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“No fighting,” Shayne warned in a whisper that carried to all corners of theroom.
“We’ll behave.” Rafe shot Chaz a pointed look. “At least we’ll try.”
Chaz shook his head. “One of us will try.”
The other would beat the living hell out of an arrogant coffee farmer at the first wrong word. He cheered up as they left the room. With any luck at all, that word would come within minutes of them gaining some privacy. He worked hard on stoking his temper as they traversed the maze of corridors to Beaumont’s office.
“It’s fascinating, the information one can acquire,” Rafe announced the moment they’d entered his office. “Wouldn’t you agree?”
Chaz flexed his fist. That sounded remarkably like a wrong word to him, “Such as my ring size?”
“Ring size, hat size, boot size.” Rafe indicated a thick folder centered on his desk as he moved out of reach. “It is all documented. Would you care to see the file?”
Somehow, it seemed undignified to chase the man across the room in order to sock him. Chaz decided to hang tight a bit longer. The instant Beaumont came close again, he’d pop him one. In the meantime...
“You had me investigated.” It wasn’t a question. “That’s pretty damn personal information you’ve got there. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear your PI slithered into bed with me.”
Rafe regarded Chaz without amusement, his silvery eyes like splinters of ice. “Perhaps she did. Ididn’t inquire as to her methods. Imerely paid well for the results she provided.” He crossed to the liquor cabinet. “A drink before you go?”
Chaz bared his teeth. Yeah, sure. Bring it on over. He might even take half a second to drink it down before knocking Beaumont’s teeth out. “Whiskey. And for the record, Ididn’t sleep with your investigator.” Now why the hell had he said that? He didn’t owe the man an explanation. If anything, Beaumont owed him. And he’d be only too happy to collect.
For the first time, Rafe’s expression eased. “I know. Ialso know precisely how many women you’ve been with since my sister. That information is the only reason you are now married to Shayne, my friend.”
Fury seized hold, satisfyingly hot and just begging for expression. “You had no right!”
To his intense annoyance, Rafe inclined his head in complete agreement before crossing to hide behind his desk. The coward! He set the two glasses on the mahogany surface and nudged one in Chaz’s direction. “So Ella has told me and on more than one occasion.”
Aw, hell. Now why did he have to go and be friendly? “Glad we got that straight,” Chaz growled. “Can’t go nosing around in a man’s private business.”
“I would feel precisely the same if our positions were reversed,” Rafe commented with disgusting affability. He opened the humidor on his desk and finding it empty, released his breath in a disappointed sigh. “It is just as well,” he said, snapping it closed. “My wife doesn’t approve and I would pay the consequences if she were to catch me.”
Chaz grinned, despite himself. “It’s one vice I’ve managed to avoid. Probably the only one.”
“Quite self-destructive,” Rafe conceded. “Ella calls it a nervous habit, acrutch. Ridiculous, of course. Still, Ihave the urge to indulge, particularly in moments of stress. So perhaps she is right, after all.”
“I gather this is a moment of stress.”
“Hell, yes. Don’t you think so?”
They shared an instant of perfect accord, an accord bound to be destroyed the moment one of them chose to speak again. Chaz waded on in, only too happy to have them back on more familiar footing. “It didn’t have to be that way. If you’d just butted out—”
“You don’t know the whole story, McIntyre. You don’t know the life Shayne has lived or you’d understand why I protect her so fiercely.”
“That’s no longer your concern.”
“That’s where you are wrong, my friend. Shayne will always be my concern. But I am willing to give her into your keeping. For now.”
“Damn it, Beaumont. She’s a woman, not property. She’s not yours to give any more than she’s mine to take.”
“But she is yours to protect.” The warning glitter had returned to silver-gray eyes. “See that you do so.”
“More threats?”
“Yes.”
At least he didn’t bother with false denials. “I wouldn’t let anything hurt her.”
“I believe you.” There was no doubting Rafe’s sincerity. “But I am more concerned about your hurting her than any outside force.”
