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“Still, what? What do you think I’m going to do? Go all vigilante?”
His eyebrows lifted.
“Thanks, Dad.”
“We all want to rearrange the guy’s face. I just don’t want you getting in the way. Let Garrett handle this.”
I knew what my dad meant, and he wasn’t wrong. As satisfying as it would be to beat the shit out of the cockmuppet, that wouldn’t help Marigold. And she was my main concern.
But it still irked me that my dad assumed I was going to cause problems.
“I get it,” I said. “Sit down, shut up, and let Garrett the wonder boy save the day.”
“It’s his job.”
“I know it’s his job. Not that he’s getting anywhere. Preston skips town and I don’t know what the fuck Garrett and his buddies are doing, other than playing grab ass down at the station. Certainly not arresting the guy who assaulted my girl.”
“That’s not your brother’s fault.”
“Yeah, well, it sucks that Marigold still has to worry about that piece of shit.”
“That’s why I’m glad she’s with you.”
I stared at my dad, stunned. Had he meant that? He usually assumed the worst when it came to me.
He cleared his throat. “She’s like one of ours. You know that. I’m glad she has you, especially now.” He glared at me again. “Just don’t screw it up.”
A grin stole over my face and I patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Dad. Now that I’ve got her, there’s no way I’m messing this up.”
He grunted. I wasn’t sure if that meant he believed me or not.
Didn’t matter. Marigold was mine and I wasn’t ever letting her go.
CHAPTER 30
Marigold
It would have been easy to forget I’d ever met Preston, except for the fact that my dad and Zachary were maintaining bodyguard duty. As far as I knew, they weren’t coordinating with each other. But they were clearly going out of their way to check on me regularly while I was at work.
Maybe it wasn’t fair to my dad, but his vigilance was wearing on me, while Zachary’s wasn’t. Zachary could have spent all day hanging around the salon and it wouldn’t have bothered me. It helped that when he was there, he was unobtrusive and spent most of his time charming my clients. Dad looked more like a bouncer at a club.
At least he seemed to have let go of the notion I was going to move back to their house. That was something.
Aside from that, I worried less and less about Preston as the days went by. Our brief relationship, such as it was, faded from my mind. I didn’t regret it, necessarily. I certainly wouldn’t have wanted to go through it again, but it had been a learning experience. A reminder to trust my instincts when something felt wrong.
And when it came to Zachary Haven, everything felt right.
I’d loved him in secret for so long. And now that I could finally set my feelings free, they’d burst to life like wildflowers in spring. I marveled at how easily our lives fit together, how our hearts seemed to click in place like pieces of a puzzle.
He was everything I’d ever wished for and so much more.
The bell on the door of the salon tinkled as I was tidying up to go home. I glanced up and the sight of Zachary warmed me from the inside. The corners of his mouth turned up and the heat in his gaze sent a pleasant tingle down my spine.
“Hi, gorgeous.” He came close, slipped a hand around my waist, and brought me in for a kiss. “How was your day?”
I leaned into his neck and inhaled. He smelled so good—woodsy and clean and manly. It was soothing and arousing all at once.
“So busy. There’s been a sudden influx of men wanting haircuts, and half of them hardly need one.”
