Sinful Seduction by Katie Reus Page B

happened in the last couple days had her head spinning. Thank God for Alex’s presence. It still stunned her how this stranger had come out of nowhere and now meant so incredibly much to her. After patting her face dry, she stepped out of the small, luxury bathroom to find Alex sitting on the edge of the king-size bed in the stateroom.
    “What are you doing?” she asked, worry lancing through her since they shouldn’t have docked yet.
    “Harrison and a small team just boarded. They wanted to ride in with us the rest of the way to the marina. We’ll be there in about five minutes. You’ve been down here a while so I wanted to check on you.” He watched her carefully, as if he was afraid she was going to have a breakdown.
    She figured if she was going to have one she’d have full-on melted down by now. “I’m good. Just stressed about seeing my dad and worrying about what I’m going to say to him about Ivan. I…I don’t think I’m going to say anything just yet. Not until the police have figured out more.” Her father was already dying. Telling him now would kill him faster.
    “According to Harrison he’s still being detained and questioned. Still denying everything too.” There was a barely concealed note of disgust in Alex’s voice.
    Mina pulled her lips into a thin line as she sat next to him. She knew she was likely being an idiot by believing in Ivan but her gut told her that he wasn’t involved. It just didn’t fit with what she knew of his character. “Have they found a reason he could be involved? And don’t say money because I don’t buy that. I mean, maybe gambling debts or something?” Not that she’d excuse him if he did have debts. Hell no. Not after someone had tried to kidnap her and taken shots at both her and Alex. But she wanted to understand how someone she’d known for years, someone she trusted, could do something like this.
    Alex shook his head. “No, but they’re pulling apart his financials. They haven’t got the kidnappers to talk yet, but they will.”
    He sounded so confident she had to believe the police would eventually get to the bottom of everything. Even though the men from the dock had tried to escape, the Red Stone team had arrived not long after and detained the men until the police arrived. “What’s going to happen to you because of the shooting?” Mina knew the man he’d shot had died. It might have been in self-defense and justifiable but she also knew Alex would have to talk to the police about it.
    “Don’t worry about that.”
    He wasn’t being condescending but the statement still annoyed her. She placed a hand on his knee and squeezed. “Seriously? Don’t worry?”
    His lips tugged up into a half-smile. “I just mean, it will work itself out. Right now you need to focus on seeing your father. The team is going to take you to him immediately. The house and security team has been vetted well enough. Not enough to make Harrison or me a hundred percent happy, but…we’ll be with you the whole time and you should be with your father.”
    The urgent note in his voice told her everything she needed to know. “It’s bad?”
    Alex nodded. “Yeah…I’m so sorry sweetheart.”
    This was the second time Alex had used that endearment and it completely disarmed her. Especially now when she was feeling raw and vulnerable. If they were taking her directly to her father she knew what that meant. Her throat tightened and she closed her eyes, fighting the onslaught of tears. When she’d called her dad earlier, his doctor had answered. The man had been kind, but had said her father couldn’t talk because of the pain meds he was on. As she started to dash away escaping tears, Alex pulled her into a tight embrace. She wrapped her arms around him and buried her face against his neck while he rubbed a gentle hand down her spine. He murmured soothing sounds that did little to dull her pain, but she was so grateful for his presence.
    “Whatever happens, I’m