Margaret Daley - Christmas Stalking

“Fine.” Mrs. Winfield fluttered her hand in the air as she swept around and headed for the door to her bedroom. “I can’t argue with you over something I taught you. Good night. I’ll see you tomorrow morning. I hope you’ll at least go for a power walk with Ellie and me. Seven o’clock sharp.”

“Yes, Winnie. I’ve brought my running shoes. I figured you’d want me to.”

When her employer shut the door to her room, Ellie immediately said, “I need my gun back.”

“You do? What part of your duties as my grandmother’s assistant requires you to have a gun?” His gaze skimmed down her length.

Ellie finally peered down at the clothes she wore—old sweats and a baggy T-shirt. With a glance at the mirror at the end of the hall, she noticed the wild disarray of her hair. She looked as scruffy as Colt Winfield. She certainly wouldn’t appear to this man as a capable and efficient bodyguard. Or a woman who knew how to use a gun when she needed to. “Ask yourself. What if you had been a burglar? Would you have wanted me to let you rob the place or do worse?”

For half a moment he just stared at her, then he started chuckling. “Since I’m not and I’ll be here for a few days, you’ll be safe. Didn’t you wonder why the three German shepherds didn’t bark?”

“I know that dogs can be good for security purposes, but they can be taken out. It shouldn’t be the only method a person uses.” Which Mr. Jefferson was changing—just not fast enough for her liking. A new alarm system for the house would be in place by the end of the week. But even that didn’t guarantee a person was totally safe. Hence the reason why Mr. Jefferson hired her to guard Mrs. Winfield—Winnie.

“So you decided to bring a gun.”

“I’m very capable. I was in the army.”

“Army? Even knowing that, I’m afraid, Miss St. James, we’re not going to see eye to eye on this.” He swiveled around and went to pick up a duffel bag by the steps. He hadn’t had that when he’d first come upstairs. He must have brought it up when he put the gun in the safe. “Good night.”

Ellie watched him stride down the corridor in the opposite direction of her bedroom. When he paused before a door at the far end, he slanted a look back at her. For a few seconds the corners of his mouth hitched up. He nodded his head once and then ducked inside.

She brought her hand up to comb her fingers through her hair and encountered a couple of tangles. “Ouch!”

Moving toward her bedroom, she kept her eye on his, half expecting him to pop back out with that gleam of humor dancing in his eyes. When he didn’t, something akin to disappointment flowed through her until she shoved it away. She would have to call Mr. Jefferson to tell him that Colt was here. From what she’d read about the man he was smart, with a doctorate in marine biology as well as a degree in chemistry. Currently he worked on a research vessel as the head marine biologist for a think tank formed to preserve the world’s oceans.

His grandmother hadn’t ever questioned why Ellie was always around, even in her lab, but she had a feeling Colt would. Then he would demand an answer.

* * *

After traveling for almost twenty-four hours the day before, Colt dragged himself out of bed at a quarter to seven in his old room where he’d grown up. Winnie hadn’t changed anything in here, and he doubted she ever would. She would always think of him as her little boy. Although Winnie was his grandmother, she’d raised him when his own mother had died from a massive infection shortly after he was born. Thinking of his past brought both heartache and joy. Heartache because he’d lost so many people he cared about. But he’d rather not dwell on his past. Besides, he had Winnie. She had given him so much.

After dressing in his sweats to power walk in the crisp December air in the Colorado mountains, he made his way toward the kitchen and the scent of coffee. Just its aroma made his body crave caffeine. He’d need it if he was going to keep up with Winnie. At seventy-three, she was an amazing woman, owner of Glamour Sensations and creator of both women’s and men’s fragrances. Not to mention her latest development—a line of antiaging products rumored to revolutionize the cosmetic industry. This had been a dream of Winnie and his granddad for fifteen years. Although his grandfather was dead, Winnie was close to completing their vision with the development of a cream that faded scars and lines as though they had never been there in the first place.

Clean-shaven, Colt came into the kitchen to find his grandmother and her new assistant sitting at the table drinking mugs of coffee. “I thought you would be gone for your power walk by now, leaving me with the whole pot of coffee.”

His grandmother glanced at the clock on the wall. “As usual, ten minutes late. Did I not tell you we would have to wait on him, Ellie?”

The pretty assistant, dressed in a navy blue jogging suit with her long curly blond hair tamed into a ponytail, gave him a sugary sweet smile, a sparkle in her brown eyes. “I tried to talk her into leaving without you, but she insisted on waiting.”

He made his way to his grandmother, kissed her cheek then headed for the pot to pour some coffee.

“You won’t have time for that. I have a meeting with Harold at eight-thirty, and I’m sure he would want me to shower and change before we meet in the lab.” Winnie rose and took a last swallow from her mug before setting it on the table. “You can have some later.”

“What if I walk off the side of the mountain because I fell asleep?” He put his empty cup on the counter.

“Dear, if you manage to fall asleep while power walking with me, I’ll be surprised. Besides, we’re walking inside the fence. It would stop your fall.”

“Your power walking is grueling.” Taking up the rear, he followed the two women out onto the wooden deck along the back of the redwood and glass house that sat in a meadow with a high fence around the premises.

As though expecting Winnie at that time of the day, the three German shepherds sat near the door, their tails wagging. Rocket, the white one, barked his greeting.

His grandmother stooped over and patted each one, saying, “I’ve got a treat for you later today. A juicy bone. I know how much you like that.”

Lady, the only female, nudged his grandmother’s hand for more scratches behind the ear. Winnie laughed. “You always demand more attention than the boys here. They may be larger, but I have a feeling they do whatever you want.”

Standing next to Ellie and watching the exchange between his grandmother and the guard dogs, Colt said, “My grandfather bought Rocket and Gabe to be company and guard the place seven years ago. He was very attached to them. Winnie went out and purchased Lady from the same trainer. She wanted female representation. They love staying outside, but whenever the weather gets bad, she brings them inside, even though they have a top-of-the-line dog structure.”

“I’ve seen it. It isn’t your ordinary doghouse. I thought it might be a storage shed until I saw them going in and out.”

“That’s because nothing is too good for her dogs. When Granddad died, Winnie took over all three dogs’ care with her caretaker’s help.”

When she finished greeting each pet, Winnie went through some stretches. “Colt, I don’t want to hear any complaining on my walk. You’re in perfectly good shape.”

“I don’t complain. I tease.”

“I have a feeling you swim every day you have a chance on the job. Ellie, he can swim ten miles without tiring. Not to mention he can hold his breath underwater for two minutes. I think that’s from growing up here in the mountains. Great lung capacity.”

His grandmother’s remark to her assistant slid his attention to the tall woman who lunged to the left then right. “So you’re into power walking, too?”