Read The Maverick Prince for Free Online Page B

noise.”
    And maybe this kid’s nightmare was every bit as real as his own had been. On the off chance the boy was right, he had to check. “I’m going outside. The guard will stay here with you.”
    She cupped the back of her child’s head. “I already warned the guard. I wasn’t leaving you to take care of the ‘monster’ by yourself.”
    Dread kinked cold and tight in his gut. What if something had happened to her when she had stepped outside to speak to the guard? He held in the angry words, not wanting to upset her son.
    But he became more determined by the second to persuade her and the child to leave Galveston with him. “Let’s hope it was nothing but a tree branch. Right, kiddo?”
    Tony started toward the door just as his iPhone rang. He glanced at the ID and saw the guard’s number. He thumbed the speaker phone button. “Yes?”
    “Got him,” the guard said. “A teenager from the next complex over was trying to snap some pictures on his cell phone. I’ve already called the police.”
    A sigh shuddered through Shannon, and she hugged her son closer, and God, how Tony wanted to comfort her.
    However, the business of taking care of her safety came first. “Keep me posted if there are any red flags when they interview the trespasser. Good work. Thanks.”
    He tucked his phone back into his jacket, his heart almost hammering out of his chest at the close call. This could have been worse. He knew too well from past experience how bad it could have been.
    And apparently so did Shannon. Her wide blue eyes blinked erratically as she looked from corner to corner, searching shadows.
    To hell with giving her distance. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders until she leaned on him ever so slightly. The soft press of her against him felt damn right in a day gone wrong.
    Then she squeezed her eyes closed and straightened. “Okay, you win.”
    “Win what?”
    “We’ll go to your home tonight.”
    A hollow victory, since fear rather than desire motivated her, but he wasn’t going to argue. “And tomorrow?”
    “We’ll discuss that in morning. Right now, just take us to your house.”

    Tony’s Galveston house could only be called a mansion.
    The imposing size of the three-story structure washed over Shannon every time they drove through the scrolled iron gates. How Kolby could sleep through all of this boggled her mind, but when they’d convinced him the “monster” was gone—thanks to the guard—Kolby had been all yawns again. Once strapped into the car seat in the back of Tony’s Escalade, her son had been out like a light in five minutes.
    If only her own worries could be as easily shaken off. She had to think logically, but fears for Kolby nagged her. Nolan had stolen so much more than money. He’d robbed her of the ability to feel safe, just before he took the coward’s way out.
    Two acres of manicured lawn stretched ahead of her in the moonlight. The estate was intimidating during the day, and all the more ominously gothic at night with shadowy edges encroaching. It was one thing to visit the place for a date.
    It was another to take shelter here, to pack suitcases and accept his help.
    She’d lived in a large house with Nolan, four thousand square feet, but she could have fit two of those homes inside Tony’s place. In the courtyard, a concrete horse fountain was illuminated, glowing in front of the burgundy stucco house with brown trim so dark it was almost black. His home showcased the Spanish architecture prevalent in Texas. Knowing his true heritage now, she could see why he would have been drawn to this area.
    Silently he guided the SUV into the garage, finally safe and secure from the outside world. For how long?
    He unstrapped Kolby from the seat and she didn’t argue. Her son was still sleeping anyway. The way Tony’s big hands managed the small buckles and shuffled the sleeping child onto his shoulder with such competence touched her heart as firmly as any hothouse full of