Page 25 of Rekindling Desire

“No,” I said definitively. “Are we ready to go back?”

“The driver will first take us to the hospital. If we can’t see Dad, at least we can see Mom. Also, Dani is going to meet us there and fly back with us.”

Dani.

Did she need to know what Pastor Abrams told me?

I needed to tell Damien.

“Before we go, I should tell you something the pastor told me.”

Damien

We were hardly in a private office. Instead, it was a small consultation room off a larger waiting room on the sixth floor of the hospital.

“We found him in the emergency room,” Leo Conner said. A tall, thin man, he was the lead on the security team I’d authorized to watch over my parents. “I’d already spoken with the hospital security.” He shook his head. “It wasn’t difficult to get Mr. Sinclair out of the building—just noisy. He could have made it easier on himself.”

Everything the man said coincided with what Ella shared earlier—the story she’d heard from Pastor Abrams. The information I didn’t know was what I would ask next. “Where is he now?”

Leo slowly shook his head. “Sir, my team was hired to keep Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair away from your parents, not to monitor their movement.”

“Did you hear him or his wife say anything that could be construed as threatening?”

“They were both pissed. I didn’t give their words that much consideration. People like to rant. It’s not unusual in our line of work. It’s mostly bluster.”

That wasn’t the answer I wanted.

Leo continued, “I have two other members of my team besides myself on this job. If you want more, say the word.”

This wasn’t the location that worried me. The pastor’s story had gotten to Ella. I could hear the change in her tone. She tried to sound strong, but damn, marrying me wasn’t supposed to come along with the threat of violence. The more I thought about the possibility, the more I knew that if Darius or Amber did anything to harm or frighten Ella, it would be the last damn thing they ever did.

“I want to hire more people,” I said, “not for here. You have a good team. Mom said you met with her.”

It wasn’t a question, but Leo nodded with a ‘yes, sir.’

“My wife” —damn that sounded good— “my sister, and I are flying back to Indiana, where we live.”

“I read your parents were from northern Indianapolis.”

A smile threatened my gruff exterior. “A man who does his homework. I like that. Now, if there is even an inkling that my brother and sister-in-law may pull something to retaliate, I want Ella and Dani to have around-the-clock bodyguards.”

“Our company can provide that kind of security, but I need to warn you, it’s expensive.”

“Find me four of your best men or women. I want them in my office in Indianapolis tomorrow afternoon. I’ll interview them and decide on the best two.”

“If I may,” he said. “I’ve worked as a personal bodyguard on multiple different assignments. I’m certain you know what you’re looking for, but the assignments that work the best and have the best results are the ones where the client is involved in the hire. Your wife and sister must feel comfortable with this person, or they won’t work well together. And working together is what keeps people safe. Full disclosure of location at all times. It’s when someone decides they can sneak away for an hour or two that everything goes to hell.”

Sneak away.

Yeah, I could see both Ella and Dani trying to pull that shit.

“I guess that means I need to tell them what’s happening.”

“How long do you anticipate needing these bodyguards?” Leo asked.

“Open-ended. Get me the particulars, and tomorrow we’ll interview.”

“Yes, sir.”

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