Page 12 of Mile High Baby

"I'm here, Dad."

He turned to face me, and my heart stopped in my chest. His cheek was red and swollen, as if someone had punched him. Over his eye, there was a line of stitches.

I ran over to him. "What happened?"

He held his arms out, taking mine in his hands, holding me back slightly. "It's worse than it looks. I'm fine."

It didn't make any sense. Had he fallen? Then I remembered the comment about an unhappy subject of his stories. "This is George Pitney?"

He arched a brow and then winced, clearly in pain. "Why would you think that?"

"Because you said someone was unhappy with what you were publishing, and I knew that you were doing a series of stories on him. He's the only one I could think of who would do something like this."

He let out a long sigh and then took my hand, moving me toward one of the couches where he set me down. It was still early in the day, but he walked over to the bar and poured himself something to drink. I might've chastised him for it, except he looked like he could use a drink.

"It's not just the stories, Tori. None of us have revealed sources, but we have agreed to talk to law enforcement."

"Then why isn't he in jail now if he did this to you?"

My father let out a derisive laugh. "George didn't do this. At least not directly. He's a slippery man, which is why he's been able to get away with so much. But the law is closing in, and that has made him even more dangerous. That's why I want you home. What I'd really like is for you to stay here with me."

I didn't not want to stay with my dad, but I had my own life to live and a business to run. "I'm not involved in any of this. I like my place."

He gave me a curt nod. "You're not involved, but you're connected to me, and really, the best way for somebody to hurt me would be to hurt you."

My stomach clenched at the idea that I could be in danger.

"I know that you have a life to live, and so I've taken it upon myself to hire a bodyguard for you."

I frowned. "A bodyguard? Is that really necessary?"

Once again, my father arched a brow and then winced. "They got to me, and I'm always fairly protected."

He wasn't wrong. “If you're not going to stay here, then I'm going to absolutely insist that you have a bodyguard. But even if you move in here with me for the time being, I want you to have a bodyguard. I don’t want to take any chances. Not with you."

The idea of a bodyguard following me around twenty-four, seven felt intrusive, but I could see my father’s distress so I nodded my acquiescence. I would do as he asked because I wanted to ease the stress he was feeling.

"Your guest is here, sir," Knightly said from the doorway.

My father perked up a little bit. "Send him in, Knightly." My father looked down at me. "Alex is one of my oldest and best friends. I wish I could see him under different circumstances, but he's going to be the perfect person to look after you until this is all over."

I thought of all my father’s friends, and while he’d talked about an Alex, I’d never met him.

I stood and took my father's hand. "I look forward to meeting him."

Knightly stepped aside, and the gentleman entered the room. My father moved toward him, embracing him. "Alex, thank you so much for coming."

I stood rooted to my spot as I looked at my father's oldest best friend. As it turned out, I had met him. I had sex with him on the flight home yesterday.

5

Alex

Oh, fuck.

I was going to hell. Not that I ever thought I was a candidate for heaven, but now there was no question about it. When my time on this earth was done, I was on the express track to hell. I’d fucked my best friend's kid. My stomach roiled and threatened to come up.

Pull it together, Sterling.