Leopard 04 - Wild Fire

claw marks on his arm, settling his palm over her womb. “My child will grow here.”
    She slapped his arm away a second time and retreated a couple of steps, trying to get out into the open, facing the trees where she was certain Jeremiah waited with his rifle.
    13

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    “WHAT happened to your face?” Imelda asked as she caught up with Conner. He walked directly behind Philip as the man led the way to his private den. “You look as if you had a fight with a large cat.”
    Her voice shook with excitement. She reached out as she kept pace to touch one of the long scars.
    Conner caught her wrist and pulled her hand down. “I did. A leopard.”
    He felt her shiver. “Really? How frightening.”
    He shrugged. “It happened. I’m alive.” He stepped in front of her, cutting her off before she could enter the room. “Wait here until I give the okay.”
    Her eyes glittered. “I’m not used to taking orders.”
    “Then your men aren’t doing their job,” he said and turned his back on her.
    Philip held the door open and Conner went through, followed by Rio. Felipe and Leonardo stayed with Elijah and Marcos. Their movements were coordinated and efficient and no one spoke. Elijah and Marcos paid no attention, used to their team sweeping rooms. Imelda pressed her hand to her heaving breast.
    “How long have you employed him?” she asked Marcos.
    Marcos frowned. “Conner? Several years. He’s a good man. I knew his family.” Her leopards were nowhere close to smell the lie. Her security team had made their show and now, feeling comfortable in Philip’s house, they’d scattered throughout the rooms to let the crowd know she was an important person and they were keeping an eye on everything. She had one guard, and he wasn’t leopard.
    Elijah glanced at Marcos, a little worried that both the rogue leopards were missing. Their primary concern should have been Imelda’s safety. They didn’t know Marcos or Elijah or their intentions.
    “How long have you had your security?” Elijah asked.
    Her lashes veiled her eyes. “About two years. They’re . . . exceptional.”
    His eyebrows shot up. Marcos smirked. “Really?” Elijah said. “I don’t see them here where they should be, watching out for you. They wouldn’t stay in my employ for ten minutes.”
    “Nor mine,” Marcos agreed.
    Anger slithered over her face. She didn’t like being embarrassed and she could see the point both had made was valid. She glared at her guard and snapped her fingers. He immediately began to speak into the radio, telling the two rogues Imelda requested their presence immediately.
    “They’ve gotten sloppy,” Elijah continued. “They should be on you every moment. Conner, or any one of these men, would never stand for being away from you, even if you wanted it. They would have made certain you signed a binding contract with them to that effect. If you refused, they wouldn’t take you on as a client.”
    “Marcos, didn’t you tell Philip that one of the guards was your nephew?” Imelda asked.
    Marcos and Elijah exchanged a knowing look. She’d made a mistake and didn’t realize it. The conversation had taken place before Imelda had arrived, which meant they’d been taped and she’d already viewed those tapes before her arrival—which they’d suspected would happen.
    “That is correct. Two of them are. And one is related to Elijah.”
    Imelda shrugged one slim shoulder. “You see, your help is family and no one else can be fully trusted to do the job.”
    “Conner is not family, but is fully trusted,” Elijah objected. “But of course, we obviously think differently.
    I know my men wouldn’t betray me and I don’t worry if they overhear business discussions. They would carry the details to their grave.”
    She couldn’t miss the smirk exchanged between the two men. The head of her security team had made her look foolish in front of the two men she wanted most to impress. She would not forgive that easily.
    For a moment, black rage glittered in her eyes, and then she resumed her mask of congeniality.
    Conner emerged, his expression unreadable. “That room is not suitable for a discussion, Marcos.” There was finality in his words. A command, not a suggestion.

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    Imelda was clearly intrigued by the way he ordered his employer. Conner had studied every