Page 18 of Control

“Hi, how can I help you?” the woman greeted me.

I smiled at her. “I’m looking to hire a bodyguard.”

“Sure. Is this for a specific event or?—”

“Ty,” I blurted, cutting her off. “I’m hoping to hire Ty as my bodyguard.”

The woman’s brows pulled together as she assessed me. Following a beat of confused silence, her expression turneddelighted, and she beamed at me. “Absolutely. I’ll go grab him now. What’s your name?”

“Alana.”

She stood from her chair and extended her hand to mine. “I’m Avalon. It’s lovely to meet you.”

I took her hand and shook it. “Likewise.”

“Hang tight. I’ll be right back with Ty. Can I get you anything while I’m up? Water, coffee?”

Shaking my head, I declined. “No, thank you. I’m good for now.”

Without another word, Avalon took off in search of Ty. As I stood there waiting for her to return with him, I questioned whether I was about to do something foolish. I was so caught up in my goal to get to the bottom of what happened to both Annie and Yasmine that I was now prepared to hire a bodyguard so I could carry out that task.

It felt a bit extreme.

But this was an extreme situation.

Before I could get too caught up in my doubts, which might have led me to running out the door, Avalon returned with Ty following just a few steps behind her. My eyes met his, and I couldn’t quite read the look on his face.

I shifted my body out from behind the reception desk, and Ty’s gaze drifted down to the boot I was wearing. He frowned, but the moment his eyes traveled up my body again and landed on my face, the corners of his mouth tipped up in a friendly smile.

“Hi, Alana,” he said when he came to a stop in front of me.

“Hey, Ty.”

“How are you feeling?”

I glanced down at my foot briefly. “As well as can be expected. No pain at this point, but the boot is annoying.”

He gave me a nod of understanding. “Avalon mentioned you wanted to hire a bodyguard.”

“I do.”

For several long seconds, his eyes roamed over my face. Nothing in his stare indicated what he was thinking, but his momentary silence had me wondering if, perhaps, he wasn’t interested.

Jerking his head to the side, he swept one hand out in that direction. “How about we go talk about this in the conference room?”

“Sure.”

I moved in the direction Ty had indicated, and he walked slowly beside me as I hobbled toward the conference room, my nerves suddenly ratcheting up.

Was I about to make a smart move?

And what was I going to do if Ty decided he didn’t want any part of my plan?

SIX

Ty

“Are you sure you’re okay? Do you need to elevate your foot on something?”

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