here, once and for all. And hiding her isn’t an option any longer. If she doesn’t face it, if she’s not a part of her own protection, then she’ll never feel secure.” And he hated realizing that. Hated having her in the line of fire.
He had assumed the malevolent shadow of her father had died the night Sorrel had been killed. He had been certain she would be safe then. Until she was attacked in France while she had been aiding French and American authorities in going through Sorrel’s estate.
This threat was coming from either her father’s former allies, or from his former enemies. Though why, Jordan hadn’t been able to learn. Sorrel was dead, there was no leverage Tehya could provide his enemies. The Sorrel organization had disbanded, and those not in prison had gone on to much more lucrative ventures. Those men had no reason to want to strike out at her. It didn’t make sense, but there was too much proof that somehow, somewhere, this was coming from her ties to her Sorrel.
“You shouldn’t have let her go off alone,” Lilly said, the distinct, feminine arrogance of her European accent emphasizing her displeasure. Lilly had no problem expressing her displeasure when she felt it warranted.
His lips thinned.
“Enough,” he said coolly. “I’m no knight in shining armor, Lilly. I can’t be her savior. All I can do is try to get her through this alive.”
Lilly gave a delicate little snort as her husband cleared his throat. It was more than obvious he was covering a chuckle.
“There’s a difference between being her savior and her lover, Jordan,” Bailey said. “And don’t even try to tell me you weren’t, or aren’t interested.”
Jordan glared at John, then at Travis.
John held his hands up in surrender. “Hey, man, she has a mouth of her own. I just try to protect it when she pisses too many people off.”
Hell. He didn’t need this crap. He should be out there following Tehya, ensuring her safety rather than leaving the task to others. For now, she was his woman, his lover. She was his responsibility.
Not that they weren’t fully capable of protecting her, but the male protective instincts rising inside him didn’t care. She was his. He didn’t trust anyone to protect her as he knew only he could.
“I did get around to researching the landscaping company she owns,” Finally Bailey had something to say other than the subtle recriminations she and Lily were prone to aim at him. “I reached the previous owner before we came in this morning. He’s retired and living the life in Florida.” She rolled her eyes. “The company had been up for sale for over a year before Tehya bought it. There’s nothing suspicious there. He absolutely adores her, though. She negotiated the price down by several thousand dollars despite his best efforts. He said it was like stealing money from his own kid until he dropped the price for her.” Amusement and affection filled her voice.
Jordan could believe that. Saying no to Tehya was damned hard, even for him.
“It was near bankruptcy when she bought it,” Lilly said, taking over. “It’s now thriving. She has quite a few customers, many who began with simple, small projects and then ended up calling again for other projects as her flair for design became known. When I called them, supposedly for references, he sang her praises and all but demanded I hire her.”
“She has an excellent head for business,” Travis said, taking his turn. “I went over her accounts when I hacked her office computer this morning. She’s building slowly, taking her time and ensuring she’s not overreaching. As stated, she’s a damned good designer and she has a some good employees.”
“Losing the business would break her heart,” Lilly said as she stared back at him, her gaze hard, as though he were somehow endangering the business their friend so loved.
Hell, the two women weren’t going to stop.
“I’m not asking her to walk away from it, Lilly,” he reminded her, irritation hardening his tone. “You know that.”
Her lips thinned as she turned away from him. It was evident the two women were somehow blaming him for this situation.
Much more, Jordan admitted, and he would have to rethink his decision to bring the couples in. He may end up having to send them back to their own lives.
“She’s stopped, Jordan.” John interrupted his thoughts as a report came through to the Bluetooth communications set he wore at his ear. “A bar in