Page 4 of Last Resort

It was the view of someone who had money and power and liked both.

Beyond that, the rest of the room was taken over by a massive desk covered in neat stacks of paper. Everything else in the office, from the carpet to the chairs to the paintings, was done in warm, masculine neutrals. Deep navy and warm gray mixed with the dark mahogany of the bookcases to create a type of space that fit the CEO and founder of a multimillion dollar company.

“Mr. LeBlanc, these are the Patterson brothers, owners of San Antonio Security.”

Nicholas LeBlanc stood from behind his desk. “Thank you for coming, gentlemen. Leo Delacruz speaks highly of you. Please sit. Benjamin will get you whatever drinks you want.”

Chance took note of the expensive watch and tailored suit jacket. Everything on LeBlanc’s body—and in his office—was both extravagant and orderly.

Chance had no problem with either. But once again he was trying to figure out why someone like LeBlanc was interested in a security firm like theirs, even with Leo’s recommendation.

Nicholas motioned everyone to a sitting area off to the side of his behemoth desk. They all declined the offer of drinks.

“What can San Antonio Security do for you, Mr. LeBlanc?” Brax asked. As the most charming of the Patterson brothers, he tended to do the initial talking. He had a way of making people feel at ease.

Chance preferred to let Brax talk so he could observe.

“Leo told me that you four were the best at what you do.”

“Thank you. We work very hard and pride ourselves on our solid reputation.” Brax tipped his head in acknowledgment. “Are you needing more personal security? It seems like you’ve got plenty.”

“Not exactly.” Nicholas sighed. “My daughter, Stella, is having an issue. She’s a social media influencer, and recently she’s become the target of a stalker.”

Chance leaned forward, leaning his elbows on his knees. “What kind of stalker?”

“At first it was messages on her social media, comments and DMs from dummy accounts. Then it turned into actual letters being sent to the house with no clue how the individual got the address. Recently it has been bizarre gifts and more. She wants to use what she receives to further build her social media following. Obviously, she doesn’t understand the severity of the issue.”

“Tell us what you perceive that severity to be,” Brax said gently, nodding at Nicholas.

If it was just letters, there wasn’t much anyone could do to stop them. Even the police rarely prosecuted stalking cases. There was too much ambiguity to make them stick in court.

Gifts were the same, as long as they didn’t cause harm. Icky wasn’t illegal.

Nicholas rubbed the back of his neck. “The problem is, no matter what our security measures are, her stalker keeps getting through. We’ve had Stella on lockdown and they’ve still gotten letters inside the compound to her. We’ve gone through three security teams and none of them have been able to stop her from receiving the notes. I’m worried that things are going to get worse, and I don’t want my daughter caught in the crosshairs.”

Brax sat back, resting an ankle on his knee. “So, you want us to bodyguard Stella?”

Nicholas shrugged. “Yes and no. She has guards on her at all times, though she’s not often aware of it. Her constant companion, Rich Carlisle, is someone I hired a few years ago as a social secretary/babysitter. He’s also trained in defense, although that’s not his primary purpose.”

It sounded like Stella had a full team. “Where would we come in?”

“While you might do some guarding and security setup, I’d really like you to focus on finding the stalker. Since we don’t have proof of anyone physically harming or threatening Stella, the police can’t do anything but write reports. I need someone out there looking for whoever is behind this.”

Chance caught his brothers’ eyes. They all knew how beneficial this assignment could be for their business overall, but for something like this, everyone needed to be in agreement before they took it on.

Things had changed for his brothers over the past few months. Luke and Brax both had wives now. Brax even had a kid. Weston was engaged to Leo Delacruz’s daughter, Kayleigh.

Chance was the only one still alone.

An assignment of this magnitude would take a lot of man hours for everyone, even if Chance took the lead.

It would also mean Chance would be spending a lot more time in the office. A lot more time around Maci Ford, the San Antonio Security office manager.

Who he saw every day, while both of them pretended she hadn’t snuck out of his bed in the middle of the night a couple months ago.

All his brothers gave him subtle nods, so he knew they were okay with taking the LeBlanc assignment. Chance gave his full attention back to Nicholas.

“If we do this, we’ll have to split our time between bodyguarding and investigating. It’s going to take a lot of planning and strategy.”

---