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She blinked at him.
Suddenly, he lowered the phone and took a step toward her. “Bronte, you’re too quiet. You’re scaring me.”
“I’m scaringyou? After what just happened back at the café? Getting a phone delivered with my drink? This guy knows my every move, Jace!”
He moved in and started rubbing her arms again. Up and down, up and down, from shoulders to elbows because her arms were still full of cat.
Her pet pushed his head under Jace’s hand.
“Are you getting ignored, Hemingway?” He stroked the feline’s ears and he responded with a loud purr.
“Here!” She thrust the cat at Jace. “He likes you better. I’m going to check my mailbox downstairs. I was so frazzled I forgot.”
He held her by the arm. “Maybe you’re still too frazzled if you already forgot what you said about The Broker knowing your every move. I’ll get the mail. Okay?”
He handed the cat back to her. “Lock the door behind me. The only person who gets through these locks is me. Don’t let anyone else in. Got it?”
Trapping her lip in her teeth, she nodded.
As soon as he closed the door, she hurried to lock up after him. Then she leaned against the door, face buried in Hemingway’s fur. “I have to get a grip.”
The cat meowed, either in agreement or because he was sick of being cuddled so tight.
She lowered him to the floor and moved to her laptop where it was set up on her desk in the corner. The beautiful sunlight poured through her space—another of her reasons for buying this condo. But right now, she couldn’t see beyond the shadows following her.
She had to get a hold of herself. Now. There was no time for making mistakes like going downstairs to fetch her mail. Jace was here to keep her safe, but that didn’t mean she could turn into an airhead.
She did still have a business to run, a trade show coming up fast…and a big issue with Angelica.
Sinking to the desk chair, she pulled up her inbox and skimmed through her company emails. Nothing stuck out to her as pressing—or something Kimmy couldn’t handle in her efficient way.
Bronte was just closing out of the email when the front door opened.
Jace entered, and gone was the carefree bodyguard who asked if she wanted Chinese takeout. His brows were lowered. Even the plaid shirt he’d swiped from the lost and found box in the laundry room seemed to stretch too tight around his broad shoulders.
She stopped in the middle of the floor. “What’s wrong?”
He held a small pile of mail. Without a word, he walked into the guest room. She trailed behind, questions slamming through her mind.
“What’s going on, Jace? Is there something in the mail? Or did you see someone suspicious on the app?”
He grabbed his laptop bag and stalked out of the room and into the kitchen. There, he set the mail on the table.
She started to reach for it.
“Don’t touch that!”
As if he’d slapped her, she yanked her hand away. Heart pounding, she looked at the normal stack of mail she’d get any day of the week.
He rummaged in his bag and came out with a small kit. Shocked, she watched him crack open a small plastic case and actually dust the letter on top for fingerprints.
She swallowed the dry lump lodged in her throat. “What…is that letter?”
“A threat.”
Her eyes zeroed in on his face. The dark beard on his jaw coupled with the glare in his eyes sent a shiver down her spine. This man wasn’t playing around with her life. He would defend her to the end.
“Who s-sent it?”
