Page 64 of Relentless
“Oh, there’s a you and Tia,” Chad said. “Remains to be seen what it is, though.”
“She’s the head of my security team,” Cody said. “Even if I wanted there to be a me and Tia, do you think she’d risk it?”
Ethan glanced at Chad. Their gazes held then they both doubled over laughing. When they finally stopped, Cody glared at them, his eyes narrow as slits.
“You do realize that I was protecting Sabina when she and I got together?” Chad said.
“And I was watching out for Kara when I first fell for herandI’m helping protect her now,” Ethan said.
“Yeah, well, the patriarchy is alive and well. Two security operativedudescan pursue the women they’re protecting and everyone will think it’s romantic—”
“Uh, getting shot at and hunting down killers isn’t exactly romantic,” Ethan interjected.
Cody ignored him. “But if a female operative were to do the same, no one would believe that she could separate her emotions from the job. She’d be viewed as compromised, maybe even weak. People would begin to doubt her, and slowly her authority—and ethics—would be called into question. Which, in turn, damages her career. Likely irreparably.”
Ethan blinked in surprise. His instinct was to brush Cody’s words under the rug or make light of them. But his cousin had obviously given the situation a lot of thought. And as much as Ethan hated to admit it, Cody was probably right. Although if anyone could pull off falling in love with her client and remaining in command, he could see Tia doing it.
Chad must have realized the same thing, because he dropped the topic. “Where can we get a good pizza in this town?”
Cody held his gaze for a beat, then shook his head. “And salad. Don’t forget the fucking salad.”
* * *
“I said I’d be there at noon. I’ll be there at noon,” Cody said, walking into the kitchen with his phone glued to his ear the next morning. Ethan looked up from the news he was reading on his own device. Kara sat beside him working on a crossword while they both enjoyed a final cup of coffee. Cody flashed him an impatient look and mouthed, “Alex.”
“I told you last night, there are security reasons why my location is undisclosed,” Cody continued. “And it will remain undisclosed,” he said, his voice rising as he likely tried to talk over Alex.
“Look, I have to go. I’ll see you at the sound check,” Cody said before ending the call. He set his phone down on the counter and jammed a hand on his hip. His eyes remained focused on the smooth granite as he gathered himself together.
“Trouble in paradise?” Kara asked, her eyes never leaving her puzzle.
“Let’s just say that I will beveryglad when the lawyers finish up their investigation,” Cody said, pouring the last of the coffee from the pot into a cup.
“You should hire HICC,” Kara said.
“I know,” Cody replied. His quick response told Ethan more than Cody ever would about just how uncomfortable things were with his assistant. “Maybe I will,” he added, plopping down in a chair across from them. “Anything new on your end?”
Being sequestered in the house with only family and the security team had certain benefits. They didn’t have to worry about who might be lingering or listening in.
“The mechanic is looking at the coach today, and Sabina is digging into Peter Hilton’s life. She’s in that stage of focus where Chad is standing around making sure she drinks water and occasionally goes to the bathroom,” Ethan answered.
Cody glanced at his watch. “And it’s only eleven.”
Ethan flashed him a toothy smile. “It’s going to be a fun day. And by ‘fun’ I mean frustrating as hell.”
“I’m sorry you have to sit around and babysit me rather than go all Rambo, track Peter down, and demand answers,” Kara interjected. Again, not raising her eyes from her puzzle.
“I didn’t mean it that way,” Ethan said.
“Yes, he did. Why don’t you do something to soothe his wild beast?” Cody said.
Kara’s eyebrows went up, followed by her gaze, which locked on Cody. “You know we’re already sleeping together. You don’t have to play his wingman.”
Cody grinned. “I have nothing better to do.”
“The oldest reason in the book,” Sabina announced as she stalked into the room with Chad on her heels. An unmistakable look of glee in her eye.
“What?” Cody asked.
