Her Billionaire Bodyguard Bridegroom (18 page)

That had to mean something, didn’t it?

Now wasn’t the time to press the issue, though. It would be best to step back and focus on holding up her end of the truce they’d agreed to.

By all rights, dinner should have been awkward, but it wasn’t. Luke kept the focus on neutral topics, and she found herself enjoying their casual conversation. After their meal they decided, by mutual consent, to watch a movie on his home entertainment system. When the credits rolled, she decided it was time to call it a night. Luke was a perfect gentleman, and saw her upstairs without trying to lure her into his bed.

Surprisingly, a part of her was disappointed he hadn’t.

Monitoring the estate’s security cameras after seeing Brianna settled in for the night, Luke exhaled a frustrated breath. Doing the honorable thing was killing him. The house and grounds were secure, and between the state-of-the-art security system and his trained guard dogs, there was no reason he shouldn’t get some rest himself. But he was on edge, too keyed up to sleep. He decided it was time to take his pacing outside before he wore a hole in his prized oriental carpet. Brianna was safe in the guest room, and some exercise might help clear his head.

Leaving two of his German shepherds behind to guard the house, he took the third, Zeus, along on his walk.

He still wasn’t sure how it had happened, but somewhere along the line Brianna had become so much more than just an assignment. He’d been fooling himself, thinking he could pull off emotional detachment without a hitch. There had been a serious catch, one that went straight to his heart. Every subtle nuance of her—from the delicate floral fragrance she favored to the sparkle in her eyes whenever she looked at him—was imprinted there now. She’d branded him as her own.

That awareness—that bond—announced to him as clearly as a flashing neon sign that he’d compromised this assignment. And he knew what he had to do to rectify his mistake.

He was heading back to the house when his canine’s ears pricked forward. Zeus was focused, but he wasn’t in alarm mode. It was someone familiar, rather than an intruder, that had captured the dog’s interest.

Brianna.

Luke watched her emerge from the shadows and enter his garage.

How had she managed to slip past the other dogs?

A moment later, she was zipping down the driveway in his Lamborghini, heading for the main road. He’d bet his entire fortune she was going to visit her father.

Hoping into his Land Rover, he followed a few vehicle lengths behind her. He could understand her need to see Philip privately, but he couldn’t let her go by herself. The best he could do would be to give her a few moments alone with Philip before he intruded on their meeting.

He called Liz to let her know he’d left the estate.

“Where are you?” she queried.

“I’m on the interstate, headed toward Westborough.”

“Is Brianna with you?”

“In a manner of speaking.”

“Care to expound on that?”

“I’m tailing her. She snuck out.”

“On you? Oh, I really like this girl. She’s got spunk.”

It was more like recklessness, in his book. She’d taken a foolhardy risk by disobeying his orders, displaying the same kind of brazen disregard for her personal safety that had brought Tanya’s life grinding to a senseless halt. He may not have been in love with Tanya, but that hadn’t made the sight of her lifeless body stretched out on a cold slab any easier to bear. It hadn’t made the remorse or the guilt any less potent.

And just like Tanya, Brianna thought she was invincible.

Had he not spotted her in time to follow her, she would have been vulnerable until she reached Dimitriou’s estate. That was sixty miles too many for his comfort.

“Yeah, well, that spunk is going to get her killed.”

“Do you have any idea where she’s headed?”

“My guess is she’s going to see her father. She decided she wants to meet him. I told her I’d take her tomorrow. Apparently she didn’t want to wait.”

“You can’t blame her for wanting their first meeting to be private, Luke. This is her father we’re talking about, the man she thought died before she was born.”

“I know. I’ll give her some time alone with him before I go in.”

“Good. Michael is watching Philip. I’ll alert him that Brianna is on her way. He’ll keep an eye on her as she approaches the estate.”

“Thanks, Liz. I’ll keep you posted.”

Waiting in her father’s study for his butler to make him aware of her arrival, Brianna did her best to ignore the butterflies bungee-jumping in her stomach. In hindsight, she realized she should have called to let Philip know she was coming. She’d simply been overcome by the urge to meet him. She needed to know her father wasn’t a bad man, despite the criminal element he’d gotten mixed up with.

