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“Bennett, we’re in different stages of our lives right now. You have a child on the way and my sister to think about. It might be wise for you to bail now.”
“Hell, no. No man left behind. You stay, I stay. Got it?”
Selfish as it may be, he was hoping Bennett felt that way. The chances weren’t good, but without Bennett as backup, it was impossible. “Good. Do you think you can pull everything you can about the manager too? We know he’s in deep, but we don’t know if he’s being forced or is doing it out of greed.”
“Roger. Can I bring in one more guy? He can be trusted, and for the psychological piece, he’d be the one we need.”
“Do I know him?”
“Zoey’s met him. Doug Atwood. We served together, and I’d trust him with my life. Hell, I’ve had to already.”
“Make it happen. And make sure your friend keeps his mouth shut. The repercussions if my brothers find out won’t be good.”
“This guy knows the drill.”
Alex knew how much Bennett loved Zoey. If he trusted Doug around her, then he must be all right.
After they disconnected the call, Alex sat and waited. The manager was supposed to deliver his guest at noon. He was not prepared for this. He’d have to wing how to introduce the subject. There weren’t any right words to say, and he had no idea what she anticipated would happen. Yeah. Nothing awkward about this.
He lay back on the bed, closed his eyes, and tried to focus on anything other than who was about to come knocking on the door. Unfortunately, his mind went to a place not much better. Ziva was still in the adjoining room. How was he going to keep his companion for the night a secret from her? If she sees the young lady dropped off, there is no way she will believe me, even if I tell her nothing happened. Hell, why would she? She knows I’m James Henderson’s son. If I’m even a tenth of the man he was, I’m still a total asshole.
Alex figured it would be best to approach her ahead of time. He hadn’t heard anything from next door, not even her door opening or closing since they returned late last night. I should check on her. Make sure she’s okay.
It almost made him laugh. He’d never searched for a reason to knock on a woman’s door. Yet, here he was, lost for words and trying to come up with an acceptable excuse. He pulled himself off the bed and headed toward the door. Alex didn’t need a reason to knock on a door of a room he was paying for. If she didn’t like it, she could vacate. Great. Now I sound like a jerk in my own head.
Just as he was about to open his door, his phone rang. Pulling it out of his pocket, he saw it was Brice. Come on. Get the hint. I don’t want to talk.
He declined the call, sending it to voicemail. That didn’t stop Brice as he instantly called Alex back. What the fuck?
“I hope this is important,” Alex barked as he answered the phone.
“Where the hell are you, Alex?”
“On vacation. Since I don’t work for you, I don’t need your approval to take one,” Alex responded snidely.
“Vacation? I don’t buy it. Bennett seems to be MIA as well. Is he on vacation too?”
Answering for Bennett was a bit more difficult. He didn’t care what Brice thought, but whatever he said would most likely make it back to Zoey. He never wanted to hurt her. She’d had enough pain and sadness already, brought on by their father. Choosing his words carefully he said, “I’m not Bennett’s keeper either. If you don’t have anything important to discuss, I’ve got someone waiting for me.”
“I’m no fool, Alex.”
Never thought you were. But if you think you can stop me, you’ve underestimated me. Just like everyone always has.“Nor am I, Brice.”
“You should’ve talked to me before doing this,” Brice said plainly. “There are things you don’t know.”
“Because you chose not to share them. This isn’t the time or the line to do so on.” Brice hadn’t called the SAT phone and as far as he knew, Brice shouldn’t know Alex had one either. So why the comment about secured lines? Was that a hint you know what I’m really up to? He wasn’t sure how tech savvy these guys were, but he wasn’t about to take any chances. There was a lot riding on the next few days. Pissing Brice off was the least of his worries. Doing so might make this look more real if anyone was listening. “Now if you don’t mind, I have a sweet young lady who should be arriving soon. We can finish this when I return to the States.”
Alex hung up the phone and slipped it in his pocket. He knew Brice was going to be ripping mad. Sure enough, his phone vibrated again. He didn’t need to look. Brice, if anything, was persistent. Stubborn runs in our genes. He may as well wake up and realize I’m in charge of my own life. I have been for a very long time.
He reached for the doorknob one more time. When he opened it, there was a young woman standing shyly on the other side. She was so tiny and fragile looking. They had her wearing a delicate white dress, surely not a mistake. She definitely looked the innocent virgin, and she was being forced to go to him.
He couldn’t imagine what must be going through her mind. No matter how sheltered she may have been, this would be horrifying for her. Don’t worry, little one. It’s not what you think. Not what any of them think. He wished he could tell her he wasn’t going to touch her or hurt her in any way.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a large man at the end of the hallway, watching the interaction. If Alex did or said something now to ease her mind, it might be a red flag that something was off. No matter how his heart ached for the young girl’s predicament, he couldn’t afford for this to look like anything other than him paying for a sexual service. One wrong move and he knew all hell would break out.
Alex hated it, but he needed the man down the hall to report back that all was okay. Reaching out, he brushed some of her long dark hair from her face. She didn’t budge but squeezed her eyes shut. With her no longer looking at him, Alex gave the guy what he needed. My approval for the product. “Nice. Very nice.”
He hoped that was enough, because scaring this child any more didn’t sit well with him. I’d rather take a bullet than hurt her.
