Page 42 of An Unexpected Match

“Not exactly, but she loves the race car one. I’ll take her. Sorry, I forgot to mention her delight in the games.”

“Avery and I will guard the table. But if the pizza arrives before your return, it’s everyone for herself.”

Brendan nodded, brushing his hand lightly against her shoulder as he and Hailey headed for the video room. He wanted to do more, but kept a tight leash on his impulses. He knew better than anyone it could go only so far.

Once they were used to being around each other and the novelty wore off, he hoped the proclivity to want to spend every waking moment with her would wane. Not to mention the non-waking ones.

It was hard to talk over the noise, but when Brendan and Hailey returned, Arden asked how it had gone.

Hailey regaled them with her driving, and Brendan added an aside or two to clarify the situation.

When the pizza arrived, the girls cheerfully began to eat and watch the other customers in the huge restaurant.

“Tell me how you got into the security business,” Arden asked as she nibbled her first piece.

Brendan scooted his chair closer and took a large slice. He shrugged.

“I started in the hostage negotiation end of things after law enforcement training. If a person can avoid getting snatched, there is no hostage situation. So I began looking at how high-risk people could beef up security.”

“Were you a cop? Dealing with hostages?”

“FBI. I left the agency when I married Lannie. She didn’t want an agent for a husband. We both liked Norfolk, so settled here. At that point, I could have started my company anywhere, so this is now headquarters.”

“Wouldn’t somewhere else have more high-risk security clients? I mean, I don’t exactly think of Norfolk, Virginia, as the most dangerous place to live. I’d think more of New York or L.A.”

“You’re right. It’s one of the safer cities in America. A good place to raise a family. I go where the work is, but prefer to live here.”

“So when you go to Washington next week, it’s for work?”

“Checking in with some clients. Keeping in touch with friends.”

“With friends still in the FBI?”

He nodded.

“Some of them refer my services. I don’t want to dry up that angle. But most of my business comes by word of mouth.”

“And the family in Latin America, the one you freed. Will they be hiring you for security?”

“They already did before I left. I have a team down there now.”

“How many employees do you employ?”

He looked at her, eyes narrowed. “At work? Seventy full-time and another fifty on an as-needed basis. One at home.”

“Is that enough?”

“It’s enough for me to keep tabs on what’s going on, and yet be able to meet the demand of our clients. We continue to grow, but I want to make haste slowly. Every step is rock solid before we expand.”

“Planned and scheduled,” she murmured, remembering the way he wanted his household run.

“Not much room for spontaneity there,” he agreed. “But,” he reached out and used his thumb to brush a dab of tomato sauce from her lip, “there may be room for spontaneity in other aspects of my life.”

Her heart skipped a beat. She pulled back, trying to put enough distance between them to forget the heat of his fingertips, the feel of his thumb as it touched her. She needed something to gain some perspective.

Despite her best efforts, she wondered if she was getting in over her head. Almost three weeks working for the man and she could hardly remember her life before. And she was certainly having trouble holding on to her plans for the future.

A future that would not include a sexy hostage negotiator and his two adorable children.

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