His voice had risen in strength and volume until his grandfather came to ask if he was okay. “Is this gentleman bothering you, Carter?”

Carter’s grandfather eyed me with suspicion, so different from the trust he’d displayed the night of the gala. I felt like dirt enough as it was, but having Dr. Rogers, Sr., shoot me a condescending glare was the icing on the cake.

“No, sir,” Carter said, calming down immediately and resuming the emotionless expression he’d shown me when I’d first walked in. “The bodyguard was just leaving.”

The bodyguard. That was all I was to him. I stared at him, trying desperately not to feel like I was bleeding out straight from my chest. Apparently, I’d seen feelings where there hadn’t been any.

I firmed my chin. “I just need to ask Dr. Rogers a few questions about the case, and then I’ll be on my way.”

Carter’s grandfather looked between us before asking Carter if he wanted company for the interview.

“No, sir. But thank you. I’ll be fine, and this won’t take but a minute.”

Dr. Rogers, Sr., nodded and returned to the party, leaving us alone again.

Carter turned to me. “What questions?”

My face felt numb. Reducing our relationship to debriefing about the case was my worst nightmare, but I had to do it. Champ had made it clear he expected me to come through for him on this part of the job, and apparently the job was all I fucking had anymore.

“Buck showed you his Horn on the plane,” I began.

Carter’s forehead crinkled with confusion. “Yes. He did.”

“But when we questioned him back at headquarters, he didn’t have it anymore.”

“Okay…?”

I shifted from one foot to the other. “Do you have any idea what he did with it between showing it to you and arriving at our offices?”

He looked off to the side like he was thinking. “He… well, I know he had a lot of family there waiting for him at the airport. His girlfriend Kellie, his sister Kandi, his great-uncle Amos and Amos’s wife… I think there were some siblings there too? I guess he could have given it to one of them to hang on to for him.”

“But he didn’t give it to you?” I asked.

“No. Why would he have given it to me?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know, but I had to ask. Are you sure you only returned with one device?”

He ground his teeth together. “Yes, Mr. Riggs. I arrived at your company’s offices with pockets full of many, many things. All the random medical supplies you shoved into my pants pockets as well as my own Horn, which you know is distinctive since it’s sparkly purple. I was searched by one of your colleagues. I specifically remember calling out for you when some random stranger began trying to take your knife off me without my permission, but I guess you were too busy sharing fun stories with your dude bro friends to hear me or give a shit about what was happening. But feel free to ask your real fucking teammates because they took inventory of everything I had on me when I arrived at Champion Security. Now, if you’re quite finished interrogating me, please get the fuck out of my grandfather’s house.”

I stared at him in shock and the beginning stages of rage. “Someone touched you without your consent? Someone at Champion? Who? What did he look like?”

Carter blew out a breath. “Calm down. It wasn’t like that. He patted me down, and when he found the weapon, he freaked out… until your boss told him to calm down. I’m not telling you who it was since you’re clearly looking for someone to take your anger out on. All I know is I asked for you, and you didn’t come. That part I remember quite clearly.” He cleared his throat. “Speaking of the knife, I’ll have it packaged up by someone on my grandfather’s staff. They’ll bring it to you at the Champion office.”

I felt stinging behind my eyes at the knowledge I’d let him down. “Keep it.”

Carter shook his head once. “There’s no need. We both know I never would have used it. I’m a principal, not a bodyguard.” He smiled tightly. “As you keep reminding me.”

Was this what heartbreak felt like? How sad was it that the first guy I’d given my heart to would be the first guy to break it?

“Keep it,” I said again. “Even if you never use it, sometimes it just helps to know it’s there.” It would help me to know he had it.

Carter looked surprised for a second. Vulnerable. So I swallowed hard and tried one last time. “I… I tried calling you. I’ve been trying to get in touch with you since we landed. I wanted to explain everything. I texted…”

“Please leave,” he said, finally looking and sounding as exhausted as I felt. “There’s no point in discussing this anymore. You were right when you warned me in Venezuela this was a bad idea. We don’t fit. You’re going on your next mission, and I have a medical practice to run. Listen, it was fun while it lasted, and I really appreciate you saving my life. You did a great job landing that plane and getting us out of there. I’ll always be grateful.”

Tags: Lucy Lennox Licking Thicket - Horn of Glory Romance
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