Free Vegas, Baby by Sandra Edwards

did she find herself at a loss for words.
    “It wasn’t my intention to upset you or alarm you when I called.” Eddie stuck his hands in the pockets of his Levi’s. “I’m merely worried about her welfare,” he added, nodding at Rio.
    “You were right to contact me,” James said. “There is nothing more important to me than my daughter’s safety.”
    “Okay, you two can stop talking about me like I’m not even here.” Her tone inferred that a change needed to be made, and quick. “I don’t need you guys laying out some security plan to keep me safe.” She mocked the idea. “For God’s sake, I’m a cop. I can take care of myself.”
    “Famous last words.” James managed to get a laugh out before anxiety drowned his amusement. “Are you done here? Is it too late for breakfast?” He checked his watch. “How about lunch?” He turned to Eddie, saying, “Would you like to join us?”
    “Yes, I believe I would.” Eddie glanced at Rio. “Besides, I’m not letting her out of my sight.” She gave him one of those quirky looks he was starting to recognize as a precursor to annoyance. “If somebody’s after you , they’re going to have to go through me.”
    “While I’m sure you’d be a very capable bodyguard, she’s safe in my building. I have top- notch security.” A definite chill resided in James’s voice.
    His building? Wait. Did her father own the building she lived in? That sure changed things. Since his entire focus on her was based on her extravagant lifestyle, the likelihood of Rio being on the take had just taken a nosedive.
    He’d bet James Laraquette had paid for the car too. Relief started deep in his heart and crept outward until it filled up most of his soul.
    “I’m sure that’s true,” Eddie said, quickly recovering from the unexpected news, “but I’m not willing to test your theory. Are you?”
    “You’re right,” James conceded. “Too much protection is better than not enough.”
    Eddie may not trust Rio entirely, and he wasn’t sold on the slashed tires being tied to the weird letter, but something was going on and he intended to find out what it was. There was no better way to do that than stick to Rio Laraquette like glue.

CHAPTER 7
    WITH nothing between Rio and Gabe but the desk in his office, she challenged her boss to a stare-down. “Why not?”
    While that glare of hers worked on most people, her godfather had become resistant to her intimidation tactic. That happened, she suspected, sometime during her teenage years when she and Digger were always trying to pull a fast one.
    “Like I told you yesterday, you won’t be investigating your own case.” Gabe fiddled with the pen in his hand, rolling it up and down his fingers and stopping every so often to click the retractor repeatedly.
    Just as he knew her, she knew him. While he thought this was a distractive ploy, mostly it expressed his anxiety over a given situation.
    “This is so not fair.” She threw one leg over the other, and while she was at it she gave his desk a swift kick.
    Gabe pointed the ink pen at Rio. “If it is Atkins, which I firmly believe it is...if you’re on the case, he’ll know we’re on to him.”
    Rio cemented her anger in her gaze and projected her most intimidating stare at her boss. She’d played this game with the best of them. She’d done it with Turner Atkins and won—impressively. After that, everyone else was a breeze. Except for Gabe. He never seemed to budge.
    “Well, he does have a point.” Eddie shifted uncomfortably in his chair beside hers. “If you’re not going to put me on the case, I do request that we at least be kept apprised of the situation.”
    “Yeah,” Rio agreed halfheartedly, and her gaze darted between both men. “Yeah.” She repeated herself but with more confidence this time, and fixed her focus on Gabe. “Who, pray tell, are you putting on the case?” she asked. “If not us.”
    The door opened and, as if he’d been waiting for