Christmas Bodyguard (5 page)

Slade winced. “It's obvious my security wasn't that good. It's never been an issue. This is the first time I've ever had any trouble.”

Still standing, Elizabeth clasped the back of the chair
in front of her. “Have you thought about sending Abbey away? Mary, too?”

Slade bent forward, his elbows on his thighs, his hands gripped together. “What would stop the stalker from going after Abbey wherever she went? He could find out where I sent her.”

“I'd be with her.”

“No. At least here, we can control things more. If someone wants to do the most harm to me, coming after my daughter is the way. And I think this person knows that.” Slade turned to Joshua. “I want you to bring in some non-uniformed security personnel to patrol the grounds so this place won't feel so much like a prison.” He waved his hand toward the large picture window. “I don't want my family being afraid to walk in front of a window. And living in a dark, closed-up house isn't the answer either, so whatever you think is necessary to let us move around the house freely is fine with me. Whatever it takes to have as normal a life as possible. I'm leaving it in your hands.”

“I'll do what is needed,” Joshua said, jotting something down on the pad. “I'd also suggest adding a panic room in case someone does breach the security.”

“Okay.” He flexed his balled hands slowly. “I read once that having a dog was a good deterrent. What do you think?”

“It wouldn't hurt. I have a friend who used to be on the force who trains guard dogs. Do you want me to have him bring over a couple for you to look at?” Joshua stood.

“Yes.”

“I've got some calls to make to get this in motion. You'll have new doors and locks today. The rest can be in place by the end of the weekend, except the panic room. That might take longer since it's Thanksgiving in two days.”

As her uncle headed toward the door, Elizabeth took a
seat in the chair. Slade's haggard look matched the expressions of a lot parents she had dealt with, and they always touched her. But in this case something else wheedled its way into her heart, knocking down her defenses.

Slade dropped his head into his palms and scrubbed them down his face. When his gaze reconnected with hers, a stark bleakness peered back at her. For a long moment it robbed her of her voice. The yearning to sit next to him and clasp his hands almost overwhelmed her.

“Tell me about Abbey. Help me to understand her. The faster I can get to know her, the better job I can do protecting her,” Elizabeth finally said to take his mind off his thoughts.

“What do you think so far?”

“I don't think she likes the idea of having a bodyguard. Of having someone invade her privacy.”

“I figured that. She used to share everything with me. Now I can hardly find out how her day has gone. I know that can be pretty typical of a teenager, but I want my daughter back, the one who came to me with every little problem and asked my opinion. The one who…” His voice melted into a raw huskiness.

If only her father had felt that kind of love for her, what would her childhood have been like? Would they still be strangers today? Emotions swelled into her throat, and she cleared it in order to continue. “She likes drama, basketball and cheerleading. Anything else?”

“Animals, especially horses. For a while she was showing horses but got away from that when she hit high school and became more involved with the other activities. But she does like to ride, especially on the weekend when she has more time.”

“Maybe she would like a little dog. The kind that makes a lot of noise when people come around. The guard dogs
could be for the grounds, but the little one for inside the house.”

He rolled his shoulders and eased against the back cushion. “I'll see what she says. Her dog of thirteen years died last year, and she hasn't been ready for a new one. She might like one now.”

“Or better yet, I have a terrier mix named Bosco. I could bring him here. The boy next door to my uncle watches him when we can't. Bosco is well trained but also barks at anything out of the ordinary. One of the best little watch-dogs. It might be hard finding one that will do what we need. I know Bosco will.”

“Great, that would be better. Then if Abbey enjoys having Bosco around, I'll get her a dog of her own when all this is over with.”

“Anything else about Abbey I should know?”

“She's creative and especially kind to underdogs, but she's also a drama queen and impulsive. She does things without thinking, and as I said before, she takes unnecessary risks. She's got a lot of friends—girls and boys.”

“She isn't dating?”

