Naked and Bound (1*+)

"She doesn't need love, Mother. She needs protection." Mr. Reed said with a voice that was intimately familiar with authority. He breathed power, they said. Yielded it. Created it. It was no wonder that he was one of the elites in the growing economy of the security system in Chicago.  However, Mr. Reed was surprisingly not the most powerful inside his house.  Sitting across him was his Mother, looking like a queen herself with her hair carefully arranged in a neat chignon, her back straight, and her palms on her thighs. She didn't breathe power. She was the power. Her eyes were an enticing mixture of green and blue. It's depths held daunting intellect.   "I don't understand why you talk about love as if it was nonsense to you, Quinn." Granny Paula said after a long time. She was looking at the portrait of her daughter-in-law hanging against the wall who was laughing carelessly at something her son had whispered against her ear. She smiled absently, "I would have known that Hannah had made you feel what it's like to be loved."  Quinn stood suddenly and strode angrily away from her mother. He stopped as he reached the glass wall. It reflected his stern expression and troubled blue eyes. "You're missing the point, Mother. This isn't the kind of solution we need."  Granny Paula remained silent and let her plan sank inside her son's mind. He was stubborn, you see. Stubborn as his father. This trait not only made him a successful businessman but also took him to the top. Yet everything came with a price. Mr. Reed gained enemies. People who wanted not only a piece of his wealth but all of it. They wanted it badly, he knew. The death of his wife was evidence of their greed. The only treasure left was his daughter.  And treasures were meant to be protected.   Fifteen years ago, Mr. Reed had fled across the country, bought a house in a middle of nowhere, and made it into an unbreakable fortress. It was all he could before hunting his prey. He was consumed with the desire to retaliate that he forgot to take good care of his daughter. His mother had strongly berated him about that fact. Granny Paula had taken over and took Victoria Reed under her wing. She had made easy everything for him. Thank God he listened to her. And, now, she was asking him to listen again and follow her plan.  The plan was simple. Hire two men who can be her grand daughter's potential husband. Men who could live with her. Stick with her even though she lived in isolation far away from the city, far away from the people who could hurt her.   It was doable.  But something was amiss that made Mr. Reed hesitant. He knew that his mother was hiding something from him. There was more to this than she letting him know. And it had something to do with his mother being a hopeless romantic.   "Are you sure about this?" He said in resignation. Granny Paula's eyes shone wickedly. She hid it instantly before her son could see it. "Of course, my dear. Grandmothers know best."