Royal Line (Tattered Royals #1) - Carrie Ann Ryan Page 0,51
I could use some space to do some research without the boys breathing down my neck.”
Sparrow presented an opportunity to glean a little more information. “Is it just you and Olly who work with Kannon?”
She shook her head. “No, there are four others on the team. A couple of them accompanied our last assignment home, and one more stayed there to take care of the office. It’s just me and Olly left here in France.”
I saw my chance to get to know him better, so I just asked, “Is Kannon always this grumpy?”
Sparrow eased onto the couch across from me. “There are shadows in him. But mostly he’s a growly teddy bear. You just have to get to know his quirks and what makes him tick, I guess.”
That seemed like an understatement. “It must be a full-time job trying to understand what makes the man tick.”
She laughed. “True enough. But you know what? At the core, Kannon’s one of the best people I know. He legitimately wants to help people. And these days, that’s hard to come by.”
I studied her. “You respect him a lot, don’t you?”
She nodded. “Of course I do. He’s— Well, he gave me a shot when no one else would. He’s sharp as a tack, keeps the bullshit level low, and the company gave me a family. I’d like to think that I gave him the same thing.”
I studied her closely. “Are you two—?”
Sparrow lifted a brow and gazed at me over the top of her laptop. It took her a moment to realize what I was asking, and then her brows lifted before she threw her head back with a loud bark of laughter. The action made her look young and beautiful, as if she didn’t have a care in the world having to watch some random woman that people were shooting at. “Oh my God, that’s priceless. I’m going to tell Olly.”
A flush crept up my neck. “I’m sorry. That was really nosy. None of my business.”
Sparrow put out a hand and waved me off. “No. No. Oh God, no. You can relax. It’s not like that. It has never been like that. He’s obviously very pretty. It actually became kind of a game to watch women throw themselves at him. We have running bets on the team as to how long he can ignore them before he actively brushes them off, or how long before he gives in. It depends. But no, it’s never been like that with me and him. He’s my boss. And my friend. And yes, surprisingly, over the course of the last few years, he has become family.”
“How long have you been with him?”
She smiled then, and I realized what a travesty it was that she didn’t smile more often. I’d guess she was in her late twenties, close to my age. But that smile, it lit up her whole face. It probably stunned men and women alike, turning them completely stupid. When she was stern, there was a glint in her eye that said, if crossed, she could be deadly. Which I respected. But she was gorgeous with her high cheekbones and thick dark waves cascading down her back. Not to mention the kind of lips women the world over probably tried to emulate.
“I’d been sacked from my government job, for something that was not exactly my fault. I’d been applying at places, but nothing was coming through, and things were getting a little desperate. Luckily, a friend of a friend asked him to give me a call, and he did. He saved my ass. That’s Kannon for you. He comes through when you need him.”
I nodded. “He seems like that kind of guy.”
She still watched me, and I could feel her eyes dissecting every nuanced movement, the brush of my fingers through my hair, my lifted brow, the graze of teeth over my lip, and I was hyper aware of it all. “You’re curious about him.”
I shook my head. “I... Well, I am a mess, and I probably have no business asking anyone about their relationships, considering I don’t really know how to maintain one.”
She tilted her head, her gaze on my face. “Why is that?”
“My parents, when they were alive, they doted on me. I was the only girl. The youngest. Desperate to be seen. They poured love on me as much as they could. But they were busy, as active royals should be. So there were lots of nannies and governesses and boarding school and