“Not as far as I know. When she goes out, a bunch of them go out together in a large group. Male and female.”

“I suggest we don't do any of that for the time being.”

“That won't sit well with her.”

“Even after what happened today with her computer?”

Slade sighed. “A week from now she'll have forgotten her terror at seeing that. If nothing happens between now and then, she'll think it's safe for her to go out with her friends.”

“School is manageable,” Elizabeth said. “They have a security system in place, and with me there she should be okay, especially if we use one of the security guards to
drive us to and from Dawson Academy. That'll allow me to keep my attention totally focused on the surroundings, not divide it between that and driving. It won't be as much fun as going out with friends, but at least it'll get her out of the house. This will work out.”

The tension in his body dissolved some. He stretched his arm along the back of the couch and pinned her with an inquiring look. “You're good at your job. What made you become a bodyguard?”

“Because I like challenges.”

“The challenge of protecting people?”

“That, too, but what drew me to the profession was all the training I would have to complete to be good at my job.” Training that would ensure no one took advantage of her again. She let her gaze travel down her short frame.

“As you pointed out this morning, I'm not what someone would think of when you mention a bodyguard. I had a few obstacles to overcome. That was the challenge I wanted. My previous life was nothing like this one.”

“What was it like?”

She'd been a doormat, but she wasn't going to say that to this man. She hadn't shared her past with anyone except Uncle Joshua. “The most dangerous thing I did was climb up on a ladder to change a lightbulb.”

He chuckled. “No safety net?”

“None. Wasn't that daring?” She smiled, relaxing her own tension.

“Very. So you went from changing lightbulbs to carrying a gun and using tae kwon do on anyone who dared to cross you. Interesting. But something tells me there's a story in there you aren't telling me.” His gaze pierced through the armor she hid herself in. “And the very fact that you aren't telling me intrigues me.”

The heat from his look blazed through her as though
he'd cut through her shield with a laser. She immediately redirected the conversation. “I know the police are going to be investigating your case, but I'd like to try and figure out who has a grudge against you. Any ideas on that?”

“You don't like talking about yourself.”

It wasn't a question, but Elizabeth said, “Boring subject.”

“Ah, I doubt that. I did a little checking on your score on the weapon test. I realize how good that is, not to mention the third degree black belt. I saw you in action at the school. You were constantly scanning your surroundings, always aware, alert. Most people don't do that. It seems to come naturally to you. I have a feeling if I asked you to close your eyes and describe this office, you could to a tee.”

Elizabeth shut her eyes. “To my right is your mahogany desk, three feet by six, with a Mac computer sitting to the left of the middle. On the other side is a beige mobile phone, a calendar, a frame with a photograph of Abbey that I would say was taken recently. A stack of folders sits square in the middle of your tan-colored blotter with a black and silver pen next to it. Your chair is medium brown leather that looks soft and expensive. Behind the desk to the right there is a high-end printer, fax, scanner—wireless, apparently, since there's no cable going from your computer to it. Then on—”

“You've convinced me.” His laughter infused the words.

“Actually, you really didn't have to.”

When she opened her eyes, he'd risen and hovered over her, all six feet plus of his powerful body. His close proximity sent her pulse hammering. For several rapid heartbeats, she remained still, drawing in his distinctive male scent of soap and something all his own. Tantalizing. Captivating.

He held out his hand to her. She stared at it for a few more rapid heartbeats, then stood, sidling away to the right. When she was finally a couple of feet from him, her bodily reactions to his nearness calmed. What was happening here? He was her employer. Nothing more than that.

“I need to see if Abbey has awakened yet. It's time we got to know each other since we'll be spending a lot of time together.” The rasp to her voice announced the effect he was having on her. She gritted her teeth, determined to keep her distance.

She turned away to go to the door. A hand clamped about her arm, stopping her progress forward. She glanced at the long, strong fingers that clasped her. When she raised her gaze to his, she arched a brow.

