Page 33 of Taylor’s Warrior

When he didn’t immediately say anything, the smile faded. “Rhys, what’s happened?”

He held out his hand, not knowing whether she’d take it or not. “Come with me.”

Thankfully she did, and he couldn’t resist giving her fingers a reassuring squeeze. He led the way to the living room and waited until she made herself comfortable, before taking the seat beside her.

“So, what’s going on?”

Rhys cleared his throat. He wasn’t going to insult her by sugarcoating what he was about to say. “I’ve had a call from Nick. Tex has managed to locate your father. He’s living in a gated community just outside Las Vegas.”

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Taylor wasn’t sure what to say. Her thoughts were a hot, scrambled mess, with a tumult of questions all fighting for attention, threatening to make her head explode.

“Are you okay?”

Rhys’ hand covering hers gave her the anchor she so desperately needed. She lifted her gaze, and found him looking at her with nothing but compassion. “I don’t know. A gated community?”

“That’s what Nick said. Would that kind of accommodation appeal to him?”

She shook her head. “Before all this happened, he rented an ordinary house in the suburbs, the kind of place you’d expect someone like him to have. There was nothing special about it. He always said he could have gone upmarket, but he preferred to put his money into his 401(k). I guess I always assumed that wherever he was he’d have found something similar, or maybe even an apartment.”

A gated community suggested at the very least a substantial change in behavior or attitude—not to mention income. It also made Taylor very uneasy.

“What are you thinking?”

“Am I that transparent?”

Taylor hoped she wasn’t.

Rhys leaned over, cupped the back of her head, and drew her in for a gentle kiss. “Maybe only to me. Do you want to share?”

She did, but she wasn’t sure how best to convey what was going through her mind. “It feels wrong—a bad fit. Pops wouldn’t live somewhere like that. Are you sure you’ve got the right Edward Walker?”

A case of mistaken identity was the only feasible—and acceptable—explanation.

“I asked about that. It’s not as if it’s an unusual name, so it would be easy to make a mistake. However, Nick said Tex was adamant he had the right man. He also said that, based on previous work Tex has done for Spectrum, he has full confidence in what Tex told him. I think we can safely assume that’s where your father is.”

Rhys gathered her in his arms. “Whatever happens, however this develops, always remember—you have Charity and Nick.”

Did she dare ask? Before she could stop it, her mouth took on a life of its own. “And you?”

He didn’t hesitate. “If you want me.”

That was the million-dollar question. “As a friend?”

His gaze traveled over her face, as if he were cataloging everything about it before saying something that could change everything. His lips curved into a ghost of a smile. “As whatever you want.”

A soft moan escaped her lips as she rested her forehead against his shoulder. He stiffened a little, then his chest rose and fell on a deep breath.

“It’s okay if all you want is a bodyguard.”

She couldn’t help but smile—he was giving her a way out. A way out she didn’t need.

“It might be okay with you, but it’s not okay with me. Would you think badly of me if I said I want… more?” She hardly dared whisper the words.

“I’d never think badly of you, fy nghariad.”

She gave a nervous, slightly self-conscious laugh. “It was so much easier when you annoyed me just by breathing.”