“How about we sit in the living room and discuss this,” Kai says, moving back to my side.
I let him pull me into the room, sitting beside him on the couch.
Callum watches us closely as he makes his way to the armchair across from us.
“I asked you to stay in your room.”
I nod. “I did, but father came and said I had to go with him. So I told Kai…” I trail off, realizing I fucked up.
Callum didn’t know about the cell phone, but he was about to.
“How exactly did you tell Haruaki?” he asks coolly.
I glanced over at Kai, not sure what to say.
He clears his throat. “I made sure she had a way to contact me. I wanted her to know she could call me if she felt she was in danger. Thank god I did. He left her in that bar with those Russian assholes. What did you say they were planning to do to you, princess?”
He glances over at me.
A sudden lump forms in my throat, but Kai reaches down to squeeze my hand reassuringly.
“Father said I was to do whatever they wanted me to. I think they wanted to, um, have sex with me,” I mumble, my face burns with embarrassment as I rub my arms trying to soothe myself.
“What?” Callum’s words betray the calm demeanor he usually portrays.
“Yeah. I think at least.” I look down at my lap.
We are all silent a moment before Callum speaks again.
“How did you know where they took her?” he asks Kai with barely checked rage.
“I have someone on her twenty-four seven. When she’s in the house, I can’t track her every movement, but anytime she is not in the house, she is being tailed.”
Callum nods. “I thought I saw your man following us after your first date. He’s loyal? He will protect her?”
My eyes fly up. He’s not mad? I feel like he should be angry right now.
“With his life. I have three men who I trust. They rotate shifts on her. She’s never without one of them.”
He nods, looking away for a moment. “Good. I will do my best to always be by her side inside the home. I feel better knowing you have eyes on her too. It was your man who contacted me, correct?”
Kai nods. “Kenji. He’s my second.”
“Excellent. We should go. Your father is losing his shit. Seems Igor is no longer an option for you. His father is throwing some accusations around. I need to go sort it.”
“Okay,” I tell him, turning to Kai.
Kai smiles. “I’ll walk you out.”
I let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding.
He keeps my hand in his all the way down to the parking lot. When he stops by Callum’s car, he turns to Kado, the guard he introduced me to earlier in the evening.
“Cleo,” Kado says, holding out my clutch.
“Thank you. I didn’t realize I lost it,” I say as I take it.
Kado nods, shrinking back into the background.
