Page 31 of The Arrangement

“If you need anything, Chloe, you can call me,” he says quietly.

“I appreciate that. Let’s talk tomorrow, okay?”

He sighs. “Okay. On that note, thank you for answering my call. Good night, Chloe.”

“Good night.”

The call ends and I set my phone beside me.

It’s still too early to fall asleep, but I hope lying down translates into some form of beauty rest. Otherwise, I’ll be pacing back and forth across the kitchen. That would result in stress lines and an anxiety attack, for sure.

And God knows I don’t need more of either of those.

The apartment is fairly quiet this time of night, all things considered. An occasional raised voice or screaming television show rattles through the walls. I’m used to the amalgamation of smells—tobacco, curry,varnish. But those seem to be lesser than usual tonight, too.

I close my eyes and let my mind wander to Jason.

What would life be like with someone like that in your corner? Not just as a boss, but as your partner?

Your lover?

I pull a pillow to my chest and hug it tightly.

“If only fairy tales were real,” I whisper.

I force all thoughts out of my mind of bills and bank accounts, nasty neighbors, and broken floors. Instead, I fall asleep thinking about a man with striking green eyes holding me in his arms.

Chapter 8

Jason

“Are you good with that?” Ford Landry asks, his voice filling my car as I fly down the expressway.

I flip the visor down to spare my eyes from the bright morning sun. “I mean, I don’t love it. I get her point, and I respect it. But I don’t love it.”

“At what point do we compromise?”

With Rory Brewer? Good fucking question.

I glance at the time on my dashboard and wonder how the hell things got so complicated before eight in the morning. If my life weren’t already full of situations like this, like my mother calling our security company and demanding her detail be cut in half, I’d be worried. At least they’re consistent.

“She’s not going to want to compromise,” I say, passing a pickup truck doing forty-five miles per hour in the fast lane. “I’d be a lot happier about her having one security guard if it could be Foxx.”

“I’m pretty sure he’s happy right where he is—at home with your sister.”

I roll my eyes. “What about that Erickson guy you were telling me about?”

“Give me a second.” The sound of him tapping at his keyboard comes through the speakers. “I have an interview with him tomorrow. My buddy, Cane Alexander, gave him a stellar recommendation, so I can’t imagine I’ll have a problem with him. Cane likes five people on a good day.”

“Any chance Erickson will work out of Florida?”

“Maybe. Let me talk to him tomorrow and run a background check. If we hire him, I’ll consider assigning him to your mom.”

“Good. Tell her to sit tight until we can get a plan in place.”

“Will do. Other than that, I’m good on this end. Renn did send an email last night with explicit instructions not to have Calvin on his detail.”

I shake my head, remembering my conversation with my brother last night. “Renn’s surprisingly emotional right now. It’s probably a good idea to keep him and Calvin apart.”