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“How did Alfred find you?”
“There were a couple of events, I believe one was a Christmas party, where Alfred expected my father to have his children with him. When he didn’t for the second or third time, Alfred started asking around. He immediately came to the boarding school when he found out where I was. He told me that I had been selected for a special program and transferred me to another school. It was a school that Alfred helped fund, of course, and was for people who were tapped for special assignments.”
“Assignments?”
“It was much like the Secret Service or the CIA. Specially trained, secretive, select. But specifically to be bodyguards for very important people. I learned martial arts, marksmanship, archery, all about every available kind of technology and severalthat weren’t available yet. I learned to skydive, deep sea dive, and wilderness survival. Anything and everything I would need to become specialized security for dignitaries.”
“At age sixteen?” I ask, amazed.
He nods. “My first job was a short-term assignment accompanying a U.N. ambassador’s son on a skiing trip.”
“Oh. Like what you did for Cian,” I say. “You protected people around your age so you could blend in, seem like just one of the guys.”
“Exactly. I continued going to school, receiving special training, but then would be pulled out for various assignments.”
“All because Alfred didn’t like how your father treated you,” I say.
“That’s how I got on his radar,” Henry agrees. “But he did his research. Talked to professors, people who knew me, decided I was exactly the kind of person he wanted to bring into the O’Grady inner circle.”
“So he was recruiting you from the beginning.”
“Essentially. And then Fiona, Torin, and Cian abdicated and headed to the US. I got tapped to be Cian’s bodyguard a little sooner than they’d expected. But it worked out.”
I squeeze his hand. “It really did.” If I think of all the ways we could have missed ever meeting one another, I’m nearly overwhelmed that he’s sitting in my kitchen right now.
He’s from a wealthy British family. Was specially trained to be the bodyguard to a prince from a little island country. Then landed in Florida and then Louisiana.
How he ever ended up walking into my bar in Emerald, Ohio, is a miracle.
“So Alfred not only saved me from boarding school, he…gave me a purpose. Showed me I was not worthless. He kept me from just being thrown away. He gave me a place to belong. A family.” Henry has to clear his throat. “I’m a protector, just like you. Andjust like you, I’m lost when I don’t have someone to take care of. Alfred saw that in me, and he gave me exactly what I needed.”
“Yes, times about a thousand,” I say with a smile. “You take a protector and a caregiver and make them into the bodyguard of a prince, I’d say that’s pretty visionary.”
“Alfred knew that each of the O’Grady and Olsen kids would do something amazing with their lives and their power. Alfred picked very specific people for each of them and gave us the assignment to not only be their protector and their friend but to truly help them find and reach their potential. As I’ve gotten to know Cian over the years, I’ve been more and more flattered by that. Cian really does have the ability to do amazing things. The fact that Alfred thought I could be a part of that is humbling. Our whole team feels that way.”
I am having a hard time taking a deep breath. What I’m feeling at the moment is something I’ve felt before. For my niece and sister. Only the people I love with all my heart. It’s that combination of pride and happiness, knowing that they have found something that truly completes them, fulfills them, and shows them everything they are capable of.
And the realization that I have to let them go in order for them to have that thing.
“I am so grateful that Alfred Olsen saw that in you and helped you see it,” I say sincerely.
Henry studies my face, his eyes searching mine. “Thank you.”
“And I understand that you can’t leave Cian because you feel like Alfred gave you this assignment, and you owe it to him to stay with Cian. And the family. And your team. You are all in this together, right? You’d never leave Jonah and Iris either.”
Henry swallows hard. “Before his dementia got really bad, Alfred realized what was happening. He met with each of us, the bodyguards, about going forward. When we talked, he said that I had done so well. He said he knew he could leave Cian and theO’Gradys in my hands because I would always do everything I could to make sure they were safe and happy, no matter what. We all feel that way.”
I wet my lips. “It’s that ‘no matter what’ that’s got you, right? No matter if it’s hard on you, or if you have to give something up.”
He just nods.
Well…fuck.
I’m never going to feel this way about anyone else. And he’s staying here in Emerald, Ohio.
So…
I lean in and press my lips to his. “Thank you for telling me. I get it.”