His heart dropped straight down to his toes. This? Them? He did his best to keep his voice calm and centered. “What do you mean?”
“I can’t do this trip.” She sniffled. “I’m so sorry.”
He relaxed a little. It was the trip, not them. Being in a relationship that really mattered to him like this was new to him. He still had some things to get used to.
“Why?” He asked. He wanted her to go with him. He was so excited for her to meet his grandfather. This was important to him, but he wanted it to be important to her too. He wanted her to want to go.
“It’s not safe,” she told him.
“What?” He had taken all the precautions he and his security team could think of. He had the heads of security for three billionaires come up with the plan to keep her safe for the trip. The president of the United States had less security. “Where we’re going is very safe. I wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize your safety.”
She sniffled and smiled at the same time. He had no idea what that meant.
“That’s not it. It’s not safe for me to go,” she repeated.
He sighed. They’d been through this. They’d been through it several times. He understood that there were mobsters looking for her. He got that. He also understood that the Trio was a small organization that didn’t have a lot of power anywhere but in her town.
Did she not realize how important this was to him?
“Bonnie, we’ve talked about this,” he tried again. “We have enough security. You’ve seen what the heads of security came up with. You said it was enough.”
He gently put his hand on her shoulder, and she pulled away hard. He tried to keep the hurt from her motion from showing.
“Things change,” she snapped. She stood up, her arms wrapped around her.
“Bonnie, what’s going on?” He kept his voice low and gentle. She was obviously upset about something. He didn’t know what, but she needed him. The protective part of him wanted to wrap her up and punch anyone that came close to hurting her. He wanted to fix the world for her.
“They’re looking for me,” she whispered. “The trial’s been set. If they can find me before the third, they’ll be able to keep my brother from testifying.”
He understood now. She was scared. She was pushing him away because she was terrified. His heart ached for her. The anger vanished instantly.
He got up and pulled her into his chest. This time, she didn’t pull away. Instead, she tucked her head, burying her face in his shoulder. She shook like a leaf in the wind. He hated to see her this scared.
“I won’t let anything happen to you,” he whispered into her hair. “I promise.”
“I’m just so scared,” she admitted. “I’m scared for me. I’m scared for my brother. I just want this to be over. I’m so tired of looking over my shoulder all the time. I jump at every car that passes, even if I recognize them. I don’t want to hide anymore.”
He rubbed his hands along her back in slow, soothing circles as she cried into his shoulder. He wished he could make this better. He wished he had a secret crime-fighting alter ego that could go to New Jersey and wipe out the Trio. He wished he had some way, other than hiring security teams, to keep her safe.
But he didn’t. He had hired the best security team money could buy to go with them. He had private tours and fake names all set up for the two of them. No one but his grandfather would even know they were in the city.
“Please come with me,” he said softly once her breathing evened out. “I want you to meet my grandfather. I will keep you safe.”
She sniffled.
“If you want, my grandfather can be the only person in the entire state of Louisiana that gets to see you,” he offered. “I’ll make everyone else leave.”
She chuckled. “Having no one see me would make security hard. They should probably keep an eye on me.”
He smiled. She was joking which meant she was feeling better. “You have a good point.”
She pulled back and wiped at her face. Even blotchy from crying, she was still the most beautiful woman in the world to him.
“You promise you’ll keep me safe?” she asked once more.
He smiled and kissed her forehead. “Extra security. Extra everything. I promise.”
She nodded slowly. “You want me to meet your grandfather that badly?”