Page 28 of Her Bossy Bodyguards

“Not yet.” I faked a smile again. “But I’m starting to think it’s on its way.”

“Oh, that’s disgustingly sweet.” She chuckled. “Well, congratulations to the lucky woman, whoever she may be. And tell her hello for me, too.”

“I’ll make sure to let her know,” I replied as the drunk woman took another sip of her wine, soon heading in the opposite direction. And when she was a few steps out of my sight, I went back to surveying the room, keeping my eyes peeled for any of Barca’s men, making a note of their every move.

Chapter 14

Kingston

Istill had no idea what the fuck Barca was celebrating tonight. I’d been mostly staying on the periphery of the party, pretending I was going through glasses of wine, feigning interest in the art that hung on Barca’s mansion walls. But as I stared at the painted images in front of me, I ever so slightly kept an eye on Barca’s guards, men who were dressed in all black with handguns in holsters beneath their jackets. They seemed to be utterly uninterested in me, though, as well as all the other guests, which was a very good sign.

Because Barca’s guards not casting a suspicious glance at everyone at the mansion that night meant that Barca probably hadn’t briefed them to keep an eye out for Zeke or me, which meant that Barca had already underestimated Bolin and Trapper, instantly giving us the upper hand.

And that meant that Barca had no idea what was about to fucking hit him.

“Don’t you think there’s just something so primal about this painting?” An older man, wearing an all-white tuxedo, suddenly appeared by my side. “It always reminds me of my youth.”

“I’m not too familiar with the artist,” I admitted. “I think this is my first time seeing his work.”

“Her work,” the stranger corrected. “But yes. It’s a beautiful piece. I doubt Barca would ever part with it for anything less than half a million dollars. He’s always so greedy when it comes to collecting pretty things.”

Collecting pretty things?

The stranger’s odd choice of words piqued my interest. “Is Barca a pretty avid art collector, then?”

“He’s more of a collector of people.”

“A…collector of people?” I pretended to be stunned by the revelation.

The old man laughed at my response. “Oh, you know what I mean. The man has bought the majority of politicians in town. And a few police stations, too. He just always has to be the one in control.”

“Sorry.” I shook my head. “I think I’ve just heard so many rumors that I thought you were talking about…”

“You thought I was talking about the women,” the stranger replied. “Well, there’s that, too. Now, far be it from me to judge how a man makes his income.”

“But?”

“But there’s just something so odd about it,” he continued. “Don’t get me wrong. I’ve had my fair share of associations with men who work in that sort of field, who havewomen of the nighton their payroll, too. But I’ve never known them to sleep with any of them before.”

“Sleep with them?”

The stranger grinned and moved in a little closer. “I think he wants to keep it as his dirty little secret. But I heard that when Barca finds a woman particularly attractive, he likes to break her in all by himself. Isn’t that the strangest thing you’ve ever heard? It’d be like your boss making you sleep with them before they gave you your first paycheck.”

Everything in my body suddenly went ice cold.

Break her in all by himself.

Image after image of Natalie pressed underneath Barca’s frame bombarded my mind. The thought of him touching her made me sick to my fucking stomach, but the thought of us being too late to save Natalie from such a horrific situation made me even more nauseous.

“Lighten up, young man.” The stranger chuckled. “It’s just a rumor. Besides, I think tonight’s celebration proves that Barca is moving on from his old ways.”

“How so?”

“Well, do you really think a man on the brink of endorsing a future president is going to have that kind of reputation?”

“Endorsing a future president?”

“Peter Hanson.” The old man smiled. “Didn’t you know what you came here to celebrate? Barca said that he’ll be announcing Peter’s run by the end of the night.”

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