he didn’t get that her astonishment was because people just didn’t do that kind of thing as a rule—take in complete strangers. He acted as if anyone would do it.
“Donald has a job now. He’s a damned good accountant, but his old firm got rid of him because he was getting older and has a few health issues. He helps with my books and has been a huge help to my accountant but doesn’t have to work full-time and can take off when his illness flares up. Now he earns enough for them to pay for a few extras, and they help look after the children.”
“Children?” she echoed faintly.
His property was beautiful and very, very expensive. Every detail was perfect. The landscaping, the mansion rising three stories into the air with gables and balconies. It was Victorian architecture at its most stunning. The house had wings and bays running in various directions as well as generous amounts of gingerbread. A large octagonal tower with a steep, pointed roof rose up from the third story, forming one corner of the ornate house. A large wraparound covered porch with ornamental brackets and spindles provided a tremendous view of the lake. The other homes were some distance from the main house, but all were smaller replicas of the larger mansion.
“I have four orphans living on the property.” Tariq turned to indicate the house that would have been the guardhouse. Or a home for bodyguards or servants. “A boy and three girls. They were living on the streets as well.”
“Children?” Genevieve repeated, sliding out of the car to stand beside them. “Shouldn’t they be in some form of government care? Why would they be living here?”
“I am their official guardian, or will be in a few days when the paperwork goes through. They have someone very dangerous after them. The men Fridrick runs with killed their parents, although there is not any proof of that. Vadim and Fridrick kidnapped the girls. By the time we were able to rescue them, one of the girls had been severely injured and the baby was traumatized. Thankfully I have enough money to provide the best care possible for them. I also can keep them safe.”
This time there was no mistake. Tariq’s voice did hold more than a note of censure, as if he thought perhaps the two of them were criticizing him for taking in children and a homeless couple.
“I think that’s wonderful of you,” Charlotte said immediately, because it was the strict truth—she did think he was wonderful. Almost too good to be true. Were there still men in the world who looked out for others, were gorgeous, courtly and courageous? She couldn’t believe how attracted she was to the man. It was so unlike her, but everything about him appealed to her.
Tariq looked puzzled, as if she wasn’t making sense. “They are children. All of them are traumatized, although Danny would never admit that he is. He is fifteen and already thinks of himself as a man. I have to go carefully with him so as not to step on that protective trait of his or his pride. Amelia is fourteen, Liv is ten and Bella is three. She is the right age to hopefully become friends with your little Lourdes.”
More and more she was prepared to accept his offer of staying and working on his carousel horses. She couldn’t protect Lourdes indefinitely, not from Fridrick. And there was still the puzzle of the three men who were following them. She gasped, pressing her fingers to her mouth, biting down on the pad of her index finger as she thought of the memories she’d pulled from Daniel Forester’s mind.
“What is it, sielamet?” He shackled her wrist with deceptive gentleness, tugging until she let him remove her fingers from her lips. He pulled her hand to his chest, resting her palm over his heart, covering her hand with his own and pressing it there. “You thought of something disturbing.”
Charlotte had no idea what he’d called her, but the way he said it, soft and low, his voice a caress, had her stomach doing a slow roll in spite of her agitation.
“The three men following us. I know this sounds crazy, but they’re killers as well. Genevieve and I were going to try to find out more about them. We went to the club with the idea of luring them out into the open.”
“You did what?”
He interrupted her, and the air was suddenly thick with heat. Oppressive