Guardian For Hire: A For Hire Novel Read Free Page A

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Chapter Two
    Sarabeth stood on shaky legs and tried to focus on Gavin’s lips. He was saying something, but she couldn’t quite make it out…
    I’ll gut you.
    Well that couldn’t be right—he’d tackled her to the ground in an attempt to protect her.
    A-ca-choo.
    Clearly not. An absurd giggle built in her throat and spilled over. He didn’t look surprised at all by her bizarre reaction to almost getting blown up. In fact, he rubbed her back in slow, soothing circles while uttering the same words over and over again. Finally, the buzzing in her ears subsided, along with her laughter, and the words became clear.
    I’ve got you.
    “Th-thanks, I’m okay now,” she said through chattering teeth, and stepped back, wriggling from his all-too-comforting touch.
    His tone was low and urgent, piercing her mental fog. “I need you to focus, okay Doc? People are going to start coming outside and see what the fuss is. The cops will be here any minute, I imagine. We need to get gone before that happens. You with me?”
    She nodded. “I can’t. I’m not even packed. I need to…” As she turned toward the stairs, he stopped her with a hand on the shoulder.
    “No time. We’ll get everything you need on the road.”
    He looped an arm around her and navigated her over the glowing chunks of metal that used to be her car littering her front porch and walkway. Thankfully, he’d parked in the street, and she noted dimly that his car looked none the worse for wear. He opened the passenger door and helped her in right as she noticed sirens wailing in the distance.
    She slid in and buckled her belt, on autopilot. What in God’s name was she going to do now? She couldn’t possibly stay with this ginormous, intimidating stranger, but at the same time, someone was indeed out to kill her. And if Gavin hadn’t shown up?
    She could have wound up with a face full of twisted metal.
    A wave of nausea gripped her, and she leaned forward to rest her head on the dashboard. Gavin slid into the driver’s seat a moment later.
    “We’re good now. Don’t think about it. Just breathe.”
    He slid the key into the ignition and turned it. It wasn’t until it started with a grumble that she realized she’d been holding her breath. A moment later they were on the road, speeding toward the interstate. It would probably be a long time before she was able to get into a vehicle without fear. Yet another thing Nico had stolen from her.
    She swallowed hard to dislodge the lump in her throat. How had things turned so ugly in such a short amount of time? It seemed like yesterday that she’d been walking on air over her amazing new job offer. Even her grandfather, who hadn’t approved of anything she’d done since grammar school, had been grudgingly impressed. She should have known it was too good to be true. Great salary, solid benefits, all served up at a stunning locale. And then Lindy and Owen had checked into the retreat, and brought the whole sordid house of cards tumbling down. Lindy had almost been killed in the process.
    The guilt rushed back in, displacing the self-pity. Unwittingly or not, she’d been a part of a plot to entrap wealthy clients into cheating on their spouses. Nico had planned to spend six months filming the guests in premeditated sexual situations with select members of the staff, and then disappear into the night with the footage, later to be used to extort money from the guilty parties. But he hadn’t counted on his past coming back to haunt him. Owen had spent months crafting his revenge, and his hard work paid off when he uncovered Nico’s secret. And thank God he had. There were dozens of recordings, and countless lives could’ve been ruined had Nico been able to follow through with his plans.
    No matter how hard she tried, no matter that she hadn’t known, she couldn’t seem to scrub that oily smudge off her soul. There were signs, and she’d ignored them. Now people were dead. Maybe she could’ve stopped