Chapter 1 #2
“That’s okay.” He shrugged into his leather bomber jacket and took the bag from her hand. “I’ve got it.”
“Thank you.” She turned to her daughter. “Let’s go, Lucy.”
As he followed Lauren and Lucy out of the office, he turned to shoot one last look at Rex. He wasn’t the only single agent Rex had working for him. They were all single, although Micah was seeing someone last Grady had heard.
The only reason he was going along with this pretend fiancé/bodyguard deal was the image of the masked man snatching Ariel off the street in broad daylight and knowing Lucy was the intended target.
Rex was right about one thing. He’d protect Lucy and her mother with his life if necessary.
Lauren glanced furtively over her shoulder as she stepped out of the office building into the bright sunshine. Her face felt like it might crack from her forced smile. Every nerve ending was on high alert for a masked man to pop out of the shadows at any moment.
She hadn’t slept in the two days since Ariel had been abducted by mistake. And even with hiring a bodyguard, she couldn’t relax. One man could only do so much. She’d been tempted to hire a team of bodyguards, but that would only advertise the danger.
“Stay a few feet in front of me.” Grady’s low, husky voice had her glancing at him. Then she just as quickly looked away. He was tall, broad-shouldered, and incredibly handsome, if you liked rugged-looking men.
Which to her dismay, her long-dormant hormones did.
Grady put his arm around her waist, keeping her positioned to his left. She kept Lucy close, then stiffened when she realized Grady held a gun in his right hand.
Well, what did you think? she mentally chided herself. Of course, her bodyguard would be armed with a weapon.
“You’re supposed to be my fiancé,” she whispered as he directed her to his car. He’d said he drove a Jeep, but somehow she’d expected something with a rag top that he’d use to go four-wheeling in the mountains, not a brand-new Jeep Grand Wagoneer.
“Yeah, but this fiancé plans to be ready for anything.” He hustled her to the passenger-side door. “Does Lucy need a booster seat?”
“Technically, yes, but for now, she’ll be fine.” The booster seat was the least of her worries, although she was a little surprised he’d mentioned it. Most single guys were clueless about that kind of thing. Unless Grady had kids? Whatever. It didn’t matter as long as he did his job.
Except it did matter if he was going to put his life on the line for her. She waited for Lucy to get settled in the back seat before climbing in herself. When Grady slid in behind the wheel, she asked, “Do you have kids?”
“What? No.” He looked startled by her question. “Why do you ask?”
“I—was surprised you knew about booster seats.”
“I may have grown up in small-town Wyoming, but I didn’t live under a rock.” His western drawl was back. “I’m friends with a guy who has eight siblings. I’m familiar with what it’s like to be around kids.”
“I see.” She flushed. “I didn’t mean any disrespect.”
“None taken.” He said the words easily, but she sensed his annoyance. She closed her eyes and tried to calm her racing heart. There was no reason to care what Grady McFarland thought about her. He was her bodyguard and fake fiancé. Once this nightmare was over, she’d never see him again.
As he waited for a break in the traffic, she twisted in her seat to look behind them.
She hadn’t seen anyone suspicious following her and Lucy, but that didn’t mean someone wasn’t lurking back there, waiting for the opportunity to make his move.
The truth was, she had no idea who would want to kidnap Lucy.
The motive had to be money because that was the only thing that made sense. She hadn’t mentioned how she’d been kidnapped once as a child after her father had made the news as the first Chicago billionaire. Granted, that was twenty-five years ago, when she was about Lucy’s age.
That her daughter would be targeted in the same way bothered her. She’d cooperated with the investigation and had racked her brain for a list of suspects. But as far as she could tell, the police were no closer to finding this guy.
Which did not bode well for Lucy.
“I’ll need your address,” Grady said, interrupting her thoughts.
She rattled off the building number, then gestured to the skyscraper looming to the right. It looked closer than it actually was. “It’s the black building behind that one, it’s called Savion Enterprises. We live in the penthouse apartment.”
“Underground parking I presume?” He glanced at her.
“Yes.” She wasn’t sure why Grady made her feel nervous. If anything, it should have been the other way around. She was born and raised here in the Windy City, but he was a fish out of water. Or he should have been, except that he carried himself with an air of confidence that she envied.
Then again, his child wasn’t the intended target of a ransom demand.
She and Lucy were just another job for him.
Her father had recommended Grayson’s Guardians when she’d asked him for advice.
Apparently, Rex Grayson was some sort of war hero who had led a team in combat who all earned bronze stars for their bravery under fire.
She’d jumped at the opportunity of having someone with battle experience protecting her daughter. Now that she was sitting there beside Grady, doubts pummeled her.
He looked competent enough, but she hadn’t anticipated his being so—big. Muscular. Rugged. Strong.
She put a hand to her throbbing temple and told herself to stop being ridiculous. Her lack of sleep was getting to her.
