Page 177 of Eight Years Gone

He sighed as he laced their fingers, loathing that he had to go anywhere at all. He wanted more nights exactly like this. Fires in the fireplace and time with Grace. It was turning out that having Colton around worked just fine, too. “Monday morning. But I’ll be back on a four-thirty flight Tuesday afternoon. I need to go to DC again.”

Grace nodded. “Two days isn’t so bad.”

He sat on the cushion beside her, hooking his arm around her shoulders. “I know you were counting on my help with the centerpieces on Tuesday. Unfortunately, this trip can’t be avoided.”

She shook her head as she settled against him. “We’ve got it covered.”

He hated that this wasn’t the first time he’d bowed out of a prior commitment. Luckily, Grace was understanding. “I’ll be there for the duration on Wednesday. I promise.”

“Me and Amanda will be there right after school on Tuesday and all day on Wednesday,” Colton reminded Jagger.

“And Brandon’s helping out on Wednesday afternoon. Everything’s good,” Grace assured.

Colton moved to sit on the floor again. “Do you really only work two days a week each month?”

Jagger shrugged. “Sometimes it’s three or four. Five tops.”

Colton shook his head. “That’s crazy. And you make good money?”

Jagger nodded, having no issues with being honest about his income. “It’s certainly not bad. About fifty grand.”

Colton’s eyes grew huge. “A month?”

Jagger nodded again. “It pays to be highly specialized.”

Colton settled his elbows on the coffee table, clearly intrigued. “So, like, what will you do while you’re down in DC?”

Jagger snuggled Grace closer, always eager to have her by his side. “For this trip, I’ll run the routes the client will take at the same time of day the client will take them. I’ll be looking for locations where a security team might have a hard time maneuvering if they need a quick exit. If I see something that looks like it could be an issue, I’ll find routes that will provide a better outcome.”

“Huh,” Colton said, going after another cookie on the plate. “So, you just drive around?”

“For a lot of it. I also go to the locations where the client has meetings and hotel accommodations and look for weaknesses in building security. Since this guy’s a high-profile VIP, I’ll also inspect some target areas close by where someone who’s motivated to cause problems could.”

“So, you’re troubleshooting.”

Jagger struggled with a smile, sensing Colton’s disappointment in his job. “Pretty much. What I do now is pretty low-key, which is how I like it. Looking over your shoulder every day gets old.”

“No kidding. Or I would assume it gets old,” Colton quickly clarified as he shrugged. “Was that how it was when you were in Delta Force?”

Jagger shrugged. “I spent most of my time in locations where I didn’t belong. More often than not, it’s a fatal place to be. That’s all I’m going to say.”

“Huh,” Colton said again. “Getting a job like yours is probably pretty difficult.”

Jagger bobbed his head from side to side. “Not many people have the skill sets I do. But even if you don’t have my type of training, the security sector can be very lucrative.”

“Not if you have a criminal record, which I do. Sometimes I think about a career in intelligence or becoming a PI, but I don’t think it’s in the cards.”

Jagger frowned, not liking that Colton sounded so defeated. “You’ve been in a couple of fights. Hopefully, the latest was your last.”

Colton nodded. “That’s the plan. But I don’t like that we haven’t heard anything from the court. I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing. I know my mom’s tried to call for an update, but no one’s gotten back to her. I don’t want to end up in juvie.”

Jagger shrugged, not quite as concerned. “I imagine they have bigger fish to fry than a kid who had a couple of drinks and got disorderly. The other kid’s parents didn’t even press charges.”

“We can talk to the lawyer about making sure they dismiss your case and also about getting your record expunged,” Grace suggested. “You’re doing really well here. A couple of mistakes shouldn’t keep you from pursuing what you want in the future.”

Colton shrugged. “Lawyers are expensive.”

“Yeah, but I’m loaded, so it’s not a problem.”

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