“You’re setting the security system at night and when everyone is out?” he asks, sounding paranoid as fuck.
I push off the wall and walk toward him. “What’s going on, Doug? Why am I sensing this is more than you being overprotective?”
“I’m being protective for a reason, Ares.”
“And you’re not going to share those reasons with me,” I surmise.
“I would if I could,” he cryptically replies. “Just look out for her, please.” The strain is evident in his tone, and I’m starting to get a little uneasy. I have my own agenda and a ticking clock. I can’t get dragged into any other shit that might distract me from my goal.
“I’m taking care of her.” Why else would I risk getting fired by returning to the house to pump up the tire on her SUV? “I have another idea I think you’ll like.” I tell him my plan to have Rocky tail Ashley, and he readily agrees.
“Make sure he keeps his distance. I don’t want to freak my daughter out. She can’t know someone is following her.”
“He knows how to be discreet.” I hope he doesn’t hear the doubt behind my words.
“Pay him double,” he adds, swiping his fingers across the screen.
“If that’s what you want,” I say, planning to use the additional money to cover Shoulders’s cost. That way, my wages are my own again. Happy days. My phone pings as he lifts his head.
“I just deposited the first month’s payment in your bank account, and I’ll set up a regular monthly transfer on the first of every month.”
“Okay, cool. I’d better go say hi to Mom.” I back away, and my fingers are curled around the door handle when he stops me.
“Oh, and Ares.”
I turn around and quirk a brow.
“Quit with all the naked shit. I’m not impressed.”
Grinning, I exit his office without saying a word. I’m not promising him jack shit when it comes to that.
ChapterTwenty-One
Ashley
“You can’t tell a soul what I just told you,” I rasp, panting heavily as I slow my pace when we arrive at a bench. LU is built around a massive park that is strictly for students use only. It’s got walking, jogging, and biking trails as well as athletic fields and a full outdoor running track. Today, we took one of the more strenuous walking trails that cuts across the forest on the far side of the park. While I wait to hear from the mysterious Sebastien, I am determined to increase my fitness and stamina, and I’ve decided on daily walks and runs. Bree wants to work on her fitness too, so we’re going to do this as a team.
We had already planned to spend our Saturday together. We’re both going to watch the game in a bit, and then we’ll be prepping for the party tonight, so she was okay to add a morning walk to our existing agenda. “Let’s stop for a minute,” I suggest, heading toward the wooden seat.
“You can trust me to keep it a secret. This head is full of them.” Bree’s wry laugh rings out, bouncing off the trees in this wooded part of the park. We crossed paths with a few other students, but it’s not busy. I guess most are probably still nursing hangovers after last night’s frat parties.
“What secrets are you keeping?” I ask, uncapping the top on my bottle of water.
“Nothing worth mentioning,” she says before slurping from her own bottle. “Besides, I’m here to help with your dilemma. We don’t need to get sidetracked with my shit. Trust me, we’d be here all day if we started dissecting my problems.”
“You know I’m here for you. If you ever want to talk about anything, I can keep a secret too.”
She gives me a quick hug. “I know.”
“Is it weird how easily we’ve bonded?” I take another sip of my water.
“Weird, no. Unusual, yes. At least for me.” She brushes stray pieces of blue hair away from her face, attempting to tuck them back into her ponytail. “I have struggled with girl friendships my entire life. I always related better with boys.”
“Same here,” I admit. “Maybe that’s why we get on so well.”
“We’re kindred spirts.” Bree taps her bottle against mine. “Sometimes you just meet people you click with.”
“I agree. It was like that with Harlow too though she was gone from my school before we got the chance to properly connect. Now, she’s married and attending school in Rhode Island.”
