Page 49 of Tempt My Heart

"Bastard." He sat up in bed and the sheets puddled at his waist. "I'm so sorry Ali, I don't know he found you here."

She shook her head. "I think we should call Denver."

"I'll call," he said sternly. "You need to call your mom, make sure she's okay."

God. The fire. He was right. Caleb was taking good care of her mom, she was sure, but she still needed to talk to her herself and just hear her voice. She felt more than a little guilty that she hadn’t called her back last night, but she hadn't had the mental capacity to comfort her when she’d been falling apart too.

"Sounds like a plan."

"You okay if I take the first shower?" he asked and she chuckled.

"It's your house."

"True," he acknowledged. "Does that mean I'm in charge, then?"

She laughed at the wicked gleam in his eyes. "Don’t push your luck."

* * *

"You didn't tellme you booked my mom on a flight to Paris." She’d finished her call with her mom and had a quick enough shower to find Christopher still getting dressed after she walked into his room. “I was thinking about going to see her.”

Christopher turned around, brows furrowed as he buttoned up his shirt. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to overstep. I should have asked—"

"I'm not mad." She held up one hand to cut him off, a small smile rising to her face. "It was thoughtful of you. Thank you."

He stepped closer, dipping his chin to kiss her softly. "Of course. I don't know how Jared's been tracking you, but he’s outgunned. It's probably time we remind him of that."

There was a darkness to his voice that she hadn't seen much of before, and he melted when he saw her concern. "I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to frighten you. I'm just not going to let this asshole get away with hurting you or burning down your mom's place. "

"I know," she said, resting her head against his chest. "Have you heard from Denver?"

"He's on his way here."

"What if we can't find any evidence that he was the one who torched the house?"

"I'll handle it," Christopher said, mouth in a straight, grim line.

"As in—"

"I'll place the fucking matches in his hand if I must."

Maybe it should have alarmed her, but she couldn't fault him. There was an intensity to him for the people he loved, and she felt the same way. There really was no telling what she'd do or say to Jared if she came face to face with him after what he'd done to her childhood home. And it could have been so much worse. She'd been forcing herself not to think about what would have happened if her mom wasn't out of town. Had Jared known? Was murder where he drew the line?

"All this for a story," Christopher muttered and she sighed.

"It's greed, pure and simple. You probably wouldn't know this because you already have money—but do you know how much exclusive paparazzi photos of you sometimes sell for? Whatever figure you have in your head, double it, or triple it if it's compromising."

"You've dealt with that kind of thing for me?"

"I'm your assistant." She laughed without humor. "So it's not just a story. He's planning on selling those pictures to the highest bidder. Trust me, magazines, news stations... they'll all queue up to pay."

"Did you, ah, ever come across... compromising photos of me?"

A blush worked its way across her cheeks. "Not really."

"But?"

"They did once get a snap of you in California. You were visiting relatives or something."

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