdated conventional spring-lock washers were.
Once the lecture was over, and the majority of people had filtered out of the room, we went up to the penthouse, where Brodie wanted to party with some of his most devoted fans. Lola sipped hot tea and knitted quietly in the corner as her husband flirted and laughed with some of the women in the room. It was almost eleven at night, and I was annoyed at how loud they were. If they didn’t keep it down, they were gonna get us kicked out of the damn hotel.
At one point I took my break and went out into the hallway. I wanted to call home and check in with Emily and Pierce. I hated being away on an overnight trip right now, especially because Pierce and I had definitely been growing closer over the last few weeks. I wanted things to keep going in a positive direction, and I felt I needed to be attentive to him.
“Hello.” Pierce answered his cell, sounding breathless.
“Did I get you at a bad time?”
He laughed. “No. I’m embarrassed to say, I ran in to grab my phone in case it was you calling.”
My stomach warmed. “That’s nice to hear.”
“Well, Emily likes to talk to you.”
“Oh, really? That’s the only reason you hurried?”
His voice was riddled with amusement as he replied, “What other reason could there be?”
I leaned against the wall next to the suite door. “I thought maybe you’d want to hear my sexy voice before you went to sleep. Then you can dream about me all night.”
“Who are you again?”
My laugh echoed in the hallway. “Won’t even give my ego a little stroking?”
“When you get back, I’ll stroke something else instead.”
“I’m going to hold you to that.”
He snorted. “Like you’d have to force me or something. I’m horny twenty-four seven. Surely you’ve noticed?”
“Yep. I love it.”
He put his hand over the phone, and I heard muffled voices. Then he came back on. “Emily wants to know if she can rent Kill Bill.”
“She’s eight. No way.”
“She says she’s a very mature eight and she’s seen John Wick.”
I chuckled. “The answer is still no. Rent Mary Poppins or something.”
“Oh, God. Why don’t I just put on the Teletubbies while I’m at it?”
“Great idea.”
“You can’t stop her from growing up. It’s going to happen.”
I sighed. “I know.”
“She wants to talk to you.”
“Okay.” I was always happy when Emily showed interest in me. We’d definitely come a long way from the shy little girl who’d arrived on my doorstep three weeks ago. Back then she’d seemed almost scared of me, but now I could tell she trusted me more.
“Hey, Dad.” Her cheerful voice came over the line.
“Hey, honey. Are you behaving?”
She giggled. “I’ve only had sex with five boys and smoked pot twice.”
I frowned. “Don’t say that kind of stuff. You’ll give me a heart attack.”
She sighed. “As if Pierce would be okay with any of that.”
“Well, I want you to remain young and innocent for as long as possible.”
“I know.” She was quiet, and then she said softly, “I miss you.”
My heart jolted excitedly. “Really?” My voice was way higher-pitched than I’d have liked. But I was so glad to hear she’d missed me I didn’t really care. “I miss you too.”
“How long will you be gone?”
“I hope to come home tomorrow afternoon.”
“Okay. Good.”
“It’s nice to know you missed me.”
“Of course. I’m glad you miss me too.” Her voice changed to a slightly more sly tone. “Do you miss Pierce?”
My face warmed and I gave a self-conscious laugh. “Yes.” Emily had adapted to me and Pierce’s more intimate relationship without a problem. She actually seemed happy about it. At first I’d tried to hide how I felt about him, but she’d caught on anyway.
“He definitely misses you.” I heard Pierce in the background grumbling. “He’s trying to grab the phone from me. I think he’s bashful.”
“Emily, don’t torture him.”
She laughed. “But he’s so cute when his face is bright red.”
Pierce came on the line. “She’s a monster. Where did she learn her manners?”
“I don’t think she learned any.”
“She says she heard that.” He laughed. “She says she’s going to cut holes in all of your socks.”
I grinned, feeling happier now. It was a nice change talking to Pierce and Emily after spending the day with Brodie and his brooding wife. “Is Emily still in the room?”
“Nah, she wandered off.”
“I can’t wait to get home.”
“Yeah?” His tone was husky.
I sighed. “Yep. I don’t like sleeping alone anymore.”
“Really? A confirmed bachelor like you?” He laughed softly.
