Page 14 of Alex

“Fine, whatever. Evelyn tell you why she disappeared yet?”

“No. Not yet but she will.” He stepped outside not wanting to risk her hearing him even if she was meant to be asleep.

“We’ll find out. It might be linked. Also, we have Mitch tailing Lili and he said she was asking questions about a woman called Petra Chance. We think the two might be linked as there was a woman of that name linked to James Colchester’s cousin.”

Alex remembered Colchester from when they had provided security for Princess Louisa’s christening a few years ago. The threat level had been at an all-time high, so they had been drafted in to support CO14 now known as RaSP or Royal and Specialist Protection, within the London Met.

Colchester was the 17th Duke of Crossley and provided legal counsel to HRH. He was a solid guy, but Alex knew nothing of his cousin.

“That’s a pretty tenuous link. Do we have anything else? Like who actually issued the order?” Alex was frustrated at the lack of information.

“It came through the usual channels, but I have a meeting with the Princess Royal’s Private Secretary later to see what he knows. In the meantime, keep your head down and keep her alive. I owe her and I pay my debts,” Jack said before disconnecting.

Alex’s mind was spinning from the last forty-eight hours and he needed a few hours’ sleep to clear his head. He didn’t go to his room though, the thought of Evelyn in a bed next door was too much temptation for him. Instead, he stretched out on his L-shaped couch facing the hallway and closed his eyes.

He wokewith a start several hours later when he heard a noise. His eyes shot open and he saw Evelyn tiptoeing down the hall towards the closed door of the third bedroom. Shit!

“Evelyn,” he said springing to his feet.

Evelyn stopped short and spun around a guilty look he recognised well on her face.

“I forgot. Which one is the bathroom?”

He quirked an eyebrow at her. “Do I need to remind you about lying to me?” His hands were in his pockets as he strolled towards her.

Evelyn tilted her head and looked sheepish while still looking adorable in a way she had no clue she was doing.

Fuck sake!

“Fine. I was curious,” she said when he stopped and watched her, his face a warning that he would indeed make sure she was sorry for lying but in the most pleasurable way.

“And why is that?” he asked as he stepped closer to her.

“Because you’re hiding something.”

“We all have our secrets, Evelyn, and that is mine—for now anyway. Unless you are willing to share yours with me?”

She shook her head and he fought the disappointment her denial brought.

“Fine. Then let’s respect each other’s privacy shall we,” he asked with a grin.” He grinned to take the sting from his words.

“Sure. I’m sorry. It was wrong of me to pry when you have been nothing but kind to me,” she said as she stepped back towards her room.

“Why don’t I put on some coffee and then update you on what Jack told me?”

“Can I grab a shower first?”

“In the actual bathroom?”

She crossed her arms which pushing her tits up, so they almost spilt from her vest top. “Yes, smartass, the actual bathroom.”

“Yeah. There should be towels and whatever you need in there.” Pulling his gaze away from her delectable body was hard. No pun intended.

“Thanks,” she said and turned, leaving him standing in the hallway.

Alex put his hands on his hips and looked at the ceiling, searching for inspiration on how he would get through this without making a total ass of himself. Deciding the ceiling wasn’t going to help him, he headed for the kitchen. This was a job for the expensive coffee he kept for special occasions or occasions when his usual blend just wouldn’t cut it.