Guarding Camille

A couple of minutes later, Megan approached them, a very handsome dark-haired man at her side. “Mr. Smith, I’d like you to meet my nephew, Connor O’Hara, and—”

Camille had been studying the new arrival as Megan made the introduction. When she gave Connor’s name, the man whitened, all blood draining from his face, and Camille wondered if he would faint.

Jake grabbed his arm. “What the hell is going on?”

CHAPTER FOUR

JAKE SLIPPED a hand beneath Smith’s arm to support him, afraid he might pass out. Instead, Smith squared his shoulders and shrugged off Jake’s hold.

“Are you all right?” Camille asked, leaning toward him.

Jake recognized his instinctive urge to come between Camille and the stranger, but squelched it at once. There was no need to protect her. She was safe here.

“My heavens,” Megan exclaimed, looking at Harrison Smith. “Are you ill?”

“Yes! Yes, I just got over a bad bout with the flu,” he replied, a little too quickly, Jake decided. “I thought I was fully recovered but I guess I’ve had too long a day.”

Connor shrugged. “You probably should go home. Put your feet up.”

Jake smiled at his mother. “I’ll take Mr. Smith to the study and let him rest. He’ll probably be okay in a few minutes.” He didn’t want his opportunity to question the man to disappear. Especially now.

“I’ll find him something to eat,” Camille added. She smiled sympathetically at Smith, and Jake felt the stirrings of jealousy. What was wrong with him? She was only trying to be helpful.

“Thank you. I’d appreciate it,” Smith murmured, returning Camille’s smile.

For a prospective grandfather, Smith’s smile was a little too appreciative of Camille’s concern, Jake thought. Placing his hand on Smith’s shoulder, he directed him away from her. As he did so, he caught Michael Lord’s gaze and nodded toward Camille.

“I hope you’re able to stay, Mr. Smith,” Megan said, her social graces intact, as always. “Maybe if you rest until dinner, you’ll feel better.”

“Thank you,” he murmured.

Camille flagged down a waiter and conferred with him as Jake led Smith toward the study. She’d be safe, he assured himself as he caught sight of Michael heading toward her. Nothing could happen to her while he questioned the guest.

Once they reached the study, Smith stepped away from Jake.

“Thank you for your support. I’m feeling much better now. If you want to return to the party, I’ll stay here for a few minutes.”

Jake stuck his hands into his pants pockets and shrugged. “I’ve been to too many of these parties. I’d just as soon have a break, too.”

“I wouldn’t want to upset your mother by keeping her youngest away from the party,” Smith said with a slight smile.

Jake studied him. “How did you know I was the youngest?”

Smith didn’t flinch or look surprised by his question. “I think it’s common knowledge. You and your sister Anna are the only ones not involved in the hospital. I suppose that fact made you stand out.” He chose one of the large leather chairs tucked in a corner of the shadowy room, away from the glow of the lamp.

Jake paced around the room. “So, I understand your daughter is expecting.”

“Yes.”

“Where is she?”

“At home. In Montana.” He kept his gaze fixed on the cuff of his shirt, which he straightened with his opposite hand.

“And her husband?”

One eyebrow slid up, reminding Jake of Megan when one of her children had challenged her. He almost grinned, then regained control of himself.

“Are you implying I’m interfering with my daughter’s life?”

Jake didn’t back down. “I just know if my wife was having a child, I’d be the one making the decisions about the birth, not my father-in-law.” Memories of Jamie’s birth flooded him. Jamie wasn’t his child, but Jake had been there for Camille.

“You’ve never—” Smith began, when the door, which Jake had closed, swung open.

Camille entered with a tray filled with hors d’oeuvres and glasses of club soda. She was followed by Michael. Jake wasn’t surprised. He and Michael had discussed Harrison Smith and his probing questions. As head of security for Maitland Maternity, Michael had a few questions of his own.

He strode across the room and offered his hand to Smith. Camille hurried in his footsteps to put her tray on a table beside Smith’s chair.

“I think if you’ll eat a little, Mr. Smith, you’ll feel better,” she said, smiling at him.

Jake couldn’t help himself. He crossed the room and took Camille’s arm. “You’d better go back to the party.”

Camille raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think I’ll be missed, except by your cousin Connor. He seems, uh, eager to get to know me.”

Jake had recognized the leer on Connor’s face. He’d told himself he was being hypersensitive, but the thought of sending Camille back to the party without his protection wasn’t a happy thought.

“Thank you for the food,” Smith said to Camille. “I promise I’ll be fine after a few minutes’ rest and these snacks. I don’t want to keep any of you from the party.”

Jake stubbornly refused to be dismissed. “Look at it as an opportunity to get even more information about the hospital, Mr. Smith. After all, Michael is head of security. He can answer any questions you might have in that area.”

Smith studied Jake, as if questioning his words, before he smiled at Camille. “I think I’ve already asked too many questions about the hospital. I believe Mr. Maitland thinks I’m obsessive about my daughter’s welfare.”

Camille smiled in return. “Having a baby, even a grandbaby, is an important event. I admire your concern.”

Smith nodded. “I have to admit, I find the unusual story of your cousin’s return to the family fold more interesting,” he said, looking at Jake. “It was a topic of conversation for a while at the diner near the clinic.”