“I went to the address on Charlie Lewis’s driver’s license.” Jake made air quotes around the man’s name.
Tyler stood and faced Jake. He was a big guy with no discernible flab and a thick head of dark hair. His lips flattened. “And?”
Glad Tyler wasn’t too angry to recognize that Jake could be of use, Jake told him what he’d discovered—which was nothing. “What about you? What have you unearthed?”
Tyler shook his head. “Still working on it.”
So, nothing. Hearing that news filled Jake with a deep sense of unease. The man was in the wind but was a threat to Chloe. “What can I do to help?”
Tyler’s nostrils flared as he stared at Jake, then he crossed his arms over his powerful chest. “You’re lucky you still have a job.”
“I’m well aware of that, Tyler, and I appreciate you keeping me on.”
He shook his head. “Not sure why I am. Guess despite everything, I like you.”
Jake had no doubt he was on very thin ice, so he would tread carefully. If he was fired from Titan Security under these circumstances, he was certain it would be nearly impossible to get hired by any other security firm in Los Angeles. Might even be blacklisted. Even so, he needed to push a little harder.
“I’m sure you have contacts at LAPD,” he said, his tone confident. “Can you give them the driver’s license and see if they get a hit?”
Tyler scowled. “Already done.”
“And?”
“Haven’t gotten back to me yet.”
Perfect. Jake held back a scowl of his own.
Chloe had met Jake’s replacement—Chad. She’d been nicer to him than she’d been to Jake on his first day, but that didn’t mean she liked having someone else there. Hated it, in fact, but she was helpless to change things. Even her offer to hire Jake on her own hadn’t worked. The man was so darn stubborn, but to Chloe, his reluctance to take what she’d freely offered actually endeared him to her more. He was his own man through and through. That was something she loved about him. One of many things.
Yes, she thought she was in love with him. No doubt, it was partly due to the fact that he was so reluctant to get involved with her. Most men would do whatever it took to gain her trust, to take advantage of her interest. But not Jake. Nope. He was the complete opposite, which only intrigued her more.
Why couldn’t she just bend him to her will? Make him love her like she was beginning to love him? But if he was that easily swayed, he wouldn’t be the man she had fallen for.
Holding her guitar in her hands, she huffed a sigh of frustration. She was working in her music room, but couldn’t stop thinking about Jake. What was he doing at that very moment? Was he thinking about her? Missing her? Or was he glad to be rid of her?
That last thought tore at her insides, especially when she recalled her parting words to him. Pack your stuff and get off of my property. I’ll be better off without you. Thinking of them now made her cringe, deep in her soul. Especially because they were completely false. She wanted him in her life, needed him. She’d only lashed out because she’d been hurt, but that was no excuse, and now he would never speak to her again.
Shaking her head in despair, she absently strummed her guitar, desperate to find peace.
Back at his apartment after the less than productive conversation with Tyler, Jake paced across the floor in his small living room. What he wouldn’t give to be back at Chloe’s working as her bodyguard. Not hired by her and in competition with his replacement, but working for Titan Security and approved by both Tyler and Scotty, respected by them, which would translate to respect by Chloe. He remembered her expression when she’d suggested she work directly for her, an expression that said he would be the hired help who could be tossed aside on a whim. Yeah, that wouldn’t work for him, and maybe it was a pride thing, but there would also be consequences if he accepted her proposal. He would have to quit Titan and work independently, which, under the circumstances that had made that necessary would make him lose the little respect he’d begun to gain in the industry. It could very possibly be career suicide. Did he care enough about Chloe to commit such an irreversible act? He wasn’t sure.
After a while he made himself sit on the couch, then turned on the TV and channel-surfed, desperate for a way to forget about Chloe Ross and the way she’d burrowed her way into his heart.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chloe awoke with a start. Jake had been gone since the day before, and after working late into the night, Chloe had finally gone to bed. Now though, she felt a strange sensation, like she wasn’t alone in her bedroom. Which was super creepy since no one else should have been in her house.
With her blackout curtains, which allowed her to sleep late after she’d been up until the wee hours of the morning, the darkness in her bedroom was absolute. As she lay there, her eyes wide open as she desperately tried to see something, anything, the sensation of not being alone grew stronger. It was as if she could feel the energy of another person in her room. Like the molecules around her had been disturbed.
She held perfectly still, all of her senses on high alert.
Then she heard it. A small rustle.
It was barely audible, but there was no mistaking the sound. And there was a slight smell as well. An odor that shouldn’t be present in her room. The hint of stale sweat.
Someone was there. She was one hundred percent certain.
Her heart became a jackhammer and her mind an explosion of thoughts.
Who was there? How did they get inside? What did they want? Could it be the man who had grabbed her, who had said she belonged to him? He’d promised that he would have her one way or another. Was that why this was happening? Or was it someone else all together?
Beyond terrified, she held her breath as she listened for more movement, frantic to be able to determine where the person was and if he was moving closer, but after several long moments she had to breathe. Exhaling as quietly as she could, she forced herself to breathe normally. She wanted to give the illusion that she was still asleep. Maybe if the intruder believed she was asleep that would give her an advantage. Or maybe not. What would happen if she screamed? Would Chad hear her? Of course not. He was above the garage and she was in a well-insulated house.
Wait! One of the security features Jake had installed was a panic button that would ring in the apartment over the garage. Chad would come straight to her.
The button was in this very room. Right near the head of her bed, out of sight. If she could just get to it without the intruder noticing, everything would be okay.
Jake was having trouble sleeping. It was very late, but he couldn’t get his mind off of Chloe. He missed seeing her, talking to her, and he especially missed kissing her. Maybe he should have taken her up on her offer to be her personal bodyguard, screw the consequences. If he went over there and accepted her offer, Tyler would be beyond pissed. He would fire Jake on the spot. Jake pictured Tyler’s face, the anger he’d seen earlier. Was he really willing to deal with that? To lose all the ground he’d gained as a new bodyguard?
As he lay on his pillow, staring at the ceiling in the dark, he ran his hands through his hair.