“You’re a dear friend. You always have been, but it’s gone too far. I’m doing what’s right for both of us.”
“Fine. You don’t want more than friendship. I get it. But don’t dismiss me like I’m nothing.”
Guilt flooded through me at his words. He’d done so much for me over the years. And for Daniel as well. He’d given his time and his money to both of us, and I hated that he thought I didn’t care. This was an impossible situation, and I didn’t know how to deal with it in a way that was both sensitive and firm. “I’ll pray about it, Robert. I’m not dismissing you, but I don’t want to give you hope. It’s not fair to you.”
“We can go back to being friends.”
“That’s all we’ve ever been.”
He hung his head and stared at the floor. “Right. It was just a slip of the tongue.”
“I have to leave. Can you please step aside?”
He moved out of the way, and I left, feeling terrible for breaking his heart, but I couldn’t go on like this. As soon as I was in the car, I deleted the tracking app on my phone so he wouldn’t be able to locate me whenever he wanted.
It was time to set boundaries.
Chapter 16
Troy
“I’m proud of you, son. Forgive me for not saying it sooner.”
Dad and I were having that talk, the one Kayla encouraged me to have with him when we talked over coffee a while back. “It means a lot to hear you say that,” I said. “I’m tired of being the black sheep in the family. I’m not that guy anymore and the label…”
“Just doesn’t fit.”
I let out a relieved breath, glad he was getting it. “Yeah. It’s time to move past that perception.”
“I understand, and I’m sorry if I ever made you feel like I don’t see all the good things you do. Your Mom and I love you very much.”
I let out a heavy breath. If I’d known he’d be that agreeable, I would have brought this up long ago. “Love you too.” For too long I’d wanted to leave it alone and allow things to stay the way they were, but I was relieved we were finally discussing the issue.
Kayla and I were officially dating, and maybe that was why I’d gathered the courage to say something. Being with her made me want a fresh start, especially since I was looking forward to taking her home to meet my parents in a few weeks. Now that I’d squared things with Dad, it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
I put my phone away and stood up from my desk, needing to stretch my legs. Glancing around at my office, I had a sense of pride at all that I’d accomplished. The boxes were gone and everything was in order. Pictures hung on the wall. Desks and computers had been set up in the other offices. It actually looked like a place of work now.
A couple of weeks had passed since Kayla had discontinued services with Bad Boy Bodyguards. I stayed busy setting up the office and was able to interview a lot of different prospects for the new positions. I’d already hired one guy and hoped to hire another very soon. An administrative assistant was set to start tomorrow, and that would make life easier. I hadn’t convinced my friend, Shane, to come to work for me yet, but I was still working on him. He finally returned home but hadn’t come in for an interview yet as he was on the fence about what he wanted to do with his time.
He didn’t need the work since his family came from money, and he was overqualified for the job anyway, but knowing Shane, he’d eventually need something besides vacations to fill his time. Finances wouldn’t be a determining factor for him, so it would depend on if he was interested in the kind of work we had to offer. I hoped he’d join us at the new division, but I understood if he wanted to return to the FBI or find different work altogether.
My mind turned to other things. I was settling into my position as manager, and as it turned out, Robert’s accusations hadn’t mattered in the least. Ansel even apologized for putting me in the middle of that mess. He said he trusted me more than he trusted Robert, and I didn’t need to worry about it. I was grateful the Lord worked it out and my reputation wasn’t tarnished.
I still kept a close eye on Kayla. Checked in with her multiple times a day and stopped by her place after work as often as I could. I worried about her a lot, but thank goodness nothing else had happened to compromise her safety. She’d distanced herself from Robert but hadn’t cut ties completely. They’d met for lunch the other day, and she told him about our relationship. She said he didn’t like it but accepted that I was now in the picture.
I seriously doubted he was that accepting, but I would have to take her word for it. I didn’t like the guy, but I respected her decisions and understood why she had a soft spot for him, considering he worked with her late husband and was an old friend.
I had just pulled up to her house to pick her up for dinner when she walked outside holding a phone to her ear, and then she slipped into the car. There was a frown on her face, but she smiled weakly at me and mouthed that it was Tom. The only Tom I knew of was the neighbor we’d talked to a while ago.
She cleared her throat. “I’m putting
