Page 22 of Possessive Bodyguard Summer

Apparently I was still the guy who needed reassurances from my kid’s nanny to know everything was okay.

“Hey, Clay.”

A tiny wave of relief flooded my system when she answered on the second ring.

“I got your note. Thanks for dinner. I, uh,” I rubbed the back of my neck. God I felt like such an ass. “I just wanted to let you know I was home and make sure you and Kaleigh were okay.”

I could practically hear the smile in her voice over the phone. “Oh. You’re welcome. It’s my grandmother’s meatloaf recipe. I hope you love it. Kaleigh gave it five stars, by the way.”

Christ it was cute as hell when she rambled.

“Kaleigh tried to convince Mrs. Altwood that Maverick needed a tutu and could dance too,” Monroe’s laugh filled the line.

“Of course she did,” I grinned even though she couldn’t see me. “I’m surprised she didn’t get her way. What aboutyou? Feeling okay?”

“Great, actually. Oh. Looks like they’re almost done. I should let you go. We’ll be home soon, okay?”

“See you then.” I hung up and sat the phone on the counter.

I sat at the island and ate my dinner before I headed upstairs and jumped in the shower, desperate to kill time until my girls…I mean Monroe brought my daughter home.

The uneasy feeling in my gut lingered until the moment Monroe walked through the door with Kaleigh asleep on her shoulder, Maverick at their side.

The minute he saw me, he ran over and sat at my side. Looking up at me with those big dark eyes, I felt like he was secretly trying to give me a full report about their day.

Monroe must have thought the same thing. “Oh, sure. Go ahead and tell him everything we did today,” she joked. “Don’t forget to tell him how you stole the whipped cream right off the top of Kaeligh’s milkshake too, you big fluff ball.”

Maverick’s tale thumped and he let out a bark.

“Bet you’re not the least bit sorry either,” I chuckled, giving him a quick scratch before extracting Kaleigh from Monroe’s arms. “I’m gonna go tuck her in. I’ll be right back”

When I came back downstairs Monroe was staring out the front window, her face completely pale.

“Hey.” I walked up behind her and put my hands on her shoulders, without thinking.

Monroe jumped and let out a gasp.

“Shit. I’m sorry.” I held up my hands and immediately backed away. “I did not mean to startle you. I shouldn’t have…”

She shook her head. “No. No. It’s not your fault. I just…”

“You looked like you’d seen a ghost. Are you okay?”

“It’s nothing.” She waved me off.

“You’re shaking, that’s not nothing. Did something happen today that set you on edge?”

Monroe bit her lip, something I noticed she tended to do every time she was nervous about something. “N…n….no,” she squeaked.

Maverick barked and nudged her leg.

“Listen, I’m not one to push someone to open up or talk to me. But, I can tell something’s wrong. Whatever it is, Monroe, I can help. Something has gotten you shaken up. So, spill.”

She swallowed hard and ran her hand over the top of Maverick’s head like she was searching for comfort. Then she blew out a nervous breath. “I stopped by the grocery store earlier today. There was this motorcycle in the parking lot. It caught Maverick’s attention. I thought maybe he was just being extra protective. But…I…I’m pretty sure I just saw the same one past the house. I don’t know what made me look up, I guess I felt like someone was watching me or something. He drove by really slow and was looking like he could see me standing here.”

Before I even asked for more details, I started shutting the blinds on all the windows. Fuck letting anyone make her unsafe or watched in our house.

“What color was the motorcycle? What did the driver look like? Did you catch a license plate?”