“It was never officially confirmed, and I really do love having you in my bed.” I licked my lips. “I’ve been thinking, the baby needs its own room. Maybe we should make your room into the baby’s room, and you can just permanently move into mine.” He was silent, and I waited for his response with my pulse racing.
“I don’t want to rush things.”
I squinted. “I know. But I think things are going really well with us.”
“I agree. It would suck to ruin them.”
“Are you hesitant because you have doubts about being with me?” I closed my eyes, trying to picture him right now. I could just imagine that little worried line he got between his pretty blue eyes. And he’d probably be gnawing on his full lower lip, wondering if we were moving too quickly.
“No.”
“Well, Pierce. I’m definitely… you know… falling for you. I figured you knew that.” My stomach tensed, waiting for his answer. I felt insecure expressing just how much I cared about him. Feeling like I wanted to be with someone permanently was a new experience for me. I had no desire to play the field or date anyone else. It felt right being with Pierce.
“It’s just… this pregnancy has kind of forced you to be with me.”
“I’m not being forced into anything.”
“If I wasn’t pregnant—”
I exhaled roughly. “If Emily’s mom had told me she was pregnant, I’d have helped her financially, but I wouldn’t have wanted a relationship with her. Emily, yes. But I wouldn’t have let myself be pressured into being with someone I didn’t love just because I got them pregnant.”
“Okay.”
“I’m a selfish alpha, remember? We don’t do things we don’t want to do.”
He chuffed. “You’re not that selfish.”
“I get insecure too, you know. Maybe you’re just with me because you’re pregnant. This goes both ways.”
“No. That’s not why I’m still around.”
“Promise?”
“Yes. Being with you and Emily is probably the only time, since living with my grandmother, that I’ve felt like I belonged somewhere.”
“Yeah?” He had no idea how good that made me feel to hear him say that. Sometimes I worried that he’d wake up one day and decide he didn’t want to be around an alpha anymore.
“I know that when this baby comes, things are going to be hectic and chaotic, but I don’t care.” He gave a tense laugh. “I think it’ll also be amazing.”
I had a lump in my throat by the time he stopped speaking.
“Are… are you there?” he asked softly.
“I’m here.” I cleared my throat. “You’re going to get me all emotional saying shit like that, Pierce.”
He laughed. “Sorry.”
“I’m supposed to be a big strong manly bodyguard. I can’t have my employer seeing me with red swollen eyes.”
“Right. Let’s talk about football or something. How about them Dodgers?”
I grinned. “That’s not football.”
“Oh.” He snorted. “I’m not really into sports.”
“Yeah. I know.” I glanced at my watch. “Damn. I need to get back inside.”
“Who are you protecting again?”
“A rich dick and his sad little wife,” I whispered, looking around uneasily. “The guy invented some kind of washer.”
“At least it sounds easy. You shouldn’t be in too much danger.”
“Nope. It’s a cake assignment. I hope to fly home tomorrow in the early afternoon.”
“Okay. Well, be safe, but get back here soon.”
My stomach fluttered at his warm tone. “I will.”
I hung up and slipped back into the suite using my key card. There were two girls who’d been at the convention still in the room. They both were giggling and seemed pretty drunk, and one of them was even sitting on Brodie’s knee. Brodie’s tie was undone, and he looked like he had lipstick smeared on his cheek and bottom lip.
Lola was still knitting in the corner, although her cheeks were bright red. I was pissed for her about her husband’s crass behavior. Who the hell hit on girls right in front of their wife? It was shitty enough to do it period, but with his wife right there, it was twice as low class. The problem was it wasn’t really my place to get Brodie in line. Lola needed to do that, but she obviously wasn’t up to the task. I knew I should keep my mouth shut, but like an idiot I didn’t.
I cleared my throat. “You girls about ready to clear out?” The look Brodie gave me wasn’t a pleasant one, but I pretended like I didn’t notice.
“Butt out,” he growled. “You’re here to protect me, not babysit me.”
“It’s pretty late,” I said patiently. I hoped maybe Lola would join in, but she just kept knitting like a machine.
Brodie curled his lip. “What are you a choirboy? I’m not ready to go to bed yet.”
“Yeah, we’re having fun,” the girl on his lap said in a gratingly high-pitched voice. “We don’t want to go just yet.”
“Nope.” The other girl snorted, holding up her champagne glass. “The party is just getting started.”
Lola shook her head and muttered something under her breath, as her knitting needles clicked even faster.