“Are you hungry?” Grady’s question caught her by surprise. “I’m happy to stop and grab something if you’d like.”
“No thanks. Clara, our housekeeper, probably has dinner cooking by now.”
“Okay.” If he was surprised to hear she had a housekeeper, he didn’t show it. “Do you know anything else about the vehicle used in the abduction?”
“The car was a black SUV.” His Jeep was black too. “I believe it was a Honda.”
His green gaze flicked to the rearview mirror, then back at her. “Lots of black SUVs on the road.”
Her heart thumped painfully against her sternum. She twisted in her seat again to look through the back window. “Do you see something suspicious?”
“Just stating a fact.” His calm demeanor did not make her feel any better. “Traffic is so congested here that it’s hard to spot a tail. That’s why I was thinking it would be good to stop and get food. See if the two black SUVs behind us stick around or keep going.”
“Mom? Is the bad man back there?” The fear underscoring Lucy’s tone wrenched at her heart. No child should be afraid of being kidnapped.
“I don’t think so, sweetie. Mr.—uh, Grady is just being cautious.” She flashed him a pointed look. “Right?”
“Right.” Grady made eye contact with her daughter. “Don’t worry. Nothing bad is going to happen while I’m around, okay?”
“Okay.” Lucy’s tremulous smile tugged at her heart.
Having divorced Nelson five years ago, obtaining sole custody of Lucy, her daughter didn’t have any memories of him.
Since Nelson was in jail for manslaughter, Lauren preferred to keep it that way.
How she’d been blind to Nelson’s true nature, she had no idea.
Maybe it was wrong to be glad Nelson was in jail. Their divorce had been contentious despite the prenup she’d required him to sign. She’d soon learned he’d only married her for her money.
Whatever. That was old news. As much as she could easily envision Nelson doing something as low as abducting his own daughter for a hefty ransom, he was dead.
Someone else was behind this. Too bad the list of suspects pretty much included everyone who resented the wealthy.
“I changed my mind. Let’s stop for pizza.” Once the idea took hold in her mind, she couldn’t let it go. She glanced at Grady. “You can have whatever you like, but we need to order one pepperoni pizza for Lucy.”
“Really? Pepperoni pizza?” Lucy sounded excited. “Yay!”
A reluctant smile tugged at the corner of her mouth as she glanced back at her daughter. “We’ll have to blame Grady for wanting pizza so Clara doesn’t get upset with us.”
“Oh yeah?” Grady’s drawl made her glance at him to see if he was truly upset. The twinkle in his eyes indicated he wasn’t. “Sure, make me the bad guy right out of the gate.”
“It’s just that she fusses over us and takes it personally when we don’t eat what she’s prepared.” Lauren shrugged. “Normally, that’s not a problem as I prefer to serve Lucy healthy meals.”
“Healthy is fine, but this is a special occasion,” Grady said. When she frowned in confusion, he rolled his eyes. “Our engagement! Surely you haven’t forgotten our engagement already.”
She blushed at his teasing. The people around her tended to cater to whatever she wanted. Which, quite frankly, got old fast. She wasn’t used to being teased.
“Of course, I didn’t forget. That’s a great excuse for us to use.
” She decided not to point out that if they were truly engaged, they’d be celebrating with steak, lobster, and champagne.
For a moment, she envied Grady’s simpler lifestyle.
Then she gave herself a mental shake. There was no point in wishing for something else.
She’d been given many blessings. And she’d made it her mission to champion various charity events.
Her favorite by far was the work she did as the spokesperson for Saint Mary’s Children’s Hospital in Chicago.
Lucy had needed emergency open heart surgery when she was born.
From that point forward, Lauren had made it her mission to make sure all children received the care they needed, regardless of their ability to pay.
Thankfully, she was in a position to make that happen. Not only were her parents wealthy, but her father’s parents had also left her a large trust fund. A fund that Nelson had tried to get his hands on.
The jerk.
“What’s your favorite pizza?” Grady asked, interrupting her thoughts.
“Um.” She didn’t want to admit that when they ordered pizza, Clara took care of the details.
“I like Captain Jack’s pizza,” Lucy announced. “That’s the kind Ariel’s parents get from the store.”
Grady shot her a quizzical look, probably wondering what kind of world her daughter lived in. “Any pizza you think looks good is fine with us,” she hastily added.
“Got it.” He made an abrupt turn to the right. She braced herself with a hand on the dashboard when she heard a loud crack.
Confused, she looked around, wondering if someone had gotten in a car crash.
“Down!” Grady shoved her head down as he drove the Jeep up and over a curb. The jarring motion made her teeth snap together.
“Mommy?” Lucy’s plaintive voice had her turning to look at her daughter. When she noticed the rear window was shattered, she belatedly realized the sound wasn’t a car crash.
It had been gunfire!