The Protector
Page 28
Anger pound in her ears. The longer her boss tittered, the tighter Jane’s chest became. “Gigi.”
Rolling her head, she sighed heavily in response.
“Just because I work for you—” Her ears rang. Words jumbled together, and her dry throat ached. “I care for your son. I give him everything I have. Don’t take advantage of that to be cruel.” Tears burned her eyes. “I don’t deserve it.” She swallowed hard. “And, Chance—”
Gigi smirked, callously amused. “Chance, what?”
“Beauty is only skin deep.” Jane seethed. “Whatever you think you see, you’re missing out on everything that makes him amazing.”
Gigi pressed her hand to her chest and giggled. Her laughter swelled, and she covered her mouth, hysterical. “The ugly duckling has a big crush!” She tossed her magazine and doubled in laughter. “How fantastically cliché.”
Tears spilled over Jane’s cheeks. “You have no idea what you’re talking about. He’s my…” She swatted the tears away, furious but suddenly aware she and Chance hadn’t had a relationship-defining conversation.
Gigi stopped laughing but didn’t hide her caustic delight. “Your what?”
Her hands trembled. “Boyfriend.”
Gigi pressed her hands to her chest again and folded, cruelly laughing.
Furious and humiliated, Jane rushed inside. White-hot tears burned down her cheeks. She hid her face and ran to the closest bathroom. Behind the safety of the locked door, she dropped to the floor, wrapped her arms around her knees, and wept.
She cried until depleted. Her swollen eyes hurt, and her head pounded. Exhaustion made her weak. Jane dropped her head back against the wall and concentrated on her breathing.
Someone knocked on the door.
“Jane?”
She cringed at Lark’s voice.
“Jane, honey? Gigi’s worried about you.”
She snorted. “I’m fine.” The growing absurdity made it hard for Jane to do anything more than shake her head. “And, I’ll be out in a minute.”
Jane waited until she was certain Lark had grown bored and left, then she stood to face herself in the mirror. The hours spent poolside didn’t help her tear-stained appearance. Jane leaned closer and studied the reflection. With pin-prick accuracy, she knew every spot that had changed as she’d grown older and after her time in Syria. She saw the tiny indentation just off center of the middle her forehead. That spot had been with her since her freshman year in high school. The hellacious pimple that wouldn’t go away. Mostly because she picked at it. The remaining mark was near impossible to see. Yet, she always saw it—and, for most of her life, she’d considered it one flaw of many.
Chance didn’t care about that stupid spot.
Truthfully… She didn’t care either. Not anymore. But not because of him.
Jane leaned back from the mirror, knowing she’d still always see that spot. Though maybe not as a shortcoming.
“Jane, are you still in there?” Lark called.
She had to laugh. “Yeah, Lark. Bad breakfast burrito.”
“Ew, gross. Go to your cottage if that’s the case.”
Her grin reached her eyes. Jane liked the way they smiled with her mouth. “I’ll keep that in mind next time. Thanks.”
This time, Jane heard Lark leave, with disgusted stomps and a trail of muttering comments.
She sighed, unexpectedly at peace with herself. “I see you.” She meant to point at the tiny scar on her forehead, but it felt like more. Her hand fell away. “And I like what I see.” A little voice in her head cheered. “I have to get out of this place.”
Her chin dropped. Jane didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t leave Teddy alone in a toxic home. Somberly, she slung the pool towels over a hook and stepped out of the bathroom. There had to be a way to protect the little boy and get out of this job. Maybe Aunt Courtney was the answer? Chance could help her brainstorm.
With her head held up, Jane headed toward the kitchen, vowing not to react if she saw Gigi or Lark. Or, hell, Dax, too.
She found Teddy seated on a barstool chair at the kitchen island, watching videos on an iPad under the watchful eye of one of the housekeepers that Jane considered an ally.
The woman opened her mouth to greet Jane but stopped short, forehead furrowing. “Are you okay?”
Unable to trust her voice, she lifted a shoulder.
