Page 57 of Without Judgment

Probably a good idea for her to get out of town. “I’ll go with you.”

She shook her head. “Afraid you can’t. You’re fired.”

“What?”

She smiled sweetly, grabbing her purse. “I said you’re fired. At least from watching me, that is. The business deal you have with my father is between you two. But bottom line is I can’t have you telling him where I am.” She moved past me, taking her suitcase down the stairs before I realized she was serious.

“Wait. Avery. You can’t go out there by yourself.”

“Actually, I can. By the way, your website is set up. It’s in draft mode now in case you want to change anything. If not, all you have to do is hit publish.”

Right. My business. The very reason why what I was now contemplating was insane. But if I wanted to prove I was on her side, I needed to go all in. “A resort is the first place they’ll look for you. I have some place better. Give me ten minutes, and we’ll go.”

“I don’t think so. Jumping sides won’t go over well with my father.”

No, it probably wouldn’t, but my first priority was the girl in front of me. “I’ve always been on your side. Where do you think your brother got the information about the PR team and when they’d arrive? It was from me.”

Her blue eyes went big. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because if your father doesn’t believe I’m fully in his corner, then I’m not going to learn any information.”

She contemplated. “You won’t tell him where I am?”

“No. I won’t. The only thing I’ll tell him is you’re safe.”

It wasn’t enough to budge her. And after the way I’d been treating her hot and cold, I couldn’t blame her. Time to up the ante.

“I have reason to believe your ex’s gambling debts made him a prime target for someone wanting to smear your father’s reputation.”

“What?”

Now I had her attention. “I’ll share everything I know if you come with me.”

“Deal, but if you tell my father where I am or take me to him before I’m ready, then I will hack into your website a year from now—when business is booming—and make it pink with glitter sparkles and tiny unicorns dancing to the theme song from Barney. And I’ll never trust you again.”

I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing at her threat, but I took the second part of her statement very seriously. “That was scarily specific, but completely understood.”

***

Thirty minutes later, we were heading north out of the city limits in my truck. I’d thought we’d have hours before her topless picture hit the Internet, but I was wrong. Her father was dialing me now.

She glanced over. I could see the hurt in her eyes that he would call me before her.

Time to get this over. I answered the phone. “Yes, sir.”

“What in the hell is going on? I tell her to try harder, and she goes topless.”

I wasn’t having this conversation with him. “The picture proves it’s not her on either video.”

“It’s a firestorm.”

I smiled, thinking that was a good way of describing the girl who was sitting next to me. “Speaking of fire, you should know she fired me.”

“You work for me.”

“Short of kidnapping her, my options are limited when it comes to an adult who does not want to be protected.”

He was silent.

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