Cobb by Maryann Jordan

5

“Mark, I’m telling you all I know. My dad says that he’ll have the police check to see if they know where Caesar is.” Josie tried to keep her voice steady, but her nerves were stretched taut and she was afraid of snapping.

Sitting at the small table in the break room, she rubbed her head as she spoke to the general practitioner who came into the clinic three mornings a week. He was young, tall, and thin, with bright red hair. He always seemed to be in a good mood and the elderly patients loved him.

“Well, if we knew where he was, it would be nice. For him to just take off makes no sense.”

Josie pursed her lips but remained quiet. She’d expressed her concerns to her dad about Caesar’s absence in light of her questioning the suspicious donations and the subsequent threats but had kept them from the others in the clinic. At first, it was because she was uncertain of the donation reports and the threats were aimed only at her. But with Caesar’s disappearance, her father talked to an investigator, and she was advised to remain quiet until someone from security came to her. But she’d already told her nurse and best friend, Laurie Mitchell, before being cautioned to stay silent.

As for Mario, the nursing assistant, and Charlene Porter, the receptionist, she had no reason to involve them in the clinic’s finances. Mario was in his mid-forties, married with four children, and he was dedicated to the clinic as well as his family. Charlene was young, pretty, and dressed in skirts that were a little too tight, heels that were a little too tall, and full makeup, but she was friendly, and the patients liked how she made a big deal over them when they came in. The only other person who worked in the clinic was Sally Garcia, the social work intern that only had a few weeks left on her rotation before she would be leaving, almost finished with her social work degree.

Rubbing the tight muscles in the back of her neck, she stood and left the break room, heading to her office. Laurie stopped her in the hall, a concerned expression on her face as she studied Josie. Her friend was a beautiful brunette, tall and leggy, always smiling, and engaged to be married in the fall.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“Yeah.” She knew her voice sounded tired but didn’t feel the need to pretend with her friend.

“Heard anything?” Laurie kept her voice low.

Shaking her head, she whispered, “No. Dad said that I can expect to have an investigator come talk to me about what’s happening. I assume I’ll get a phone call or an email to let me know when he’ll arrive, but I haven’t heard anything yet. I just don’t want anyone else here to know what’s going on.”

“You should take the afternoon off. You look tired.”

“I admit that I haven’t been sleeping well. Christ, Laurie, I haven’t even told you this, but Dad said to pretend I’m going out with the investigator to give credence as to why he’ll be around so much. It’ll probably be an older, bald man with a big gut.”

Laurie snorted but shook her head in sympathy.

“I mean, it doesn’t matter. It’s not like I’ve got some kind of dating reputation to uphold. But still, it’s weird.”

“Yes, but if it keeps you safe, that’s all that matters.”

“Well, at least it’s already Thursday, and I only have a few home visits to make tomorrow. I might stay in bed all weekend with the covers pulled over my head.”

Charlene popped her head around the door frame, her smile huge and her eyes wide. “Oh, my God, Josie! There’s a gorgeous man out here to see you!”

She glanced at her calendar, wondering if she had forgotten an appointment. Seeing it blank, she glanced toward Laurie, who simply shrugged. Sighing, she followed Charlene out to the reception lobby. Her feet stuttered to a halt as she stared at the man who had crept through her mind over the past few months.

“Josie.” He stepped toward her, a smile on his face.

His voice was just as deep as she remembered. Blinking, she stared, dumbfounded. “Uh, Jorge?”

“I took a chance that you’d still be at the clinic. I hoped you’d have dinner with me.”

“Dinner?”

“Jorge,” Laurie repeated, her eyes wide as she looked at Josie. Then, suddenly, her brows lowered as she turned back to him. A slight gasp slipped from her lips before she breathed, “Oh… Jorge Cobb.”

“Cobb?” Charlene squealed. “Like Governor Cobb?”

“No,” Laurie huffed, rolling her eyes at Charlene. “Like Governor Cobb’s son.”

The air fled Josie’s lungs at Laurie’s announcement of who the man was that was standing… no, filling all the space in her vision. Even as the others moved into the room and Charlene preened, Jorge had not taken his eyes off her.

He stepped closer. “I couldn’t wait to get back here. Please, say you’ll have dinner with me.”

