CHAPTER TWENTY

RYDER

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I sit opposite Savannah on the jet and watch her as we fly back to California. It's just the two of us as her team headed back on a commercial flight this morning while I accompanied her to another media jaunt and lunch with friends.

I can't wait to get her home.

I don't trust anyone.

It was only because we'd fucked like rabbits that I fell asleep for a few hours. I woke at six and lay awake for an hour before Savannah murmured in her sleep.

"I've got to go." I said and began to move my arm out from under her.

"Stay. Warm," she mumbled.

I smiled, but I needed to shower and go interrogate the management about the flowers and note. Then call the BHS office.

"I'll see you after breakfast." I kissed her nose.

Then those damn green eyes flickered open and yet again, I was under her spell.

"I don't want to go home. I want to stay here with you like this forever," she said, and damn if I didn't want that too.

But it couldn't happen.

Surely she knew that.

"Sweetheart, you don't belong to me. As much as I want to kill every man who looks at you, you know you're not really mine." I told her, brushing my fingers over her forehead.

"What if I am?"

I smiled sadly and kissed her nose.

She wasn't.

"I need to go do my job. Don't leave the room," I tell her. "I'll be back in a few hours."

Then I dressed and left without looking back, because yeah, Savannah Sinclair sure felt like she belonged to me.

If I thought yesterday was difficult watching Savannah perform in her world, then I know it's going to be a nightmare after the night be spent together.

Last night was different. We got vulnerable. I told Savannah things I haven't even told Josh and Aidan.

She opened up to me.

Now I'm back to pretending I'm just her bodyguard. Invisible and in the shadows while her eyes are elsewhere, and men are ogling her constantly.

Jesus.

And if that's not enough to make a red-blooded man like me almost lose my shit, her stalker has struck again.

HELLO LITTLE SLUT, IT'S TIME TO STOP FUCKING MY MAN.

While I was eating breakfast in my room, I rang Aidan.

"Let me get Josh on this call," he said.

"He's on his honeymoon."

"Yeah, but he's been texting. This client was handed to us through his father-in-law, so he wants to stay in the loop." Aidan said as he pushed some buttons.

This client.

I can't think of her as just a client now, and that's a problem.

The phone clicks to connect us with Josh.

"This better be good. I'm on my third Mai Tai." Josh said, sounding happy and relaxed.

"Fourth sweetie," Cassy said in the background.

I'd smirked.

"Put your bikini top back on," Josh growled.

"It's not a video call for gods sakes."

"Can we hurry up? I have ten minutes," I'd injected.

"They can't see me silly." Cassy giggled.

Oh, my god.

"Josh," Aidan said firmly.

"Honeymoon boys. Honeymoon," Josh replied. "This better be good."

"You said that. Are you sure it's not your tenth?" I laughed, unable to help myself.

"Is someone dead?" Josh asked.

"Not yet." I roll my eyes, wondering how long it would take to fly over there and snuff them out.

Annoying, happy romantic people were...annoying.

Sweetheart, you don't belong to me.

"Talk," Josh ordered.

"Savannah Sinclair has a stalker, as you know. Three notes so far. All on the same card type. No prints. No DNA." I summarize fast for the lovebird.

"They're smart," he said.

"The hotel knows nothing about the flowers, so he or she had them put in here themselves," Aidan shared.

What?

He must've got through to the manager while I showered. I'd waited thirty minutes for him to arrive but had run out of time.

"Fuck," I cursed.

"Do you think it's someone in her team?" Josh asked.

I shake my head, even though I'm not certain. "I'm not sure. If not, it's someone they trusted and let in. A few people had access to her room."

I could ring Briar to ask, but it could also be her.

"Good point," Aidan said.

"Does anyone in her team know this is happening?" Josh asked.

"No. We've kept this tight," Aidan replied. "No cops. No media. Only her manager."

I let out a sigh.

"So, what do we have in place right now?" Josh slurped his drink.

"Ryder on her personal detail. Two men on her property. The occasional extra backup, depending on her activities." Aidan's voice was muffled, as if resting his phone on his shoulder.

They both go quiet.

"You better served back in the office looking into this, Ry?" Josh asked.

