Desperate Girls (Wolfe Security #1)(7)

“Gentlemen—” She looked around the room, slightly dazed by all the testosterone. These guys were seriously jacked. “I’m sure you’re as busy as we are, so I’ll get right to the point—”

The door opened, and a man stepped in. He was huge—even bigger than the rest—and Brynn’s heart gave a little lurch as he zeroed in on her.

“This is one of our team leaders,” Liam said. “Erik Morgan, meet Brynn Holloran.”

The man gave a brisk nod.

“And her partner, Ross Foley.”

Another nod. All the chairs were taken, so he slipped to the side of the room and leaned against the wall.

Brynn cleared her throat. “So I—or we—would like to thank you for being available on such short notice.”

She wondered if Liam Wolfe caught her underlying message. She had no doubt he’d researched his new clients and knew that Blythe and Gunn represented several NFL players with very fat salaries. Liam had probably jumped at the chance to take this job because he was thinking about future referrals.

But his expression gave nothing away. “Short notice is pretty typical for us. Threats like this tend to catch people off guard.” He paused. “I understand you’d like an overview of the security plan?”

“Exactly.”

“First question is when,” Ross said. “I don’t know if you realize this, but half our office is driving up to Dallas tomorrow morning.”

Brynn’s stomach knotted just thinking about the whole operation: two lawyers, a paralegal, and a private investigator who still hadn’t managed to locate a witness critical to the case.

“We’re aware,” Liam said. “We’re also aware that your trial starts Monday. We’re used to moving quickly, so it’s not a problem.” He looked at Brynn. “We’re finalizing your security plan today, and your agents will be ready to go in the morning. Meantime, I understand the two of you are staying at a hotel instead of your private homes?”

“Reggie’s idea,” Ross said. “The hotel isn’t exactly Fort Knox, but no one knows we’re there.”

Brynn glanced at Erik Morgan, who was watching Ross with a carefully blank expression on his face. The man wore all black and stood with his arms folded over his chest, making his muscles strain against his shirt. His close-cropped hair was dark. And wet, she noticed, as though he’d dunked his head in a bucket of water on the way over here. A thin layer of dust covered his body, which made him look like he’d just come off a construction site—except for the pistol on his hip. The big black weapon looked perfectly natural there, and Brynn had a feeling he knew how to use it.

She tore her gaze away from Erik’s gun to focus on the plan Liam was outlining.

“I’m sorry.” She leaned forward. “Did you say your vehicles?”

“That’s correct. Two full-size SUVs, both armor-plated and with bulletproof glass.”

“Armored cars? You’re kidding,” Ross said.

“No.”

Brynn started to laugh but then caught herself. There was nothing funny about this. Not at all. One of the least funny things was the money this had to cost.

Brynn shook her head. “Two vehicles is totally unnecessary. Ross and I are staying at the same location.” Reggie kept several corporate apartments in Dallas because the firm had frequent business there. “Not only that, but we’ll be going to the same place every morning—the courthouse—at the very same time. One vehicle is plenty.”

“Not for a three-man package,” Liam said.

Brynn stared at him in disbelief. “Three agents for two lawyers?”

“No, three for each of you.”

“Six men? You can’t be serious.”

“Each of your teams includes three agents on a rotating shift, two on, one off, around the clock.”

“Around the clock,” she repeated.

“That is correct, ma’am.”

From his spot against the wall, Erik watched her reaction to his boss’s plans. And those were just the ones he’d mentioned so far. She didn’t know the half of it.

Brynn Holloran didn’t like this setup at all. Maybe she was one of those people who was sensitive about privacy. Or maybe she thought this thing was going to cramp her lifestyle—whatever it was. Erik had seen all kinds of reactions since he’d started this job, and he was definitely accustomed to getting a cool reception. People didn’t like change. But when Erik and his guys went to work on something, change was pretty much guaranteed, so like it or not, she was going to have to deal.

“Mr. Wolfe . . .” She seemed to be struggling to keep her voice friendly. “If we go along with this—”

If ? She still didn’t get it.

“—we’re going to need your guarantee that your agents won’t impede our work in any way.” She glanced around the table, looking at everyone but Erik. “No offense, and I’m sure you’re all very good at your jobs. But you have to understand that we have a job to do, too. Our client’s future is at stake, and we can’t afford any distractions right now.”

“We always aim to keep a low profile,” Liam assured her. “The objective is to protect the client with as few disruptions as possible.”