“But… um…” The alternate dimension she’d dropped into continued, and Josie shook her head in an effort to ascertain why he was really here. Sucking in a gasp, it hit her. Dad. Governor Cobb. Investigator. Bodyguard. Jorge. Well, fuck. Glancing to the side, she observed her lobby now filled with all the employees of the clinic, their faces full of curiosity, and for the moment she was stunned silent.

Laurie stepped forward, and with great exuberance, greeted him. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Laurie, best friend and nurse extraordinaire.” After shaking his hand, she turned and pinned Josie with a pointed glare. “You were just saying how much you were looking forward to dinner with him. Head on out, and we’ll make sure the clinic is closed up.”

Grateful that Laurie had a cool head and kept her wits about her, something Josie was lacking at the moment, she nodded, her head moving in jerks. “Yeah… sure. That sounds good. Um… see you tomorrow, everyone.”

“I’ll grab your purse,” Laurie volunteered and hustled down the hall, returning quickly. Handing it to Josie, she offered a hug and whispered into her ear, “Girl, if this is the bodyguard Jorge you danced with and let walk away, fate has just given you another chance. Damn, he’s fine… and the governor’s son!” Squeezing her tighter, she added, “Let me know what’s going on as soon as you find out.”

With her head held high, Josie walked toward Jorge, not saying anything until they made it outside. Walking to her car, she noticed a huge, black SUV was parked next to her and wasn’t surprised when he leaned against it. No, this wasn’t fate. More like a royal kick in the ass.

Sucking in a deep breath, her eyes pinned him to the spot. “Jorge Cobb. Governor Cobb’s son. I can imagine your reasons for not wanting me to know your full name when we met at the gala.”

“My reasons are that I prefer to be known as myself and not who my father is. Although, Jorge is the name my family calls me. To everyone else, I’m just Cobb.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Wouldn’t that be rather telling?” He smiled, and she tried to ignore the tingles running rampant through her body.

“Only to people in New Mexico. Outside of my father being the governor, no one knows or cares about the name Cobb. It’s what I was called in the military, and it stuck.”

Shaking her head quickly, she said, “I don’t even know why we’re talking about what name you want to go by. What I really want to know is why are you here? Are you a bodyguard or was that another deception?”

“There was no deception, Josie. I work for a security and investigative company. I’m qualified to provide protection detail as well as investigate suspicious activity and crimes.”

That news was unexpected, and she chewed on her bottom lip as her eyes cut to the side for a moment before returning to his. “You’re the person that my father said would be coming to help me?”

“Yes.”

Inclining her head back toward the building they just left, she asked, “And we act as though we’re going out on a date?”

“Right now, it’s best if no one knows what’s going on. As far as I’m concerned, no one is above suspicion. I take it, though, that your friend Laurie knows.”

She nodded her head slowly. “She’s my best friend, and I trust her. But I also admit that I said something to her before I talked to my father and was given the direction that no one else should know.”

“She thinks fast on her feet and covered for you very well.”

In the light of day, she noticed his eyes were as dark as she had remembered, only little flecks of gold-rimmed the irises. He seemed even taller, but considering she was now wearing comfortable flats, her five-feet-three-inches made her at least a foot shorter than him. While he had cut an elegant vision in his tux, seeing him in jeans and a dark-blue polo that stretched over his muscles, showing off arms that looked like they could chop wood, rope cows, and cuddle with equal prowess, she was struck dumb, something that rarely happened.

“Josie?”

Blinking, she jerked, feeling her face heat. “Sorry, my mind is… I’m distracted… a lot is going on.”

His gaze was intense but kind. “I know. I’m sorry to just show up here, but it was necessary.”

There was no impatient macho-vibe from him. Instead, he seemed genuinely concerned.

“Come on, Josie, let’s get out of here in case someone is watching from the clinic. I’d truly be honored if you’d have dinner with me. There’s a lot we need to talk about.”

Licking her lips, she nodded. “Okay,” she sighed. “I need to run home first to feed my cat—”

“I’ll follow you.”

Jerking again, she narrowed her eyes, but he continued before she could object.

“I’m going to have to assess your house for security anyway. I might as well get that started.”

“My house?”

“Yes, my protection detail will include your house. But we can talk about that later. We should get moving.”

