“What do you think?” I couldn’t restrain the question throbbing in my head. “Why didn’t you text me? I was waiting for you at?—”
“Fuck!” he exclaimed. “I’m so sorry! I had a reminder on my phone, but there was no reception in this area until now.”
Catalina’s words echoed in my head.Kain is hardly ever late. But if he is, that means he’s withanother woman.
“Are you with another woman?” I fumed, hating myself for sounding jealous, but I couldn’t help it.
“What?” he exclaimed. “Where did you get that idea?”
“Your ex, Catalina.”
Spewing a curse, he said, “I wasn’t with a woman. I was meeting with yourgrandfather.”
“What?” I blinked at the idea. “Why?”
“Long story. I’ll tell you when I get home. I’m so sorry I missed our date. Let’s go out tomorrow.”
Knowing he had met with my grandfather should’ve eased my irritation, but it didn’t.
“Not in the mood.” Still annoyed, I added, “Because you didn’t show up, I had dinner with another man.”
“Who?” His voice carried an edge.
“You don’t know him.” I glanced at his security men. “I’m sure your men will tell you everything.”
“They sure will.”
Silence fell between us.
Then I broke the silence. “Why didn’t you tell me about the bodyguards? They scared the hell out of me.”
“I had planned on telling you tonight. Their job is to keep their distance and make sure you’re safe.” He blew out a frustrated sigh. “With all the recent deaths, I didn’t want you in danger.”
I felt honesty in his words.
“I’m not the only one who had bodyguards watching over you,” he said.
“What do you mean?”
“Your grandfather did too. He hired someone to follow you around before he arrived.”
“My grandfather?” I couldn’t believe he’d do something like that. “Why?”
“Like me, he cares about you.”
“I’m so confused. My grandfather watches MacGyver, loves to cook, and plays bingo with his friends. Why would he hire security for me?”
“Because he knows about Hawthorne too. I’ll explain when I see you.”
An ice block dropped to the bottom of my stomach, stirring up fear and nerves. How was Grandpa connected to Hawthorne and Kain? My head throbbed with so much information colliding into each other.
We didn’t speak for a while, just listened to each other’s breathing.
After a moment, Kain said, “Eva.”
The anger in me subsided, replaced by confusion and wonder. Today’s emotional whirlwind left me drained with a throbbing headache.
“Yes?” I rubbed my temple, trying to ease the pressure.
