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I called Aaron. “Keep our place safe,” I told him and hung up.
I arranged for a driver to pick us up, and when I opened the door, a shiver of disgust and hatred flowed through me.
“Good to see you!” Karen said.
I wanted to scream at Emma to not trust Karen, but I kept my mouth shut.
“How’d you know?” I asked, coldly.
“A girl has her ways,” Karen replied. “Especially when you work for powerful people. Did you forget that you have Lane Price’s daughter with you?”
Emma gasped. “You work for my father?”
I didn’t know who she was asking, but I said no. Karen said yes. Emma looked between us, confused. It didn’t help that I was just as confused.
“You work for the Reeds,” I said.
Karen smiled. “I work for the American dollar. You might be perfectly fine with Braden Reed, but Lane Price made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.”
“When Braden Reed finds out…” I threatened.
She just started laughing. Her apathy towards my predicament was infuriating. Emma wasn’t happy either.
“My dad paid you to get me back?” Emma said. “That’s so typical of him. All he cares about is showing everyone how powerful his money is.”
“Oh, it’s powerful, all right,” Karen said. “So much so that the only one who’s going to suffer is Jack.”
“But—” Emma started to say something but I stopped her.
“It’s ok,” I said, my hand in front of Emma. “I’ll do the talking.”
“You think you’re the only one who can get things done?” she snapped. “Do all men just think I’m useless?!”
Karen laughed. “I’ll be flying back with you guys. Price has already flown in and is waiting on his private jet.”
This couldn’t be worse for either myself or Emma. Everything was coming to a head.
I had to play it cool. It didn’t matter that Lane Price was so rich that he could just wave a hand and things would get done on his behalf. I was the one who was with his daughter, and I was the father of his grandchild. The thought immediately had me spinning internally.
“Jack…” Emma had been trying to get my attention, and I had completely spaced out. “We’re here.”
I gulped. A flash of anger hit me, the idea that I would even be afraid of Lane Price, a man who hid behind his money. He was the father of my woman, and I wasn’t going to let him get between us.
A pair of guards frisked all of us, even Emma.
“It’s just standard,” I reminded myself, but I was furious that Emma would be treated in such a way by her father. It disgusted me that he felt he couldn’t even trust his own daughter.
I walked up the steps, every move made with a clear intention. Lane wasn’t going to take Emma away from me. I wouldn’t let him. The guards boarded the plane with us too, but I didn’t see Lane anywhere. Emma was thinking the same thing.
Karen said nothing.
“My dad’s not even going to bother to show up?!” Emma exclaimed, her voice thick with anger.
Despite all of this, I felt a sense of relief. Sure, Lane not being here was a way of snubbing the whole situation, but I didn’t care. His absence gave me time to prepare to speak with him.
“We’re ready for takeoff,” said one of the guards, speaking into a small hand radio.
“Strap in,” said one of the other guards. “We’ll tell you when you can get up.”