Again, his words were firm but not high-handed. She wanted to argue but knew he was right. “Okay. I’m not dumb, Jorge. But let me just say that all this seems like overkill. If I’ve stirred the shit, I need to be prepared for the smell.”

His smile widened before he leaned his head back and laughed. She stared and her heart pinged just a little. He was handsome, but when he laughed, he was gorgeous. Turning, she opened her car door, mumbling, “You can follow me.” Climbing inside, she continued to grumble. He’s going to be trouble, I can just tell.

The drive to her house did not take long, but her nerves were frazzled by the time they arrived. He pulled into the driveway behind her and parked. He’d alighted from his huge SUV by the time she walked toward him, and they followed the concrete path to her front door. Like most houses in the area, she had no grass. The front yard was decorated with colored gravel, mostly tan and dark brown. A few scrub bushes and cacti offered the respite color.

Opening the front door, she was surprised when he took her arm and gently maneuvered her next to the door. “Wait here.” He entered quickly and walked through the foyer, through the kitchen, and into the living room. She lost sight of him when he walked down the hall and disappeared through the bedrooms. Her forehead wrinkled as she tried to remember if she’d left any underwear in the bathroom. She pursed her lips, irritated at the strange thoughts that had flown through her mind since Jorge had resurfaced.

He walked back, his face a mask, unreadable. “Is everything okay?” She hated the sound of fear that she could hear. “Christ, this is ridiculous.”

He cocked his head to the side. “Yes, your place is clear. And what is ridiculous?”

“I feel like I’m in some kind of TV show.”

“Your safety isn’t playacting on my part.”

She held his serious gaze, wondering if she’d insulted him. Nodding, she busied herself by slipping off her shoes. Leaning against the table by the door, she lifted first one foot and then the other, sliding on her slippers.

He watched her carefully, then asked, “Would you like me to take my shoes off?”

She walked past him on her way to the kitchen. “No, that’s fine. I just prefer having slippers on when I’m at home. It’s more comfortable for me.”

She opened the refrigerator and called out, “Melon!”

“Not for me, thanks.”

She turned around with a can of cat food in her hand. Seeing his chin jerked back and his brow furrowed, she couldn’t help but laugh. Laughing was not something she’d done much of in the past week, but she felt lighter with her mirth spilling out. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t offering melon. That’s the name of my cat.”

Now, his eyes widened. “Your cat’s name is Melon?”

“The first day I got her, she jumped up on the counters and got into everything. The next morning, I’d sliced some melon and left the rinds in the sink until I was going to come back and clean them up. When I got back into the kitchen, she was up on the counter eating the melon rinds. I started calling her a melon eater, and then shortened it to Melon.”

Retelling the story, she could only imagine how it sounded to him considering that it sounded ridiculous to herself. But she watched in fascination as his lips slowly curved, a smile overtaking his already-beautiful face. Letting out a slow breath, she remembered why she’d wanted to go with him the first night they met. And why she didn’t.

“Once you feed your cat, we’ll take my car and go to dinner,” he said with ease.

“Instead of going out to eat, why don’t we order in?”

He held her gaze for a long, silent moment. She wanted to squirm, not understanding his careful appraisal, but remained steady. Finally, he nodded slowly. “Sure. That’d be fine. You choose. I’ll eat anything, but I pay. And when it arrives, I’ll answer the door.”

A muscle ticked in his jaw, and she wondered if he preferred eating out that much more than eating in. Sucking in her lips, she nodded. “Okay. Um… I’ve been craving pizza, and there’s a good Italian restaurant down the street that delivers quickly.”

Gaining his nod, she turned and made the call. Once completed, she realized Melon hadn’t come into the kitchen. Placing the canned food into the dish, she called out again. This time, the cat came slinking around the corner, her eyes wide as they stared between Jorge and the food dish, trying to decide if its fear over the newcomer was going to win out over its desire for dinner.

Squatting, she tapped the dish and held her fingers out. “Come on, Melon. You don’t have to be afraid.” Jorge walked into the living room, and the solid black cat with one white paw finally sauntered over, rubbing up against Josie’s hand before diving into her dinner. No longer seeing Jorge, she continued to rub her cat. Keeping her voice low, she said, “I know he’s a big guy, but he’s here to help.”