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“Morning. Any changes to the schedule today, or is the plan the same?” I ask, settling onto a barstool and taking the cup of coffee Gaby slides across the counter for me.
“Nothing yet, but you know that could change the minute Chase gets off the phone,” Katarina answers, laughing at her own joke but grinning even wider when Chase raises his eyebrows at her from the across the room.
I turn away because the love they have for each other is just another sharp reminder of what I don’t have right now. “Thanks for the coffee, Gaby,” I say, not even bothering to rummage through the refrigerator because she’s already cut a large square of egg bake, is putting it on a plate, and I would bet my last dollar that it’s for me.
Gaby places it in the microwave to warm and turns her kind, motherly eyes on me. “How is Alexis? I talked to her briefly before you took her to the airport yesterday, and she said things weren’t looking the best for her friend.”
“Not particularly good. Jan took a turn for the worse, and they ended up having to put her in ICU with intermittent oxygen. They’re hoping she turns the corner and improves enough to get moved to the medical unit soon. It would at least allow her and others to visit for longer periods of time and keep her company,” I say, leaving out the fact that Alexis left here to do that very thing and instead decided to go back to work.
“I’m so sorry to hear that,” Katarina remarks. “I really like Alexis. She’s so bubbly and friendly. I hope everything works out so she can come back. No clue how long it will be before she returns then, I suppose?” she asks, taking a sip of her coffee, still hiding behind that big-ass cup of hers, but I don’t miss the quick glance over to Gaby.
I could just circumvent the elephant in the room, but it’s not my style. “Not sure if she’ll be returning, ladies, but I would agree, Alexis is a very nice person,” I state, not even glancing at them to gauge a reaction. Instead, I get up from my chair and head to the microwave.
“That plate for me?” I ask Gaby.
“Of course,” she replies with a big smile and concerned eyes.
“Smells delicious,” I say, retrieving the plate from the microwave before anyone else walks in and stakes their claim. I grab a fork from the silverware drawer and proceed to eat while standing.
Chase gets off the phone, and we talk through the schedule for the day. When we’re finished, I wave to the ladies, head to the monitors, and work out plans for several more meetings.
It’shours later when I stretch in front of the monitor and text Kenneth to take over the screens from the lower level so I can grab a sandwich. I head to the security room when I’m finished. The entire team stops talking when the door opens. It’s so quiet you could literally hear a fucking pin drop, and that’s never the case. I glance from one to the other. Some of these fuckers should take a lesson in acting just to learn how to keep the wide, goofy-ass grins off their faces because they absolutely suck at it, especially Nick.
“What the fuck are you all smiling about?” I ask, and now even the ones who were holding it together grin at me like fools.
“Oh, I don’t know. Word on the street is that your little princess isn’t being very cooperative. She has the entire security team jumping off schedule every time they turn around. Can’t you get a handle on her or something?” Nick asks, causing my jaw to clench with annoyance.
“Well, for one thing, she’s not my princess, and for the second, she can do what she wants. Alexis is the one being guarded. They just need to do their job and make sure a plan is in place to keep her safe wherever she wants to go. She’s not used to having bodyguards, and I’m sure it’s all overwhelming to her right now,” I state, earning me more than a few overly curious glances, but not from Nick. He’s sitting in the corner, and if anything, his grin gets even wider. I’d like to smack it off his good-natured face about now, but I have work today, and these dumbasses just need to get back to work and stop razzing my ass.
Cole walks in, takes one look around, and gives me a nod. He and I are probably the most alike in terms of getting seriously involved with women. We usually don’t, and when we do, it’s certainly nothing we talk about. “What’s going on?” he asks, glancing around the room at the men still trying to conceal their laughter.
“Sheldon’s woman is giving the security team in New York a hard time, and not in a good way,” Nick jokes.
“What’s Alexis up to?” Cole asks me directly, ignoring the others.
“Nothing serious. Trent and Liam were just blowing off a little steam earlier. Alexis changed plans, and they weren’t aware. They made some quick accommodations to keep her safe, so everything’s good.”
“I’m sure she’s not doing it intentionally, and there’s a good reason for the changes. Alexis seems like a nice young lady to me,” Cole mentions. He’s been known to negotiate us out of many a situation without so much as touching his gun, and he’s about as diplomatic as they come. She may not be doing it on purpose, but she’s putting her safety at risk, and I can’t get the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach to settle as a result. I’ll call her as soon as I can, and we’ll talk through it so I can figure out what’s bothering her.
“Let me know if you guys need anything. I have to meet with a few of the Prestian guards, and then I’ll be upstairs watching the monitors,” I instruct, so Kenneth, the one in the back who hasn’t looked up once, can hear me and knows that I’ll be relieving him soon.
“Roger that,” he replies.
I’m just about to head back upstairs when I get a text.
Trent: Allie just left for a run. Wouldn’t listen to reason. We have surveillance tracking her, but now we’re down to one man at Jan’s house and one at the hospital.
Fuck! Neither of these damn women can follow directions. I send a reply to stay put and text out instructions to get men shifting. I don’t want Allie out running alone, but I sure as hell don’t want the team back at the girls’ apartment shorted.
“Kenneth, can you hone-in on the cameras that were placed at Alexis’ apartment? Allie went for a run without giving the guys any notice,” I instruct without looking up.
“I can zoom into the view outside the apartment, but I’d much rather be watching Allie’s sweet little ass running right now,” Kenneth states from behind the monitor.
I don’t hear a thing or see Nick move until he’s made it completely across the room and has managed to haul Kenneth out of his chair with a death grip.
“Hey! What the—” Kenneth’s headset falls sideways and gets knocked the rest of the way off when Nick delivers a swift and painful-looking uppercut to the underside of his jaw.
Kenneth’s head lolls back and then frontward. Nick holds him steady with the grip he has around his neck. “You don’t so much as look at her again. You see Allie coming, and you walk the other way. Understand, my friend?” Nick growls, pushing him away.
