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Because she was standing at the door, he had a feeling that she was going to tell him that she’d changed her mind about having one. Bowie braced himself for an argument. A knock-down, drag-out one if it came to that, because he wasn’t about to have her out there, possibly a moving target, without some sort of protection.
“What about it?” he asked.
Her expression softened into a smile. A smile that managed to curl up in the pit of his stomach. “Thanks.”
He would have wanted to accept her thanks at face value, but he’d come to know that nothing, when it came to Marlowe, was that easy.
“But?” he asked, waiting for her protest or refusal of the offer.
“No but,” she told Bowie. “Just thanks.”
Despite her initially trying to tell him that having a bodyguard wasn’t in the cards for her, Bowie had remained steadfast and pushed because he was concerned. Marlowe couldn’t help but compare that to her father’s reaction. Payne Colton knew that she had been the target of an attack at her apartment, but he hadn’t said anything about getting her a bodyguard or even acted concerned that the attack had happened.
She knew that her father, by definition, was not a demonstrative man. As far back as she could remember, he had expected his children to take care of themselves, handle their own problems. Time and again, he had said that it “built character.” He obviously expected that it would do that for her, as well.
But it was obvious to her that Bowie didn’t subscribe to that sort of philosophy. Or, if he did, he still wasn’t about to take any chances with the life of the woman who was carrying his child.
There were all sorts of ways to view his insisting on a bodyguard for her in a bad light, but Marlowe chose not to go that route. Instead, she just wanted to enjoy the fact that someone cared enough about her well-being to stand up to her and do what he felt was necessary.
His stock definitely went up, as far as she was concerned.
Bowie grinned then, as if relieved he wasn’t going to have to fight her on this after all.
“Don’t mention it,” he told her.
“Just let me know when your guy starts to do his job,” she told him. “Otherwise, his head will end up mounted as a trophy on my father’s wall. My father has a way of shooting first and asking questions later,” she added.
Bowie laughed dryly. “I’ll keep that in mind,” he told her.
“You should,” Marlowe agreed, nodding. “For your own peace of mind, as well as for my future bodyguard’s well-being.”
“Hey,” Bowie called after her as she opened the door and began to leave. “Aren’t you forgetting something?” he asked.
She had no idea what he was referring to. “Like what?” she asked, a trace of suspicion reentering her voice.
In response, Bowie indicated the teddy bear that was still sitting on his desk.
Strangely relieved that this wasn’t going to be something that could escalate into an argument between them, Marlowe laughed and shook her head. “I didn’t forget. He stays here,” she told him. “Think of him as your new little friend.” Her mouth curved a little more. “He’ll keep you company.”
And with that, she walked out.
* * *
As was her habit, Marlowe drove back to Colton Oil with a lead foot, stepping hard on the gas to zip through yellow lights that were about to turn red. She admitted to herself that she was not known for her patience, and her patience was in exceedingly short supply when it came to wasting time being stuck in traffic, waiting for lights to turn green.
She calculated that her method enabled her to save both on time and gas, and although saving gas meant nothing to her as a member of Colton Oil, time was something she had always valued a great deal.
Zigzagging through the small, homey streets, she got back to Colton Oil’s headquarters even quicker than she had anticipated. Marlowe really hoped it was an omen of how things were going to go in her hunt through the archives.
“You slowing down these days?” Callum asked when she pulled up. He was down in the parking garage, waiting for her, and she’d arrived later than he’d anticipated.
“Hardly,” she retorted, getting out of her vehicle.
Her twin knew better than to continue teasing her.
Chapter 13
Mustang Valley General Hospital was a large, inviting, five-story brick building that had been built back in 1925. It had gone through several renovations by now and could currently boast being a total state-of-the-art hospital. But it had become so only over the last fifteen years, thanks to endowments funded by Colton Oil.
