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Chloe laughed with him, knowing that as far as bosses went, she couldn’t find a better one. Porter had believed in her enough to mentor her when she’d first joined the company, after graduating from the criminal justice program at the University of Nevada. She excelled as a PI because of this man.
The relationship between them was easy and light. She thought Porter would have made a great friend, but their relationship was strictly professional. Even so, she got a big-brother vibe from him—he seemed to feel protective around her.
Two more sips of coffee had her sitting up a little straighter. She closed the file on her desk and rose from her chair. “Guess I should get going—”
The front door opened, and Chloe stopped breathing.
She sank back into her chair, instant butterflies whipping in her belly. As Porter stood up and turned toward the door, Chloe couldn’t look away from the guy who stood there, who had the air of a military man, with his shaved head and thick, muscular body. Standing a good two heads taller than her, Sawyer possessed the type of physique that screamed I can protect you. His intense gold-flecked hazel eyes locked onto hers, heating her blood.
“Now that’s a face I didn’t expect to see this morning,” said Porter. “What brings you by?”
“I need to hire you.” Sawyer shut the door closed behind him. “Can we talk?”
“Of course.” Porter waved toward his office.
Sawyer’s smoky eyes zeroed in on Chloe again. “Chloe might be able to help, too.”
Help? With what?
She held her breath, controlling the racing of her heartbeat. He moved toward her desk, and goose bumps prickled her flesh. She swore she could feel
every move he made. His potent presence electrified the air. When her fingers tightened around the edge of her desk, Sawyer’s attention fell there—he’d clearly noticed her white knuckles.
To avoid his inspection, she dropped her hands to her lap and cleared her throat. “What’s going on?”
Porter returned to his seat in front of Chloe’s desk. Sawyer lowered himself into the other chair next to him. Chloe pushed away from her desk a little, putting distance between herself and all that power. Porter and Sawyer had a similar type of intensity, but Sawyer’s was more palpable. The two men together made the air thick, leaving Chloe breathless.
“I need you to find someone for me,” said Sawyer.
Chloe noted a darkness in his eyes that she didn’t remember having seen the last time they’d met. That had been more than a month ago, when Kenzie needed a shady businessman investigated because he’d threatened her.
Before she could ask Sawyer the next obvious question, Porter beat her to it. “Who?”
Sawyer ran his hands over his face to clear the exhaustion emanating off him. “My little sister’s boyfriend, Travis Marks.”
Chloe twined her fingers in her lap, fighting the deep need to touch him and somehow ease his strain. “Why?”
Sawyer frowned. “He beat up my baby sister, Ashlyn, Saturday night.”
“Shit,” Porter snarled. “Is she okay?”
“I suppose she will be,” Sawyer said. “It won’t be a fast recovery, though. He did a fucking number on her.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that,” Porter said.
Chloe attempted not to notice how Sawyer’s biceps flexed and bulged. She knew her reaction was inappropriate, considering the subject they were discussing. Yet her fingers twitched to explore all of him. “The police haven’t apprehended Travis?”
“No.” Irritation tightened the corners of Sawyer’s eyes. “He’s gone into hiding. Just before I showed up here, Kyler told me that they’re running around in circles trying to find him. Yes, they have an APB out on him, but that isn’t getting them anywhere. We need to find more leads. And I know the police don’t have the resources you do at tracking someone down.”
Porter gave a firm nod. “We can dig deeper.”
“Have they gotten any information at all?” Chloe asked, grabbing a piece of paper to take notes.
“Nothing useful,” Sawyer said. “If Travis is staying with family or friends, they’re doing their best to protect him. Kyler told me that two search warrants were issued for his parents’ and his sister’s houses, but Travis wasn’t at either location. And his family says they don’t know where he is.”
Porter asked, “You don’t believe them?”
“Of course I don’t,” Sawyer snapped. “They’re protecting the fucker.”
