When Love Turns Dangerous novel Chapter 9

Chapter 9

The weather in the month of June was unpredictable. One moment, it was sunny; the next, a storm rolled in.

Tara stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, staring absently at the downpour outside. The blare of car horns and the hurried footsteps inside the villa finally snapped her out of her thoughts.

Stella, Hailey, and the other housekeepers clutched their umbrellas. Stella’s face was tense. It was as if she was worried that the men would get drenched.

Tara had assumed that the others could handle it and hadn’t planned to help—until Hailey spotted her.

It wasn’t that Hailey was unusually observant. But with just a glance, Tara’s presence by the window was impossible to overlook, her gaze distant as she watched the rain. She looked like an exquisite, lifelike statue, too striking to ignore.

Except for Stella, who was too distracted by the four men to pay attention, the others had noticed Tara, even if they didn’t openly stare.

Hailey, however, had no patience for her idleness. So what if enough people were already keeping the men from getting wet?

“Tara, hurry up. Here’s another umbrella.” Hailey raised her voice, urging Tara to help cover the men from the rain.

Without protest, Tara walked toward the villa’s entrance, saying, “I’ll follow in a moment.”

Satisfied, Hailey let her be and stepped into the rain, unfurling her umbrella.

Tara reached the doorway and took two umbrellas from the outdoor stand. She opened one, raindrops sliding off its surface and disappearing into the downpour.

Ahead of her, the housekeepers moved swiftly. Tara matched their pace, trailing just a few steps behind. She tilted her umbrella slightly and glanced up at the leaden sky. It looked like the rain wouldn’t let up anytime soon.

A line of luxury vehicles idled a short distance away. Shawn exited first, and Stella, standing nearest to him, hesitated. She seemed to wish that she could attend to all four men, reluctant to let anyone else step in.

Leah moved to offer her umbrella, but the driver was faster, intercepting with his own to shield Shawn.

The driver cast a sharp look at the housekeepers, clearly displeased with their sluggish response. He had gotten out of the car, yet no one had opened an umbrella for Shawn.

Shawn, ever good-natured, remained unbothered by the faint moisture gathering on his suit.

Hailey and Leah instantly recognized the accusation in the driver’s glare, their chests constricting with a sense of injustice. The delay hadn’t been their fault. Stella’s indecision had made them second-guess their actions, too.

Shawn had only taken a few steps toward the villa when he realized that Tara was lingering behind, alone. His thoughts drifted to two nights earlier when she’d bumped into him, her hand grazing him lightly.

Tara caught his gaze and greeted him. “Mr. Wilhelm.”

Shawn offered her the slightest nod and walked past without stopping.

“Tara, over here.”

The window of the luxury car ahead rolled down, revealing half of Gemma’s face from the passenger seat.

Tara quickened her pace. “Gemma.”

Gemma scowled at the housekeepers clustered around Lance’s car. She wondered why they were all gathered there. To make matters worse, the driver had forgotten the car’s only umbrella at the office.

Tara glanced into the back seat. Jonah was inside.

“Gemma, I brought two umbrellas. You and I can share one, and Mr. Pearson can use the other,” Tara said.

Gemma’s irritation immediately faded. She studied Tara standing outside the car. There was no hint of deception in her expression. She also thought that Tara was really beautiful.

Gemma might have even considered signing her if her background had been different. But the thought was fleeting. Bringing that thought to life would be too complicated.

The mere fact that Tara had once worked as a housekeeper in this villa meant that Gemma could never bring her into the entertainment industry.

“Fine,” Gemma replied.

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