Page 35 of Protecting Andie

Andie didn’t want to worry too much but hearing that someone Rider knew had been injured was hard. She didn’t like to think of Rider being hurt. She knew danger was a part ofhis job, but the reality of danger was almost too much, and she pushed it from her mind.

“I’d love to meet him. Picking him up from the airport would be great.”

“Awesome. So how about we relax and watch a movie or something before bed?”

“Sure, I’d like that.”

They settled on the couch, him holding her close as the movie played. She wanted to get used to this. There was no way Tony knew where she was. She didn’t need to worry about him showing up here. Being with Rider made her feel safe. She trusted that her man could handle anything that came their way.

22

Rider heard back from Thario, and they were scheduled to pick him up on Tuesday evening. He’d been in Virginia for a few weeks doing something with the FBI. Thario insisted it wasn’t official, but Rider thought it might be.

Andie wanted to go in and meet Thario at the baggage claim area, so they were standing off to the side when he heard Frog let go of a loud bark. He glanced up and saw Thario headed his way, Frog right beside him.

“That’s Thario and Frog.”

“Oh, he has a dog.”

Frog moved to Andie and sat, staring up at her and wagging his tail. “He’s a good boy.”

Andie squatted so she was at the same level as Frog. She lifted her hand and let the dog sniff before petting his head. Rider liked that Andie paid attention to Frog. The dog was a huge part of Thario’s new life and that she included Frog in the conversation showed she cared.

Andie giggled as Frog wiggled in front of her. “I bet you’re a very good boy.”

Frog whined and glanced up at Thario before licking Andie on the face. She laughed, and Frog wiggled more before bumping Rider’s hand.

“He likes you,” Thario said.

She stood and shook Thario’s hand. “Nice dog.”

“He’s going to be happy to be home.”

“Do you have another bag?” Rider asked as he took the bag Thario had been pulling behind him.

He shook his head. “Nope. Just this. I mailed back everything else.”

“That’s smart.”

Thario shrugged. “I can’t travel with extra bags. It’s too much.”

Rider noticed Thario rubbing his hip and knew the guy must be tired. He needed to move them outside. “Well, your chariot awaits. Do you want to stop somewhere on the way for dinner or go home?”

Thario rubbed his hip again. “Can we go home? My legs are tired, and I need to take them off.”

“Sure. Let’s go. Andie already has pizza loaded into the buffer for ordering. We’ll have it delivered to your house.”

Thario shook his head. “You all don’t need to do that.”

“Sure we do,” Rider said.

It didn’t take them long to get out to the car. Frog settled quickly, and they were on their way. It only took them about twenty minutes to get to Thario’s place since the streets were clear.

Once in his own home, Thario headed to his bedroom, where he removed his legs and used his wheelchair. “I’m tired from travel. I was lucky and didn’t have to travel with the chair, but travel days are tough on me.”

“I bet,” Andie said. “Did you have another chair while you were there?”

“They provided me with one. I appreciated them taking care of that.” Thario moved, so he was right in front of Andie on the couch. “Rider explained the situation with Tony. I set up a search but haven’t seen anything on him. I’ll keep looking, though.”

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