CHAPTER 1

Jack Thornton walked up the subway stairs, arising in the busy hustle of downtown New York. He looked up at the buildings and the clear sunny day and was grateful for the turn in his luck. For the past few months, it seemed nothing right could go his way. He turned toward the direction that he had memorized on a map the night before and began to walk.

Jack had got the call two days ago that he was finally successful for a job. Not just any job but one of the best out there as a private bodyguard to a female multi-millionaire. An old friend, Lee Coulter, already worked in her security detail so when they ran into each other a month ago, Lee told him about the vacancy. In short, Jack owed him. Big time.

After an interview with Lee's boss, Jack was offered the job. Today he was supposed to come in, get his uniform, take a tour and set up his security access before he started officially the next day.

Looking at his watch, Jack realised he still had an hour before he was meant to be there. As he looked up at the building in front of him, he noticed a cafe to the side. Deciding to get a quick coffee, he lined up at the counter. A pretty blonde woman took his order with an eager smile and after he received his coffee he took a seat at the back and just watched all the comings and goings. After all, that was what Jack did best. He paid attention when others didn't. He noticed the details. He realised there was a side entrance to the building along one wall, although it was partially hidden behind a decorative planter and a solid timber door.

Jack thought back to the events of the last few years and was so glad to be sitting there at that moment. Being deployed overseas on back-to-back tours meant he had seen and experienced some of the worst things ever. When he got home four months ago, he thought he was done seeing death happening all around him. Only a week after he got home, his brother and partner were killed in a car accident. Their three year old daughter Hannah managed to survive - miraculously. Even though Jack's parents were able to look after her full-time for the moment, financially they weren't in a good position. That was why Jack was so grateful for this job since his own finances had begun to dwindle.

Jack finished his coffee and went toward the trash, depositing his coffee cup and simultaneously pushing open the side door, which immediately collided with someone on the other side. Jack heard a small shriek but it was too late. The damage had been done and unfortunately Jack hadn't been gentle when he had pushed open the door. So focused on his impending meeting he had shoved the door with way more force than was necessary. Jack was horrified by what he had unintentionally done and as he peered around the door he was surprised to see a beautiful young woman - who was now glaring daggers at him.

"Ow!" she said rubbing her face with her hand. "What's wrong with you?" she said angrily.

Jack immediately got his back up with her tone. "Me? Nothing is wrong with me. You on the other hand …"

"I was just innocently walking into a coffee shop when I got assaulted by a door that you pushed into my face!" she almost yelled.

"Well, if your face was that close maybe that explains why you got hit!" Jack said, matching her tone.

She placed her hands on her hips and stared him down. "How dare you! I don't have time for this. Just get out of my way."

"Excuse me? But you're in my way" he said matching her icy gaze.

They stood there glaring at one another before the man beside her pushed Jack back and ushered her inside. Only then did Jack realise she had a bodyguard accompanying her. Jack laughed to himself at the fact she had distracted him so much he hadn't even noticed the bodyguard. At that moment, the woman turned back and saw him laughing. Her expression softened for just a split section before the fire returned to her eyes and she stormed off.

For a moment, Jack did feel guilty. After all he wasn't in a habit speaking to a woman like that and he knew she would have been both hurt and shocked by what had just happened. Jack gathered himself together and headed for the main reception of his new work building. Lee was called down and when Jack saw him crossing the foyer toward him, he went to meet him.

"Jack! How are you going, man?"

"Great, Lee. Thanks so much for this. I won't let you down."

"I know you, Jack. You could never let me down that's why I didn't hesitate to tell you about the job. Come on, let's go get everything sorted for you."

Jack was taken to the main security office for the building and issued his pass and then Lee showed him how to use the private lifts at the rear of the building. They were only used by the high profile people working in the building, their boss being one of them.

"Ms Thatcher is a great boss. She's down to earth and has a sense of humour and doesn't treat you like dirt, like some of the other people you could work for. Honestly, she is as good as you can get."

"Hence why you've stayed working for her for the last three years."

"Exactly. She's very understanding and if you have any problems, she's very approachable."

"She sounds like a saint" Jack said, actually curious about meeting his new charge.

"Most of the time she is. You just don't want to get on her bad side. You won't last if you do that."

"Why?"

"She doesn't forgive very easily."