No.

Fuck no.

"Marshall can take over. We have two new guys starting Monday, so I can shuffle bodies," Aidan said.

I ground my teeth.

Savannah might not be mine, but the idea of not being near her...I realized my feelings were not appropriate here, but today was not the day to be talking about walking away from her.

Or tomorrow.

"I'd rather stay on point. I can study behaviors and pick up body language and nuances of her team and other people in her world that Savannah may be unaware of," I said after a moment.

"Which Marshall can do. He's a former Green Beret." Josh slurped again.

And a flirt.

"No."

I hadn't meant to just spit that out, and I didn't have a decent argument to go alongside it. Marshall was a powerful and skilled member of the team. I'd work in the field with him any day.

But did I want his six foot three, buffed-up body near Savannah? No, I did fucking not.

The two men went silent.

"Got something to tell us there, Ry?" Josh drawled.

Yeah, I fucked the client.

Twice.

I'd have to tell them eventually, but not today.

"I'm the right man for the job. Until that changes, we stay with the plan." I spooned the last of my breakfast into my mouth, then dropped my fork on the plate. "I'll be back in California late tonight."

"Wait, where are you?" Josh inquired.

"Manhattan. Savannah was on the Tonight Show last night." I walked over to my overnight bag and tossed my things inside, then checked my watch. "I have to go."

"Let's meet on Monday when I get back. Meanwhile, induct Marshall so you have backup if things turn ugly," Josh said.

"Good call," Aidan added. "We all remember what happened with Cassy."

That wasn't happening.

While no one blames Josh, Cassy being kidnapped by the same stalker who escaped his prison cell was on all of us. We'd all been in the hotel, along with the Barrett Security team, when the sociopath took her.

But fuck, they were right. I would need a break at some point. And while I was feeling all kinds of territorial to keep Savannah safe and find the perpetrator, I had to work as a team.

When I returned to Savannah's room, Gina was walking along the hallway. She saw me and gave me a small wave.

"Good night?" I asked, taking in her sexy outfit which I'd put money on being the same one she wore the night before.

"Yes," she replied and kept walking.

"Gina," I called out, and she stopped. "How long have you known Savannah?"

"Oh"—she fidgeted with her dress—"I started working for her six months ago."

"But you knew each other before that?"

She nodded.

"You went to high school together," I added, and she nodded once again.

"Were you roommates after that?"

"No." Gina shook her head. "Just, you know. We stayed in touch and then she asked me to work for her."

I nodded, indicating I was done with the conversation. She gave me a smile and then walked off.

Interesting.

Gina had a very different take on their relationship. Or so she said. Which could be convenient if she had an ulterior motive. Or it was simply her truth.

Had she been in Nick's room again? He was in the direction she'd been coming from, but without evidence it meant nothing.

I shake myself out of my daze and focus back on Savannah, who's reading a book as we fly through the sky. An idea comes to mind, and I pull out my phone, checking her schedule.

I can only see her business activities. She might not add her personal appointments to this calendar, so I'm forced to ask her. Which means it won't be a surprise.

Still, I think it will make her happy.

"Savannah," I say quietly, and her green eyes lift to mine with a sparkle. That I put there. "What are you doing on Saturday?"

Her mouth opens. "Um. Nothing. I was going to sleep all day. Do yoga I suppose."

I climb out of my seat and sit in the one beside her. She drops her book on her lap and watches me.

"Keep your calendar clear." I smile, lifting her hand and kissing her fingers.

"What are you up to?" she whispers.

"Maybe I'm joining you in bed."

Her lips stretch into a smile, then they fade. "What happened to Sweetheart, you don't belong to me?" She asks softly, but her tone is mocking.

"You know I can't change that."

Hell, the fact that I'm even here is fighting my own instinct to run and put Marshall on her detail. For all I know, I'm the wrong person to be protecting her.

The last woman died.

But I'm a selfish man and I want her. I want as much of her as I can get before I need to walk away.

"I know. You know, Ryder, I never knew celebrity would come with such a price." Savannah says, tucking her legs up under her.

Then she surprises me and lays her head on my shoulder. We snooze the rest of the way back to California.

Her hand tucked inside mine.