Bodyguard to the Billionaire Read online

  It didn’t matter how stupidly hot that idiot was. What did I care if he was shoved into someone’s trunk and tortured? There you go again, trying to fix things that don't want to be fixed... save things that don't want to be saved. Stupid loyalty.

  I should have left him alone. Let that crazy guy with the gun kidnap him.

  Not that I knew what had happened after I walked away. But hey, none of my concern, right?

  I parked my Jeep in my spot at Royal Elite and yawned, keeping my sunglasses in place. It was far too bright, and I’d had too little sleep. I’d woken up and gotten dressed for a workout, but it had been so brutal I’d skipped out and gotten a coffee from my favorite place on the island instead.

  Trace was working out on the expansive lawn and he met me with a big grin. "Morning, sunshine."

  Just the boom in his voice was enough to send a fissure of pain along my skull. "Yeah, maybe you don't need to shout that?"

  He grinned. "Uh-oh, did someone overindulge at the wedding?"

  "No, actually, just haven't been sleeping well."

  He lifted a brow. "Are you sure you didn't overindulge?"

  "When have you ever seen me overindulge.?"

  He studied me closely. He couldn't see my eyes, but something must have told him something was up because his brows furrowed. "What's wrong?" He was too damn perceptive.

  "Nothing. I'm fine."

  "Come on, Barnes. We're a team. If you're upset about something, I should probably be upset about it too."

  "Nah, it’s all good."

  As he followed me, he muttered, "Does it have anything to do with the ex?"

  "Damn it, Tamsin." I was going to kill her and her big mouth.

  "She mentioned you saw the fucker at the wedding."

  "It's fine. I'm fine."

  "I could shoot him. Nothing fatal of course, but he would know pain. He'll never even know it was me."

  I considered that for just a moment too long before I turned to face him. “Just how painful could we make it?”

  He gave me a predatory smile and a shrug. “Enough to put a smile on your face.”

  It really would solve most of my problems. I could then go about my life without worrying that I might see him. "I appreciate the offer, but I’m good. Besides if anyone is going to shoot him, it’ll be me." I turned back around and found my way into the building. Jameson met us both with a terse nod. "Unplanned client meeting. Ariel’s been in with him for the last hour. From the looks of it, he’s VIP. She took the intake meeting herself.

  I bit back my inward groan. "Please, God, I cannot handle another movie star."

  Behind me, Trace chuckled. "You still scarred from the last one?"

  My jaw locked. Brighton Henry. The new ‘it’ movie star on the rise. And he’d been a complete nightmare. He’d mistaken bodyguard for maid, housekeeper, chef and escort for the three days I’d been assigned to him. And he kept forgetting my name, calling me Zany for the duration. “I call not it.”

  I marched into the office I shared with Tamsin to the right of the main conference room and tossed my backpack and keys into my drawer. I had just turned on my laptop when my intercom buzzed.

  “Zia, please join us.”

  No. Why did I always end up with the movie star assholes? I felt like Tamsin was long overdue. But instead of complaining, I said, “I’ll be right there.”

  I didn’t even have time to take a bite of my pastry. Instead, I grabbed my laptop and phone and headed for the conference room. When my phone buzzed in my hand, one quick glance told me I didn’t want to respond.

  Deedee: Where are you? Call me.

  Shit. I’d forgotten to text her back. I’d gotten distracted thinking about Gray Eyes. I’d call her after the meeting.

  Through the glass walls of the conference room window, I could see there was a man sitting in the client chair. From the back, despite his relaxed appearance, something about him oozed money. Which meant I’d be minding my Ps and Qs and my mouth.

  When I opened the door, the hairs at the back of my neck stood at attention and I frowned. I might not be excited about a new VIP client, but I shouldn’t be anxious. I was good at my job. Maybe too good. Which was why some clients thought I should be all things to them. I held back my eye roll.

  His hair was inky black, cut short above his collar. Slightly long up top but coifed perfectly. Not a hair out of place. It made me really want to mess them up. The skin on his neck was tan, like he spent time outside and not just in an office. His summer sweater looked soft and comfortable in an off white and azure blue that reminded me of the sand and water on Prince’s Beach. His shoulders were broad, causing that patch of fabric between his shoulder blades to pucker ever so slightly.

