Page 4 of Cautious

“Hey boss, how’s June doing?” Aiden asks as he pours coffee into his mug from the pot in the corner.

I look around the brightly lit room, taking in the white walls and the brown leather couches in an ‘L’ to the left. A glass coffee table between them is topped with a handful of magazines. On the right is the empty reception desk where my grandmother usually resides. Thanks to a fall that ended with a broken hip, she’s resting up at home, much to her disgust.

“Grams is doing okay. Pissed I won’t let her come back to work. But she can’t hide how much it still hurts her to move around, so she isn’t winning this argument anytime soon.”

He laughs before pouring a coffee for me and handing it over. “She’s going to drive you nuts until you finally relent. You know that right?” he retorts with another laugh, perching his ass on the edge of the desk.

I shake my head with an amused smile playing on my lips but don’t answer him, mostly because we both know he’s right. I watch him for a moment, taking in his messy black hair, white T-shirt, and faded blue jeans. It’s his standard outfit, and yet he looks more disheveled than usual. I frown when I notice how tired he looks.

“Everything okay with you?” I query, used to seeing him more put together.

“Cora and I broke up,” he offers with a half-hearted shrug.

I raise my eyebrows at that. It’s not a secret that none of us guys are big fans of hers, but we kept our mouths shut because Aiden genuinely seemed into her.

“I’m sorry, man. What happened?” Sipping my black coffee, I wait as he sighs and rubs a hand over his face.

“Came home early to surprise her, but I was the one that ended up surprised when I walked in and found Brett-fucking-Daniels balls-deep inside her while she was bent over the kitchen counter,” he spits out.

“He still breathing?” I ask, needing to know if Aiden will need an alibi.

“Breathing, sure. Walking without a limp, not so much. I’m more pissed off with myself than anything. How the fuck did I not know what kind of soul-sucking bitch I had let into my bed?”

“It happens, man, trust me. You live and learn,” I reassure him. He’s not the first man to be blinded by a pair of tits, and he won’t be the last.

An image of Callie’s ample bust flashes to mind, making my dick twitch. To some people, she might be considered too curvy, but I’ve always liked my women with a little meat on their bones. I’m a big guy, and I like to fuck hard. I don’t want to worry about snapping someone in two.

Aiden grunts before placing his mug on the desk behind him. “Anyway, I slept in my truck. I knew I couldn’t deal with her bullshit without losing my mind.”

“You need a place to crash?” I offer, pulling my mind back to the present.

“Nah, it’s fine. I’m looking at an apartment this afternoon. Thank fuck we hadn’t been able to agree on which house we wanted to buy. Both our names are on the lease, so I’ll just give the manager a call and have my name removed.”

“No worries. The boys and I will come by later and help you grab your shit, so you don’t have to go back there after today. You can stash everything at my place for as long as you need to, and the offer is always open if you need a place to crash.”

“Appreciated. I’ve gotta go. Banner and I have a pickup this morning.”

“The Brown case, right?” I reply, remembering the case is one of our usual ones. Aiden and Banner will be in court offering protection to a woman, Ava Brown, while she confronts her violent ex.

“Let me know how it goes,” I tell him, then turn to the back of the room that leads to the offices and the break room when I hear footsteps. Banner walks toward us. He has a slice of toast shoved in his mouth as he pulls on his black leather jacket.

Where Aiden is dark and broody, Banner is the polar opposite—fair-haired, like me, and quick to smile. Though most of the time it’s an act people rarely look hard enough to see through. He’s the poster boy for college football players, having once been one himself before he enlisted out of the blue. He’d only been in a couple of years when his younger brother Alec was killed, crushing his whole family. When Banner was shot and medically discharged a few years later, I thought his parents were going to lose their minds.

Thankfully, they seemed to have calmed down somewhat, now that he’s back home with only a slight limp when the weather takes a turn to show for his troubles. I know they wish he’d get a nice, safe job somewhere and maybe follow his father’s footsteps into law. But that’s not Banner, much to their disappointment. Now they’ve turned their attention to his younger sister Katy, giving him breathing room at least.

As Aiden and Banner stand side by side, I take in how big and broad they are at around six-four and six-five. They are the perfect guys for the Brown case. They’ll make sure Ava feels safe when facing the monster that beat her throughout the duration of their marriage.

Protection is, after all, what our office specializes in. With seven of us, each coming from varied backgrounds including police and military, we cater to anything—from close guard security details of the elite to assisting in domestic violence cases.

Banner nods to me as they both head out through the glass front door that’s etched with my company logo and name—Price Security.

Grabbing my coffee, I stroll toward my private office in the back, determined to get some work done and not spend the rest of the day thinking about a certain adorable blonde and that damned pink cock of hers.

Callie

Putting the incident with Bundy temporarily out of my mind, I begin the arduous task of unpacking the boxes I lugged in last night.

I spend most of the day sweating like a pig as I clean and mop the floors before rolling up the sleeping bag I slept in last night and putting fresh sheets on the bed. Collapsing onto the sofa with a yawn, I admit defeat and call it quits for the day. I’m utterly exhausted, but I accomplished what I needed to.

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