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Now that he was close, some of the sick feeling began to dissipate. “I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m feeling.”
Kyle sat down in the seat next to her, turning her chair so their knees were brushing. “Talk to me, Evie. Tell me what’s going on.”
“It’s Gerald.” She didn’t miss the way his body tensed at the mention of her boss. “He’s in so deep. He’s not the man I thought he was. I don’t understand any of it. Understand him.”
What she’d found in his office, the pictures of her he had, wasn’t far from the front of her mind. How he’d known who Eveline was from the moment she’d walked into his office. Or had he found out about her brief foray into movies after she started working with him?
Those were questions she couldn’t answer because she never wanted to speak to the man again.
“I don’t know, baby. I wish I could tell you why Gerald was doing what he was doing, but I can’t. That doesn’t mean that we won’t stop until we find out why. I don’t like putting someone out of business, but it’s clear from the little we’ve uncovered, Gerald has crossed the line from ethical security work to unethical—and worse, criminal acts. People should be able to employ him and know that they’re safe. That they’re not going to be targeted by the people they’ve hired to help them all because Gerald got greedy.”
“The business was doing well. There was no need for him to do what he’s done.” That was the thing that Eveline couldn’t really understand. “Triple Z was making a good profit. Even after you turned up on the scene and started bidding for the same jobs as Gerald. It’s not like we live in a small town. This is LA. There are millions of people here. Plenty of actors, models, singers, influencers, etc. that need security. Not to mention, it wasn’t like Gerald was providing the only security in LA, there are dozens and dozens of other agencies. It’s just when you arrived on the scene, he got erratic and started his shady business practices.”
“I know. For whatever reason, Gerald took an instant dislike to us. Although—” Kyle paused, and Eveline could tell something was ticking over in his mind. “I don’t believe he has any connection to Ash or Storm, who started Alliez Security, in New York. Gerald has no military connections in his background. He wasn’t in the Navy, like Ash and Storm. Why the fuck didn’t I think of this earlier?” He stood. “I’ll be right back.”
Annoyance flared within her. They’d been sharing a lot of information, and it was her life that was being disrupted. “Kyle! Wait.”
He paused in the doorway.
“What’s going on? Talk to me.”
Eveline repeated the words he used on her.
He blew out a breath. “Sorry. I’m going to get Cass to dig a little deeper into Gerald and his background. Family members. Anything that might somehow connect the two of us because as you said, until we arrived, he had no issues with other security firms. It could prove to be nothing, but we won’t know unless we investigate it. I’ll be right back.” Kyle strode back to her, hooking a finger under her chin and lifting gently. “I’m sorry for not letting you know what I was thinking.” He leaned forward and touched his lips against hers.
Her body softened, and Eveline wished he’d deepen the kiss. Take them off on a journey where it was just the two of them, and there wasn’t this mystery hanging over their head.
When he pulled away, she smiled up at him. “I love you.”
His lips curved into a wide smile. “Fuck, I love hearing that. And I love you, too. I won’t be long, and then we can leave.” Kyle brushed his thumb across her cheek and headed out of the room, leaving her feeling warm, protected, and loved.
Whatever needed to be done, he’d do it and he would find out why Gerald was doing what he was.
With Kyle beside her, Eveline was safe. Nothing could touch her.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Kyle scanned the grocery store parking lot. While it hadn’t totally disappeared, the feeling of impending doom that’d shrouded him most of the day had lightened. Didn’t mean he was going to let down his guard. After all his years as a Delta, it wasn’t something he could turn off. Trusting his gut, or more importantly, listening to it, had saved him and his team on numerous occasions.
Satisfied that there wasn’t anyone watching them, he helped Eveline into the car before depositing their purchases on the back seat.
A few moments later, they were pulling out of the lot and heading back to his apartment. He tapped his finger against the steering wheel as they were stopped at a set of lights.
“Have you heard anything from Cass?” Eveline asked.
“Not yet, but I imagine we’ll get some information soon.”
“Where did you find Cass? I’m surprised, given her computer skills, a government agency didn’t target her while she was in college.”
The lights turned green, and Ox accelerated. “I’m sure she was, I’ve never asked her. She arrived for an interview as my receptionist. She had the skills I needed and wanted, so I hired her. I found out about how she knew her way around a computer and the complexities of the dark web a couple of weeks after she started.”
“Didn’t you find it weird that she had these skills but wanted a front office job?”
He shrugged. At the time, he’d been wary of Cass but there had been shadows in her eyes, and he hadn’t wanted to press her about them. Over time, they’d disappeared, and Ox had put it down to her putting distance between her and what had caused her distress. “I consider her needing a change in career as a benefit for me. Like everyone, I’m guessing Cass has some shit in her past she doesn’t want to talk about, and I respect that.”
“You’re lucky she came to you. I’ve fumbled my way around the computer and my skills have got better over time, but Gerald would love to have a Cass.”
“Trust me, I know.” His attention drifted to his rearview mirror, and he relaxed a fraction when he saw the car he’d been watching slip into a turning lane.