Her father’s palatial mansion lacked the warmth of Luke’s home. It felt lonely. Despite his wealth and privilege, Philip was poor in the ways that really mattered. She had a feeling he would have given up every last penny of his vast estate if he could bring her mother back.

Hearing a door open, Brianna looked up. She locked gazes with her father for the first time. He was a wealthy and powerful man, but losing her mother had left him broken. Grief, regret, and loneliness had tracked deep lines across his face. The emotions that swept across that haggard yet still-handsome face now—shock and disbelief, followed swiftly by joy—were nearly her undoing.

“Brianna!” he breathed.

The awe in his voice when he murmured her name broke the tenuous grasp she held on her composure. When he held his arms out to her, it seemed the most natural thing in the world to run into them. He clasped her tightly to his heart, and she hugged him back with the same fierce intensity. Her tears mingled with his, his sobs of raw emotion breaking her heart. They’d been cheated of so much. So many years. So many memories.

“Let me look at you,” he murmured, drawing back with a shaky smile. “You’re so beautiful. You’re the exact image of your mother. I loved her very much, you know.”

She swiped the moisture from her eyes, believing, now, that he really had. “She must have loved you, too.”

“Come. Sit,” he invited, guiding her to the sofa. He was still clinging to her tenderly, as though he feared she’d change her mind and run from him. He only relaxed when she sat beside him. “I still can’t believe I’ve been blessed with a daughter. I know you must have a thousand questions, and I’ll answer them all. Above all else, I want you to know I would have divorced my wife to marry your mother, but she led me to believe she didn’t love me and she didn’t want to marry me. And I never knew you existed until my investigator found you.

“When I told her I wanted to marry her, she said she didn’t want me to smear my reputation on account of her. I told her that was ludicrous. I wasn’t ashamed of our love for each other. I wanted to shout it from the rooftops. I told her I’d already put the paperwork in motion to divorce Evelyn, and she ran away. She left a note saying she didn’t love me enough to marry me. In it, she asked me not to come after her. I honored her wishes, believing she didn’t want me in her life any longer.

“I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life, but the one I regret the most is letting her go. When my wife died, I moved heaven and earth to try and find your mother in the hopes she might still feel something for me and that she could forgive me.”

“That’s how your investigator found me.”

“Yes. When I learned my efforts to locate your mother were too late, I was devastated. But finding out you existed gave me a reason to go on. There’s something I must tell you. I’ve made a very serious mistake, one that has put you and your brother in jeopardy.”

“It’s okay. I already know,” she murmured soothingly. “The security agent you hired explained everything.”

He lowered his head, his shoulders slumped in defeat. “You must hate me.”

She shook her head emphatically. This man was her father. There was no way on earth she could hold the blunders he’d made against him.

“I could never hate you. This mess isn’t your fault. You didn’t realize what you were getting involved in. Lawrence Mendacci is dangerous and diabolical. And when you tried to do the right thing, an innocent man paid the price. What other choice did you have but to do what he asked?”

“But it’s because of me that you’re in danger. I’m so very sorry you’ve been dragged into this mess. I was foolish. Greedy. You must believe me when I tell you when I first became involved with Lawrence Mendacci I had no idea he was connected to the Mafia. As soon as I realized what was going on, I tried to back out.

“That’s when Mendacci took the life of one of my most trusted staff members. Brian was more than an employee, he was like a member of the family. I didn’t have any evidence to prove I was being blackmailed, or that Mendacci was behind Brian’s death, and I didn’t want anyone else to get hurt. I played by Mendacci’s rules for a while, until I reached a point where I just couldn’t live with myself any longer if I didn’t put a stop to his twisted dealings. I told Mendacci I was going to the police. That’s when he threatened Rafe. And you.”

“It’s going to be okay,” she assured him. “Sentinels is working diligently to gather evidence against Mendacci. It’s only a matter of time before they do.”

