Singe (Guardian Protection #1)

“To tell him about your tryst with the drunk cop? Yes.”

“He’s not a drunk cop!” I exclaimed before lowering my voice so Jude wouldn’t hear me. “And it’s not a tryst. We’re…together.”

“Maybe, but I’m telling you. Pete is never going to trust the guy.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, well. I’m a big girl, so I’m the only one who needs to trust Jude.”

And I did. Implicitly. An idea that made me smile. I trusted people in my life, but it was a very short list. Before Jude, Johnson had been the one name permanently inked on it.

“He punched Pete when you were in the hospital, Rhion.”

I groaned. “It was…a tumultuous time for us all after the fire. Can you just get Pete for me?”

“Sure thing. And good luck.”

“Gee, thanks,” I smarted, curling my legs under me as I settled into my favorite spot right in the middle of the mattress.

“Hey, kiddo!” Pete said in the same chipper tone he always used with me. This time it wasn’t genuine.

“Hey, Pete,” I replied softly.

“To what do I owe this honor? You finish the new book?”

“I know you know about Jude.”

“And I know you know I don’t approve. So, why bring it up?”

I sucked in a sharp breath. “Because I want you to approve. Because I’m crazy about him. Because I want you to meet him.”

“I don’t approve. I’m not crazy about him. And I’ve already met him.”

“Pete!”

“Rhion!” he mocked. “Look, I need to go. I have a meeting across town in half an hour. I can’t make decisions for you, but the man almost got you killed. You’ll have to excuse me for not being real excited that he’s now trying to screw you in a different way.”

I gasped. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

“Well, I did. And I mean it. Now, do you need anything else?”

“What I need is for you to stop being an ass,” I retorted. “I’m happy for the first time in a long while. And I’d appreciate it if you at least pretended that makes you happy too.”

“Oh, I’m ecstatic, Rhion. But I’m also on standby for when this guy drops his guard and you realize he’s nothing more than a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Do me a favor and make sure to let him know you don’t have the money anymore.”

I wanted to laugh at the idea of Jude being the wolf, considering he’d been my prey since our first night together.

Grinding my teeth, I shot back, “He already knows.”

“Then that’s fantastic news. I expect to hear from you next week when he hits the road.”

“You keep acting like this, you won’t be hearing from me at all.” If I hadn’t needed something, I would have hung up on him. But, as it stood, the best I could do was get pissy. Moving to my vanity to start on my makeup for the day, I snapped, “I need the keys to the house in LA and access to the plane.”

“The house in LA has tenants in it, and I sold the plane,” he replied.

My hand froze in midair, my foundation brush never making it to my face. “What are you talking about?”

He sighed. “You haven’t gone farther than two blocks from your apartment in two years, Rhion. It’s not like you were using them.”

“You let strangers move into my childhood home?” This was spoken at exactly one decibel below a shriek.

“It’s been vacant for years. It’s called passive income.”

“It’s called my fucking home. And you sold Dad’s plane? What the hell!”

“I was paying thousands of dollars a month to rent a hangar to keep an unused plane.”

“I!” I seethed.

“Excuse me?”

“You said you were paying, but I am the one who was paying thousands of dollars each month to hold on to something of my father’s.”

“You begged me to take over the finances for you.”

I had. Desperate and in hysterics. But it wasn’t like it had been a hard sell. When someone tries to hand you the reins to a multimillion-dollar empire, you probably wouldn’t say no. Unfortunately for my father, I was one of those few. But I’d given it to Pete knowing he’d manage it responsibly so I’d eventually have something to pass down to my children. Things like the beach house where I’d spent every single summer of my childhood, including those with my mother. The same one that now had tenants living in it.

“Out!” I exclaimed. “I want them out. I don’t care what it costs. Jude’s daughter lives in LA, so I’m going to be spending a lot of time there. I want my house.”

“Ah…so this is about Jude? Let me guess: You mentioned the beach house and he pounced?”

It could be said that I was a bit of a pushover. Especially with the people I loved. And, I loved Pete. But he did not get to talk shit about Jude based on one emotionally driven experience with him. And he sure as hell didn’t get to pass judgment about my motives just minutes after telling me that he’d rented my house out without talking to me first.

I squared my shoulders and confidently stared at myself in the mirror as I snarled, “No. This is about me. I want to go to LA to visit Val. And I want to do it in my father’s plane and stay in my house. And you are going to make that happen. And, while you are at it, you’re going to draw up paperwork so all of his physical possessions are back in my control. Do what you want with the companies. I’ve given you carte blanche there. But, if my father physically touched it, I want the final decision on what we do with it. That means the houses, the yacht, the plane, his cars, and whatever else is still left from when he was alive. Those are mine.”

“Rhion,” he said, exasperation apparent in his voice. “You—”

But I was done listening. I’d given him control over the money, not my entire life.

“Mine, Pete! Now, let me know when you secure the LA house and get the plane back.”

He didn’t immediately reply, and I had to pull the phone away from my ear to make sure he hadn’t hung up.

“You sound like your father,” he said softly.

My chest warmed. “The being-demanding thing?”

“The being-right thing,” he corrected.

My head snapped back. It wasn’t the first time Pete and I’d had our differences. He always gave in, but it was usually after a chat about how he was worried about me and looking out for my best interests, blah blah blah. However, if he was willing to save the lecture, I was willing to forgo the headache I’d get from rolling my eyes while he gave it.

His voice was gentle as he said, “I’ll get you the house, but the plane is gone. I’ll have Sandy charter you something for your personal use.”

I proudly grinned. “That would be great.”

“You’re smiling, aren’t you?”

“Like a maniac.”

He chuckled. “I’ll also see what I can do about keeping my opinions to myself about the new beau.”

My eyes flashed wide, and I mouthed, “Oh my God,” at my reflection. “That…would…be amazing.”

His chuckle turned into a belly laugh. “You sound surprised.”

“I am. A little. Okay, a lot. I think you’re losing your edge. Though, for what it’s worth, I’m sure Dad would appreciate your giving me crap about dating Jude. But I swear to you he’s a good guy.”