Fearless Hero

report to Speaker Harper’s estate.”

* * *

There was no use in fighting against the orders. Besides, I didn’t want to further incriminate myself by fighting too hard to get back to Autumn. If someone had been tipped off about a budding romance forming between the two of us, I didn’t want to do anything to feed into the issue.

It was now overly obvious that our escapade in the library hadn’t been a good idea. Too overcome with lust and passion, neither of us had paid attention to the fact that it was far too easy to get caught in a public area like that. Maybe someone had seen us. Maybe someone saw the smiles and giggles and disheveled clothing as we left through the library, looking like a couple of sneaky hormonal teenagers.

Maybe a photo had been snapped somewhere…

Or maybe hidden security cameras had been recording us…

The thought sent a shudder down my spine.

How could I have been so stupid? So unprofessional. It was all my fault.

I had brought this on myself.

Way to fucking go, Brady.

I pulled up in front of Speaker Harper’s estate with a sigh. Knowing Autumn was not inside already made the grounds seem less welcoming.

As I approached the steps, the door automatically opened to me. Speaker Harper stood on the other side.

“Brady, my man! Welcome back,” he said, immediately extending his hand to me.

I took it and forced a smile onto my face. “Thank you, sir. Good to be back.”

He shut the door after I entered. “So, they’ve reassigned you to me, huh? Autumn called this morning, all distressed. Do you have any idea why such a change was made?”

I scratched the back of my head. “Uhm…I think it’s just because the…the odds of you being targeted, sir, are higher than the odds of her being targeted. So I’ve been told that I’m needed here with you. Another security guard has been placed with Autumn, so she’ll be fine.”

“I see,” Speaker Harper said, a slight frown on his face. “I guess I should be relieved by this, but I don’t know. Only the best come from the Savage Soldiers, and you’re even one of the best among them. I personally would feel better if you were with my little girl, but I guess that’s just the fatherly instinct in me. I worry far more for her than I do for myself. The guard that’s with her—is he good? Is he capable of protecting her the way you can?”

I forced myself to nod. “Yes, sir…” I said, my mind already spinning into overdrive. “I can, however, still stop by to occasionally check on her, if you’d like. Uhm…you know, during shift changes.”

Speaker Harper clasped my shoulder. “You would do that for me? I actually feel a lot better hearing that.”

“Certainly,” I said, my heart beginning to speed a little. I hated lying, but I needed to see Autumn again.

If I went back to the safehouse, I could always claim I was sent there by the Speaker.

Certainly, I couldn’t lose my job for following the Speaker’s orders…

I came back to my senses upon realizing that the Speaker was still talking to me, telling me what plans and meetings he had needed to attend for the next several days. I realized with some dismay that I would be stuck with him due to his busy traveling schedule because there was simply no way I could leave his side; With each passing day, his status grew, which meant more opponents were after him.

But I already made a vow that the first chance I got to return to Autumn, I would.

In the meantime, I would just have to be patient and bide my time, hoping that she would be understanding of the situation. I had already made a vow that I wouldn’t be kept away from her, and now I was determined to keep my word. I had to show her just how serious I was, and that I wouldn’t abandon her at any cost.

CHAPTER 14

Autumn

The past several days had been some of the hardest days I could remember having in a long time. Brady did not return, nor did I hear from him. I had heard from my father though, who finally informed me that Brady had been reassigned to him for safety purposes.

It went without question that Brady was the man to have by your side when you needed the best protection possible. And I wholeheartedly understood that my father, due to his position, was in far more danger than I ever would be. Hence, my feelings on the issue remained bittersweet. I was grateful toward Brady for overseeing my father’s protection, knowing that I would have nothing to worry about as long as he was at my father’s side. Yet, there was another part of me that yearned for Brady to be by my side.

I missed him so bad it hurt.