Page 56 of Capturing You

“Leo would take it seriously,” she said. “I think, anyway. Lenny left me alone when I threatened to report him. He respects his father.”

“Maybe. But that didn’t keep him from sitting outside my house or pulling me over.”

“He’s worried about me, that’s all. He says he still cares about me.” She was embarrassed to say what Lenny claimed.

That he loved her. That they were meant to be together. That they were soulmates.

It was laughable, considering how he’d manipulated and belittled her when she dated him. She’d had to threaten to get a court order to get rid of him. And now that she was in danger, he could claim he had no choice but to hunt her down.

To protect her.

Topossessher, more like.

“I’m sorry he gave you a hard time.” Brooklynn worked to keep fear out of her voice.

If Ford’s skeptical expression could be believed, he didn’t buy the way she played down the problem. “That’s why I went out this morning, to see if he’d stop me, and to warn him off if he did. If you want to go somewhere, as long as you stay hidden in my truck so he doesn’t see you—assuming he’s still staking out the driveway—he won’t dare pull me over again. You should be safe.”

A wave of affection for her grouchy host rolled over her. And then she realized what it really meant. That he wanted her to leave. That she was too much of a nuisance. “I can find a place to go. Alyssa said?—”

“I don’t want you to leave.” He sounded annoyed. “I mean, I don’t care if you stay. I just want you to have the choice.”

“Oh. Okay. That was really clever, and thoughtful of?—”

“But no more snooping.” He looked around the office, then shook his head. “That’s the deal.”

Brooklynn could’ve denied she’d been snooping, but it would be a lie. And she could’ve assured him she wouldn’t do it again.

But that would probably also be a lie. She was too intrigued by the mysterious mansion.

“Tell me about Lenny’s father,” Ford said, as if the matter were closed.

“He seemed nice enough when Lenny and I dated. I think he’s a decent guy. And he’s a good cop.”

“Did his father own a business?”

She looked at the photo again. “If he does now, I’m not aware of it, but maybe he did back then. Or maybe he was invited to speak to the group on behalf of the police department. We have speakers sometimes.”

She continued to the rest of the people in the picture, but she either didn’t know them or they’d moved or passed away. When she finished, she sat back. “I can go through the rest of the album and see if there’s anyone else I recognize. I mean, it’s not like I have anything else to do.”

“Actually, you do.” Ford stood and lifted the box he’d carried into the office with him. “I got a computer for you.”

“Are you serious?”

Her disbelief had his smirk turning to a frown. “I told you I would.”

He’d said that, but she hadn’t expected him to do it, certainly not within a couple of hours.

She opened the box and spied an Apple laptop. “This is perfect. It’s okay if I get online?”

"Just be careful that you can’t be tracked here.”

“Of course. I’ll call Alyssa and get it connected to a VPN. This will be so helpful. Thank you.”

The tiniest hint of a smile crossed Ford’s face, and he quickly turned away. He was working very hard to hide his real self behind that grumpy demeanor.

He might not be Forbes Ballentine—though he looked an awful lot like the little boy in the photos she’d seen—but he was keeping secret his connection to this family, a connection she’d already guessed from the fact that Marie Ballentine’s car was in the garage.

The question was, why?