His Innocent Lover (Slade Security Team 3)

Trent pushed his brother out. He waved at the kitchen. Jealousy was clawing at his gut and he had to take a breath, slow down.

He looked at her face and his gut tightened. “So are you going to tell me to get lost, or what?”

Chapter 14

Chloe sat with a cup of coffee nestled between her hands. It was going cold. Trent had sat opposite to her, then stood, sat down, got up, and stood again. He couldn’t seem to stay still.

She was still fighting her embarrassment and trying to reconcile the fact that she knew nothing about this man. Watching him, she asked, “Why don’t we know more about each other?”

Trent stopped in front of her. “I aim to fix that oversight.”

Chloe nodded. She leaned back. “Okay. Start.”

He shrugged, rubbed the back of his neck, dropped his hands to his side.“I have a twin brother. Most people can’t tell us apart.”

“That much I do know.” She turned the coffee mug between her hands. “How did he get the scar?”

“Uh, well, Travis and I were part of a Navy SEAL team. We had a mission in South America, and Travis forgot to duck.”

Chloe shifted in her chair. “Why were you in South America? I take it this means you’re not really a surfer.”

“Oh, no, I surf. Any time I can. But, South America, can’t really talk about it. I shouldn’t have told you that much.”

Chloe’s throat tightened. “You didn’t just wander into Guardians, did you? You lied to me?’

“I work for a private security firm. And—”

“Stop.” She held up a hand. “I’m not sure—”

“Please, Chloe…”

She swallowed. “This…thing between us. It was just a way to get information?”

“Yes. And no.”

She blinked. “That’s not helping. Trent, I want to believe in you, but…what do you know about my dad?”

A red stain spread over his cheeks. Chloe nodded. “Okay, you ran a check on me, or looked me up online. You found out my dad used to drink. He doesn’t now. But when I was a kid…Trent, I grew up with him promising me everything. We’d take a trip. We’d have a great Christmas. He’d stop drinking. He lied and lied?

??and I found a guy just like him.”

“Sam,” Trent said, his voice soft.

Chloe stared at her coffee. It still hurt to talk about it, but she looked up and pushed the words out. “He promised…we promised. I’d wait for him. He’d come back. He never did. My dad finally sobered up after this last accident, but I’m done with liars. You didn’t just take my faith in you, Trent, you stole my faith in myself.”

He let out a breath. “I’ve actually been to Jawhara.”

“What?”

Trent nodded. “Inside the sheikh’s palace. These guys—Sheikh Kamal and his brother Khalil are nice people. They’re loyal to their country. The Guardians—or someone in there’s trying to sabotage their oil wells and disrupt their business, Jewel Oil. Yeah, these guys are rich, but this isn’t about looking after the rich. That company employs a lot of workers—families need that money. Jewel Oil does a lot to be leading edge on transitioning to solar and wind.”

“But…the Guardians only go after companies that are destroying the environment.”

“I’m not the only one who lied. It’s possible that someone in the Guardians is being paid by countries run by terrorists that thought Jawhara was an easy target because it’s so small.”

Chloe frowned. “I’m temping for a non-profit that works for terrorists?”

“Yes—and no. We suspect there are only one or two people who are using the Guardians to make a lot of money.”