“Your friend,” The housekeeper dropped her voice. “The bodyguard. He and another were in the security office.” She flicked her hand to shoo Jane. “I have the boy. Go. Take a moment.”
Jane nodded on her gratitude and took off to find Chance.
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
Chance leaned forward on the office chair. He and Pennebaker had been huddled in an intense discussion for the past thirty minutes. If he’d thought it would shed light on the chaotic household, Chance had been wrong. They shared passing conversations with Lark and the camera crew conversations, and both men wondered what was for real and for show. Were Dax and Gigi a danger to themselves? Or, more likely, unable to satiate their desire for attention?
A quick knock on the security office door preceded it swung open. Jumpy, they turned quickly. “Jane?”
Her puffy eyes and faltering hello were enough to turn his stomach. Pennebaker muttered a greeting and appraised the situation. After a confirming look to Chance, he stepped toward the door. “Just on my way out.”
Jane crossed straight into Chance’s arms. She curled her arms between them, knotting her hands between their chests. Whatever had happened, she needed to be held. He pulled her close and backed onto his chair again.
Her face buried into his neck, and she curled tightly on his lap, silently begging him to keep her safe. Chance stroked the back of her head. Her quiet sniffles made his blood boil. One of the Thanes were responsible. He wanted to kill them. Which meant he needed to get the hell out of dodge before he actually did. Neither one of them should be in this job. He didn’t know what to do about Teddy, but he had to act fast. “Want to talk about it?”
She shook her head.
“When you’re ready.” And then, after he knew what had happened, Chance would make a phone call to Boss Man. If he wasn’t available, Chance would call his teammates until he had someone with a clear perspective. Both he and Jane were in too deep to see the situation with any clarity.
“I said you were my boyfriend.” Her lips tickled on his neck.
Chance chuckled and inched her from his chest, with a lopsided grin, he hoped he could make her laugh. “And that made you cry?”
She smiled. Not laughter, but he’d take what he could get. He kissed her forehead. “Guess that means you’re my girlfriend?”
She sniffled and almost laughed.
“My woman?” he tried again, dropping his voice low, again hoping for a laugh.
Jane smiled, gave a short laugh, and wrapped her arms around his neck. He’d take that triplicate for a win.
She met his eyes. “We need to get out of here.”
His neck muscles stiffened. For Jane to say that… “What happened?”
Her eyes closed, and with a slight head shake, she said, “The details don’t matter. You were right. This place is toxic.” Her voice broke. “But we need a plan.”
“For Teddy?”
She nodded.
Knowing she was right but not having the slightest idea what to do, his stomach turned. He reached for the bottle of antacids that Pennebaker had left behind. Jane shifted from his lap and pulled a chair closer. Once they were settled again, face to face, she admitted, “I still don’t know how. But I won’t abandon him.”
A rough knock pounded on the door, and Pennebaker announced, “Coming in.”
The door swung open, and just as his stomach had lurched when Chance saw Jane, it did when he saw the dread on Pennebaker’s face.
“What?” Chance hand over the bottle of antacids.
Pennebaker popped a few and capped the bottle. “They’ve called ano
ther family meeting.”
***
“Janie!” Teddy’s voice echoed down the hall, and it was the only thing that could have propelled Jane out of the security office.
She found Teddy still on the barstool. Several members of the staff lined the wall behind a large kitchen table. To Jane, it almost looked as though they were hiding with the hopes of blending into the wallpaper.
Teddy leaned away from Dax, legs kicking and reaching for her arms. “We’re having another family meeting.”
The omnipresent camera crew positioned in a corner. Unlike usual, they had lights strategically stationed as though the room was set up for an interview.
Gigi swept in for Teddy. Jane could’ve ripped the boy from her arms but stepped back. Teddy seemed ready to cry.
The heavy footsteps of Chance and Pennebaker approached. Jane didn’t look toward them, but knowing Chance was close somehow made her feel better.
“Now that we’re all here,” Dax said and hung an arm over Gigi’s shoulder. “We have an announcement to share.”
