Lauren (Silicon Valley Billionaires 1)

I groaned and leveled a stare at Timmy. “What about him?”

Timmy stared back at me, his face expressionless. “I thought you were staying with him.”

“That was then. This is now.”

He raised his eyebrows a fraction but was smart enough to keep his mouth shut.

There was another knock on the door, and a good-looking young man stuck his head in. “You wanted to see me?” he asked, and Eddie motioned him in.

As he came through the door, my heart sank. He was tall—not as tall as Gabe, but over six feet—with huge shoulders and a powerful-looking chest straining beneath his suit jacket. He was blond with a square jaw and blue eyes. He was young, strapping, and very attractive. This had to be Wes, my sister’s new bodyguard.

“Ms. Taylor?” he asked, smiling at me tentatively. “I’m Wesley Eden, personal protection agent. I’ve been watching your sister. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

I nodded at him and shot Timmy a filthy look. “Is she here?” I asked the room at large. I couldn’t look at Wes’s handsome face. “My sister?”

“She’s in her office,” Wes answered politely.

I looked at Timmy. “I’ll talk to you later.” I headed out of the office.

Timmy had said Wes was a good-looking guy, but he’d failed to mention that Wes was exactly Hannah’s type and awfully eager to please.

Sighing, I made a beeline for my sister’s office. She jumped up when I came in the door.

“Finally!” she said and pulled me in for a hug. “I haven’t seen you for days!”

I stood stiffly as she rocked me back and forth. I was happy to see her, but my long list of concerns, problems, and things I had to accomplish were blurring all my other emotions.

And I couldn’t get Gabe’s words out of my head. What if I don’t want to wait?

Hannah pulled back and was staring at me, her brow furrowed. “What? What’s the matter?”

I shook my head. “Nothing. Well, that’s not true. We’re going for our final FDA approval and launching as soon as possible.”

She looked shocked. “Huh? Are you kidding?”

I wearily collapsed into one of her chairs. “I’m not. I met with the board. In light of Clive’s arrest and everything else that’s happened, they want to move up the release date.”

Hannah leaned back against her desk. “That’s understandable. Can you do it?”

“I don’t have a choice. But I’m ready. This has been my baby for so long. It’s ready to go out into the world.” I paused for a beat. “There’s been a lot going on, though.”

“You think?” she asked sarcastically. “What happened with Clive?”

“He’s still in jail on the tax charges. But he cleared me and Gabe of all charges. He set Gabe free.”

Hannah wrinkled her nose. “That’s a very un-Clive-like thing to do. What gives?”

I looked away. I wanted to tell Hannah the truth, but it was also my nature to protect her. “He had his reasons.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m not a child anymore, Lauren. Just tell me the truth. Maybe I can help.”

I looked at her sharply. “Your only job right now is to stay safe.”

She

raised an eyebrow. “If you’re telling me we’re launching as soon as we can, I have a hell of a lot more work to do than just that as Paragon’s publicity director. Besides, I’m safe. Gabe’s got so many men at the house, I need a Las Vegas-style buffet to feed them all.”

I raised an eyebrow right back. “And you have Wes.”