AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“And you haven’t spoken to Crisp or Manon about this?”
She shook her head.
“If there’s an illegal activity, the police should be informed.”
“No,” shot out of her mouth like a missile, making me flinch. “I need to know what Manon is involved in. That’s why I’m asking you to treat this delicately. It’s between us only. Not even my family. Not Declan. No one. Can I rely on you? I’ll pay whatever you ask.”
I scratched my bearded jaw. “It’s not a question of money, Mrs. Lovechilde.”
“Call me Caroline, please.” Her mouth curled slightly. “I believe that you’re also accompanying my daughter to Paris on the weekend as her bodyguard.”
I’d gotten that call before arriving for this meeting and had agreed to the job. The money was excellent. But how I’d deal with Savanah after hours was the tricky part. Especially for my highly reactive dick. That woman had me under her fucking spell.
“Yes. I’ll be escorting her.”
“Good. She’s gotten herself mixed up with a troubled man.” She rolled her eyes. “Only this time, he’s got something on her. No one will tell me. Do you know what it is?”
Her eyes penetrated mine.
Does she know I’ve been with Savanah?
“I take it this is the second matter you wished to discuss?”
She nodded.
“Although your daughter”—I chose my words carefully—“struck me as jumpy, she wouldn’t exactly elaborate.” I couldn’t spill on the little Savanah had told me in strict confidence. “Being a drug addict, Bram’s extremely volatile. That much I know. I wouldn’t trust him.”
“No.” She sighed. “I’ve witnessed his boorish behaviour.” She shook her head, looking more like that worried mother by the minute. She even reminded me of my mother, who, with that same concerned frown, jumped every time a knock came at the door.
“Getting back to our earlier discussion, I’d like you to case the back of the casino. You were in the army with my son. I’m sure you’re good at this kind of thing.” She smiled tightly.
Faraway places, with strangers threatening to blow us up, I am.
“Consider it done. I’ll report back to you. I’ll do a recon now. Good excuse to jump on Drake’s new trail bike.” I sniffed.
The frown remained on her face. “Recon?”
“Reconnaissance. I’ll ride through the forest and find a vantage point for later when it’s dark.”
“That’s a sound plan.” Her face softened. “Declan always spoke highly of you. You helped him while he was on those dastard missions. I’ll never forget that. Or this.” Her eyes met mine, and from that moment, our relationship deepened. Or so it felt like to me.
Did that mean I couldn’t fuck her daughter?
That wasn’t happening anyway while she dated that fuckwit.
I rose. “Okay. I’ll report back on Friday.”
She held out her hand, and I took it. Her eyes met mine again. I read a lot in that look. Like she needed me to protect her family from some hidden evil.
Theforestatnighthad this kind of peaceful magic about it, despite all the scurrying and rustling coming from night creatures, which made me pause and clutch my Beretta. I carried that gun as one would a good luck charm. It was also a habit, after a decade in the military. Despite my hatred of automatics, I was fond of the vintage Italian gun passed down to me by my grandfather.
A torch was out of the question as I couldn’t blow my cover, so I adjusted my night vision in the forest. Helped by the moon, I found the path to the back of Salon Soir with ease.
My phone beeped, and I looked to see it was Savanah. She’d called earlier about the Paris trip, sounding like it was some exciting romantic getaway.
If only.
I’d never been to Paris and, being human, an element of anticipation buzzed through me. Having watched enough Bond movies, I appreciated heritage architecture and extraordinary art, but I was there to protect Savanah. Which wasn’t really a job. I would have done it for free.
