Chapter 15 #2
“No, maybe not, but he’s certainly not that easy either.”
“He likes you, you know?”
He looked at her in astonishment and laughed. “He doesn’t even know me.”
“No, he doesn’t. But what he does know, he likes.”
“Yeah, you’re barking up the wrong tree there,” he muttered.
“No, I’m not,” she declared. “I’ve known him a long time, and he’s just really hoping he’s not betting on the wrong horse.”
“I hope you’re not betting on the wrong horse either,” he replied. “And do you guys trust Jerome?”
“Absolutely. He’s been there for us in the family for a very long time.” Hayden nodded but didn’t say a whole lot. She asked, “Do you really think Jerome isn’t there for us?”
“I think he probably is,” he began, “but that doesn’t mean that everything is completely hunky-dory in that world either.”
“I would think that everything is great in that corner, but, if you have any misgivings about it, you better let my dad know.”
“No, I’m not at all sure that’s required,” he stated. “I think Jerome will protect your father to the ends of the earth. I’m just not sure that you get the same treatment.”
“I’m pretty sure I don’t,” she confirmed.
“He’s employed by my father and has worked for him for a very long time, so their loyalty to each other goes a long way back.
He doesn’t hold a normal security position there.
As you can tell, there’s a whole lot between them that has nothing to do with security.
They’ve been friends, family, and colleagues, and they both hold their very different positions yet work together. ”
“Any issues there?”
“Not that I know of. However, Jerome’s loyalty has never been in question,” she declared. “And, if you’re planning on bringing it up, be prepared for one hell of a fight.”
“I wasn’t planning on it,” he told her. “I’m just trying to figure out how all of it works in your world.”
She looked at him and asked, “Backing out so soon? I thought you were all about this.”
“Oh, I’m not backing out,” he declared, “but you can bet that your father might very well try to do something to test me.”
“He absolutely will,” she confirmed. “So, it’s good that you noticed.”
He snorted. “It’s not that I noticed,” he clarified, “but I can’t imagine your father won’t try. If it has anything to do with you and your safety, believe me that, … if I have to shoot Jerome, I will.”
She stopped and looked at him. “I don’t think he would be that stupid,” she replied.
Hayden shrugged. “I don’t know. … You tell me.
But right now, an awful lot is still going on in your family that I’m not sure about.
Regardless, my focus is on keeping you safe.
And whatever that ends up looking like,” he told her, “will drive how your dad views me at the end of this. And, just for the record, I really don’t give a shit—unless you’re planning on going home to Daddy, and that’s a decision you make for yourself.
However, you’ll have to make it now, as in very soon. ”
She gave him a look, and he raised a hand. “I don’t play games either.”
“I’m fine right here, with you,” she said. “Yet I get it. In a way, you’re very much like him. And that’s okay too. At least it’s something I’m used to.”
He snorted at that. “So, it’s the devil you’re used to versus the devil you aren’t?”
“Somewhat,” she muttered. “Yeah. To a certain extent, that’s absolutely what it is.” But she was laughing now. “Don’t worry about them. Let’s worry about ourselves.”
“Oh, that’s the plan,” he agreed. They walked out to the vehicle and got in. He drove them around for a short distance, and they pulled into another hotel.
She asked him, “Why is this one any safer than another?”
“I don’t know that it is,” he admitted, “but this one is prepped and ready.” When she frowned at him, he nodded. “Meaning, the guys are here. So, it’s already been scoped out, and I’m pretty sure we’re safe, at least for the night.”
She frowned at that but figured she would take what she could get. “Sounds okay, … assuming I can get some sleep tonight.” She yawned almost immediately and whispered, “Yeah, I don’t even know where that one came from.”
He laughed. “It’s all good. You should get some uninterrupted sleep tonight.”
As they walked up to their room, she was looking around, and the place was decent enough. “It does seem fairly quiet, doesn’t it?”
“It is, but it’s not exactly up to your father’s high standards.”
“Yeah, that’s my father,” she muttered, with a wave of her hand. “It’s really not an issue as far as I’m concerned. It’s good enough for me.”
“Good,” he replied, with a smirk, “because we aren’t exactly running to five-star locations since low-key is always much better for safe houses.”
“Are you sure?” she asked. “My father would tell you that, if you walk in with an attitude, most people get out of your way.”
“Unless they’re the ones looking for you, and then they’re just waiting for an opportunity to pull that trigger,” he shared, eyeing her. “So, keep that in mind too.”