“Thanks for taking the job. I've got a feeling I may need all the help I can get before this is over with.”

The worry that weaved through his words stilled her automatic reaction to go on the offense, to yank her arm from his grasp. She gave him a grin and said, “You're welcome.”

The office door slammed open with such force it bounced against the wall.

A
bbey charged into the room, her eyes spitting fire, her mouth compressed into a frown. “Dad, I have a basketball game tonight. I can't miss that. Gram told me I couldn't go.”

Beside him, Elizabeth—who had instantly become alert, her hand going to her weapon at her waist—relaxed, moving away from his touch. The severed contact left him feeling cold.

“Dad, I'm a cheerleader. I have to go.”

“I think it's best with all that has happened for you to stay home tonight. We're still trying to figure out how to keep everyone safe. I can't let anything happen to you, honey.”

“I'm letting the squad down. I can't.”

“They'll understand. You were in a wreck a few days ago. If you want I'll call your sponsor and explain.”

Abbey's eyes grew round. “No! I'll do it.” She looked from him to Elizabeth. “Is it safe for me to go back into my room?”

“I'll go with you.” Elizabeth stepped forward.

“No, I've got to have some privacy.” Abbey swept her attention back to Slade. “Did you take that—that thing off my computer?”

He shook his head. “I want the sheriff to look at it. He's coming by in a little while to take it with him. You can use my laptop in my room for the time being.”

“Fine.” His daughter huffed then swung around and stomped out of the office.

“I'd better follow.”

“Did I forget to tell you she is headstrong?”

“I kind of figured that one out for myself.” Elizabeth left.

The image of her smile, which reached deep into her eyes and caused them to gleam, stayed with him as he trudged toward his desk. A stack of personnel folders, all of people who had been fired in the past year, sat on top of his blotter in front of him. While he waited for the sheriff to show up, he'd go through each file and see who he might have angered enough to want to hurt him and his family.

 

Late that night, Elizabeth came down the stairs and went to the security panel near the new steel-reinforced front door. After checking to make sure the alarm system was still on, she made her way through the first floor to find Uncle Joshua. He stood at the bay window in the kitchen nook, staring outside into the darkness.

“Tomorrow I'm having more motion sensitive lights installed outside. By the time I'm through, it will be hard to approach the house at night without setting one off. Right now there are some spots that still remain dark.” Joshua turned toward her.

“So that was what you were doing outside tonight. Figuring out where those spots were.” The dark shadows under his eyes concerned her. “You need to go to bed. It's been a long day, and it's two-thirty in the morning.”

“I'll feel better when I've completed updating the security system tomorrow.”

“You can't stay up all night and function tomorrow. There are two guards outside patrolling with their dogs.”

“I know, but this is a big place.”

“Get some sleep. You don't have to worry. I'll stay up now.”

“But what about you?” He pulled the blinds shut and moved away from the window.

“I got over four hours of sleep. I feel fine. You know how I am in a new place. It takes me a while to get used to it. I never sleep as well as I usually do.”

“Still…”

“Uncle Joshua, all the outside doors have been changed to high tempered steel ones and the jambs reinforced. All the locks are three-inch deadbolts. The security code was changed. You found three listening devices and sent them to the sheriff to see if he can track down where they came from. For only being on the job half a day, you've accomplished a lot.” She took his arm and led him toward the hallway. “Go to bed. There will be a lot going on in five hours.”

“If you need me, my cell will be on the bedside table.”

She smiled, hooking her arm through his. “And I've got you on speed dial.” At the staircase she paused. “This will give me a good chance to get even better acquainted with this house while Abbey is asleep.”

Joshua looked around at the foyer, which was open to the second floor, with a large crystal chandelier hanging down from the two story ceiling. “And this is a huge house.”

“Seven bedrooms, nine bathrooms, a media room, formal living room, dining room, kitchen, den, library and a large office. Not to mention a to-die-for exercise room and indoor lap pool.”

