Page 59 of Colton Family Bodyguard (Coltons of Mustang Valley)

“Ace Colton is innocent until proven guilty,” she said to a group of reporters.

“Have you seen or spoken to him since he’s become a suspect?” a reporter asked.

“No, I have not, and I am sure he will be exonerated very soon.” She flashed a megawatt smile for the cameras.

Hazel got the impression that she liked attention. She did not sound very sincere. One look at Callum and she knew he had similar sentiments about the woman.

She gave a wave to the reporters and walked like a movie star to her Mercedes—a much, much, much more expensive one than Hazel drove. Hazel experienced a few seconds of envy but she knew she would never be happy with that kind of lifestyle. Just looking at the woman gave her more than enough information. That woman thrived on attention and material things, expensive things, unattainable things for most people. Hazel thrived on her daughter and the everyday routine. She paid no heed to what strangers observed in her. They either accepted her or they did not. No bother to her.

Caring about all that would take too much energy. Energy better spent on what truly mattered. Evie. And real life. Real relationships.

Meeting genuine people was rare. Something to be cherished. Dear friends didn’t come along at will.

Neither did meeting Mr. Right...

She saw Callum’s expression had grown stormier.

Hazel finished with her recipe and put the freezable casserole into the oven. Cooking always lulled her into a state of artistic creation. She believed that the activity warded off stress and prolonged life because of that.

As she finished putting the food she had prepared into containers, she noticed Callum half-heartedly watching the newscast.

She put the Tupperware containers into the freezer, barely fitting them, and decided to delay cleaning the kitchen.

Going to where he sat, she plopped down beside him. “Everything okay?”

She saw his tension release. He leaned back and sighed. “Selina is kind of a loose cannon, in my opinion.”

“Who is she to you?”

He let out another stress relieving breath. “Sorry. Selina Barnes Colton. She’s vice president and director of public relations at Colton Oil. Also, my father’s second ex-wife.”

The way he said that piqued Hazel’s curiosity. “Not well liked among the family?”

He grunted and looked at her. “No. My mother hates her. None of my brothers and sisters care for her much, either. We always were suspicious of her hold over him, why he keeps her on at Colton Oil.”

Hazel saw him drift off into reflection. “She seems very good at her job. She put on a good show on that news segment. She might come across as lofty but I bet people buy into her game.”

His demeanor smoothed some more and he looked at her again, this time much more warmly. “Yes, that is exactly how I would describe her. And I do think she is good at her job, but I also think she has something on my father and that is why he had to keep her on as an employee. She creates a lot of friction there—or so I’m told.”

“But she’s good at her job,” Hazel summarized for him.

“She is good at her job.”

“And you and your brothers and sisters are stuck with her.”

“We are stuck with her.” He met her eyes with warm regard.

As their uncontrollable chemistry heated up, he stretched his arm out behind her.

After a few simmering, electrically charged moments had passed, he said, “Selina hasn’t let it leak to the press that Ace was ousted from the board.”

Hazel didn’t understand the significance of that. “Why wouldn’t you want anyone to know?” Anyone paying attention to Payne’s shooting in the news would know Ace was a suspect.

“The company bylaws say only a Colton by blood can be CEO.”

That certainly held significance, but she thought of something else that might hold even more. “He wasn’t ousted because he is a suspect in your father’s shooting. He was ousted because he isn’t a Colton by blood?”

Callum turned his head, his eyes going all shrewd and sexy. “No one knows Ace was let go because of the bylaws. She’s trying to protect the company.”

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