“Oh, that’s great,” she muttered. “That really wasn’t something I wanted to hear.” She sat down on the couch, yawned several times, then checked her watch. “Good God, it’s later than I thought, and I am so tired.”
“Grab a shower, fresh clothes and go to bed, just relax,” he said. “For the moment, everything’s cool.”
“Did you have to add in for the moment?”
He chuckled. “I guess I didn’t really have to. It’s a long-standing joke in that, if things will go wrong, they’ll go wrong, so we should always just be prepared for it.”
“Yeah, I don’t really want to think about that either,” she muttered. She got up and headed over toward the bedrooms, then stopped and asked, “Is this a two-bedroom?”
He nodded. “Yes. Pick the one you want.” She hesitated. He looked over at her, one eyebrow up, and she suggested, “We could share one.” He froze, narrowed his gaze, and she chuckled. “Unless all that talk with my dad was just to unsettle him.”
“It wasn’t to unsettle him,” Hayden replied, as he got up and walked toward her, “but this isn’t necessarily the time and place.”
“Ah, right,” she muttered, “all those lovely high morals and ethics.”
“Those high morals and ethics keep you safe.”
She smiled, reached up as high as she could on tiptoes, and gave him a gentle kiss. “You’re right, and I wouldn’t want to do anything to upset that.”
He snorted. “Yes, you would. Absolutely you would.”
She burst out laughing, wrapped her arms around him, and said, “I don’t know, maybe it’s the wine.”
“It probably is the wine,” he admitted. “And I am sure it’ll go to your head.”
“It’s going somewhere.” She pushed herself tightly against him.
He groaned. “That’s not fair.”
“No, it might not be fair, but I can’t say I really care right now.”
“I wonder if other people are listening in,” he whispered against her ear.
She froze, her eyes widening, and she stepped back hurriedly.
He chuckled. “I don’t know what they’ve done for security,” he began, “so let’s not push the line.”
“Yeah, you’re not kidding.” She shook her head. “A little warning would have been nice,” she muttered.
“I did warn you,” he protested.
“Yeah, you did,” she whispered back and gave her head a shake. “Fine. Hopefully they would not have put anything in my bedroom. Although now you’ve got me leery about that.”
“They wouldn’t have,” he said.
She frowned. “I don’t know that I trust that now.”
He pulled out his phone and contacted Oakley, with Speaker turned on. “Hey, I mentioned that there might be security cameras in here, and now she’s a little paranoid.”
“Yeah, they’re in the living room and at the front door,” he replied.
“Okay, good enough.” He turned to her.
She smiled, then leaned into the phone and asked, “Oakley, you wouldn’t lie to me, right?”
“No, ma’am,” he replied. “There are limits for safety and privacy concerns, and we won’t do that to anybody.” And with that, he disconnected.
She sighed. “Okay, that makes me feel better. I’ll go have a shower.” Still she gave a leery glance around the living room. “So, they saw that little move, huh?”
“Yeah, they saw and heard that much,” he agreed, “which is also why I told you.”
“Great, that means I basically just got approval from them to continue in the bedroom.”
He stared at her as his lips twitched, and he nodded. “They certainly would know.”
“God,” she muttered. “How to embarrass yourself completely without trying to.”
“It’s not an embarrassment,” he said. “We’re all adults.”
“Yeah, I know, we’re all adults,” she muttered, “but it still feels like it wouldn’t be kosher.” She groaned. “God, now I’m starting to sound like you.”
“I don’t use the word kosher,” he noted.
She turned and glared at him.
He burst out laughing, walked over, and nudged her toward the bedroom. “Go get a shower, relax, calm down, and get some sleep.”
She nodded. Having to trust that the men were being honest about the cameras, she grabbed a shower, taking a little more care than she normally would have by wrapping up in a towel.
By the time she got back to her bedroom and climbed under the covers to crash on the bed, she tossed aside the towel and slept deeply.
*
Trent called Hayden a little later. “I heard you asked about the cameras.”
“Yep, I sure did,” he stated, with a smile. “She was getting a little frisky from the wine at dinner with her dad.”
“I hate to ruin your evening there, buddy, but it’s probably a good thing that you warned her.”
“It is a good thing. I don’t want her thinking anybody is looking in on her when she’s sleeping. I could make a case for a camera while she’s sleeping because she does not sleep easy,” he noted, “but it’s better that we keep to standard privacy protocols. Otherwise she’ll never really trust us.”
“No, and we won’t do that to her or to you,” Trent declared, with a note of humor. “So, in case you get a chance to, enjoy your night.”
“Yeah, right, as if that would go over well with the bosses.”