Page 17 of Off Limits Billionaire

She was visibly shaken and explained. “We were leaving Montclair’s when a man threatened me. He wanted to steal the piece we’d won at the auction. He was about six feet tall, um, a hundred fifty, maybe one eighty in weight?”

“Ten to thirteen stones,” I offered the officer.

“Ah, Americans.” The officer nodded as he continued to take notes. “And you say he attacked you, ma’am? Are you hurt?”

“No.” Ana shook her head vigorously before rubbing her hands up and down her arms to keep herself warm. I pulled my jacket off to wrap around her while the officer finished taking down notes of the incident.

“He had a scar down the right side of his face from his hairline to his cheekbone,” she stammered, trying to keep her composure.

The officer scratched his head as he read through his notes. “I’ll be honest. There’s not much we can do with finding a bloke with a scar down his face who didn’t hang around after he attacked you. I suggest you head to your hotel and if you decide to head out to enjoy the nightlife, stay in well crowded places. Keep an eye on your surroundings, yeah?”

“So what you’re telling me is next time, I have to let this guy stab or shoot me before the police can do anything?” My voice was sharp, short with a bite to it, because putting Ana in danger wasn’t a part of this deal.

“Please, Mr. Adler. You have the sympathy of the entire Yard, but there’s nothing we can really do outside of having a few constables follow you around. Surely, you’re not suggesting the City of London use its resources to protect you like a private security firm?”

Rage burned right under the surface, but I had to keep my anger in check. “You’re right, Inspector. Thank you for all that you have done. We’ll just head back to our hotel and try to enjoy the rest of our trip.”

The officer walked away, leaving Ana and I alone. A taxi picked us up and charioted us to the hotel where we made quick work of gathering our stuff to check out. I noticed her panicked gaze and the slight tremble in her hands when I grabbed them.

“Marcus, are you okay?” Her voice shook.

“A little sore, but not as bad as the other guy.” I pulled her into my arms, holding her as she let go of the emotions bottled up inside of her. She cried into my shirt and I held her until she stopped.

“Shit, I’m sorry. You must think—”

I hushed her. “I think you’re one of the bravest people I know, and one of the smartest. You told me we should leave and that he’d try anything. You were right. We’re doing exactly what you said. At this point, we’re taking off regardless if the clock’s made it to the plane or not.”

She sniffed back her tears, wiping the wetness off her face and peering into my eyes. “What do you mean if it’s made it to the plane or not?”

“It’s not a secret that we used a delivery service to haul to the hangar. If that guy was smart, he’d go after the auction assistant who scheduled the pickup and get it that way. I hope he’snotthat smart.”

“Even if he is, we can get it back!” Her red eyes lit up with joy as she rummaged through her purse for her phone. She pulled it out, swiping across a few screens until she held it up for me to see. “Look! The tag!”

I took her face in both my hands, planting a firm kiss on her lips. “Can we zoom in?”

“Yeah.” She adjusted the screen and showed me the tag’s location. “For now, it looks like it’s headed to Heathrow. We should get ahead of it and make sure it’s onyourplane.”

I kissed her again. “So fucking smart. I didn’t even think of that. Why stop it if it’s heading toward Heathrow where it can disappear and get onto any private jet? Let’s get out of here.”

We changed our clothes, finished getting our stuff together, and headed to the lobby to check out. I noticed the AirTag she’d given me was laying on the carpet. It must have fallen out of my pants when I changed. Taking a look around I gave our suite one more glance to make sure we had everything.

I picked the AirTag up and stuck it back in my pocket before we headed out of the room where we’d spent hours making love on almost every single surface. I couldn't wait to do it again.

The concierge at the front desk looked disappointed as I handed him the key cards to the suite. He stood there with his eyes focused on the screen in front of him, glancing at us every so often as he punched a few keys to print out my receipt.

Once he handed me the page, he spoke quietly. “Here at Royal Swan, we pride ourselves on making sure every guest is satisfied with our service. We’re disappointed to see you checking out a few days earlier. Is there anything we can do to better serve you next time?”

“The early checkout isn’t on you or your establishment,” I assured him. “We just need to get going. We did love the room service.” I smiled, wrapping an arm around Ana’s waist and pulling her closer to me.

She giggled, but I could see her eyes searching the lobby. She wanted to be sure the thug who attacked us wasn’t anywhere to be seen. As her eyes roamed around the room, I did a scan myself. While I wanted to believe we were in the clear, my nerves felt like something or someone was watching us.

I had the concierge order us a car, and while we waited, Ana made sure to stay by my side.

“Outside of the guy trying to steal the clock from me, I’m enjoying this trip with you, Ana.”

“Thanks?”

“Will you give some thought to what we spoke about? You becoming a horologist on retainer for me? I can float you some business on a consistent basis as I build my portfolio of antiques.”

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