Page 49 of Embracing James

James grasped Paul’s arm. “I need to go to the police station to fill out a no-contact form. I can’t have him at my business bothering my customers.”

“No, you can’t.” Paul didn’t want to add extra security to the salon, but someone had to stop Craig.

“If you’d like to come to the station, we’ll get that paperwork started, Mr. Mason,” the officer said. “

“Sure.” James squeezed Paul’s arm. “Will you stay here and keep an eye on things until I get back?”

“You know I will.” He’d risk anything to keep James safe and happy. No one deserved to live in fear and Craig needed to back the fuck off.

Chapter Twelve

Paul waited for the police to leave and debated what to do next. He’d given his statement and wasn’t needed now. But he couldn’t be sure Craig wouldn’t come back and annoy James. Paul could put security up at the salon, but he had to know Craig would leave James the hell alone. He headed into the building and called his security team. They could keep an eye on the building without being obtrusive.

As long as he could keep James and Doob safe, he’d be happy. He checked the feed at the condo to ensure Doob was fine. According to the live video, the dog was crashed out on the couch and snoring. Good enough for Paul.

He stopped Casey. “Hi.”

“Hi.” She folded her hands. “Is Mr. Mason okay?”

“He’s fine. A little freaked out, but that’s to be expected,” Paul said. “Do you remember what that man looked like?”

“The one who showed up claiming to want to take Doob? Yes.” She nodded. “I won’t forget him.”

“Good. He’s not permitted in the salon for the duration,” Paul said. “If he tries to come in, then contact the cops and let us know right away.”

“I will.” She smiled. “I’m glad you’re here to help Mr. Mason. He seems like he can use all the support he can get.”

“You’re right and you’re good support for him, too.” He winked. “I need to speak to the other stylists. Got things under control up here?”

“I do.” She held up her hand. “What about any of Mr. Mason’s appointments? I haven’t checked the book, but I’m sure he’s got someone coming in, plus he’s supposed to meet with Mary Namey, the JVS advisor at noon.”

“He should be back by noon, but we’ll see what happens with the appointments. You check the book and we’ll figure something out.” He nodded once. “Thank you.”

“You bet.” She fiddled with the tablet.

He left her alone at the receptionist counter, but kept an eye on her as he approached Ky and Lance. “Isn’t there another one of you?”

“We had Stella, but she quit. She opened her own one-woman salon across town.” Ky shrugged. “All the better for us.”

“It is.” He hooked his fingers in his belt loops. “Here’s the deal. The gentleman who came in here is one of James’ exes. He’s not a nice guy and he’s hell-bent on causing trouble. We need to pull together to keep this salon fantastic. I need you to keep an eye out for that guy and if he comes in and manages to get past Casey, you need to let me, James or the cops know. He’s not permitted in this building.”

Lance nodded. “Was he really going to hurt James?”

“He could.” He hadn’t heard anything about hurting anyone, but he wouldn’t put anything past Craig. “Do either of you have any openings for the next hour and a half?”

“I’m booked,” Lance said. “My next one should be here in five minutes.”

“I’m booked, but I can do two chairs if we need to help James,” Ky said. “He doesn’t need this hassle.”

“I appreciate it. I’m hoping he doesn’t have anything scheduled because I know it’s hard to juggle two chairs, but he’s filling out the paperwork for a no-contact order.” Paul grabbed the broom. “I’ll stick around at least until after lunch so he’s got extra help.”

Ky smiled. “Thanks.”

“Sure.” He swept the salon with the broom, then the silent floor vac. Truth be told, he simply wanted busy work until James returned. Just knowing someone wanted to harm James upset him. He finished cleaning the floors, then turned his attention to the product display counters.

“We got new product in,” Casey said and opened a box. “If you can turn the products so they’re facing forward and order them, I’ll add the new bottles. I’ve already inventoried them, so we just have to put them out.”

“Good.”Anything to help James.He turned the bottles and arranged the tags to better showcase the prices of each item. Within half an hour, he and Casey managed to tidy the entire cabinet. He stood and stretched. His knees cracked and his back ached from being hunched over, but he didn’t care.

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