Page 62 of Her Billionaire Bossholes

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JACKSON

"You know how to find her?" Leo says, jumping at the first glimmer of hope.

"How?" Caleb demands immediately after.

"Well, kind of." I pause again, thinking more about it. "Actually, no, not really. But I do have an idea."

Leo groans, throwing himself against the back of his chair like a child having a tantrum. Caleb simply rolls his eyes and returns his attention to me.

"What are you talking about?" he prompts impatiently.

I clear my throat, not entirely sure what to expect from their reactions. "That maybe we need to make good on our promises to her and stop seeing her like a damsel in distress."

Leo scoffs. "I don't know about the damsel part, but I do know that there is plenty of distress."

Ignoring his comment, I continue. "Do you remember when we convinced Charlie to give all of us a real shot?" Caleb nods, again, impatiently. "Then I assume you remember what her conditions were."

"Yeah," he confirms. "She wanted us to accept the fact that she's a strong and capable bodyguard."

"Exactly," I exclaim animatedly.

Leo gives me a rather unimpressed look. "And you think that now is the best time to do that?"

I take a deep breath, ready to dive headfirst into my explanation. "Leo, I know it sounds counterintuitive, but hear me out. Charlie is not like anyone else we know. She's not just some average person living their life day by day. No, she's extraordinary in every sense of the word."

Leo raises an eyebrow. "Don't go and get all sappy on me, Harris."

I roll my eyes and decide to answer his earlier question instead. I take a deep breath, gathering my thoughts before answering Leo's skeptical question. "Yes, Leo, now is the best time. Maybe even the only time. Look, Charlie left because she knew that we would try to keep her from doing what she does best. She's amazing, Leo. She was nearly a kickboxing champion, and if there's one thing she can do, it's take care of herself. It's about time we understand that and be on her side."

Caleb leans forward, his eyes filled with curiosity and a glimmer of understanding. "You think she left because she wanted us to finally trust her abilities?"

"Yes," I nod earnestly.

Leo's eyebrows furrow as he processes my words. His skepticism slowly gives way to a flicker of understanding. "You mean... she left because we were holding her back?"

His words twist all of our guts, but that doesn't make them any less real.

Caleb is the first to snap back. "So, what's this idea of yours? If it doesn't help us find her, what does it do?"

I hold up a finger, urging them to stay patient as I gather my thoughts. "The idea, my friends," I begin, "is to shift the focus away from Charlie and onto us. To lure Debbie out into the open, we need to make her believe that we are the ones she should be worried about."

They exchange puzzled glances, clearly intrigued yet unsure of what I'm getting at. I lean in closer, my voice dropping to a hushed tone as if sharing a secret.

"We need to create a diversion," I whisper, the words hanging in the air between us.

Leo raises an eyebrow. "A diversion? How is that going to help us find Charlie?"

I grin, relishing their growing curiosity. "Think about it. Debbie sent that threat message to Charlie because she wanted to provoke her. She wanted to lure her into a confrontation. But what if we turn the tables? What if we become the target instead?"

Leo smirks, his skepticism replaced with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "You mean, we're going to become the bait?"

I nod, a smile forming on my lips. "Exactly. If we can draw Debbie's focus towards us, Charlie won't be on her radar anymore."

Caleb leans back in his chair, deep in thought. "And how exactly do you propose we do that?"

"We use the media."

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