Well. I tried. It’s up to you now, Lola.
I shrugged and moved into the little kitchen area just so I didn’t have to watch the show too closely. If he was staying up, I had to stay up too, so I grabbed a Red Bull from the fridge and cracked it open, watching Lola as I sipped the beverage. She looked furious, and it kind of made me uneasy. How long would a person put up with being disrespected like that until they snapped?
Another hour passed with the girls slurring and giggling along with Brodie. I was exhausted and just wanted to go to bed. I was surprised Lola was still up; maybe she was afraid of how far her husband would go with these girls if she wasn’t around to control him. Not that his pathetic, lecherous behavior was exactly controlled. His hands were all over the girls, and he had a pretty obvious boner.
Desperate for sleep, I gave one last try to get the girls to leave. “Mr. Chase, don’t you have to give a presentation tomorrow at eight in the morning?” I held his surly gaze until he looked away first.
“Yes,” he grumbled.
“Maybe you can all meet up again tomorrow. After your conference.”
You know. When I’m long gone.
He exhaled as if he was being horribly put-upon. “Fine. I guess we should call it a night.”
Lola snorted in the corner, rolling her eyes.
“Aww,” one of the girls pouted.
“I’ll make it up to you tomorrow, girls.” Brodie gave a surreptitious glance toward his wife.
“All right,” the other girl giggled. “You’d better.”
The girls wobbled to the door and kissed Brodie goodbye. Once they were gone, Brodie stumbled to the bedroom, drunk off his ass. I moved into the area where Lola sat. She was staring into space, a frown on her wan face.
“You ready for bed?” I asked politely, since she didn’t seem in any hurry to join her husband in the bedroom.
She sighed and met my gaze with a faraway look. “He wasn’t always like this.”
I shifted. “No?”
She shook her head. “No. He was really sweet and kind of shy when I met him.” Her expression hardened. “But the money changed him.”
“It can do that to some people.” I didn’t know what else to say. Her husband was a first-class prick. Maybe he’d been a nice person once, but he sure as hell wasn’t very nice anymore.
She pinned her angry stare on me. “Did you know I was the one who designed that damn self-fastening washer?”
I frowned. “Really?” Brodie had been so puffed up with pride, I’d assumed he’d designed it.
“Yes. I have a degree in engineering.” She snorted. “Brodie never even graduated college.”
That made a little more sense now about why she was still in the picture. If she’d designed the washer, he probably couldn’t very well just dump her and keep the money all to himself.
She sighed and stood slowly. “I keep waiting for him to change back into the man I knew.”
“How long have you been married?”
“Thirty years.”
“Wow.”
Grimacing, she said, “He’s been like this the last four. I’m not sure I can take it anymore.”
“No one would blame you if you decided you’ve had enough.” I’d have divorced the asshole long ago.
She turned her head quickly toward me, fixing her gaze on me oddly. “Really?” She fingered a silver cross necklace she wore. “I have tried to be selfless and patient. But a woman has her limits. But I do worry God will judge me harshly.”
“Bad behavior has consequences, and I’m sorry to say, Brodie has behaved badly.”
She nodded. “You’re right. You’re absolutely right.”
I stifled a yawn. “I’m sorry.”
She smiled. “You poor dear. You’re exhausted. You run along to bed, and I’ll do the same.”
I had the adjoining suite, and I moved to the connecting door. “Thanks. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Yes. If I’m around.”
Was she dumping his sorry ass tonight? I couldn’t blame her, although personally, I’d have waited till we weren’t traveling around the country to do it.
I went into my room and had just pulled off my shirt when I heard a loud crash from Brodie and Lola’s suite. Springing toward the connecting door, I pulled my gun from my ankle holster and opened the door slowly. There wasn’t anyone in the main room of the suite, and the front door was still closed and bolted. Frowning, I crept into the dark room, sticking close to the wall and searching the shadows for any hint of movement.
My heart pounded as I made my way stealthily toward their bedroom door. When Lola let out a bloodcurdling scream, I lunged toward the bedroom door and flung it open, crouching so I wasn’t such an obvious target.
What I saw had me gasping in shock. Lola was struggling frantically with her husband, while trying to jab a knitting needle into his face. One needle was already lodged in his shoulder, and his eyes were wide with disbelief as his enraged wife snarled and attacked.
