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“C ome into my office,” William said and guided Max into a large room not far from where they stood.

William shut the door and poured them each a glass of whiskey.

Max tried to calm the fuck down, but his blood was boiling and his heart was racing. He glanced around the office. Books lined the shelves of tall wooden bookcases, a wide oak desk sat near one wall, and comfortable thick leather chairs sat facing a large window.

The view was foggy through the wet glass, and beyond were several vine maple trees that thrived in Washington’s cool damp weather. The medium sized tree fought for whatever sunlight they could get beneath the towering evergreens that surrounded them.

“Drink and don’t tell me no.” William handed him a glass. “You can crash here tonight.”

Max pulled his eyes from the view, took the glass and tossed back the booze. He held the empty glass out and William refill it.

“So, did you see Blake hit Lily?”

“No,” Max growled. “But I could tell by the look in her eyes that it was him.”

He had always been able to read Lily.

“Man…that is some screwed up shit. I didn’t even notice she had a bruise,” William said rubbing at his chin.

“It’s gone now. I only heard about it the day I showed up at her office to guard her.”

Not that it mattered when, the fucker had hit her, of that he had no doubts. Max squeezed his glass.

The screwed-up shit, as William called it, was not only the matter of a bruise but also the rest of it.

“Lily didn’t even know Blake had a kid,” Max growled and settled his large frame into the other leather chair. He was pissed off on her behalf. He couldn’t imagine what she must be feeling at that very moment. Betrayal, shock, stress, grief, not to mention her self-worth. Although, Lily’s pinky was worth more than that fucker’s whole body.

Max’s heart hurt for her.

“Did you see her face at dinner?” he asked.

“I did. I wonder why he didn’t tell her he had a kid?” William took a sip from his own glass.

“Because he’s a liar,” Max said flatly. “Something is also going on about a trip to Montana.”

“What about it?”

Max recapped the conversation between Ryan and Michelle at the table.

“Lily looked upset and pissed,” Max said.

“When was Jennifer in Montana?” William asked slowly.

“September.”

“Lily came over to our place in September while Blake was visiting his cousin…who lives in Montana.”

Max squinted into his glass, swirling the amber liquid. No wonder Lily had looked so devastated.

“Shit…that means Jennifer and Blake were there at the same time,” William continued.

“That son of a bitch,” Max said between his teeth before taking another swallow of his drink.

Max would bet money Blake had cheated on Lily. The thought was so unbelievable to him. What man in their right mind would step out on Lily Snow? She was an A++ in every single category and Max couldn’t even fathom why Blake had done it— if the man had, in fact, been unfaithful.

“You said that Jennifer told Michelle that Blake wasn’t a nice guy,” Max pointed out, recalling their previous conversation.

“Yeah, but maybe that was a rouse to sew discord between Lily and Blake?” William poised the question, then shook his head and continued. “Do you really think Blake and Jen met up?”

“If you had a kid together with someone, wouldn’t you?” Max squeezed his glass.

“Yeah, but I’d tell my wife if I had kid,” William said on a half laugh. “I value my life.”

They sat in silence for a long time, but Max couldn’t get his mind to shut the hell off.

Jennifer had moved up on his list of suspects because of her lies and involvement with Blake. Ryan had also moved up because of the conversation in the basement. Rick was still at the top, but now so was Blake.

“So, I’ve been thinking,” his friend interrupted his thoughts.

“About what?” Max tossed William a glance.

“Your job offer. Were you joking when you said it?”

“Oh, hell no. I was dead serious.”

“Then I’m in.”

“No shit?” Max couldn’t hide his surprise.

“Yeah, no shit.”

“Dude, I thought you were happy working behind a desk,” he said dryly and William snorted with a laugh.

“Not even. Wearing a suit and tie every day and having to mind my manners is a pain in the ass.”

“Ha!” Max barked out with laughter. “Let’s stop by my facility tomorrow and you can see the setup.”

“Tomorrow?” William looked surprised.

Max smirked. “You can’t?”

“Yeah, but Sunday.”

“It might be Sunday, but people in the bodyguard business rarely take time off on the weekends. Especially when there are active jobs,” he said. “You good with that?”

“Hell yeah.”

“Michelle might not be,” Max cautioned.

“I’ll talk to her. She wants me to be happy,” William said, typing on his cell phone. After a moment, the man held up his phone and waggled it. “She said we’ll talk more about it.”

Maxwell grunted. “Not sure what that means, but you couldn’t have walked out and talked to her?”

“It means yes, but I have to persuade her.” William grinned. “And no, I’m not going out there until everyone leaves.”

“Chicken.” Max snorted.

“Damn straight,” William agreed and then tossed him a curious look. “Wait… You took time off today to come to the Pink Door,” William pointed out.

“I was on the job. I followed Lily and Blake when they left their apartment,” Max said.

“Why were you there? Doesn’t the client call when they need us?” William sounded confused.

“I was staking out the building. I wanted to see if I could catch anyone suspicious coming and going.”

“No shit? Doesn’t that place have its own security?”

“Yes, it does, but that only includes monitored cameras and off-site security guards.”

“And you couldn’t trust that?”

“No.” Max shrugged.

“Why?” William wanted to know.

Max wasn’t sure what he could tell his friend.

There was a reason everything was different on this job.

And one reason only.

It was Lily.

And with Lily, Max had a whole other set of rules. Even after all these years of watching her from afar, she was still the most important thing in the world to him.

An hour later, Max left the basement room he’d taken over and made his way up the stairs and down the hallway.

Most of the guests had left, but he found Lily and Sara still there. The two women were curled up on the sofa, talking softly.

Blonde curls cascaded around Lily, catching the glow of the fireplace. The smell of cedar filled the air and soft music floated from the speakers and through the den.

Spotting him in the doorway, Sara got up and lifted two empty mugs from the low table in front of the sofa. She gave Max a sad smile and slipped past him on her way out of the room.

Max approached Lily on bare feet. He’d pulled on a threadbare t-shirt and a pair of ratty jeans he kept in his go-bag.

Sensing his approach, Lily lifted her head. She’d yelled at him and for good reason, but it had never been his intention to make things worse for her. He wanted, no, he needed to make her see that.

In the soft firelight, their eyes met and gazes held across the distance.

“I’m sorry,” he said gruffly.

And he was. Oh, not for beating down Blake, but for upsetting her. It was the last thing he had wanted.

He wanted her running toward him, not away from him.

“I know,” she whispered. “He’s lucky you didn’t kill him.”

She knew him so well. She knew him more than any other person on earth. When they had been together, he had shared everything with her…and vice versa.

He’d told her that he was Army Special Forces. He’d shown her some of his skills when they’d gone to a local boxing gym.

She knew he was a walking weapon and she also knew that he could have killed Blake with his bare hands.

His brute force and military skills were not the only thing she knew about him. She had known and adored his mother, who had since passed away. Lily met and spent time with his sister, Monica, who lived in New York with her family.

He and Lily had spent one Christmas at Monica’s with her husband, John, and their twin boys.

While together, they had been so in sync that Lily could have finished his sentences. Often, she guessed his thoughts and it became a teasing joke between them.

The trust Max saw in her bright blue eyes, even now, was everything.

“I wanted to kill him,” he admitted gruffly.

Her smile was soft and he knew she’d forgiven him for hitting Blake.

And when she patted the cushion to sit beside her, he couldn’t have said no to save his life.