“I think you should postpone it until after this situation has been resolved.”
Brynnon laughed at that. “Have you ever bought a house, Mr. Hill?” His silence answered for him. “No? Well, let me enlighten you. The longer this house is in my name, the more interest it accrues. That means I lose money. I’m already a week and a half behind schedule due to unexpected issues that kept popping up. I can’t afford to wait.”
Grant ran a large hand across his chiseled jaw. “There’s no way I can control who comes in and out of here in a situation like that.”
“No,” she agreed. “There isn’t. However, given the trust my father has put in you in the past, I have full faith you’ll be able to handle it just fine.”
A mouth she’d described in her mind as kissable tightened, making Brynnon felt a little bad. She knew he was just trying to do his job, but damn it. She had a job to do, too.
“Okay, look.” She dropped the attitude a smidge. “How about a compromise? I’ll do what you sayifmy safety truly becomes a concern. Otherwise, I have a business to run. I hope you can respect that.”
“My job is to protect you, Princess. Can’t do that if I’m busy worrying about stepping on your toes. I hope you can respectthat.”
Don’t slug him. Don’t slug him.
Brynnon narrowed her eyes, no longer feeling bad. “That’s another thing. Quit calling me Princess. It’s demeaning, and I don’t like it.”
Not wanting to give the big jerk a chance to get the last word in, she went about putting the rest of her tools away and wiping down the kitchen counters. After that, she swept the floor and went back through each room to make sure everything was set up exactly as she wanted.
When the real delivery boy showed up during her walk-through, Brynnon started for the door. Blocking her, Grant held up a hand to stop her.
“From now on, I answer the door.”
Biting her tongue, she let him. The young man’s eyes nearly bugged out of their sockets when he laid eyes on the big man opening the door.
Putting the poor kid out of his misery, Brynnon quickly grabbed the check from the kitchen and paid him.
After putting the food in the refrigerator, she did one final walk-through. Satisfied with the way the house looked, she was about to tell Grant tomorrow’s schedule when her stomach growled.
“Hungry?”
Now that you mention it...
“I’m starved.”
His dark brows turned inward. “When was the last time you ate?”
Brynnon thought for a moment. “I don’t know. I’ve been so busy today I guess I forgot to eat.” For reasons she didn’t understand, this angered him.
“You shouldn’t do that.”
“I didn’t do it on purpose, I assure you. I told you I got busy.”
He let out a frustrated sigh. “Do you have food at home, or do you need to stop and pick something up?”
What’s with this guy? None of her previous bodyguards had ever given a shit whether she ate or not. But with him, it was like having a second father around.
Growing up, she and her brother, Billy, had both endured bodyguards. First, when her father became a multimillionaire almost overnight, thanks to his construction company’s military contracts. Later, when he ran for Congress, he insisted they have them during the weeks leading up to the election, as well as after.
Each time, Brynnon felt the same. She hated it.
“I can just hit a drive-thru on the way home.”
The beast of a man sounded almost horrified at the thought. “Fast food?”
“I take it you prefer something else?”
“Yes.”
