Page 8 of Defending Love
Damien nodded. “I’ve spoken with the detectives in Florida and members of the FBI. Ella is working with Johnathon to find physicians prescribing Propanolol and work from there. There is a national database.” He exhaled. “However, that’s only a drop in the bucket. Propanolol is prescribed throughout the world.”
Ella spoke up as her gaze met mine. “I don’t want to think that one of the Sinclair formulas was the motive.” She shook her head. “Until we know for sure, we all need to be extra-vigilant.”
“Have there been any lawsuits, filings against Sinclair?” I asked.
Ella shrugged. “There’s always something. But that’s a good idea. Johnathon and I will look at that angle and see if we can find a lead.”
The limousine pulled up in front of the building in downtown Indy that housed my condominium. As the driver opened the door, I noticed the black sedan pulling up behind the long vehicle. Stepping out of the sedan was none other than my new—old—bodyguard, Elijah Rhodes.
Securing my sunglasses over my eyes, I squared my shoulders and took a deep breath as my shoes hit the pavement.
I could do this.
It was just his job.
Nothing more.
Chapter
Four
Eli
* * *
Dr. Danielle Sinclair was even more beautiful than I remembered. When her tear-filled, navy-blue stare met mine at the gravesite, it took all my self-control to remain professional. My body yearned to step forward, wrap her in my arms, shield her from the pain of losing her father, and warm her from the cool autumn temperatures. There was more in her eyes than sadness. This attack on her father was an attack on her family and their family business.
It was an attack on all the Sinclairs.
When Ben called, I was finishing up an assignment out of the country. As a rule, I shied away from guarding celebrities. The publicity, the frenzied fans, and the entitled attitudes weren’t qualities I found conducive to the job. My last assignment wasn’t supposed to be like that. She was a bestselling author on a book tour. Her book had only recently been released, but almost instantaneously, it blew up. Mobs of readers lined sidewalks around bookstores for hours. Unsuspecting stores turned into something akin to a rock concert.
In my opinion, the tour couldn’t end soon enough.
The only positive about the assignment was that the author herself wasn’t an entitled diva. On the contrary, she was an introvert. Convincing her to stay in her hotel room with only her PR staff wasn’t difficult. She preferred the solitude to sightseeing or making unplanned appearances.
Dr. Sinclair stepped from the limousine, her shapely legs coming into view. My gaze moved upward as the black skirt of her dress fluttered in the breeze. Golden streaks shimmered in her light brown hair that was now pulled back into a low ponytail. While I was haunted by her stunning blue eyes at the cemetery, currently they were obscured by her sunglasses.
“I’ll call you once Dr. Sinclair is settled,” I said to Larry Floyd, the point on this assignment.
Larry nodded. “I was surprised you said yes to Ben’s request.”
His comment caused my skin to tighten. Taking on the same assignment for a second time wasn’t my usual.
Larry continued, “I’ve never known you to repeat an assignment.”
“I guess I surprised everyone.” Even me.
Larry was correct. When it came to assignments, I was known for not forming attachments. Connections muddied the already-murky water. I’d made that mistake at the other end of this business. My hardened heart forbade me from repeating it.
However, the sight of Danielle crying near her father’s grave solidified my resolve that returning to Dr. Sinclair was the right decision. The confident, sexual woman I’d met over a year ago—the chemist, the researcher, the eloquently spoken businesswoman with knowledge beyond my comprehension, and the woman that heated my blood—was buried beneath her grief and fear.
The fire within her wasn’t gone. It couldn’t be. That heat was too fierce to disappear. It was simply dimmed. This emotional state was not where I would or could leave her.
I stepped forward, meeting Dr. Sinclair on the sidewalk.
“Eli.”
My hand twitched, wanting to reach out to her. Instead, I remained stoic. “Dr. Sinclair.”
