Breck shook his head. “No, I’ll find her.”
The center of my chest warmed at the fact that he was so committed to helping. “Breck, unless we can be ultimately discrete, I don’t want to disrupt her life. She’s been through enough.”
His gaze on me was direct, penetrative. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of her. I won’t leave a footprint.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
Niko nodded too. “What do you want me to do?”
“For starters, set up cameras on my place and Kannon and London’s new place as well. Fully tricked out. And I want panic rooms installed at both locations as quietly as possible.”
Breck laughed. “Niko, you want to talk to Wild for that. He’s got great teams. We all have a pied-à-terre outside the palace for those times when we just need to get out. I’d suggest something underground, but that’s up to you.”
Niko nodded his thanks. “Right, will do.”
Marcus chimed in from the video. “If you need me, I can finish up my case in a few days and come out.”
I shook my head. “No, that won’t be necessary. Besides, you and Olly need to hold down the fort in LA. Olly’s going to be needed for his all-time favorite client, and I know you love a starlet.”
Olly rolled his eyes. “You don’t like me, do you?”
“What was your first hint, me telling you I don’t like you? I feel like you owe me. This is your penance.”
“So I hacked into your favorite lingerie store one time. I needed a present.”
“Inappropriate.”
Olly just rolled his eyes. “It’s not like you have anything interesting anyway.” Breck’s gaze narrowed imperceptibly at that. Did he care? Who the hell knew? The man was like a steel trap.
“Where are we on weapons? I still don’t have our shipment in.”
Niko nodded. “Actually, they arrived at the harbor this morning. I got a call, but we had this meeting. So, once we’re done here, I’ll go check and make sure we got all the weapons we ordered.”
Breck nodded. “You should have said something. I could have sped that up.”
“And just how would you have made the ship get here faster?”
He frowned. “I would have done something.”
Was he trying to help by flexing his princely muscles?
You like it when he flexes his muscles.
Oh, boy. I did not like the direction my thoughts were taking.
“Okay, Breck, since you and your brother have the two men in custody, how long can we hold them?”
He grinned at me and shrugged his broad shoulders. “Well, indefinitely.”
My brows lifted. “What?”
“It’s the law. You have the same protection as my future brother-in-law, so the attack was tantamount to treason. It’s a stretch for full treason since this wasn’t an attack directly on the royal family, but I can hold them indefinitely. They will rot in prison.”
“Okay. And if I wasn’t getting the royal treatment?”
He shrugged. “In that case, a lawyer would be assigned, and they’d be arraigned within a week. But they’ll be sectioned in a separate wing. No bail, obviously, because they are dangerous. They attacked in broad daylight in a very public area and could have hurt citizens of Alden. So, they’ll be in a separate wing with no access to visitors. No phone calls in or out. So, if we’re going to put together a plan to go after Truman, this is our shot.”
“Also, can you talk to Wilder? I want video footage of all ports of entry over the last week.”
Breck frowned. “What are you looking for?”
“I’m not sure, but I’ll know it if I see it.”
“Please, just tell me. I can help you.”
I sighed. It wasn’t easy sleeping with someone you worked with. But was that even what we were doing? “I’m looking for Nix.”
It was Olly that chimed in. “He could be in Alden. And if he’s trying to smoke you out, verifying that would be a smart move.”
Breck nodded. “I’ll have my people start on it. Do you have a recent picture?”
I clicked the remote to back up the slides and put Nix’s photo onscreen again then said to him and Niko, “I’ll send it over to your tablets too.”
Breck nodded. “If he’s here, we’ll find him.”
“Right. Let’s just hope he’s not here. That adds a complication we don’t need.”
Niko nodded to me. “Don’t worry, Sparrow. We got you.”
“I’m not worried about me. I’m worried what happens when London and Kannon get back. Let’s see if we can resolve this before that happens. I don’t want to add any danger to their lives. I think London’s been through enough.”
I wasn’t sure what that look on Breck’s face was about. His expression softened somewhat. And something glimmered in his eyes. It looked an awful lot like respect. But I knew him better than that. Didn’t I?
“All right, if Truman Nix is here, let’s find him,” I said. “Otherwise, let’s tighten the borders so that he can’t get in, and then let’s make sure we fortify the palace walls, as it were, so he doesn’t get that close ever again.”
Breck’s jaw went tight. And he nodded. “He won’t. Not on our watch.”
After the meeting, Niko headed to the harbor to gather our weapons, and Breck lingered. “So, what’s the plan for the rest of the afternoon?”
“Well, I have work to do. I’ve got some case inquiries I need to check out. Contractors I need to talk to. Kannon is very particular about his office space. You know, work stuff.”
He frowned at me. “Well, will any of it keep until tomorrow?”
“It’s Monday. Besides, what are you getting at?”
He gave me a slight smile as he leaned back against the conference table. He reached out, took my hand, and pulled me to him. “Well, I would like to spend the afternoon with you. I figured I would feed you first and then show you some of Alden.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but then I snapped it shut. What the hell were we doing? “I... That’s sweet, really. But you don’t have to—”
He sighed. “Oh, what? You figure, playboy prince. All-around asshole. Hit it and quit it?”
“Please don’t say hit it and quit it. Also, yes, a little.”
“Well, you can make assumptions, but how about you let me show you that that’s not me.”
I bit my bottom lip. “Sorry. I’m having a hard time believing that.”
His grin was quick and showed off just how boyish he could look. “Well then, seeing is believing. Come on. I’m pretty sure you got up early to prep for this morning. And you look worried, so you’re probably concerned about your former client. And if I know you, you started the background checks on your potential new clients already. And I can tell by the slight tremor in your hand you probably aimed for the liquid breakfast of just coffee and haven’t eaten any solid food all day. Am I right?”
I shuffled my feet. “There’s no need to see so clearly.”
“Oh, I see you clearly, Sparrow Bridges. Now it’s time for you to see me. Are you coming?” His grin was slow and sexy.