Page 7 of If Our Hearts Collide

I sit up in my chair. “What’s wrong? Was there an incident?”

There’s something indescribably enchanting about Penelope Josephine Hoffman. There’s an aura about her that is sweet and kind, yet there’s a fierceness behind her seemingly shy demeanor.

While our interactions have been limited, I’ve had the luxury of watching Penny on brief occasion from the sidelines. Witnessing her come out of the darkness that once consumed her entire life was a sight to see. She is inspiring—and even that word doesn’t encompass just how truly amazing she is. Sure, our paths crossed a few other times when she would visit her brothers on leave from the facility. However, everything was clinical.

This assignment seems personal.

I don’t do personal.

Having attached feelings nearly cost me my entire life, and I refuse to give up what I’ve spent years rebuilding.

With all of my former assignments, I could clearly separate my own emotions from the actual work. But with Penny, there’s something about her that tugs on my heart. And I honestly don’t know what it is, because it is such a foreign feeling—one I don’t think I’ve experienced enough times to identify and define.

Graham sighs and runs a hand through his hair, stress lines forming on his forehead and around his eyes.

Last year, I worked with the Hoffmans to try to find out who drugged and potentially raped Penny. While it was discovered that she was not physically violated to that extent, Penny suffered a mental break and was in a facility in Seattle for several months—some of which was in a catatonic, nonverbal state.

The grief the family has endured has been intense. While Penny is now home in Hillsboro with her parents, there is still a certain amount of transitioning that has to happen for her life to go back to a new normal.

What that normal will look like is the big mystery.

Based on how her brothers look right now, I’m not so sure they are going to welcome it.

I understand all too well how hard that transition can be. When I was forced to exit the military, I slipped into a dark place. Stubborn to my core, I didn’t reach out for help, and I definitely didn’t want to talk about my feelings surrounding the discharge.

Witnessing Penny firsthand as she battled her demons was difficult to endure. It reminded me of my own past and all of the internal obstacles I had to overcome to get me to the place I am today.

I owe my life to Graham Hoffman. Just a couple of years after I hung up my time in service to this country, I met the lucrative mogul who was making huge waves in the business world in Portland. Graham hired me to work security initially, but when the drug ring became an issue, my duties shifted to provide that extra protection. It helped that I had nothing to lose and could commit to the task.

I’m not even sure Penny realizes just how many visits I made to Seattle in the past year to check up on the care she was receiving. I was given small requests to scope out workers atthe facility, handle therapy arrangements when needed, and was even tasked to scare off a few losers who were sniffing around her.

However, I’ve never had to officially…handlethe unpredictable Hoffman princess, so it surprises me that I’m being called upon to do it now.

By the exorbitant compensation staring at me on the contract, something tells me this job will have some twists. I just hope I can handle them all. Retirement is looking better and better. The past year has not been the easiest by any terms. Good thing for me, I thrive on challenges.

Plus, I’m too young to retire by a couple of decades. I’d grow bored and antsy, just like anyone else dedicated to perfecting their skill set.

“Penny wants to spread her wings and fly,” Nic huffs. “Her words, almost exactly. She claims she doesn’t want her brothers impacting her relationships or interfering with her affairs.” He tosses his hands into the air. “Like we would ever be that intrusive.”

I resist snickering. Nic is the worst offender when it comes to overstepping boundaries with his overprotective tendencies, which is an odd judgment for me to have—considering my line of work. Being head of security for Hoffman Headquarters, I’m not surprised that Nic’s brain automatically goes to the worst-case scenario—especially after almost losing Claire a couple of months ago. My brain does the same thing. You don’t get to be this good at your job if you see the world through rose-colored glasses.

Evil can exist anywhere. It just takes someone who can pull it out of hiding.

“So you want me to do the exact opposite of what Penny is asking for?” I ask for clarification. I’m not shy when it comes to protecting strong-willed women, and I’m almost positive thatthere isn’t a woman who can be more difficult than Angie or Claire. Those two women have caused me more than one migraine. They are always getting into some kind of trouble, claiming they had no idea that something bad would happen, despite all signs pointing to disaster.

But as a result, my loyalty to this family would lead to me cleaning up their messes.

I mean, it’s not that I don’t like breaking noses in bars and delivering threats to drunk assholes that touch any of the Hoffman brothers’ women.

But it also isn’t my idea of fun—especially when these women have horrible self-preservation skills.

There is no way Penny could be as difficult.

This may be the easiest assignment I’ve been given thus far—at least on paper. That’s assuming I don’t let her manipulate me with her sweet innocence.

Penelope Hoffman is the epitome of the baby in the family. She is as delicate as a freshly transformed butterfly and as rare as a double rainbow.

“Just keep an eye on her,” Graham says smoothly. “She knows that there is no possibility of us not keeping loose tabs on her, especially after we got a call to pick her up from visiting Mark Tanner.”

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