“Lola, stop!” I yelled, training my gun on her.
She glanced over, her eyes wide. “What are you doing?”
“Put the needle down, and move away from Brodie.” My voice was harsh, and I felt sick to my stomach at the idea I might have to shoot her.
Her face crumpled in disbelief. “But you’re on my side.” A sob broke from her lips. “You said no one would blame me.”
The blood drained from my face. “I meant if you divorced him. I never meant you could kill him.” My voice wobbled as I moved toward her.
Brodie’s arms shook as he tried to hold his crazy wife off. “Why are you talking to her? She stabbed me!”
“Shut up!” she growled, attacking him with more force now. “You asshole! How dare you disrespect me like that? How dare you parade your little sluts in front of me over and over again! I hate you. I hate you!”
I couldn’t bring myself to shoot her, so I shoved my gun back in my holster and lunged toward her. She screamed and tried to stab me with the needle, but I blocked it and it flew out of her hands. “Lola, calm down,” I said through gritted teeth, wrestling with her.
But Lola didn’t feel like calming down, and she screamed and clawed at my face hysterically. She managed to roll me, and my head banged the corner of the nightstand. It rocked me for a second, as stars circled the corner of my vision, but I clenched my teeth and pinned her arms, yanking her to her feet.
Brodie scrambled off the bed, gasping for air. “She’s insane. She’s lost her mind.” He bugged his eyes.
Lola burst into tears as she struggled in my arms. “Let me go. Just let me kill him. Please, let me kill him. Please, please, please let me kill him.” Her voice became higher-pitched. “He deserves it. You know he does; you even said so.”
“No, Lola. I never said that.” I put her on the ground as easily as I could, but she still let out a loud oomph as she hit the carpet. I held her wrists tight, one knee on her back. “Brodie, please call 911.”
He pounced on the phone, dialing the front desk with shaking hands. I touched my temple, seeing a smear of blood on my fingers, but I got distracted when Lola started screaming and struggling again.
By the time the cops arrived, Brodie had removed the first knitting needle from his shoulder. Lola hadn’t done much damage with that one, although his pajama top was a little bloody. If she’d succeeded in jabbing his face though, she might have actually managed to kill him.
Lola sobbed and shrieked as the cops took her away, and Brodie watched in horror. I gave my version of the events to the police, and Brodie did the same. Then I called my boss at Shield and explained what had happened. He arranged to have another agent sent within hours so that I could go home. That suited me fine. I was so disgusted by Brodie, I could barely look at him, and he seemed embarrassed to look at me too. You’d think the asshole would have thanked me for saving his life, but then again, his wife probably wouldn’t have wanted to skewer him if he was a gracious guy.
When my replacement arrived, I took a taxi to the airport. As I slid into my seat on the plane, I exhaled a long, tired breath, trying to shake off some stress. The wild-eyed image of Lola was stuck in my brain. I still couldn’t believe she’d misunderstood my empathy for a green light to murder her husband.
I hadn’t called home yet because it was still the middle of the night and I didn’t want to disturb Pierce while he slept. But I wanted to talk to him so much it hurt. I wanted to hear his voice and maybe make him laugh. Anything to erase the last few hours from my mind. Something about the ugliness of witnessing the destruction of Brodie and Lola’s relationship had me feeling depressed.
I suspected part of my problem was that I knew I was in love with Pierce. It terrified me. I’d never fallen for anyone before, and I hated that I wasn’t in control of my emotions. I couldn’t demand he fall in love with me too. And what if he didn’t? What if I was just the guy who’d gotten him pregnant and he eventually moved on to some other alpha?
The memory of the raw hatred on Lola’s face toward her spouse sent chills through me. I knew there’d been a time when she’d loved Brodie and he’d loved her. But then he’d changed toward her, and she couldn’t make him love her anymore. What had happened? How had it gone so horribly wrong? Was love really so fragile that it could be mangled and twisted over time until it became hatred?
My head ached from banging it on the nightstand. The paramedics that had arrived on the scene had butterfly bandaged it for me, but I hadn’t wanted to go to the hospital or do anything that would have delayed me getting back to LA. It was just a scratch, and I’d had far worse injuries over the years.
I closed my eyes and comforted myself with the knowledge that soon I’d be back home with Pierce and Emily, and this dark cloud would go away.