Page 58 of Breaking the Rules of Love

What’s going on right now? What’s this guy’s angle? All I know as I slide in and close the door is that this is shaping up to be one strange night.

40

Jake

As it turns out,Paul and Rachel end up being two of the nicest people I’ve ever met in my life. They met in college at Princeton where Paul was majoring in finance and Rachel was majoring in art history. They started dating, fell in love, and have been together ever since.

Paul went on to work on Wall Street, and with the help of a few familial connections, made millions and millions of dollars. Rachel went into art curation and is responsible for putting together tonight’s exhibit.

The artist on display is someone she discovered completely on her own and helped bring from relative obscurity to global fame in less than a couple of years.

As far as I can tell, they’re both good people.

I’ve met a lot of rich assholes, and they don’t show any of the signs that those people usually show. In fact, I’d feel comfortable having Paul and Rachel over to my house for dinner and wouldn’t even feel ashamed of the square footage.

“So you built this security firm up from nothing by yourself, Jake?” Paul asks me.

“That’s right.” I nod. I notice his eyes dart approvingly to his wife, who seems to also approve of this answer. She’s smiling to herself but says nothing. “I needed something to do after leaving the service, and I didn’t want to be a contractor like everybody else, so–”

“Ah, you were in the service.” Paul nods. “That makes sense. Where’d you serve? See any action?”

“I did,” I reply. “The Middle East. Nothing too major. It’s died down since 9/11, but there’s still things happening.”

Paul nods again, and his eyes dart to his wife again, who seems to be smiling even more. If I wasn’t already on a job, I’d feel like I was on a job interview. Or a date if she wasn’t already married.

“Well, we appreciate your service,” Paul says. “I’m sure everybody says that.”

I chuckle. “They do. But it’s still nice to hear.”

Rachel lets her heel drop to the floor of the car and leans over the center console to take her husband’s hand like she’s teasing him or playing with him. He smiles at her, and I can’t help it as my thoughts are instantly drawn to Sadie.

Paul and Rachel—happily together since college and now married. Such a perfect romance.

But I guess you think because yours wasn’t perfect you don’t deserve happiness, Sadie?

I thought I’d manage to shake her from my mind, but now as I sit in front of these two and see how blissful they are, the first thing I think of is her.

How long is it going to take to free my thoughts from her? I need to be able to do my job, and I can’t do that if I’m constantly thinking of her.

I glance in the rear view to make sure the follow truck is behind us. It is, and I see Logan and Ryan in the front seats with their eyes on our car. Chances are they’re running their mouths about Sadie and me like a couple of teenage girls, but they’ll be alert, ready and professional. Nothing will happen to the Thortons on our watch.

“Well, Jake. We’re probably going overboard hiring you guys for security tonight,” Paul says with a smile. “But I think Rachel and Ibothfeel much more at ease tonight having you and your guys along for the ride.”

I nod and smile back. “I appreciate your business. And you should both absolutely feel at ease. Nothing will happen while we’re around.”

Paul glances at his wife one more time, and again, there’s that smile. It really feels like there’s something going on that I don’t know about, but I just keep my mouth shut. It’s not my job to ask questions. It’s my job to keep these two safe, and that’s all I’m going to do.

I make small talk with the happily married couple for the rest of the ride to the museum. Once we arrive, I get out and join Ryan and Logan on the steps to make sure the area is clear of threats before letting the VIPs step out of the car.

The event is busy, but the crowd is very clearly low on the threat level, so Ryan, Logan, and I make our way inside with the Thortons and take our positions on the outskirts of the crowd. It’s our job to remain out of the way and not intrude on the proceedings but still observe and ensure the security of the event.

The exhibit seems to be some kind of sculpture made from a mold-green colored material that I definitely do not have the artistic ability to appreciate. But the guests seem to be fawning all over it and chatting among themselves about how great it is, so Rachel must be great at what she does putting tonight’s event together.

“Looks like cat food,” Logan whispers to me as he passes on one of his loops around the room. I try to hide my smirk, but he definitely notices and chuckles under his breath.

It feels good to be back on the job, but try as I might, I can’t keep my mind offher.

Sadie.

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