Gigi leaned against Dax. “We’re renewing our vows!”
Jane’s jaw dropped. No one made a sound. Bile churned in her stomach, and she could use the security office’s bottle of antacids.
Gigi placed Teddy on his feet, just short of dropping him, and turned to Dax. With all the talent of a soap opera wannabe reject, her eyelashes fluttered, and she tossed her hair dramatically off her shoulder. “I love you.”
Dax clinched her waist. “And, I love you.”
Teddy ran toward Jane, jumping into her arms.
The happy-again couple turned toward the group, angling for the video camera. Dax said, “I bought Gigi a campy little resort.”
Bought her a resort? Though… why not? An everyday guy might grovel and makeup at a mountain hotel. Dax Thane would buy the whole damn mountain and give his wife a resort.
“Campiness is vogue at the moment,” Gigi explained. “And I can’t wait to post the pictures.”
Clearly, this conversation wasn’t for anyone in the room. The Thane minidocumentary was turning into a weird mishmash of the Real Housewives, Survivor, and Punk’d.
Teddy leaned close to Jane’s ear. “They’re going to camp?”
His hopefulness in his voice sliced to her heart. “I’ll explain later, honey.”
Dax clapped his hands and rubbed them together as though he were about to dive into a meat lover’s buffet. “Champagne glass hot tubs and heart-shaped beds.”
“We’re leaving tonight!” Gigi beamed. “Off to the wild, rugged Poconos.”
Jane recalled the time she and Teddy visited an indoor water park in the Poconos. They’d had the absolute best time. Dax and Gigi refused to join them. Looking back on the rural area, Jane wondered how the locals would take to the Thanes.
“Say that one more time,” a producer called.
Gigi and Dax restarted their banter, repeating themselves word for word. Jane rolled her eyes. But a realization hit Jane like a semi-truck. They were essentially filming a commercial. Nothing was ever what it seemed.
CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE
Jane moved to another window of an alcove in the east wing where she’d had a stash of crayons and coloring books. Teddy happily colored, while she watched as the paparazzi grazed on the front lawn. They’d been allowed inside the gates at Lark’s direction.
“What a shit-show,” Chance muttered and left the window he’d been spying out of. Instead of joining her at the better vantage point, he walked toward Teddy and dropped on the carpet as the little boy happily killed his blue crayon.
“That’s a good description,” she agreed. Gigi and Dax had given the photogs a few pictures and extolled the excitement of their campy vacation. Jane nearly gagged as they saw off a caravan of their staff, all now on paid vacation, with gleefully charitable waves.
Jane, however, was not on vacation. She and Chance would watch Teddy—though they didn’t notice Chance had stuck around. They’d decided to use the quiet time to concoct a viable escape plan. She watched Dax help Gigi into their favorite Range Rover. He waved to the paparazzi and pulled out the driveway.
“They’re gone.” She turned for her guys. Both were now coloring. Though Chance wasn’t as hard on the crayons as Teddy. “What are you drawing?”
“Ghost blocks in a field. The cows fall through them.” Teddy held up his paper.
Jane could make out a cow. Maybe two. “Very nice.”
“And you?”
Chance grinned and mimicked Teddy.
Her eyebrow arched. “A stick figure holding an umbrella?”
“Oh, come on.” Chance inspected his work of art. “It’s Mary Poppins.”
Teddy leaned over to look and nodded. “It’s Mary Poppins.”
Jane plopped next to them. Chance signed his name on the bottom corner and handed it to her. “For you, MP.”
She took the drawing but then kissed her man. Just a little peck.
“Are you going to get married?” Teddy squealed.
Heat rose to her face. “Kisses mean you care—”
“One day,” Chance said, giving Teddy a wink.
Her heart flipped, and her jaw fell.
Chance grinned, teasing her with the lift of his eyebrows. “And we’re gonna have enough kids to play football.”
“Cool!” Teddy picked up another crayon. “Can I play too?”
“Absolutely.”
Jane was absolutely one hundred percent in love with Chance. If they were alone, she’d tell him. But it would have to wait until bedtime. “I’m going to make dinner.”
