Yeah. That would go over well.
I stare at Lucas for a beat. Does he know? No. He can’t. Right? I haven’t said a word to him, and unless he spoke directlywith my dad, there’s no way he could have any idea about my situation.
Lucas comes to stand in front of me and I look up at him. Sometimes I forget he’s so tall and that I’m as short as I am, but I don’t feel short right now. My guard is up and I’m getting pissed. And he knows exactly what a pissed-off Jordan looks like.
“Answer the damn question, Jordan.” He crosses his arms over his bare chest. I’m not sure why it triggers him so much that I don’t have food in the apartment but he’s acting like a distraught boyfriend.
I decide to throw him a bone. “My dad doesn’t need to know about every detail in my life. We barely talk as it is.”
“That’s bullshit and you know it.”
I flinch at his brashness. “What the hell do you know anyway? I haven’t told you shit about my dad and our relationship. Why do you care?” I throw my hands out at my sides, getting angrier by the second.
He steps right up to me so we’re almost chest to chest. Or as chest-to-chest as a girl can get with someone who’s over a foot taller than her.
His gaze softens and he cradles my face in both of his hands. “I know your dad loves you and I know he wouldn’t want you living like this.”
I search his eyes. “What do you know?” I whisper, afraid of what he’s going to say.
“I know everything.”
I try to take a step back, but the bed is behind me, and Lucas isn’t letting me go. “Did you do a background check on me?” I ask. I know with his profession it’s possible.
He shakes his head. “No.” His thumbs gently stroke my cheeks, and I can tell he’s contemplating what he’s going to say next. With a sigh, he says, “I know your dad.”
I think I stop breathing because…what?
I go to twist out of his grasp and this time he lets me. I start pacing the room. “How the fuck do you know my dad? Did he send you here? What the hell is going on?” My head is starting to pound, and I pause to rub my temples.
“I know your dad from work.”
My eyes widen and my head snaps in his direction. “You work for Cahill Technologies? I thought you were a bodyguard.”
“I do. I am. I’m Emmett’s bodyguard.”
“You work for Emmett!” I yell, because this doesn’t seem plausible. I don’t believe in coincidences, so there must be a catch. “Are you here to make sure I’m staying in line? Or are you here to take me out? Which one is it, Lucas?”
“I swear to you, I was just as shocked as you were when I found out you were Conner’s daughter. And I’m only here for you as my girlfriend.”
A humorless laugh leaves my throat. “Girlfriend? So, we’re in a relationship now? We haven’t even discussed what we are. And you still haven’t answered my questions.”
He walks over to me and picks me up under my butt. My hands grab his shoulders involuntarily and in the next moment, he plops me down on the kitchen counter. “I just want us to be eye to eye,” he says as he takes a step back.
“Tell me everything,” I demand and cross my arms over my chest.
He runs a hand through his hair and then speaks. “I just found out you were related to Conner Bailey yesterday. To be fair, I thought your last name was your middle name, Ray. That’s what you used on your dating app. Anyway, Emmett needed me to go over to his apartment yesterday to send your father a message.” When he looks at me, I can tell right away he means the violent kind of message. “It’s then that I confronted your dad about what his involvement with Emmett is and he proceeded to tell me about your mom, his finances, you…everything.”
My nose starts to sting. “He told you about my mom?” I whisper. For some reason that piece of information makes my heart hurt the most.
Lucas nods and takes a step forward to pull me into a hug and I let him. I fight back my tears as he rubs light circles on my back.
“He did. I wish you were the one to tell me first. But I understand how painful it can be to talk about someone you’ve lost. I understand why you didn’t mention it until yesterday.”
I nod against his chest. “She was my best friend and I had to watch her wither away. It wasn’t until this past year I was able to fully grieve over her.”
“You don’t have to explain anything to me right now.”
He pulls away to wipe my cheeks with his thumbs and then takes a step back to give me space.
