Chapter One
Ellie
I’m not a princess. I’m not a pop star. I’m not the daughter of some high-profile crime boss who desperately needs protection.
Nope, I’m a normal girl from a small, mind-numbing town in the middle of nowhere Colorado. I don’t wear fancy clothes, I don’t buy expensive things, and I don’t have an extravagant job.
In fact, I have the most boring job of all time.
“He’s a threat to you,” my mother continues as she washes out the pot from dinner. It’s Sunday night, which means spaghetti at Mom and Dad’s. They don’t care if you’re sick with the plague after hiking forty miles in high-heeled shoes while a camel was chasing you with a carving knife… youareto be at their house on Sunday at five p.m. sharp for garlic bread… or else!
“Mom, Adam is not a threat. He’s a jerk. A lot of people’s exes are jerks. There’re about sixty thousand romantic comedies about it.”
“And there are even moreDatelineepisodes about it,” she says as snarky as she can, handing me the pot to dry. “I’ve already hired the man. It’s done.”
“Mom, you hired Adam’s dad. You don’t think that’s weird?”
She shakes her head and tosses a red checkered towel over her shoulder. “No, I think it makes perfect sense.”
“How? How does any of this make perfect sense to you? You don’t think his father would collude with him? That he’d look over his own son before some random ex?”
“The Wilders are good friends with your dad. Plus, Adam and Silas had a falling out around the same time you two broke up. That, and he owns part of that distillery that’s right next door to the shop you’re doing the accounting for.It’s perfect.He can keep an eye on you while you’re doing what you already do.”
“Oh, my God! That’s what I’m trying to tell you!” I’m admittedly loud, which my father picks up on right away.
“What’s going on? Why are you yelling at your mother?” He plunks down in the dining room chair and leans back, his big belly brushing against the table as he stares toward me. “You know how much she worries about you. The bodyguard thing is only temporary.”
“I’m twenty-five years old. I don’t need a bodyguard. Ineedroom to make mistakes. Ineedfree money to get my life started. Ineeda bottomless gift card to the coffee shop down the road from my office.” I roll my eyes, ready to spar with my father. “What I don’t need is my parents hiring my ex-boyfriend’s father to watch over me.” I choke out a laugh. “You realize this is psychotic, right? You can’t do this. It’s probably illegal.”
“It’s not illegal to protect your child, Ellie.” My mother sighs as she pulls the cake out of the fridge. “Silas is a very nice man. Don’t you remember him?”
My stomach tightens as I think back on all the inappropriate thoughts I used to have about Adam’s father. Heck, I was having full-on pornographic fantasies about the man at one point. It was weird and messed up. He was my boyfriend’s dad.
I shouldnothave been fantasizing about the safety of his big, rough hands or what the weight of his massive frame would feel like on top of me. Then again, he shouldn’t have said all those filthy things to me the night Adam and I broke up.
My panties dampen inappropriately at the mere memory of the way his deep voice warmed the lobe of my ear.
God, what the hell is wrong with me?I’ve worked so hard this last year not to think about that man. He’s just a guy. A guy that’s way too old for me and far too off-limits. I mean, I dated his son. His psychotic son. I’m still young and I don’t know much about the world, but I’m going to go out on a limb here and assume a relationship like that doesn’t survive the test of time.
“Earth to Ellie,” my mother presses. “Do you remember Silas? You should. You spent a lot of time over at his place with Adam.”
I glare at my mother as my sister returns from the bathroom. “Of course I remember him. He’s weird.”
“Silas Wilder?” My sister shakes her head before plopping down at the dining room table with my dad. Her hair is tied up in a messy bun, and still, she looks incredible. The genes werenotspread evenly in this house, which I think is incredibly unfair. “Silas Wilder isnotweird. He’s hot as hell.”
“What ishot as hellabout him?” My voice is high-pitched with a hint of big fat liar. “He’s massive, aggressive, and last I checked, grumpy as hell. I don’t want him following me around!”
“The grumpy, aggressive thing is what makes him hot,” my sister laughs. “Plus, the man is a freaking giant!”
“This isn’t about how attractive he is, Violet.” My mother sighs. “He’s too old, anyway. The man was hired to do a job. He knows Adam better than anyone. He’ll be one step ahead of him.”
Violet makes eyes with me, then raises her eyebrows playfully.
“Oh my God,” I roll my eyes to the side and go back to the dishes, “I’m living with insane people. You’re all nuts. You’re all nuts and you’re trying to take me there with you, but you can’t do it. I won’t participate.”
“If caring about your kids is nuts, then lock me up and take me to the nuthouse,” my mother huffs as she slides open the kitchen drawer, rummaging for a knife to cut the chocolate cake she’s made from scratch. Every week she tries a new recipe, and every cake is somehow better than the one before.
“Okay, you better go pack then,” I say, grabbing four plates from the cupboard.
