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But the same need to protect arose the more Declan read. No one had protected Piper.
Until now.
She had him now, and he was born to be a protector.
Declan clasped his hands on his head, thinking.
It didn't take a cop to realize something was very off about what had happened.
Blackmail? Had Clark's family bought her off? Or maybe Piper had simply changed her mind and had no "acceptable" reason thatthe press would deem worthy? Maybe she'd decided to rise above the crap and not engage.
Or maybe something else.
Declan scrolled back through some photos of Piper and Clark together, checking body language and eye contact between them. In all the photos, they'd been leaning in toward each other, touching, smiling, looking happy and relaxed. He couldn’t see any tension between them, anything to indicate that things weren't going well, or that Clark was coercing or threatening Piper in some way.
Maybe she had simply left. No drama. No big story to tell. She just hadn't loved him, and she'd been willing to risk her career to follow her heart.
He drummed his fingers on his desk, thinking.
But what if he was wrong? What if there was something else at play? If Piper was going to insert herself back into those circles, he needed to know if she was going to stir up something that would endanger her.
He picked up his phone and opened it. He scrolled to a name he hadn't reached out to in five years. Ryan Bradford. Declan's thumb swayed over the name, but he didn't press it. Did he really want to open that door again?
Hell, no. He didn't.
He looked again at the paparazzi picture of Piper fleeing out the side door of the church again. No one had protected her. No one had defended her.
Not that she necessarily needed it, but she deserved it.
It had been a long time since Declan had had a cause. A person who made him want to get off his dark bench and engage on their behalf. But Piper did.
He hit the send button and put the phone on speaker.
Ryan answered after several rings. "Declan?" He was clearly stunned.
Declan's body kicked into sudden alertness at the voice he hadn't heard in so long. "Yeah, it's me." He hadn't expected such astrong reaction to the sound of Ryan's voice. Ryan was a former cop who'd consulted with Declan on many investigations. He'd been there the night everything had gone to shit.
"Damn, it's good to hear from you," Ryan said. "What's going on? You back?"
The idea of going back to being a cop made Declan recoil, but he nodded. He had to do it. "Soon."
Ryan let out a whoop. "Hell, yeah. About damned time. So glad to hear that. What's going on?"
"I need a favor."
"Anything. Name it."
"I need you to run a name for me."
"What's the name?"
"Clark Houston. He's the president of Gold Leader Investments."
"Got it. Why?"
"A hunch."
"Still have hunches? Your instincts were always the best I ever saw. I'll run it as soon as I'm back at the office." Ryan paused. "What have you been doing? You vanished."