Lee introduced Jack to a few of the other people in Ms Thatcher's office including her personal assistant and administration team. There were two older women in that group but most of them were young and their eyes peered curiously over the partitions at Jack as he passed. He wasn't exactly surprised as he knew he had that affect on women. He gave them a friendly wave and smile and he noticed a few of them blush before their heads disappeared again.

Jack chuckled to himself, but Lee noticed.

"Now, no breaking any hearts in this office Jack. I know how you can be."

"I have no idea what you're talking about" Jack said, trying to sound innocent.

Lee threw his head back in laughter. "You forget I'm married to Rosie. She remembers what you were like in college. Have you changed that much?"

"That was six years ago, Lee. You've changed since those days, haven't you?"

"Sure, but I got married. How long did your last girlfriend hang around for?"

Jack cringed at that memory. "Three weeks" he said quietly.

Lee laughed again. "You can reel them in Jack, but you never try to keep them, do you?"

"I don't want the commitment. Is that so difficult to fathom?"

"Sounds to me like you just haven't found the right woman to challenge you."

"Maybe" Jack replied quietly. "So when do I get to meet the elusive Ms Thatcher?"

"Mmm I think she's left until after lunch" Lee said pulling out his phone to check something. "Yes, she's on her way to a meeting at the moment." Lee turned his phone to show Jack. "All security personnel have access to her schedule through this app. It has a GPS tracker which tracks her movements, but only Bill, myself and Phil have access to that information."

"Fair enough" Jack said, absorbing all of this new information. Lee continued showing Jack around the offices, pointing out the emergency exits and other areas of importance.

Entering into a security office, Jack found himself surrounded by screens.

"This is where we spend most of our day when we aren't looking out for Ms Thatcher. She can come here and grab any one of us to accompany her if she wants to go out for a bit but normally we have someone rostered on each day to be ready to go with her when needed. Otherwise we are here looking out for and investigating any suspicious activity."

Jack nodded, looking around the small room that had two people monitoring screens and third on a computer. Lee walked over to a nearby desk and grabbed a box before handing it to Jack.

"Here's your new uniform. There are three shirts and two pants. That should be sufficient for your five shifts per week. Your jacket is still on order. Welcome to the team." Lee gave him a gentle slap on the shoulder.

Jack glanced in the box to see clear bags of black clothing. He smiled. "Thanks."

"You'll do mainly daytime shifts for the first few days until you get the hang of things. We'll see you back here bright and early tomorrow morning."

Jack shook his hand and after a few more friendly comments, Jack departed using the main lift. He walked back outside into the sunshine and made his way home.

The next morning, Jack woke early and begun his daily preparations for his first day. He had always woken early and either did a cardio or strength workout so that morning he hit the gym for leg day. His gym was just around the corner from his apartment, so he went back home and got ready. He had ironed his uniform the night before and cleaned up his shoes, laying everything out. Now he dressed and made sure his uniform was meticulous. He threw his own black leather jacket over the top to cover the security logo on the shirt pocket and headed for the subway.

Jack was feeling excited when he arrived downtown but knew he needed a coffee or he would crash later after the adrenaline wore off. Jack walked into the coffee shop and was served by the same young blonde woman as the day before.

"Hi! You're back!" she said eagerly.

"Yes. I'm working next door now."

"Good to know. I'm Lucy. What can I get for you?"

"A long black please, Lucy."

"Coming right up. Can I grab your name?"

"It's Jack."

She wrote it down on the paper cup before putting it in line with the barista. Jack handed over his money and as he went to walk away Lucy called out to him.

"See you tomorrow, Jack."

Jack gave her a friendly smile and went to wait for his coffee order. Looking at his watch he decided to drink it on his way. Noticing how hot it was, he carried the lid separately. As he walked out the swinging door again, he pushed it more cautiously this time and noticed there was no obstruction. An elderly lady was following behind him so he held the door for her before letting go but then he swung around a little quickly and collided into a smaller body.

Jack looked down in horror as his boiling hot coffee covered the crisp white shirt of the petite female in front of him. With a squeal the woman pulled her shirt away from her body, trying not to let it touch her skin, her other hand clinging to her cell phone.

"Oh no! I am so sorry!" Jack began and then as the woman in front of him lifted her head, he was left to stare at some glaring blue eyes that were burning holes into him. Very familiar eyes that he had seen with the exact same expression the day before.

"You!" she growled at him.

