Page 23 of Princess Seeks Dragon
I don’t mean he’s handsome and polished. He’s handsome and dangerous, and if there were vampires in the real world, he would be one of them, with his long black hair and his stubbled jaw, and the intense eyes with dark shadows around them. When he smiles, his look softens, but I swear there are tiny fangs.
The mob has vampires?
Angela, get a grip, it’s a sunny day in May! Vampires wouldn’t be out—even in a calf-length black leather jacket that screams Bad Boy.
“Angela? Would you come outside so we can talk?” he asks softly. “I’m Graham, and I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Why are you here?” I blurt. I’ll have manners later.
“I got a call from a friend of a friend that you were in town and your family is worried sick.”
My lips seal, and my mind races. How did they know where I was? And if Mom is worried sick, why did she send that email? She could be worried sick and want me to stay safe, but then why send this guy?
Unless... “Are you my protection?”
Graham blinks, and his hand briefly rests on the flat silver disk dangling in the center of his chest. “Am I yourwhat?”
“My bodyguard?” I whisper. “Did my parents send you?”
“Yes.” He nods, eyebrows arching high on his elegant forehead. I’ve never seen someone look so refined and so ready to bust skulls at the same time, but this guy pulls it off.
“Come in, then,” I hiss and pull the chain back, letting the stranger inside. I don’t put down the fruit bowl, my weapon of choice. Not yet.
“Look, Angela, the situation is just a misunderstanding. Your parents—”
“I don’t know how Mom traced my reply to her email, but I’m glad she and Ronnie sent you.” I wave him to silence and start packing. “She said to contact the local police, but who is on Genovese’s payroll, huh? I don’t know. She didn’t even know my father was in the—was mixed up in anything,” I explain over my shoulder.
“That’s right. He has friends all over the place.”
Graham pauses, but doesn’t add anything further to his sentence, so I keep going. “I’m sorry, this must put you in danger, too. What’s the plan? Do we have to leave Pine Ridge?”
“Not yet.” He cocks his head. “Your mother told you I was coming?”
“Well, no, but if you’re friends with Milo and Libby, I figured you were local. Knowing my Mom, she probably got one of Ronnie’s friends to trace the IP address or something, then contacted local security companies.”
“I worked security in Creek Valley, California. But this situation is different.”
“I’m sure it is. The main thing is that Genovese and his people can’t find me and can’t know that Mom knows where I am. If anything happens to my mother...” I trail off, putting my hand on my chest.
“I thought you and the Genovese boy were engaged?” my bodyguard asks, confusion switching from his face to his voice.
Even confused, his voice has that beautiful touch of an accent, but it’s got a soft, deep quality about it. Like far-away thunder, which has always been a sound that helped me sleep.
“Engaged? I guess.Ijust didn’t know about it. That’s why I ran. I don’t want to be forced to marry someone I don’t even like. I mean, he’s handsome, but he has other lovers. I’m not the sharing type.” I finish stuffing my things into my bag.
“No. I can understand that. But... But sometimes you have to preserve the family line. Or business,” Graham protests.
I don’t know what his game is, but I’m not playing. “Would you honestly want to spend your entire life with someone who didn’t love you? Just to... I don’t know, produce an heir or make two little kingdoms into one big one?”
“Duty,” he mutters.
“I’m not talking about protecting my people from war, I’m talking about my stepdad dealing with a dude with a big ego and even bigger trust issues. I’m not a pawn. This is not chess. Don’t you already know all this?” I snap, collecting up the apples off the floor.
Graham bends and scoops up pears and bananas. “They don’t tell the grunts much.” He smiles, a twisted little grin that speaks volumes.
“Well, to me, you’re the hero, not a grunt.” We put the last of the fruit into the brass bowl that I’ve finally relinquished, fingers brushing. “I’ll try not to cause any trouble and make this easy for you. You’re a friend of Milo and Libby’s. You’re local?”
“For a month.”
