Page 32 of Possessive Bodyguard Summer

“No. You need to listen to me.” His voice hardened. "You need to remember something. Right now, Monroe is probably still operating under survival instincts. She got away. She found somewhere safe. But people like Mercer don’t let go that easily. He probably views her as property and these guys always come looking for what’s theirs.”

“She’s not his anymore.” I growled.

Not because she suddenly belonged to me but, because she belonged to herself.

“Why don’t you take the day? Hang around the house, keep Monroe and Kaleigh with you. I’ll work on things from here and let you know the minute I find out more.”

“Yeah. Good idea. If you get wind that that bike is headed back in this direction…”

“You’ll be the first call I make. I’ll get one of the guys to drive around a bit too, keep an eye on things.”

“Good. Do me a favor and don’t say anything to Monroe about this. Okay?”

“I won’t say a word,” he paused for a brief second. “Yet.”

I frowned. “Sloane.”

“She deserves to know eventually, Clay.”

“I know. And we can tell her as soon as there’s something worth telling. I don’t want her freaking out any more than she needs to right now.”

The call ended and I checked the clock. If I got a quick shower and stretched out on the couch, I could maybe get a quick nap in, before Kaleigh woke up for the day.

Now that I’d talked to Sloane, I wasn't thinking about what Monroe had hidden from me.

I was thinking about what she had survived.

And what I was going to do to make sure she never had to survive it alone again.

CHAPTER

TWELVE

MONROE

Sleep didn’t come any easier after talking to Clay but at some point I did fall asleep.

I woke up later than normal to the smell of fresh coffee and bacon frying downstairs in the kitchen.

Shit.

I hadn’t meant to oversleep and I was surprised that Kaleigh hadn’t barreled into my room to wake me.

Not wanting to make Clay any later for work, I quickly climbed out of bed and changed my clothes. I made a pit stop in the bathroom to handle my business and brush my teeth, thankful that for right now, I wasn’t feeling an ounce of morning sickness.

When I got downstairs, Clay was standing at the kitchen island in just a pair of shorts and sipping his coffee while Kaleigh sat on one of the chairs, chomping on some bacon. Of course Maverick was right beside her, drool dripping from his jowls as he waited for her to drop a piece.

Meanwhile,Itried not to drool over how good Clay looked with his shirt off, those tattoos on his arms on full display.

“Monring,” Clay said softly.

I smiled. "Morning."

His eyes swept over me quickly before settling back on my face. "You sleep okay?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but Kaleigh beat me to it.

"She didn't."