“Nothing you haven't seen before. So many of the clients you've worked for have a lot of money.”

“But not too many have been down-to-earth. Not like…” She couldn't voice the confusing feelings she had for her employer. He was very wealthy, but when the workmen came today to change the doors and locks, he was right there helping them. Then later he'd greeted his foreman as though they were good friends, not employer/employee. Hilda was treated like a member of his family. After her last difficult assignment, where her employer barely spoke to her, Slade's attitude was refreshing.

Joshua studied her for a long moment. “You like him, don't you?”

“Yes. I sense a vulnerability in him. Things haven't been easy for him.”

“An easy life isn't all it's cracked up to be. Think how soft we would be.”

“Probably wouldn't make me a very good bodyguard.”

“Good night.” Joshua squeezed her hand, then ascended the stairs to the second floor.

Elizabeth watched her uncle disappear down the hallway, then slowly rotated toward the large, round, cherry table in the center of the room-size foyer. Fresh flowers—lilies, roses and some she didn't know the name of—perfumed the air with a light sweetness that reminded her of spring.

Where would she be when spring came? In another state? Another country? Chances were, not in Dallas. She heaved a sigh. That was what she wanted. To travel. To not depend on anyone but herself. To test herself constantly, honing her skills.

Then why did she feel empty, as though something was missing from her life?

She was doing everything she'd promised herself when
she put the pieces of her shattered life back together after Bryan left, after her father's final rejection. No regrets.

With a sigh, she started her trek through the first floor, noting every window and door, especially the ones that led outside. By the time she arrived at Slade's office, an hour had passed, and still restless energy surged through her. She walked to the door that opened on the east side of the house and tested it to make sure it was locked. Noticing that Slade had moved his desk away from the one large window in the room, she went to his chair and checked its placement. Another foot toward the wall would be better. She positioned herself in front to shove the desk. It scraped across the wooden floor.

“Do you need any help?”

The sound of Slade's deep, gravelly voice swung her around to face him in the entrance, where he was lounging against the doorjamb, his arms loosely folded over his T-shirt-clad chest, a light in his eyes. “No, I've got it.”

“Didn't like where I put it?”

She straightened, leaning back against the desk, her hands clasping its edge. The sight of him weakened her knees. Dressed in sweats, his hair tousled, he looked comfortable, nothing like the successful businessman she'd met that morning. “You can still see outside, but the angle is better. It would be harder for someone to see you.”

“Why thank you, ma'am, for thinking of me.”

His Texan drawl curled her toes. She immediately erected her defenses. She'd been married before to a man who at first had been charming. Everything had changed after they were wedded. She'd become a possession to him—one that, in the end, he'd easily discarded. Her fingers dug into the wood of the desk.

Slade shoved away from the door frame and slowly covered the space between them. His gaze linked with hers
and that was all she saw. Her heartbeat kicked up a notch at the predatory gleam in his eyes. She wanted to speak to defuse the tension, but her parched throat from Slade's intense look stole any reply.

She felt vulnerable, and it had nothing to do with someone wanting to hurt her. There was something about Slade that appealed to her. His physical presence was compelling, but what really moved her was his care for the people he loved. When she witnessed him with Abbey today, the love and acceptance she'd seen in his eyes reinforced what she'd missed in her own childhood. When he talked about his daughter, she heard it in his voice, even when he was upset with Abbey. The love was there no matter what. Her uncle was the only one who had shown her that kind of love, and before today, she'd thought that was enough.

He stopped just short of her personal space. “I never thought of how vulnerable I could be until Joshua went over his list of changes this evening. And when he found that bug in here, and two more downstairs, it nailed home that this whole situation isn't going away anytime soon.”

“We might find out something from the sheriff about where the listening devices were purchased. That could be just the break we need. We want you and Abbey to feel safe when you're at home. Today was a beginning. This situation will be hard enough even with this place becoming a stronghold.” With her hands aching from her tight grip, she loosened her clasp on the edge of the desk and took a steadying breath.

