“Crazy,” he barked.
“Brick,” Sterling warned. “Just because Linda was a bitch doesn’t mean all women are.”
He closed his eyes and nodded. “Sorry. High-maintenance.”
“Sounds to me like she has some problems,” Elias said. “Bad anxiety.”
All three of them were Dominants, and their protective instincts were strong.
“She works four days a week at the local library and that she uses a bicycle to get around,” Sterling stated.
“That’s out,” Brick stated.
“Goes to a bar quiz night every Thursday,” Sterling added.
“Also out.”
“We’re not supposed to disrupt her schedule unless necessary,” Elias reminded him.
And he was being a jerk for the sake of it. Yeah, he knew that. But he would do whatever was necessary to keep this woman safe. This job could salvage his business. Losing it wasn’t an option.
Winding down the window, he reached out to press the button on the communication system.
Elias got out of his truck and walked over to his open window. “This place is in the middle of nowhere.”
Brick nodded. He didn’t like all the trees surrounding the place. Too easy for someone to sneak close. But if there were any blind spots in JSI’s security system, he knew he could plug them.
“Maybe if you tried smiling instead of scowling, she might be inclined to let us in.” Elias raised an eyebrow, staring at Brick. “You do remember how to smile, don’t you?”
“Fuck off,” Brick snarled.
“Maybe she went out. Forgot we were coming,” Elias said.
Humph. Probably out getting her nails done or shopping or whatever else rich people did. Like making a huge list of ridiculous instructions just to guard one woman. “Don’t suppose there was a gate code on that list?”
“Nope,” Sterling said. “But her number is here. And some information about her. Juliet Jackson. Age twenty-nine. Works at the Wishingbone Library four days a week for four hours a day.”
He was kind of surprised she worked at all.
“Five foot three. Ninety-seven pounds.”
Jesus. She was tiny. Didn’t she eat?
“Allergic to shellfish. Carries an EpiPen.”
He noted that all away as he pressed the buzzer again. Where the hell was she?
“How’re we going to do this?” Elias asked. “Take shifts?”
“Jones wanted her to have one main guard,” he replied. “Apparently, there’s a guest suite in the pool house with two bedrooms. And then one of us can stay in the house.”
When you were rich, you could afford to be quirky and different. Yes, he had a slight hang-up around money. Perhaps it was because he barely had two pennies to rub together. Or maybe because he had grown up watching his mother work three jobs to get food on the table.
Shit like that made you cynical.
“Quirks we can work with,” Sterling said. “Just remember the money, man.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“You can’t let her see that chip on your shoulder,” Elias warned. “It’s good money just to guard one woman.”
And he needed it.
Frustrated, he put his finger on the buzzer again. Where was this woman?
“What’s her phone number?” he asked. “I’ll call her.”
“Might be best to text her,” Sterling suggested after rattling off the number.
He didn’t care if he had to interrupt her manicure or whatever. Jones had told him that she knew they were coming. It was common courtesy to be here.