Executive Protection(37)

Jaden folded his hulking arms and smirked, still without engaging in the one-sided conversation.

“Are you helping Cam kill my mother?”

“No.” His firm answer held some truth to it.

“What are you doing with him, then?”

Lowering his arms, Jaden stepped forward, stopping close to Thad so that they were eye to eye. “If I were you, I’d back off.”

“Or what?”

“Sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong is going to get you in big trouble.”

“With who? You?” And who else?

Jaden didn’t answer. Instead, he walked to the door and left Thad standing there.

* * *

Lucy helped Kate stretch in preparation for her afternoon physical therapy exercises. Now Saturday, a week into March, Kate was slowly getting stronger. She’d also noticed something preoccupied Lucy again, and this time it wasn’t Thad.

“You might as well tell me what happened,” Kate said, trying yet another tactic. Asking her what was wrong hadn’t worked. Neither had asking what had her so quiet.

Lucy walked with her toward the walk-in pool. She held Kate’s arm as they stepped into the water and went in to their waists.

“It isn’t Thad, is it?” Kate guessed. “You seem worried about something.”

“Let’s swim to the other side.” Lucy stayed close to Kate, who grimaced as she started to swim. Lucy swam with a side stroke to the other end of the pool. There, she held on to the edge along with Kate.

“I might be able to help,” Kate said.

Maybe, with all her security. But if Thad found out, he’d take action, and she was beginning to think Cam was a lot more dangerous than she’d estimated until now.

“Is it that man who stalked you?” Kate accurately surmised. “Who is he?”

Lucy relented. Kate knew enough to tip off Thad, and Thad would only come asking her questions.

“I joined an online dating service. That’s how I met him. I went out with him a few times.”

“Are you still on this site?” Kate asked.

“Yes.” Her account was still active.

“You’re dating other people?”

Other than Thad, she realized Kate meant. “No. Not anymore. I—I mean...I—I’m dating, but not right now.” She looked away as she wondered if the reason she’d stopped checking her online account had anything to do with Thad.

“Did this man confront you again?” Kate rested her arms on the pool edge with her body horizontal to the water’s surface, her feet moving just enough to keep her afloat.


Lucy told her what happened and as she did, Kate lowered her feet. That was the only indication that the savvy politician was appalled.

“Does Thad know about this...that he attacked you again?”

“No, and I’m not sure he should. I think if I just lay low for a while Cam will lose interest and move on to someone else.”

“Someone else he can hurt?”

Lucy hadn’t thought of it that way. Cam hadn’t hurt her that much. He’d gotten physical with her but would he try to rape her or worse?

“Did this occur when you went to your hair appointment?” Kate asked.

Lucy had told her where she was going. “Yes.”

After a moment of calculated thought, Kate said, “Well,” and then reached a wet arm and put her hand on Lucy’s shoulder. “We’ll take care of that.”

How? “I don’t know what Cam is capable of. Thad working alone may not be enough.”

“Thad won’t have to work alone.”

Kate had resources Thad didn’t. She could protect her family.

Family?

It sort of felt that way....

“There you are.”

Lucy’s heart palpitated from heated awareness as she heard Thad’s voice. She moved to hold on to the edge so that she faced him as he approached. The next thing she registered was Kate’s pleased observation.

Thad made everything worse by crouching by the pool’s edge and looking at Lucy with heated regard, as though he were glad to see her or had missed her while he’d been away.

“That man Lucy dated from her online site accosted her after her hair appointment yesterday,” Kate announced.

“Your mother needs to ease up on her pain medication,” Lucy tried to quip. When Thad’s masculine appreciation of Lucy in a swimsuit abruptly fled, and his brow turned stormy, she added, “It was nothing. He came to apologize and say he would leave me alone, that’s all.”

“He scared her,” Kate said. “I don’t think he’s going to leave her alone. But Lucy is concerned you’ll get hurt protecting her.”

“Why did you go to your appointment alone?” he demanded, not acknowledging his mother’s comment.

“It’s okay, Thad,” Kate said. “I’ll make sure she’s got security the next time she has obligations like that.”

Thad wasn’t satisfied. The way he continued to look at her told her so.

“Were you followed?” he asked.

“I watched for that, but I didn’t see anyone.”

“Cam isn’t exactly an expert,” Thad said. “So if he didn’t follow you, how did he know you’d be at your hair appointment?”