I raise my eyebrows. “Really? I thought we were closer than that.”
She makes a sound in her throat. “Rowan was worried about you. I was hoping you would tell me why but you’ve been pretty quiet today.”
“Wait.” I try to understand her meaning. “Your brother asked you to follow me around today. Why? To spy on me?”
Her head rears back. “No!What?Of course not!” She looks offended. “He asked me to make sure you stay safe.”
What in the hell? “So you’re like…what? My bodyguard?” I can’t keep the disbelief out of my voice.
She shrugs. “I know you said you didn’t want this life, Tare, but I was raised differently. Watching out for threats has always been part of my world.”
I tilt my head and wait for further explanation. She sighs and closes her book.
“Standing at about two o’clock,” she tells me softly, “one of our guys is watching us. An enforcer. He wasn’t there earlier, which means Rowan must have called for backup within the hour. Theo Nicopolis has circled a few times, and your husband was watching us earlier from over there.” She nods to our right. “But he left about ten minutes ago.”
My mouth falls open. Liam was here? How did she notice all this? Our safety shouldn’t be an issue here. “We’re on campus.” A violence-free zone.
Gráinne nods. “We are. We should be safe.” Then she pins me with a look. “From other students.”
“Oh my God.”
“Is this news to you? That you may be in danger?” She asks the question quietly and calmly. I can’t believe there isn’t even a hint of panic in her voice. “I’m sure Rowan sent reinforcements for a reason.”
“No. I mean, not exactly. Liam warned me that the Greeks may think I was messing with their bank accounts.” I feel sick. “I wasn’t.” I feel compelled to add that last part.
Gráinne sucks in a breath, nods as if things suddenly make sense. “Well, he must have arranged for protection through my brother.”
“Soyou’resupposed to protect me?” I say the words before I realize they’ve escaped my mouth. I adore her, but what is she going to do? Dazzle the bad guys with her perfect smile?
My friend’s laughter is musical. “I’m sure Rowan just meant for me to report on any threats I see, but I’ve got ya covered, Tare.” She slowly lifts the hem of her bootleg jeans to surreptitiously display a small handgun strapped to her boot.
“Jesus Christ.”
She shrugs again. “Prayer is probably good. But I wanted to be prepared for us to help ourselves if needed. It’s fine. Really. I know what I’m doing.”
“If you got hurt, Luca would kill me,” I hiss. I don’t know why that’s the first thought that crosses my mind. I mean, obviously, I don’t want her to get hurt either.
Gráinne laughs again. She sounds absolutely delighted by the insane things coming out of my mouth. “I love him so much. But I’m still part of the clan. He knows that even if he doesn’t agree with it.”
“I’d still prefer you stay safe,” I mutter.
“Oh, me too!” She begins piling her stuff into her backpack. “Don’t worry. I’m sure this is all just a precaution. We willbothstay safe. Like you said, we’re on campus.”
I throw my own things into my backpack. I can’t help but look around nervously. I startle when Gráinne puts her hand on my leg.
“Come on. I’ll walk you to class. I’m guessing Timmy will be waiting outside for you, but I’ll confirm before I head to the library.”
I look to where Gráinne said the enforcer was, and a huge man pretends to tie his shoe. He’s wearing loafers. I roll my eyes. “Will you tell him he can quit trying to blend in?”
She giggles. “Tim!” she shouts across the quad. The man straightens. Walks over to us. Gráinne makes introductions.
“I’m sorry to have disturbed you, miss.” The big man apologizes to Gráinne who shrugs him off before explaining where we are each headed next. I’m in shock at how easily this conversation goes and that my friend is so comfortable with having protection assigned.
“Is all this necessary?” I ask nervously.
Timmy shrugs. “Boss says it is.”
Gráinne smiles. “That means it is.” The ogre next to us nods in agreement. “I’d appreciate it if you’d continue with a little distance, Timmy. I don’t want to get rumors started about why you’re on campus.”
