Safe by His Side. Linda Conrad

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      “Stop interrupting. Didn’t anyone ever teach you any manners?” Gold sparks shot through those plain brown eyes as irritation colored her expression. Ethan found himself absorbed with the fascinating changes he observed in what he’d originally assumed was a rather ordinary face.

      Just as he was about to give her another one of his charm-’em grins to get himself off the hook, Ashley and the housekeeper came back into the kitchen.

      “Mrs. Hansen says she’ll make my favorite dinner tonight. Isn’t that cool, Blythe?”

      Another more interesting change came over Blythe Cooper then. Her whole body seemed to soften as she stood to talk to the girl. The strict, set shoulders rounded as she hugged Ashley to her body. A smile lit up her face as if it were suddenly Christmas morning.

      This wasn’t simply a tutor turned guardian talking to her employer. Ethan hadn’t seen anything like the transformation of Blythe’s demeanor since…since before his own mother had died. It must be a kind of motherly thing he was witnessing. He didn’t know yet how the little girl felt about Blythe, but the woman definitely harbored more than mere obligation inside her heart.

      Interesting. And annoying. The simmering anger he’d buried from the day his mother died snuck up on him and left him trying to hide his emotions. Again.

      “Are we talking chicken nuggets and French fries?” Blythe teased Ashley in a low, smoky voice that suddenly fueled Ethan’s fantasies in a decidedly non-motherly way.

      Well, sexual urges might be one method of relieving his old annoyances and pain. But with the rather dowdy guardian? Maybe he needed a day off instead.

      “Yes!” Ashley said in a loud whisper. “And chocolate ice cream with rainbow sprinkles. But don’t tell Mom.”

      Blythe moved back a step but still had a faint smile on her face. “Not a chance. Your mother doesn’t need to think about such things tonight.

      Blythe slid easily into a totally different tone. “Where were you and Mrs. Hansen coming from when you noticed that man? What were you doing outside the house?”

      Ethan’s senses picked up on the subtle change in Blythe’s demeanor. A casual question for the girl’s benefit belied the seriousness of the subject. Blythe’s protective instincts seemed to scream silently from her every pore.

      “Excuse me, but where is Ashley’s mother?”

      “My mom’s sick,” Ashley told him.

      He bent down on one knee again. “I heard that, sweetheart. I’m sorry.”

      “They moved her into the pool house this morning. She said she didn’t want to disturb me anymore. But I wasn’t disturbed. I just had to be quiet while she slept. And I had to stay in my room or with Blythe, but only when they were giving her the treatments. It was lots better that way than having her in the hospital all the time.” Ashley’s wide eyes glazed over, but Ethan sensed a strength underneath them that surprised him.

      He could think of several more things to ask. About the relationship between mother and daughter. About the relationship between child and guardian. But for the moment he decided to stick to the point.

      “So you’d gone out to visit with her when all the noise started?”

      Ashley nodded, and Mrs. Hansen the housekeeper spoke up from across the room. “It was my fault, sir. I was running late in bringing dinner out to the nurses and I asked Ash to help me carry the dishes so it wouldn’t take so many trips. I’ll do better when we get the schedule down.”

      Ethan straightened up and addressed Mrs. Hansen, making sure Ashley could hear as well. “I don’t see how either of you made any mistakes, ma’am. Ashley ought to be able to visit her mother whenever she wishes without being afraid.

      “Do either of you remember anything special about the man you saw?”

      “It was like Ash said,” Mrs. Hansen began hesitantly. “The fog was really thick. I only got glimpses of a dark shadow moving down the stairs. If the alarm hadn’t started going off, I don’t think I would’ve noticed him at all.”

      “Okay.” Ethan gave her one of his crooked smiles—reserved especially for female clients. “But the police are probably going to ask both of you these same things. If you think of anything at all about the man’s appearance, be sure to tell them.”

      “Are the police coming?” Ashley asked Blythe. She began blinking wildly. “Mama won’t like that.”

      Blythe went to her again and gave her a hug. “We’ll only tell your mother if we have to. Let’s wait and see what the police have to say. And since Uncle Max is coming by in a little while, we’ll check with him, too, before we say anything to upset her.

      “You know that’s the real reason the doctor wanted your mom moved, don’t you?” Blythe added softly. “It wasn’t anything to do with you. She needs to stay quiet and not be bothered by phones or visitors and such upsets. You know, like the stuff that goes on around here most of the time. And it was your mom who decided on the pool house instead of returning to the hospital just so you could visit any time you wished.”

      Ashley hung her head and swung her body from side to side. “I know. But maybe if I stopped acting for a while, it wouldn’t be so noisy around here. All the reporters and photographers would go away and leave us alone.”

      She glanced up at Blythe and apparently saw an answer she’d heard before. “Oh, I know. Mama doesn’t want me to quit. And I really do love acting. Really. It’s just…”

      Ethan’s heart went out to the child as her words ran down. She looked nothing at all like the huge megastar Ashley Nicole Davis. With hair stringing down to hide her face and her chin resting against her chest, she looked like what she was—a lonely little seven-year-old whose mother was dying. He nearly asked why she couldn’t quit if she wanted to, but figured he had better keep his mouth shut. That wasn’t any of his business. His job was to keep her safe. Period.

      He turned to Blythe. “I didn’t see any reporters outside when I pulled up. Are they here most of the time?”

      Instead of answering him, Blythe kissed Ashley on the forehead. “Don’t worry about anything, honey. It will all work out the way it’s supposed to. Why don’t you stay and help Mrs. Hansen make the supper while I take the new bodyguard upstairs to talk for a minute? Okay?”

      “Can I?” The little girl’s face brightened immediately. “I don’t have to go back to my room?”

      Blythe whispered quietly to the child for a second and then motioned for Ethan to follow her out of the kitchen.

      When they were out of Ashley’s earshot, she explained, “We’re doing our best to keep those terrible tabloid reporters away for the present. As far as they know, there’s nothing newsworthy going on here. We want to keep it that way. The reporters and photographers upset Ashley. And Melissa doesn’t want them to get wind of how bad her illness is just yet, either.”

      “Okay.” There was something else behind her words. Ethan had the feeling it was personal, but again, asking wasn’t his job. “Where are we going?”

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