"You" he said back to her with not quite as much venom in his voice as she had possessed.

"What is your problem?!" Her eyes flashed in fury as they glared at him. If she had the power to light him on fire, he would have been a pile of ash already.

"I said I was sorry" he countered.

"That's not good enough. You just spilled boiling hot coffee all over me. Why weren't you watching where you were going?"

"I was. I was helping someone. But what's your excuse?"

"My excuse?"

"Your reaction time must be terrible. Why didn't you see me coming?"

"I shouldn't have to keep an eye on your coffee just because you're incompetent." She pushed past him into the coffee shop, heading straight for the napkins to clean herself up. Jack watched her momentarily. She glanced back at him, before she turned away talking to the man beside her. Jack watched their exchange. The bodyguard with her was the same older man as the day prior. He was probably in his late 50s, his hair greying. He was thin and wiry, only fractionally taller than the woman, but clearly not capable of doing his job. Jack shook his head. The woman's bodyguard was not his problem.

Jack turned back for his original destination, draining the last few mouthfuls of coffee left in the cup before throwing it in a nearby trashcan. He headed for the public lift and after scanning his access card, he waited for the lift to pass the previous 50 floors before the doors opened. He stepped out and headed straight for the security office that Lee had shown him the day before.

"Jack. Welcome" Bill said as he opened the door.

Bill was the head of security, although he was due to retire in the next month. He was the one that conducted Jack's interview the week before. Lee was second in command at the moment but had been prepped to take over Bill's role. Jack held out his hand to shake Bill's.

"Thanks Bill. What would you like me to do today?"

"We will introduce you to Ms Thatcher when she comes in and you will basically tail Lee over the next week. He will show you the ropes and teach you our protocols. Any downtime you have will be spent here reading through the documentation and learning our procedures."

Bill pointed toward an empty desk that had a giant pile of folders on it. Jack nodded and took a seat, getting straight to work.

About twenty minutes later, Lee came in. He came and took a seat beside Jack.

"How was your morning?" he asked Jack.

"Alright if you can consider spilling a hot cup of coffee all over a stranger a good morning."

"Oh no!"

"Yeah, tell me about it. And I hit her with a door yesterday. I wonder what it will be tomorrow …"

Lee burst out laughing. "What did she say?"

"She was furious. Understandably. But she was so rude – acting like I did it on purpose."

"Don't tell me she was hot …"

Jack sighed. "Absolutely gorgeous." He thought back to those blue eyes that had been focused on him with such anger. Jack wondered what they looked like when she wasn't furious.

Lee laughed even louder. "Never mind. You will probably never see her again."

Jack just nodded, turning his attention back to the folder in front of him.

About an hour later, Lee's phone buzzed.

"That's Ms Thatcher. She's on her way up. Come on. I will introduce you."

As they went to leave the security office, Jack glanced at the monitors on his way past. Jack saw the woman he ran into earlier on the security monitor. She was now wearing a fresh shirt, the coffee stain that was evident earlier all gone.

Jack pointed at the monitor. "Do you know her?" he asked Lee.

Lee looked at the monitor closer before smiling. "Yes. She's your new boss."

"What?!" Jack replied in horror, his mouth hanging open.

"That's Ms Thatcher."

"Ms Thatcher? She's barely 25 and she's a multi-millionaire?" he said in disbelief.

"Yes. Her mother passed away when she was a child and her father died unexpectedly just a few years ago leaving each of his children with a small fortune. Elizabeth was the only one that was interested in continuing her father's legacy and has done a lot with the business and has been in the spotlight for some time. You haven't seen her in the news?"

"No. You know I haven't been in the country" Jack said referring to his long-term military deployment. "Damn it" he said under his breath.

"What do you mean?" Lee asked curiously.

Jack hesitated. "You know the woman I told you about … who I spilled my coffee on … and hit in the face with a door?"

"Yeah?" Lee looked at him puzzled.

"Same woman."

Lee's eyes went wide. "It was Ms Thatcher that you hit in the face? That's why she has that bruise on her cheek?"

Jack let out a sigh. "Yeah."

Lee roared with laughter. "Oh man. This just got good!" he said, still laughing. "I'm changing my entry in the sweep!"

"What sweep?"

"How long you will last! I'm dropping it down from a month to one more day as soon as she sees you" he laughed heartily.