“Until then, without any material evidence, it’s just my word against his. That’s why I’m begging you to let the protection service I’ve hired do their job. I couldn’t bear it if something happened to you. Will you do that for me?”

“I will,” she assured him, squeezing his hand.

A commotion in the hallway drew their attention to the door a second before Luke stormed in. Her father’s butler, looking stricken, rushed in after him.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Dimitriou. He wouldn’t wait.”

“It’s okay, Miguel. I believe this is my daughter’s security guard.”

“That’s correct,” Luke confirmed in an I-mean-business tone of voice. “I told your daughter I’d arrange for you two to meet tomorrow, but she decided to initiate a private reunion on her own instead.”

“Ah. Then she is very much like her mother, not only in looks but in temperament.”

“If that temperament includes a blatant disregard for adhering to what’s in her best interest then, yes, she is.”

Brianna rolled her eyes. “I’m right here in the room, you know.”

“You’re lucky you are. You could have wound up in the morgue after the stunt you just pulled. What were you thinking, coming here alone, after I expressly told you not to?”

“You said your house was secure. If they didn’t know where I was staying, how could they have followed me?”

“Mendacci’s goons might not have any idea where you are, but they can take a stab at where you might go. It’s a safe bet you’d try to make contact with your father at some point.”

“He’s right,” her father agreed. “As happy as I am that you came to see me, it isn’t safe for you to be here until this mess is squared away. For now, you need to let the security agency do its job. I know it’s a lot to ask, but when this all blows over, I’d like the chance to spend some time with you. To get to know you.”

“There’s nothing I’d like more,” she enthused, hugging him tightly.

After saying good-bye to her father, Brianna got back in the Lamborghini and made her way back to Luke’s estate. The glow of his headlights in her rearview mirror made her feel safe. Secure. Like the man himself did.

Luke had been afraid for her tonight. That fear revealed something deeper than the concern of a bodyguard for the client he was charged with safeguarding. He cared about her. She just needed to make him see it.

Once the vehicles were parked in the garage, Luke ushered her into the house. She was prepared to get a lecture. He had every right to be angry at her for sneaking out the way she had. Instead, he surprised her by drawing her into his arms.

“What am I going to do with you?” he murmured. “And how on earth did you manage to get past my dogs?”

“They might be tough, like their master, but they do have a weakness. They like steak,” she grinned up at him, unrepentant.

“You nearly gave me a nervous breakdown with your little stunt. You make me crazy, you know.”

Before she could reply, his arms encircled her waist, drawing her closer. Pulling her up against the hard length of his body, he fused his mouth to hers. His kiss was urgent. Demanding.

It was too much. It wasn’t enough. And when he broke away, she was instantly bereft.

“Tell me what you want, Brianna.”

“You,” she breathed on a shaky sigh.

It was all she needed to hear. Swinging her up into his arms, he carried her to his bed. Soon she was lost in sensations so exquisite she didn’t care if she ever left his arms.

She awoke to sunshine streaming in the bedroom window, and an empty spot beside her where Luke had been. Hurriedly showering and dressing, she went in search of him. She found him in his den.

Engrossed in a phone call with his back to her, he didn’t hear her enter the room. “Don’t worry,” she heard him say. “I’ll tell Brianna this morning.”

“Tell me what?” she blurted.

At the sound of her voice, Luke spun around. “I’ve got to go. I’ll talk to you later, Liz.”

“So what is it that you want to tell me?” she demanded as he disconnected the call.

He breathed a sigh, raking a hand through his hair in exasperation. “I’ve decided it’s time someone more competent took over your protection. I’m no longer effective at guarding you.”

“That’s the most ludicrous thing I’ve ever heard! You’re scared because you’re beginning to have feelings for me, so you’re running away. Well, you don’t have to worry. You don’t want things between us to get serious. I get that. There’s no need to make up excuses.”

“I’m not running,” he retorted vehemently. “I’m doing my duty. I have a responsibility, as an agent, to step down when my ability to protect a package is compromised.”

“So that’s all I am to you? A package?”

“You know you’re far more than that. That’s the problem. That’s why I have to turn this assignment over to another agent.”