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“So, is there a need for that here in Pennsylvania, or do you travel out of state for your work?” I questioned him.
“Both. As I mentioned, I’m in the bodyguard and private security unit at Harper Security. Sometimes, my work has me installing security systems and surveillance cameras at a residence or business. Other times, I’m providing one-on-one bodyguard services to an individual that needs it. I can tell you about this, because I’m sure there are pictures online somewhere, but our team offers the services for the industrial rock band, My Violent Heart, when they go on tour.”
My eyes widened. My Violent Heart was one of my favorite bands, and while I knew they were from Pennsylvania, I hadn’t made the connection to them being in the same town as Forrest until he mentioned it. “Wow. What a job,” I marveled. “That must be so much fun.”
He laughed. “It’s not bad. Obviously, we have to focus on our work, but I’d be lying if I said I don’t enjoy my job when I get to go on tour with them.”
“I would love to be able to do something like that. It’d be the ultimate adventure. Are they touring now?”
Shaking his head, Forrest answered, “No. They’ve actually taken a break from the music recently. All the members of the band have fallen in love and gotten married. They’re all focusing on building their families now, so while the music making might not be on a permanent hiatus, I do think it’s going to be quite a while before they decide to go touring again.”
“I’m so jealous,” I murmured.
In an absent-minded move, as he let out a soft laugh, Forrest placed his fingers on my bare toes and gave them a gentle squeeze. “If you ever visit Steel Ridge and come to see me, I can introduce you to Killian Scott’s brother, since he works with me.”
This was just getting crazier and crazier by the minute. What were the chances?
And while I loved Forrest’s generous offer—Killian Scott was the guitarist for the band—I had a feeling he didn’t have a clue why I’d said I was jealous.
Of course, I thought it was incredible he personally knew the members of one of my favorite bands. But when I’d told him I was jealous, it had nothing to do with him having them as friends or acquaintances and everything to do with what Forrest said about them. They’d all fallen in love and had gotten married, something I had recently started to believe might not ever happen for me. Unwilling to have that conversation, I chose not to correct Forrest. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind I wouldn’t be able to make it through that discussion without breaking down.
Forcing a smile on my face, I returned, “I’ll have to keep that in mind if I ever make a trip to your neck of the woods.”
“I hope you do.”
Ignoring that, unsure it was meant to be more than just a friendly response to my words, I asked, “So, if the members of My Violent Heart aren’t touring now, are you telling me you and your team are doing more of the security system installations now?”
“We’ve done a fair amount of them, but that’s not all,” he replied.
“Are there more celebrities in Steel Ridge I don’t know about?” I pressed, feeling excited for him.
Forrest laughed. “Well, other than my coworker who’s engaged to Lily Mack, I don’t think so.”
“Are you kidding me?”
Lily Mack was only one of the hottest actresses in recent years. Her rise to stardom was mostly the result of her work on a major movie franchise several years back. I had no idea she was living in Steel Ridge, but I thought it was incredible Forrest knew her as well.
“I am not. And the reason Jagger wound up with Lily is because of the work he was doing for her. As it turns out, no matter how much good there is in the world, there’s still some evil. Unfortunately, that’s where my work comes into play. Several of the guys and I have had to work with clients who found themselves in rather serious situations with stalkers or people who wanted to cause physical harm to our clients. We keep them safe until that’s no longer a concern or issue.”
The more I listened to him speak, the more I learned about Forrest and the work he did, the more I realized I wasn’t helping myself in my mission to be distracted. This was going precisely how I’d expected it to go.
Forrest was sharing more about what he did for a living while I was struggling not to grow even more attracted to him. Given my situation and the thing that had driven me to the point I felt compelled to find a new place to settle down and start my life over, I couldn’t say I wouldn’t have loved to have someone like him in my life. If ever I found myself in trouble, there wasn’t a question in my mind I’d want Forrest to be the one to protect me.
Was there anything bad about him?
Was I a fool for thinking there was nothing wrong with having him here with me like this?
I hated that I already knew the answer to that question. I was beginning to believe Forrest was the kind of man someone could only dream of meeting one day. I should have considered myself fortunate, and to some extent, I guess I did. But after this trip was over, we’d go our separate ways, and I’d spend the rest of my life wishing I could return.
I had to talk. If I didn’t, I’d probably burst into tears at the loneliness I felt.
“I can’t imagine how horrible it would be to be in a situation like that, but I have to believe I’d be reassured if I had someone like you looking after me,” I replied.
Forrest’s mood wasn’t the least bit downtrodden. In fact, he seemed to be even happier with each second that passed. “I’m happy to know you’d trust me like that.”
I pointed to my foot, where his hand was still just barely resting on my toes. “Can you blame me? I mean, you did drop everything you might have had planned on this trip just to take me to get my foot checked out.”
His features softened as his thumb stroked gently along the bottom of my toes. “I’m still impressed by the fact you continued riding all afternoon yesterday with your foot being this injured.”
