Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 110360 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 441(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110360 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 441(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
My brows shot up my forehead. “No shit?”
“Matt too. He’s on night shift.”
I blinked. Damn, Leo was not fucking around. Chris Carroll and Matt Schifler were Leo’s old buddies from when he worked with the DEA. They popped into Guardian every few months to shoot the shit so I’d gotten to know them pretty well over the years.
I’d never seen them in action, but after the stories I’d heard, I knew they were good.
And thank fuck for that.
Two men I trusted having my back. Men who didn’t get sloppy and, despite a lifetime of experience, men who knew when to check their ego at the door and put the client first.
My whole body sagged. “God, I’m glad to see you. Hotel security was a joke in LA.”
“Yeah, well,” he said dryly. “Nothing funny here. I’m gonna need to see some IDs.”
I stared at him. “You know who I am.”
He nodded. “Sure do.”
I hooked my thumb toward the back seat. “Lofton Beck.”
He leaned in and offered her a grin. “Sure is.”
I stared at him expectantly, but he didn’t move. He just stood there, holding out his hand, palm up.
Shaking my head, equally annoyed and impressed, I dug my wallet out of my back pocket.
Lofton leaned forward from the back seat, having already pulled her ID from her purse, and passed it out the window. She met my eyes in the mirror and shrugged, vaguely amused.
After the week she’d had, vaguely amused was a massive victory.
We waited as Chris ran both of our IDs through a scanner and then walked a slow, deliberate circle around the vehicle. With the windows down, the spring air carried the faint smell of grass and dirt. Somewhere beyond the trees, birds chattered like they were arguing.
God, it was nice to be out of LA
Chris knocked on the back glass. “Pop it.”
I followed his instructions, and he glanced inside, eyes moving and cataloging. The whole thing took maybe thirty seconds, but I appreciated every single one of them. Not having to worry about who or what came through that gate would significantly lighten my mental load.
He handed us back our IDs and smirked, “Alright. You two are all clear.”
Lofton leaned her elbows on the center console and aimed a breathtaking smile out the window. “I really appreciate you coming out of retirement for me. Please come to dinner tonight. I’m not sure what we’re having or what time yet, but I can get back to you on that.”
He dipped his chin. “You don’t have to do all that, ma’am. Happy to help.”
“Don’t be silly, I insist…” She paused, her eyes flaring wide. “I mean, if you don’t already have plans, or… I guess you don’t actually have to come at all. I could always bring you a plate. Totally up to you. There’s just not much to do in Dollton, so I figured dinner would be nice. But I’d be happy to recommend somewhere if you’d rather go out to eat yourself. I’d be happy to buy your dinner.”
I arched a brow as I peered back at her. Her mouth moved a mile a minute as she nervously prattled on. Word vomit was an interesting change of pace from her.
To his credit, Chris stood there, a grin on his face, but his eyes never stopped scanning the periphery. Yep, competency was officially back. Thank Christ.
Lofton drew in a deep breath as she continued. “It’s the least I could do. No pressure to come…or not come. Neither is a requirement for your employment. As Devon always says, You are here to work. Not to make friends. So honestly, whatever you decide is fine with me.”
Chris’s gaze narrowed as he slid it back to the car. Though it didn’t land on Lofton. “Devon says that to you, huh?” he asked, with a whole lot of pissed-off energy aimed directly at me.
I clenched my teeth. “I didn’t say it like that.”
It was bullshit. I had said it exactly like that, and had she invited me to dinner that night, even knowing good and damn well I was going to have to be on duty, I would have told her the same damn thing again. But I sure as hell didn’t need that getting back to Leo.
“Shit,” Lofton breathed, clearly reading the exchange. “Should I not have said that?”
“It’s fine,” I replied to her while holding Chris’s gaze. I lowered my voice before repeating to him, “It’s fine.”
He nodded, wholly unconvinced. “It better be.” His grin returned, and he lifted it to Lofton. “Dinner sounds great, but I don’t get off until seven. Rain check?”
“Absolutely,” Lofton replied. “It was nice meeting you.”
“You too.” He walked backward into the guard station, his glare locked on me until the gate slid open with a low mechanical hum.
“Jesus,” I muttered, rolling up the window as I pulled through.