Well, what did you think?she mentally chided herself. Of course, her bodyguard would be armed with a weapon.
“You’re supposed to be my fiancé,” she whispered as he directed her to his car. He’d said he drove a Jeep, but somehow she’d expected something with a rag top that he’d use to go four-wheeling in the mountains, not a brand-new Jeep Grand Wagoneer. It was an expensive-looking car. Something she wouldn’t mind driving.
“Yeah, but this fiancé plans to be ready for anything.” He hustled her to the passenger-side door. “Does Lucy need a booster seat?”
“Technically, yes, but for now, she’ll be fine.” The booster seat was the least of her worries, although she was a little surprised he’d mentioned it. Most single guys were clueless about that kind of thing. Unless Grady had kids? Whatever. It didn’t matter, as long as he did his job.
Except it did matter if he was going to put his life on the line for her. She waited for Lucy to get settled in the back seat, before climbing in herself. When Grady slid in behind the wheel, she asked, “Do you have kids?”
“What? No.” He looked startled by her question. “Why do you ask?”
“I was surprised you knew about booster seats.”
“I may have grown up in small-town Wyoming, but I didn’t live under a rock.” His western drawl was back. “I’m friends with a guy who has eight siblings. I’m familiar with what it’s like to be around kids.”
“I see.” She flushed. “I didn’t mean any disrespect.”
“None taken.” He said the words easily, but she sensed his annoyance. She closed her eyes and tried to calm her racing heart. There was no reason to care what Grady McFarland thought about her. He was her bodyguard and fake fiancé. Once this nightmare was over, she’d never see him again.
As he waited for a break in the traffic, she twisted in her seat to look behind them. She hadn’t seen anyone suspicious following her and Lucy, but that didn’t mean someone wasn’t lurking back there, waiting for the opportunity to make his move. The truth was, she had no idea who would want to kidnap Lucy.
The motive had to be money because that was the only thing that made sense. She hadn’t mentioned how she’d been kidnapped once as a child, after her father had made the news as the first Chicago billionaire. Granted, that was twenty-five years ago, when she was about Lucy’s age.
That her daughter would be targeted in the same way bothered her. She’d cooperated with the police and FBI investigation and had racked her brain for a list of suspects. But as far as she could tell, the police were no closer to finding this guy.
Which did not bode well for Lucy.
“I’ll need your address,” Grady said, interrupting her thoughts.
She rattled off the building number, then gestured to the skyscraper looming to the right. It looked closer than it actually was. “It’s the black building behind that one. It’s called Savion Enterprises. We live in the penthouse apartment.”
“Underground parking I presume?” He glanced at her.
“Yes.” She wasn’t sure why Grady made her feel nervous. If anything, it should be the other way around. She had been born and raised here in the Windy City of Chicago, and he was a fish out of water. Or he should have been, except that he carried himself with an air of confidence that she envied.
Then again, his child wasn’t the intended target of a kidnapping for ransom. She and Lucy were just another job for him. Her father had recommended Grayson’s Guardians when she’d asked him for advice. Apparently, Rex Grayson was some sort of war hero who had led a team in combat. A team who had all earned bronze stars for their bravery under fire.
She’d jumped at the opportunity of having someone with battle experience protecting her daughter. Now that she was sitting there beside Grady, doubts pummeled her.
He looked competent enough, but she hadn’t anticipated his being so—big. Muscular. Rugged. Strong.
She put a hand to her throbbing temple and told herself to stop being ridiculous. Her lack of sleep was getting to her.
“Are you hungry?” Grady’s question caught her by surprise. “I’m happy to stop and grab something if you’d like.”
“No thanks. Clara, our housekeeper, probably has dinner cooking by now.”
“Okay.” If he was surprised to hear she had a housekeeper, he didn’t show it. “Do you know anything else about the vehicle used in the abduction?”
“The car was a black SUV.” His Jeep was black too. “I believe it was a Honda.”
His green gaze flicked to the rearview mirror, then back at her. “Lots of black SUVs on the road.”
Her heart thumped painfully against her sternum. She twisted in her seat again to look through the back window. “Do you see something suspicious?”
“Just stating a fact.” His calm demeanor did not make her feel any better. “Traffic is so congested here that it’s hard to spot a tail. That’s why I was thinking it would be good to stop and get food. See if the two black SUVs behind us stick around or keep going.”
“Mom? Is the bad man back there?” The fear underscoring Lucy’s tone wrenched at her heart. No child should be afraid of being kidnapped.