Jack groaned. He needed this job for Hannah. "You said she was really good to work for. Why do you a sweep going?"

"Sure, but she prefers older security guys. Haven't you noticed that you're the youngest one in the office at the moment?"

Jack had noticed that but didn't think anything of its significance.

"She doesn't generally give the young guys a chance."

"How did you get a go then?"

"Rosie knew her older sister, Viola. Hey, don't stress. If she doesn't want to give you a shot, it's her bad luck. We both know once you've completed your training you will be the best man on the team, even over me. Having someone younger on the team is definitely an advantage, which we have been trying to tell her."

Jack nodded, a grim expression on his face. Lee led the way out of the security office along a hallway. As he approached a dark timber door, he rapped his knuckles.

"Come in" the voice on the other side responded.

"Morning Ms Thatcher" Lee said as he entered.

"Morning Lee."

Jack followed behind him quietly, his view blocked by Lee's figure but as Lee moved to the side he saw the woman in question sitting behind a huge white desk with giant glass panel windows stretching out behind her showing an amazing view of the city. She had her attention on her computer to the side of the desk.

"I'll just be a second" she said, her fingers flying over the keyboard.

"That's okay. I wanted to introduce you to one of our new guards, Jack."

Jack stood up straighter and tried to keep his face blank as he spoke. "Ms Thatcher."

Ms Thatcher's fingers stopped suddenly on the keyboard and she looked up from her desk at the sound of his voice. Her bright blue eyes locked onto his. She looked him up and down, not saying anything. Jack was starting to feel uncomfortable but he stood his ground, staring straight back at her, expressionless.

"Seriously?" she said, breaking the silence, her question hanging in the air.

"Yes ma'am" he said with a faint smile.

She stared at him for another minute. "Fine."

Ms Thatcher glanced back at Lee. "I've updated my schedule for this weekend so far. Who do I have with me tomorrow?"

"You have Jack and I. I will just show him the ropes for the next few days and then he should be right after that."

Ms Thatcher's eyes flitted to Jack's again. "Will that be long enough to show him everything he needs to know?"

"Yes. Jack comes highly trained and competent for the role. You have no worries there, Ms Thatcher."

"Very well" she said, her eyes shifting back to the computer screen. "Thank you Lee."

"No problem." Lee motioned for Jack to follow him. Jack glanced over his shoulder as he closed the door behind him to see Ms Thatcher watching him. Their eyes met and she quickly looked away as if she had been caught. Jack grinned at the thought.

Once they were back down the hallway, Lee laughed. "You are one lucky guy. I do not know how you managed that. She's fired so many guys on the spot just because she didn't like how they looked."

"I am as surprised as you. I thought I was gone for sure" he said in relief.

Lee turned his attention to his phone to look at the schedule. "Looks like it will be a long one tomorrow night. She's got a date with her boyfriend."

"We have to go on her dates?" Jack replied in surprise.

"Of course. That's the worst part. She goes out with so many losers. This one is a real jerk too."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Anyway start a bit later tomorrow. Maybe ten?"

"How long do we stay with her for?"

"Until we've dropped her home but she doesn't normally stay out too late."

"Okay. Thanks Lee."

The rest of the day went without event. Jack trailed Ms Thatcher and Lee to lunch where she met up with a friend in a café down the block. He stood back against the wall, giving them sufficient privacy so he couldn't hear their conversation. Jack watched Ms Thatcher out of the corner of his eye. She laughed with her friend easily – this side of her he found quite curious. Ms Thatcher stayed in her office for the rest of the afternoon. Jack watched people coming and going out of her office but rarely got a glimpse of her. He spent his time learning the identities of the other employees in the office and what they did for the company.

As he got ready to leave he noticed Ms Thatcher leaving as well, heading for the private lift. She had one of the older guards, Ned, with her. He was the guy that had attended her to the café the last two mornings. He was now a bit concerned about this guys reaction time. Considering she had a bodyguard with her both times he had collided with her and the bodyguard was unable to do anything. Jack sighed and made a note in his notepad. He had been adding things all day, weaknesses he had noticed when reviewing the protocols and screens. He would bring them up with Lee later.

Jack stood, pulling on his jacket and headed for the door. He watched the monitors as Ms Thatcher walked across the carpark and got into the back of a car. The bodyguard followed and the driver pulled away. Jack glanced over the remaining monitors before he left for the day, heading for the subway again.