Page 15 of Nothing to Deny

“He has insurance,” Baer interjected.

She hadn’t even heard him approach, but when she and Zard turned, he was standing just a couple of feet away.

“I’m sorry, sir, I…” Zard stepped away, but glanced at her. “We haven’t been introduced… I’m Presley’s doctor, Trey Zarden.”

“Baer Claymore,” he said, offering a hand, and the two men shook. “Presley’s brother.”

“As you can see, your brother has a fractured radius. It’s nothing too serious, but it will require a cast.”

“No surgery?” Baer asked. Zard shook his head. “Like I said, he has insurance; money isn’t a problem.”

Zard turned his narrow focus to her. “I thought he was one of yours.”

“If he has no insurance, he is,” she said. “Is there a problem?”

Moving back, the doctor brought both her and Baer into his circle. “It seems, uh…” Clearing his throat, she didn’t blame him for being nervous if he was going to say something Baermight not like. Baer was bigger than him and, right now, looked a hell of a lot meaner. “It’s possible the injury was sustained during a break-in. Insurance won’t cover injuries sustained during a criminal act… even for a child.”

Whipping around, Baer set his sights on the sheepish Presley. “What the hell? You were inside? Why the hell were you inside—”

“Let’s all be calm,” she said, opening her arms and moving around to stand in front of the bed, protecting Presley while focusing on Zard. “If Presley requires additional tests or scans, do everything he needs. I’ve already signed the waiver. I’m paying now no matter what happens… Have the police spoken to him?”

“On their way,” Zard said.

“Who’s the—”

“Chapman,” Zard said, doing a terrible job of hiding the laugh blocked in his throat.

Groaning, her arms dropped as she sagged. “It had to be, didn’t it? Where’s Higgs?”

“Florida, I think,” he said. “His mom had a heart attack.”

“Good one, Mom,” she muttered. “I’ll… I’ll deal with it.”

“You know, his idea of payment from you will be a lot more depraved than mine,” Zard said, his lips contorting to a smile. “Don’t worry, I’m sure he’s over the humiliation.”

“He will never be over his perceived humiliation,” she said. “His ego will never be over it.”

Forgetting that it was actually her who’d been disgraced.

Zard laughed. As she considered the merits of punching him in the face, he raised a finger.

“There is one saving grace.”

“What’s that?”

“It was a Monument site.”

Hope thrust her shoulders back and her lips circled in a hiss of interest. “Really?”

Bobbing his head, Zard smiled, pleased he’d given her an out.

“Yep,” Zard said. “You going to call Truman?”

“Not a chance,” she said, taking her phone from her clutch. “Duncan.”

Duncan, her grandfather’s bodyman, coordinated more than just Truman’s schedule and security. He was discreet and could keep a secret, which was exactly what she needed. Presley had broken into a Monument site. Monument was one of her grandfather’s companies, which meant they could choose not to press criminal charges.

Her grandfather wouldn’t be bothered about a minor break in, not perpetrated by a child. If the cops called him about something like that, or showed up about it, he’d be more likely to dismantle their department than go after the kid.

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