“We’ll be up here,” Teddy explained. “Coloring.”
They were cute and content. Jane left them to their creations and headed for the kitchen. The doorbell rang, and lyrical tone took Jane a minute to place. No one ever used the doorbell. The guardhouse would call up for guests who showed up without notice.
Then again, Lark had given the guardhouse the okay to let everyone in. Jane groaned and ignored the door, but the bell chimed again. She walked into the foyer, curious who would drop in when Dax and Gigi had left. The beveled, glazed front door glass didn’t show who was on the other side. It was the first time she had needed to use a peephole and realized the designer front door didn’t have one. The doorbell rang again.
The shadow on the other side knocked on the glass pane. “Jane Singleton?”
Her eyebrow crooked. Who knew her name? Weird, but not insane. Most gossip hounds would call with a bribe, not brazenly knock on the door.
“Jane? A little birdie told us you were home.”
She sighed. One day, she’d figure out how to get Lark back for every little headache. If the reporters knew she was home, they’d keep at it until she opened the door. Reluctantly, Jane cracked the door and saw a woman she recognized. Then, she saw all of them. Most of the paparazzi hadn’t left, and several gossip reporters hurried toward the empty door.
“No one’s here,” Jane announced, stepping outside for all to hear. “You know that. You saw them leave.” That didn’t make a difference. She shielded her face. Hours had gone by, but her eyes were still puffy and her nose still red from her meltdown in the bathroom. She didn’t want that recorded for prosperity’s sake, no matter how happy she was in how own skin.
Jane backed inside the door, but a reporter caught it. The hairs on Jane’s arms stood up. “Let go.” She readied to throw her weight against it, knowing if she cried out, Chance would fly down the stairs. “Let go. Or I’ll break your fingers when I close the door.”
“Jane,” a reporter called. “We don’t want them. We want to talk to you!”
She should have ignored the bait. After all, she had a thousand times before. But something in the woman’s voice gave Jane pause. She inched the door open. “Why?”
“I want to hear your side.”
The reporter’s faux sympathy prickled down Jane’s back. “On?”
“The Thanes’ vow renewal?”
“But not after your boyfriend sleeps with your boss.”
Jane froze, looking out into a sea of blinding flashbulbs. Boyfriend? “Excuse me?”
The reporter’s face twisted. Her expression was a strange mix of pity, sadistic enjoyment, and triumph—after all, Jane didn’t deny her claims, mostly because Jane couldn’t wrap her head around whatever Gigi and Lark had done now.
The reporter gave her phone to Jane. Her fingers trembled as she took it. The headline of a familiar entertainment news website exclaimed NEW BODYGUARD TURNED LOVER CAUSED THANE RIFT.
Horrorstruck, Jane scrolled down. Not bothering to read the fictitious article, she stopped on the photographs. They were grainy, but they were still clear enough to see Chance and Gigi at the beach. Jane scrolled down the page and froze, unable to look away from a picture of Gigi, topless and lounging, as Chance approached with a drink in hand.
The logical part of Jane’s brain screamed that she knew better. Chance wouldn’t touch Gigi. But the gossip-blog-reading part of her mind balked at the evidence on the screen.
“There’s more.” The reporter reached for the phone and opened another app, scrolling for Jane. “In bed.”
The images weren’t just grainy but dark and shadowed. Still, that was Chance in the dark. Behind him, there was a shadowed woman, identifiable only by her long hair. There was no question, though. That was Chance. Jane knew the angles of his face, the broad reach of his shoulders. Jane swallowed hard. Her hands trembled, and she forced the phone back into the reporter’s hand.
There had to be an explanation. But she couldn’t figure that out standing with a mob of reporters. Jane knew better! She did. She trusted Chance. Still, tears brimmed in her eyes. “No comment.”
This time, the reporter let her shut the door.
Jane staggered toward the living room.
“Hey, Jane,” Chance called from upstairs. “My boss is on the phone. Teddy’s coming your way.”