Leader Lion (Protection, Inc. Book 5) by Zoe Chant

Author:Zoe Chant [Chant, Zoe]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Zoe Chant
Published: 2017-12-31T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Grace

The rest of the rehearsal felt like it lasted an eternity. Even when it ended, Grace still had to endure watching Paris and Ruth stroll out together, Paris carrying her empty cupcake tray and Ruth her empty rat cage, with their free hands clasped tight. Tycho rode on Ruth’s shoulder. They looked so happy and in love, and walked so close together that Ruth’s brown hair, which she’d never pinned back up, mingled with Paris’s blonde locks.

When everyone had finally left, Grace forced herself to her feet. Time to meet the replacement bodyguard and ask for Rafa’s phone number.

Time to find out if she’d thrown away her own best chance at love.

The night was dark and cold, and a bitter wind struck through her clothes the instant she opened the theatre door. A curvy black woman stood outside, her attitude relaxed but watchful. Just like Rafa.

That thought made Grace feel like she’d been stabbed in the heart with a sliver of glass.

The woman turned around. “Grace?”

“Yes.”

“I’m Rafa’s replacement.”

That one little word enlarged the splinter of glass in Grace’s heart to a shard, its edges cruelly sharp and cutting.

“He had to go home sick,” the woman bodyguard said. “I mean, he didn’t say that, but I assume that’s why he called me in. He looked terrible. You know, Rafa’s a former Navy SEAL, and they’re awfully stoic. And macho. I remember once we got in a throwdown with a gang, and he got his arm slashed open. We came back to our office, and he was bleeding all over the floor. We have a paramedic on staff, and she sewed up his arm. He never flinched. Cracked jokes the entire time. But today, I could see he was hurting.”

The bodyguard shook her head, looking concerned. “Man, I hope he’s all right. He was obviously in pain. And for him to show it at all, it must’ve been bad. I’ve never seen that kind of suffering in a man’s eyes before.”

Forget being stabbed. Grace felt like her heart had been run through a wood chipper. Which was apparently exactly what she’d done to Rafa.

The woman studied her face. And then, bizarrely, she smiled and said cheerfully, “But I’m sure he’ll be fine. He’s a tough guy. Shall I walk you to your car?”

Grace edged a step back. No sane person’s mood changed that fast. “No, thanks. I, uh, I’m not leaving yet. I still have work to do. Can I have Rafa’s phone number, though? I want to tell him to get well soon.”

The woman passed her a piece of paper. “Here you go. Give him my best.”

“Absolutely,” Grace said, and bolted back into the theatre. What a weird woman! She’d have expected a bodyguard—especially a bodyguard from Rafa’s agency—to be more professional.

Once she was backstage, she sank down on the nearest Mars rock, her heart sledgehammering against her ribcage. The slip of paper with Rafa’s number felt like it was burning through her palm. She’d never been more afraid of anything than she was afraid of calling him.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.