Leena’s Dream Read Online Free PDF Page A

made it hard to focus. She wanted to close her eyes and just sink into the feeling. “It won’t be the two of us.”
    “Yes, your guard dogs. Then my place instead of somewhere public. I’m sure we can find some alone time even if your men are there. We can grab Chinese from across the street and my place isn’t far from here. But it’s quiet and no one will even know you’re there.”
    Temptation sparked within her. A normal night, having dinner with someone who wasn’t part of her crew, sounded heavenly. But there was one big issue that made her hesitate. “I can’t bring what’s happening to your front door. Can we eat here?”
    “Sure.” He brushed the back of his fingers across her cheek. “But it’s going to cost you. I want to know what danger you’re in that you need the guard dogs for.”
    “Oh, that’s nothing, just normal business bull crap.”
    “You’re still a bad liar.” He reached behind her and grabbed the menu from beneath the phone where he kept it.
    “I don’t need that.” She pushed the menu he offered her away. “General Tsao chicken and share an order of dumplings with me?”
    “You haven’t changed.” He grabbed the receiver and called to place their order.
    “I’ll send Matt over to get it.” She wasn’t sure Kendrick would like her sending one of her guards on a food run, but she didn’t care. They were a precaution, one her manager had forced on her, and she’d be happier as soon as she could get rid of constant guards.
    “Ready?” Kendrick asked as she stepped into the hallway.
    “No.” She turned to the younger guard. “Matt, take the elevator down to the first floor and when you step off turn right instead of going through the lobby. Follow the hallway to the end and out that door. Directly across the street is a Chinese restaurant and they have an order for us.”
    “This is out of the question.” Kendrick stepped closer to her. “We are here to guard you, not make food runs.”
    “Would you prefer that we all make the trip down and venture out of the hospital to grab some food? You know I’m safer up here than I would be out there or in a public restaurant. I’m hungry and we’re going to eat one way or another. So the choice is yours.”
    “You’re making it hard to guard you,” Kendrick bitched.
    “If it was supposed to be easy you wouldn’t get the salary you get.” She turned back to Matt, who was still standing there waiting for orders. “Go, Matt.”
    He glanced at Kendrick, who nodded.
    She waited until Matt had left before she let her attention return to Kendrick. “You’re the best, Kendrick. It’s why I relented and I’m dealing with being shadowed. But you’ve got to give me some leeway. I’m not used to being followed around or having my movements limited.”
    “I’m here to keep you alive, not to keep you happy.” He looked past her to Turner, who had hung up the phone and was pouring them coffee. Kendrick leaned a little closer and kept his voice low. “You want someone to make you happy, you’d better get back in there.”
    “Huh?” Her eyebrows knitted together in confusion.
    “I’ve been around long enough to know the signs. You’ve been depressed lately. Maybe some of that is from having us follow you everywhere, and maybe some of it is from being here, but something changed when you ran into him. I haven’t seen you smile in days.”
    “It’s been years since I’ve seen him.”
    “Time apart only makes the heart grow fonder.” When her mouth hung open, he added, “That’s what my daughter says. Every time I get back in town to see her, she tells me that. I think she’s hoping that her mother and I can patch things up, but that’s not going to happen. You don’t have to let the same thing happen to you. Go in there and see what the future might hold.”
    Like it could even work. In a few days I’ll be leaving town. Instead of saying that she didn’t have the same opportunities as he might if he