Corbin (The Theriot Family)

Corbin spent most of the time staring out the window and pouting, but occasionally he glanced over at me. I hoped his thoughts were as filthy as mine. I had no business wanting that, not when being around me could get him killed and not when the nature of his family’s business made him off-limits.

I should tell him our deal was over. He could pay me a rush fee to take care of Remington’s car, and our business would be done. I’d have the car dropped off, and I wouldn’t have to see him again.

Twelve

Corbin

The second Beau’s car stopped, I opened the door and stood. I didn’t want to talk to him anymore. I didn’t even want to look at him. He’d been about to kiss me before all hell had broken loose. I was sure of it. The hunger in his eyes had had me frozen to the spot. I would have done anything he said, but then the moment was over, and he was back to his bossy condescending self. For just a moment, I’d thought…

No. Why the fuck would he want a brat like me? Even if, for some inexplicable reason, he’d seemed to genuinely want to teach me something.

I heard a car door slam and turned to see Beau stalking around the car. He walked past without even acknowledging me and climbed the porch steps.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“Making sure the damn place looks safe since you refuse to have guards.”

“Do you have security guards at the shop?” I was sure he didn’t, which made no sense. He was in far more danger than me. If money was the issue, I’d be more than happy to send someone to him, but I doubted he’d accept my help.

“No, but I—” He stopped speaking when I glared at him. “I’ll be fine. If it were your own enemies that might come after you, I’d drive away and leave you to it, but I refuse to let you get hurt because of my problems. It’s on me to make sure you’re safe.”

Could he be more annoying? “No, it’s really not.”

“Quit being so fucking stubborn.”

“Quit being so sure I can’t take care of myself.”

He snarled. “Open the damn door.”

I just stood there, forcing myself to keep my expression neutral. He wouldn’t be able to get in on his own. “What are you going to do if I let you in?” Our eyes locked for a moment, and I couldn’t breathe. I knew exactly what I’d like him to do, and it had nothing to do with checking my security and everything to do with me making a really stupid choice. I made enough of those. I was never going to prove anything to Remington if I kept doing things only because they brought me pleasure. And yet…

“I’m going to check your security system and make sure you’re safe.”

“Since when are you a security expert?”

“I don’t have servants and family friends to handle things for me, so I set up my own system at the shop. I know what to look for.”

I sighed dramatically. “Fine.” I pushed past him and keyed in the code that would unlock the door. “Don’t touch anything. Remington is very particular.”

“I just bet he is,” Beau muttered as I pushed the door open.

I turned to look at Beau and realized he’d pulled out a gun. He muscled past me and began moving slowly through Remington’s house.

“You really think someone’s going to come after me?”

“I doubt they’d get past your security system. They’d most likely go for you when you are at the shop.”

“Then maybe I should—”

He held up his hand. “Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?” A scraping sound startled me. It sounded like something rubbing against the window.

“Stay here and hide,” Beau commanded. I paid no attention to him, following as he moved toward the back of the house.

The sound was coming from one of the windows that faced the courtyard. “Stay behind me,” Beau said, his voice hard as steel.

“I can—”

“No.”

I wanted to push my way in front of him so I could confront whoever or whatever it was, but I stayed behind him because there was a not-so-small part of me that loved the idea of him taking care of me. It didn’t matter what I did. Nothing was going to prove to him that I was a grown-up who could handle this. I might as well let him satisfy himself by taking charge.

Beau held his gun one-handed and jerked the curtain back.

He let out his breath and dropped his weapon to his side. “It’s only a loose shutter.”

I frowned. It had stormed the night before. If the shutter had been banging like that, I would’ve heard it, and Remington made sure everything was in perfect repair at all times, so I wasn’t altogether sure the shutter had come loose without help. I debated whether I should say anything to Beau, then decided to keep that knowledge to myself. I’d mention it to Lance and investigate it on my own.