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Scotty
Six months later.
“Here’s your suite.” Brody Bradford grunted a laugh as he flipped the light on. Boxes were stacked in the corner of a rather large office with a long built-in desk, which I would need for all of my equipment. “I’m sure you talked to him, so you know Q’s not flying in until later in the week because he wants to hand deliver some things.”
I glanced around at the empty space. “Yeah, and thanks. This’ll be great.”
“We’d have put you into Tally’s office, but she’s a little picky with her stuff and doesn’t trust anyone to use it. Seems to be a pattern with you IT people.”
“Like all you bodyguards aren’t paranoid?” I teasingly raise an eyebrow.
“Touché.” He shut the door behind him. “Knowing Tally, she’ll bring the baby in to get work done during her maternity leave, just like she did with the first one. Tate’ll probably have to come drag her away again. That woman does not like to be told what she can or can’t do.”
I’d talked to Tally and knew from our few conversations that she was a spitfire. Her husband, Tate, was the quarterback for the Texas Lone Stars, and without meeting him, I had a feeling he loved her feisty attitude. Most men like a challenge, myself included. “I suspect you’re right about that.”
“We’re glad to have you here, man.”
“Glad to be here.”
I got hired as a cyber security expert at Royal Ace Security, the top security company in the nation. The man in charge of their IT department wants to expand the cyber division and called me in to assess their network and software, and then design an impenetrable program.
Q and I met through a mutual client, one who used me for cyber and Royal for personal protection. Q didn’t like that he was passed over for a job, so he decided to bring me onto the team when he realized I might be just as good, if not better than him.
Just a bonus that my close friend Bristol lives in Warrenville, too. And also, as I discovered what seemed like forever ago, a gorgeous blond woman with bright blue eyes who I just know was put in my arms for a purpose that I wasn’t going to understand until I understood her.
She confused me. It was like her body was telling me one thing but the words out of her mouth said the opposite, and I didn’t know what to believe, or if I should believe either. But whenever that bit of doubt crossed my mind, I remembered how she felt in my arms and knew I had to find out for sure.
After the wedding, I regrettably needed to go home to wrap some things up. I had to stop myself from hunting her down and demanding she speak to me so many times that I lost count. When I came to her, I wanted there to be no distractions to get in the way. That night was… God, it was insane. She was the best in every way imaginable, and I wanted more.
Clearly, she had other ideas because before I could even get a chance to exchange numbers, she was gone. But not for long. No… I was here now. She was going to have all my attention because I wasn’t going to let her have a choice.
What we shared was more than a one-night stand. She was better than a quick fuck against a wall, but she was so tempting, so beautiful, so everything that I couldn’t resist. And the way she practically climbed me, I wasn’t going to deny her. Now that I was here, we were going to have the conversation we should have had months ago. She was going to explain why she ran from me. I only took a few minutes to make sure whoever came out didn’t see her in a compromising position before I went to find her, but she was already gone.
“You got a place yet?” Brody asked as he continued the tour of the spacious facility.
It wasn’t unusual for me to get lost in thought about her. I had to shake my head to focus on his question. “I’m at the motel right now but haven’t decided whether I want to rent or buy.” Although renting was what I was leaning toward because I didn’t know how long I would be here for.
I was born and raised in Texas, and even though the two people I hated most in the world were still here, I hadn’t left yet. My mom got out a long time ago and begged and pleaded for me to follow suit, but something held me back.
I didn’t want Craig, who I no longer consider my father, and Shane to be left alone. I didn’t trust them, even after Shane was behind bars for what he did to Bristol. My mom was safe with Sal, her new husband, who I did consider my father. He assured me dozens of times that he had his eye on Craig and I didn’t need to worry about him, but the part of me that remembered what it felt like to be a helpless kid wanted to prove that he wasn’t scared anymore.
I wanted Craig to know he didn’t chase me away and for Shane to see he could no longer intimidate me, but in the end, none of that mattered. I didn’t know until it happened that the reason I stayed was to save Bristol from my dickhead brother. I wished he never got his hands on her in the first place, but he was no longer a threat, and we both could finally breathe easy.
Since Shane was now behind bars, it was rare that I thought about him. He couldn’t hurt anyone anymore, at least not for twenty years. He was found guilty of multiple charges including criminal stalking, false imprisonment, and assault with a deadly weapon. I was hoping he’d have to serve his time consecutively, but because it was his first offense, the judge ordered them concurrent.
Brody stopped at a panel on the wall, entered a code, and stood still for the retinal scan. The system beeped, and the lock automatically disengaged before he opened the door to the gym. I pulled my head back at the huge facility that had every workout machine and accessory you could imagine, including an octagon. He jerked his chin at the two men sparring. “Feel free to use any of the equipment at any time. If you need a sparring partner or a spot, someone’s always around.”
“Sounds good.” I was a first-degree black belt in Jiu Jitsu. As soon as Sal entered my and my mom’s life, he made me learn how not to only defend myself, but taught me to kick serious ass. Essentially, he gave me power I was raised to believe I didn’t possess.
The tour continued and he introduced me to Link, Foster, and Cal, who all had to be present in order to get me security codes, do prints, and the retinal scan so I could have access to the building. It was a really well-run machine, needing different levels of approval in different sequences to add a new user. Q was definitely smart because this prevented someone from going rogue and abusing their power to give access to an enemy.
Brody and I now stood on the sidewalk just outside the main entry. “If you need anything before you meet up with Q, just holler.”
“Will do. Thanks, man.”
He pulled his cell out of his pocket, and a second later, my phone vibrated. “That’s the number to the owner of the apartment building just on the edge of town. My brother, Baker, used to live there. It’s nice and quiet with only a handful of rentals in the unit. Not sure if there’s any available now, but there aren’t a lot of apartments close by, so it might be worth a call to see.”
“I’ll check it out.”
