Page 15 of Mile High Baby

"If you're off, who are you thinking of to protect him and his daughter?" Elliott asked.

“Ideally, I'd like you or Dax, someone from the old days, but I know that's not likely."

"How about Jorgensen?" Elliott raised his hand and whistled. "Jorgensen."

I turned to see a man in his early thirties who looked like he had just walked out of the surf in Southern California, with towheaded blond hair and a tan, approach us.

"Ian just transferred here out of Archer’s office in Los Angeles. Ian Jorgensen, this is Alex Sterling. Alex, this is Ian Jorgensen."

I shook hands with the young man, giving him a full assessment based on the firmness of his handshake and his ability to look me directly in the eye.

"Do I have a say in who is going to be protecting me?"

My head swiveled in disbelief as I saw Victoria striding toward us. Not only was she here, but apparently, she was here alone. Not a very smart thing to do with George Pitney on her tail.

"You're supposed to be home with your father,” I said gruffly.

"Yeah, well, I had a few things I needed to say to you."

She turned her attention from me to Ian. She thrust out her hand toward him. "Hello, my name is Victoria Banion."

Ian shook her hand, and while I could tell he was doing his best to show no reaction, his eyes gave away his attraction to her. My jaw tightened.

"It's nice to meet you, Miss Banion. I'd be happy to offer you protection."

I bet he would.

She smiled, and her blue eyes took in Ian. A red mist began to form in my brain.

"Well, then—”

I took her upper arm and tugged her away. "Excuse me, I need to talk to Miss Banion." I pulled her into one of the offices and shut the door. "What are you doing here?"

"I told you I had a few things I needed to say to you. You were very rude not just to me, but to my father as well. He trusts you—”

"I know. And what did I do? I fucked his kid." God, I thought I was going to puke.

She flinched. "First of all, I'm not a kid. And second of all, I know it was awkward, but for somebody who makes his living as a spy, you did a very poor job of hiding your thoughts and feelings. My father trusts you, and although I don't know you very well, it would've been nice to have a bodyguard I knew.” She gave me a smirk as she shrugged. “But I've changed my mind. Ian will do."

"The hell he will." I didn't know why I said that. She was giving me the out I needed, and yet the idea of Ian spending all that alone time with her made me go fucking nuts. "As you said, your father hired me. Like it or not, sweetheart, I’m your bodyguard."

6

Victoria

Iwouldn't lie. Discovering that the man I'd had sex with in an airplane bathroom was my father's friend and the man he hired to be my bodyguard was awkward. Seriously? What were the odds that we'd end up on the same plane and decide to have a little adventure in the restroom?

Okay, so it was beyond awkward. Maybe I should have given Sterling, or Alex, some slack regarding his reaction. When he realized that I was his friend’s daughter, the man turned downright pale, and there were a couple of times I thought he was turning green. And then there was how he turned himself into a pretzel trying to get out of the job that my father was so clearly desperate for him to do. Truth be told, it might have been interesting if Alex were my bodyguard, but once he started acting repulsed by me, that intrigue vanished.

Alex was very noncommittal as he left my father’s house, but I could tell that he was going to try and get out of being my bodyguard. And while at that point, I was okay with it, I could tell that my father wasn't. So not long after Alex and my father went to his home office, I snuck out of the house. I know it wasn't smart, considering everything that was going on, but I was sure that Knightly wouldn’t drive me. I ordered a car and checked the driver’s credentials twice and had him drive me to Saint Security’s offices.

I arrived just in time to overhear Alex talking about my father's situation to three other men. And when the men introduced Ian Jorgensen, I was all for having somebody else besides Alex be my bodyguard. It was petty since I hoped that Alex would be jealous. God, how stupid was I? He wouldn’t be jealous. He’d be relieved.

So it made absolutely no sense when Alex told me that Ian couldn’t be my bodyguard because he was.

I gave my head a shake. "You're giving me whiplash. You all but begged my father to let you find somebody else to be my bodyguard, and now that you have, you're not going to make the swap?”

He made a frustrating growl. "I don't know Jorgensen."