Guarding His Fortune. Stella Bagwell

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       Chapter Two

      Savannah hardly noticed the plush furnishings of the living room or the beautiful bay window overlooking a landscaped walking path on the opposite side of the street. At the moment, she couldn’t have cared less about her surroundings. She was more than angry. She was in panic mode.

      Dropping the bags she’d been carrying onto the hardwood floor, she plucked her cell phone from her handbag and punched in her father’s private number.

      As she waited for him to answer, she heard Chaz Mendoza’s footsteps entering the room. A second later, he walked past her and she watched him place her suitcases near a doorway leading out of the spacious living area.

      She was trying to pull her gaze off his bulging biceps when her father’s voice suddenly sounded in her ear.

      “Hello, Savannah. I’m assuming that you’ve landed safely in Austin and have met Mr. Mendoza.”

      Savannah wanted to yell at him. But the anger coursing through her was not enough to override the respect she’d always shown her mother and her father.

      Shoving out a long pent-up breath, she unconsciously gravitated toward the window. “Yes, I’m safely here in Austin. At my apartment. I’m calling because I want to know what you were thinking, Dad. I can’t have a bodyguard tagging along after me! Not only would it be embarrassing, it’s impractical, illogical and—”

      “And very necessary, Savannah.”

      Savannah never cursed, but she found herself having to bite down on her tongue to keep from spouting a few choice words into the phone.

      “Necessary? I hardly think so, Dad! My time here is going to be very low-key. How—”

      “Low-key or not, I want Chaz with you. And no amount of arguing or pleading is going to change my mind, Savannah.”

      “But, Dad, I can’t—”

      “Look, Savannah, you are the one who went ahead with this trip in spite of my disapproval. You want to be independent? Then act grown up and accept that having protection close by is a smart thing, not an encumbrance.”

      For the past four years, ever since Savannah had turned twenty-one, she’d wanted her parents to see her as a self-sufficient adult, a smart woman who could handle the daily problems that life threw at her. Since then, she’d acquired her bachelor degree and moved on to her graduate studies. Yet, in spite of those hard-earned achievements, her father believed she still had a lot to learn.

      She drew in a deep breath and blew it out, while from the corner of her right eye she watched Chaz come to stand at the opposite end of the large window. He was either taking in the view or listening in on her conversation, she thought crossly.

      “Dad, I want my privacy. It’s essential that my studies not be distracted—”

      “I’m positive that you and Mr. Mendoza will work out some type of house rules to suit your needs.”

      House rules! She wanted to ask him how he’d like some stranger creeping through the house while he tried to focus on his work. Instead, she said, “Listen, Dad, I’m going to tell Mr. Mendoza that his services aren’t needed. I—”

      “I’m the only person who can fire the guy,” Miles bluntly interrupted. “And right now, I have no intentions of doing such a thing. So make the most of your time there, Savannah. It could end sooner than you think.”

      She started to ask him what he meant by that remark when the doorbell suddenly rang. Completely exasperated, she said, “There’s someone at the door, Dad. We’ll talk about this again. Soon!”

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