Shattered Grace (Fallen from Grace) by K Anne Raines Page B

plunged completely underwater and came up for air a breath later.
    Quentin hugged her tighter to his chest as he hunched over and laughed uncontrollably. Grace gasped and swiped water out of her eyes, definitely not convinced that it was that funny.
    “ You can put me down now,” she said flatly.
    “ Ah, don’t be mad,” he teased.
    “ I’m not mad.” Grace’s mouth pinched together as she shifted it to the side to chew on the inside of her cheek. She didn’t know what to make of what had just happened.
    He didn’t seem fazed in the slightest by their bare skin contact when he let her down. Grace forced her gaze from the chiseled arms, which had just been wrapped around her, to the ripples they made in the water as he moved them about. Quentin started making his way to the edge of the pool, leaving a wave of rippling water in his wake. Grace still watched. “Where are you going?”
    As he pulled himself up, water rained down from his shorts and trickled down his bronzed skin. “I could use a drink. I thought you could too.”
    “ Now that you mention it…” she said absently, still mesmerized by the trail of water trickling down the length of his back.
    Quentin jerked his eyes in her direction, looking at her like she’d grown horns. “Not that kind of drink. Water.”
    “ Oh, come on,” she joked. He obviously didn’t find it funny; all traces of a smile were absent from his face.
    “ I’m not contributing to the delinquency of a minor,” he said flatly.
    “ Did I mention that I found out today that I own this house?”
    “ Congratulations.” His scowl turned up in a brief smile, then fell away again. “But you’re still a minor,” he said in all seriousness. He stood with his hands on his hips staring down at her, and seemed to puff with male authority, ready to lay down the law.
    Grace chuckled. “Relax, I-Man-You-Woman. I’m only kidding.”
    She pulled herself out of the pool and grabbed a towel off one of the lounge chairs, then sat down on the edge of another to dry off. Grace focused her attention back on the questions she wanted answered and away from the muscles within her line of sight.
    “ Thank you.” As he handed her some water, she saw that he even had muscles in his fingers. She didn’t know a man’s hands could be attractive. Oh boy. Grace fanned herself, and hoped he thought she was reacting to the heat from the sun.
    Quentin dropped into the lounge chair next to her. “Ready to talk now?”
    Grace put the glass to her lips and nodded.
    “ I definitely want to ask you about what happened at the bank, but I have a couple other questions first.” She paused, waiting to see if he had anything to interject. “I’ve received two letters from my grandfather. Both told me to trust you and to listen to you. Why?”
    There was no pause in Quentin’s response. “Because you need protection and he knew I’d give my life to keep you safe.”
    Well, she wasn’t expecting that. Too absorbed on his mouth as he spoke, she absentmindedly leaned into her stare.
    Out of the corner of her eye, Grace thought she saw the tattoo band wrapped around his bicep move a little, and realized what she was doing. Instead of shaking it off and moving on, she sat back up and expectantly waited for it to do it again. Nothing happened, though. Maybe it was a muscle twitch? Or a heat wave from the concrete? Either way, she reluctantly tore her gaze away. “I thought you were a lawyer.”
    Thoughtfulness moved across his face. She could almost see the wheels turning in his head. This time he wasn’t so quick to reply. “I am a lawyer. But I’m not practicing. I was under Christophe’s employ as his advisor and personal bodyguard, so to speak. Now I’m yours.”
    His reply ran a shocked wave through her body, lifting her back straighter. “Bodyguard? Why would my grandfather need a bodyguard?” Except for protection from my family, she thought. But then again, she didn’t feel danger from