Secret Seduction. Lori Wilde

your lover?” The thought made him sick to his stomach, but he had to ask the question.

      “No.” Robert growled. “God, no. Why would you even think that? I love my Amanda. I would never cheat on her.”

      Relief coursed through Tanner at the senator’s denial. It was bad enough that Tanner had slept with the woman he was supposed to be guarding, but to know that she was also Robert’s mistress…well that would have been too much for him to handle. “So why the interest in her?”

      Robert swallowed. “Let’s walk.”

      “Where are you going, honey?” Amanda called out to them.

      “To show Tanner the koi pond.” Robert raised a hand. “Could you keep an eye on the steaks?”

      “Will do.” She smiled gaily.

      They walked toward the back of the senator’s five-acre lot, flush with native trees—pecan, red oak, elm and cedar. The pathway was made of quaint cobblestone, and around the perimeter of the place stood six-foot-high privacy hedges.

      “Vanessa is from my hometown,” Robert said when they were out of earshot from the house. “From my old neighborhood. I knew her family, her mother, but Vanessa doesn’t remember me. She wasn’t even born when I left El Paso.”

      “Why don’t you want Vanessa to know you hired me to guard her?” Tanner asked.

      “Because after what happened with Carlo Vega, I paid for Vanessa’s way to medical school. I felt sorry for the poor kid. She needed a break and I could give it to her, so I did. No one knows about it. Not Amanda, not Vanessa. Only you.”

      “Why the secrecy?”

      “It’s not an altruistic act if people find out about it, now is it?” Robert asked.

      They came to a halt beside the elaborate goldfish pond. It was a fair argument, and Tanner wasn’t sure he believed that explanation, but he let it go. “Whatever your reasons are for wanting to protect Vanessa from this Vega character, I don’t think I’m the right man for the job.”

      “Now who’s hiding secrets?”

      Startled, Tanner met the senator’s gaze. “What do you mean?”

      “It’s not like you to renege on an agreement.”

      “I’m not reneging. The truth is I think I might have blown my cover.”

      The senator put his hands behind his back and leaned against the trunk of an impressive old oak tree. “What makes you say that?”

      “She went to a bar last night. I followed her, but I stood out in the place. She spotted me. She came over. We danced.”

       And we did a lot more than that.

      “But that’s good,” Robert said.

      “How do you figure?” To avoid the senator’s probing glance, Tanner bent to pick up one of the flat red river rocks landscaping the area and skipped it across the pond. It skimmed four times before sinking below the surface.

      “She trusted you enough to dance with you. I think that’s a good sign. Vanessa’s pretty cautious.”

      Shows how much you know her. From what he’d seen of the sexy Dr. Rodriquez, cautious was not an adjective that popped to mind.

      “The fact that you were able to get close to her gives you an edge in guarding her,” the senator said.

       You have no idea how close.

      Tanner inhaled deeply. “I’m going to be honest with you Robert. I can’t guard Dr. Rodriquez because I’m physically attracted to her.”

      Robert made a noise of surprise. “But that’s good, healthy even.”

      “You think so? Because I sure don’t.” Tanner chuffed in a breath.

      The senator laid a hand on his shoulder. “Maria would want you to move on. You’ve been grieving hard for four years. It’s time to let go. Letting go doesn’t mean you didn’t love her.”

      “Yeah, but the first time I’m attracted to anyone since I lost Maria and it’s with someone I’m protecting.”

      “It just means you’re not dead below the waist.” Robert tightened his grip on Tanner’s shoulder. “And just because you’re attracted to Vanessa doesn’t mean you have to act on your feelings.”