“Do we really need to go so far? I mean, Kentucky? That’s so...rural.”
Now that the shock was wearing off CoCo was second-guessing the decision to leave town, but that was too bad. If he had to hoist her over his shoulder and carry her onto the plane, he would do it. “Maybe we should tell the FBI agents handling the case that I’ve been shot at. I think they might need that information.”
“After we land. We don’t know who we can trust and I’m not taking any chances. I’ll make the necessary phone calls after I’ve secured the new location. Until then, it’s radio silence.”
“But what about my dad?” she asked, worried. “He’s going to freak out if I just disappear.”
“I will contact your father. After we land,” he repeated pointedly. “Do you not realize how close you came to eating a bullet, princess?” She flushed and nodded with a small, scared movement. “Okay, then you know this is serious. No more playing by your rules. We’re playing by mine.”
Her body shook with a delicate shiver and he had to look away. That tiny motion was too reminiscent of how she’d shook with pleasure last night each time his tongue had danced on her skin, lapping at her pretty pink nipples. He cut his thoughts off, jerking at the unruly direction of his mind. Lusting after her had put them in this position and it wouldn’t happen again. “Look, I know it was scary but we’ll get through this. I just need you to buckle down and listen for once in your life, because now, it matters.”
“I just can’t believe it. I mean, who would want to kill me? I’ve never hurt anyone.”
“It’s likely not about you,” he answered. “Whoever is after your dad is looking for the easiest target. They know that you’re the one who means the most to him and if they hurt you, they’ll reach his Achilles’ heel.”
“But I don’t know why anyone would want to hurt my father. He’s a sweet old man who designs shoes, for crying out loud. I mean, you’ve met my father. Does he seem the type to create enemies?”
“You said it yourself, people with more are envied by those with less. And I hate to point out that your dad is more than just a shoe designer. He wouldn’t have risen to the top without some cutthroat business skills to match those creative talents.” She scowled at his logic but he couldn’t sugarcoat it for her sake. “I know it’s hard to imagine that your dad isn’t the sweet old guy with everyone he deals with but I’ve found that people with extreme wealth have the persona they share with their close family and the persona they cultivate with business associates...and they are rarely the same.”
“Well, my dad isn’t living two lives,” she said. “You’re off base. My father is a good man.”
“I hope he is. I hope that what you see is what you get but you have to be prepared if this investigation into who’s threatening him reveals something unsavory about your dad.”
“Like what?” she asked coolly.
Rian shrugged. “Too many variables to speculate. I’m just saying, be prepared.”
“That’s ridiculous. My father doesn’t have skeletons dancing in his closet. Someone is going after him because they’re jealous. Jealousy is an ugly emotion and can compel people to do crazy things.”
“Agreed, but revenge motivates people, too.”
She looked away. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore. My dad isn’t a bad man and I won’t entertain the idea that he might be. End of story.”
He didn’t argue. He hoped she was right. In his experience, everyone had skeletons. He just prayed, for CoCo’s sake, that whatever was creating this mess wasn’t so big that it destroyed CoCo’s faith in the one man she seemed to love unconditionally. He might be a dick but he wasn’t that big of one. “You’re probably right,” he conceded for the sake of making peace. “But in the meantime, let’s just focus on keeping you safe. We’ll let the feds figure out the rest.”
She nodded and decided to let it go.
Within the hour, they were boarded and headed to Kentucky...the last place he imagined he might go to find sanctuary.