“Yeah, I know. Abbey wasn't too happy about not being able to go to the game tonight. She asked me earlier when I went to talk to her in her bedroom why had I hired you if she couldn't leave the ranch. I promised her she could go to school, at least, with you right there to keep her safe. That way she can see her friends. I'm not sure she has really
grasped that someone is after her, even with what she saw on her computer.”

“Will you allow her friends to come here?”

“Yes, the ones I know. She already asked if she could have the cheerleading squad here to practice. I think she feels this will all be over in a week or so, and her life will go back to normal.”

“I hope it will.”

The intensity in his look increased. “But you don't think so.”

“It depends on how fast the police can find this person. Otherwise the threat is still out there, even if nothing happens for a while. I've seen people lured into a sense of safety, then their world falls totally apart.”

“That's why I brought home the personnel files of the people who were fired at DDI in the past year.” He pointed toward the folders on his desk, the action bringing him a few inches closer to Elizabeth. “I'm not going to sit by idly and wait for the police to find this person. I'm going to do what I can to figure it out. Christmas is in five weeks, and I hope this can be solved by then. Christmas is a big deal for Mary and Abbey.”

“Do you want some help going through your files?” she asked before she realized she would be committing herself to working with Slade when she wasn't with Abbey.

The corners of his mouth slowly lifted. “I was hoping you and Joshua would. I'm not a detective, but I can't sit by and do nothing.”

“I'm not either, but I've picked up a few things while working as a bodyguard and just being around Joshua. Have you gone through the files yet?” She took a side step so she could partially face the desk as though she were only intent on the folders. But that wasn't the case. She was aware of
every movement Slade made—when he kneaded his neck muscles or ran his finger across his wedding band.

“Yes, but nothing really jumps out at me.”

“How many were fired in the past year?”

“Only seven in Texas, but twenty-nine worldwide. I was concentrating on the ones in Texas.”

“Don't. Anger makes people do many things—even hop on a plane and come to Dallas if their intended target is here.”

He blew a breath out. “That's why I won't let Abbey and Mary leave here. I need them close to make sure they're as safe as they can be. I'll have my secretary deliver the other files on Monday, but I thought I should start with these.”

“What about people you fired before this year?”

He crunched his shoulders up, rubbing his hand along his nape. “The list could get long if we went back years.”

“A lot of them can probably be eliminated pretty fast. I think starting with the most recent ones is good, but we can't rule out anyone.”

“What if it isn't someone I fired?”

“That needs to be considered, too.”

His tense shoulders sagged as though the enormity of the task had suddenly overwhelmed him. The urge to comfort him swept through Elizabeth, and it took all her willpower not to touch his arm.

“So what do you think we should do first?” he asked, straightening to his full height.

“Take the people fired this year and find out what they're doing, where they are at this moment. If nothing turns up, we can broaden our scope.”

“Then you should take a look at these seven. Maybe an objective perspective would help to flag anything suspicious.” He leaned forward to retrieve the files from his desktop.

His sleeve grazed her. An electric jolt streaked up her arm as if she'd been shocked. Then, when he presented the folders to her, their hands brushed and the sensation of being burned caused her to yank the files back against her chest. She lifted her gaze at the same time he did and became ensnared by his. He'd felt the same physical reaction as she had. It was clear in the depth of his eyes, a slight widening, a few lines appearing on his forehead. He stepped back, twirling his wedding band while she clutched the files against her.

“While I'm up,” she said, licking her dry lips, “this will help pass the time.”

“You couldn't sleep either?”

“Joshua and I decided to split the night. Have one of us awake downstairs just in case anything happened.”

“Why? There are guards patrolling the grounds.”

“We'll feel better when the house is more secure.” She backed up a few paces, needing more space between them. She could see why he'd become so successful in his business. Like Joshua, he commanded respect. But someone out there didn't care.