  Ariel gave me a warm smile. "Hey, Zia. Derrick, meet Zia Barnes. She’s going to be your new bodyguard."

  I gave Ariel a nod and focused my attention on the man in the chair. Strong hands held the edges as he pushed himself to his feet. That little motion. That fluidity. I knew before he turned around exactly who was in my boss’s office.

  Gray Eyes.

  The knowledge didn’t stop my breath from catching when his stormy gray eyes met mine. His jaw ticked, and when he spoke, his voice was low. So deep, it was more of a rumble than actual words. "Miss Barnes. It’s nice to meet you.” Something about the narrowing of his gaze said it was anything but nice to meet me.

  What the hell was happening here? He hadn’t wanted my help the night before. In fact, he’d basically little-womaned me. And now he was in my office looking for a bodyguard?

  Ariel gestured for me to take a seat next to Mr. Sex on a Stick. “You’ll be his new primary for the next few weeks."

  No way. I couldn’t do this. “I’m sure Lord Arlington would prefer someone more experienced.” Ariel would be pissed. But I couldn’t work for him. Day in and day out? No way.

  Lady Parts: Speak for yourself.

  He shook his head. "Just call me Derrick."

  I blinked. Swear to God, Ariel was speaking words. Ones I should understand, but they were coming out like jumbled goo. Still, I somehow managed to take my seat, but I couldn’t make words, though. Those were too hard.

  Ariel didn’t seem to notice. “Zia, you’ll be the point person. Jameson has the Bouner assignment she’s doing background on. Your backups will be Tamsin, Trace and Jax. This will be a three-week undercover assignment.”

  Undercover. Assignment. Weeks. Slowly, the bits and bobs of disjointed snippets started to make sense. This was work. I had to work. I had to get my shit together. I could do this. I was always the one with the plan. There was always a plan, and I could do this… work with the man that made my insides liquify.

  “Understood,” I croaked. Damn it. I needed my strong, I’m a badass voice right now. “What will the role be? I assume assistant.”

  Arial nodded, sending her bright red locks over her shoulder. “Yes. But as Mr. Arlington has live-in staff, you’ll need to double as his girlfriend too.”

  She said it so matter of fact, as if she didn’t see my underwear incinerating right before her eyes. I dragged in a shuddering breath. “Do we have any indication on the threat?”

  Derrick rumbled again. “My company has a high-profile takeover acquisition going on right now. It’s not exactly hostile, but it’s tense.” The timbre of his voice warmed my body. As he and Ariel outlined what his needs would be, I couldn't help but watch his mouth as he spoke. Full, sculpted lips. Insanely chiseled jaw. Cleft on his chin.

  It was only after I noticed Ariel watching me expectantly that I realized I’d missed something. Had I been staring? “I’m sorry, what?”

  Ariel lifted a brow. “I asked if you can do the background work-up. I have my hands full doing some work for the royal family.”

  I swallowed hard. “Yes, of course.” There was one thing I couldn’t figure out. Why hadn’t he mentioned he already knew me from the reception? Why haven’t you mentioned it? I was supposed to be the bodyguard to
a damn billionaire playboy?

  I must have really pissed someone off in another life. Whoever you are, I’m sorry. Can we call it even?

  No way did this punishment fit the crime. I might never have seen him before, but I was aware of him. Sexiest man alive, two years running. Cousin to the king. And all-around playboy pain in the ass.

  At the wedding, I hadn't known who he was. I didn't pay attention to Forbes or all the investing and tech magazines, but even I knew his name. Derrick Arlington was more than a bloody VIP billionaire. He was a VIP billionaire that someone had tried to kidnap. A billionaire that was now in our office looking for someone to protect him. But why hadn't he let me protect him before?

  Through the rest of the meeting, it was a struggle not to stare at him. I could feel the waves of tension rolling off of him. Was he pissed off too?

  We covered logistics and schedules and upcoming events I’d have to attend. And we covered discretion. “Zia, you’re never to break cover.”

  I nodded and frowned. “Won’t be a problem, but if someone is after him, they’ll be looking for an in, so my background story will need to be airtight.”

  Ariel shook her head. “Not this time. It’ll be easier if we keep your life the same. We’ll just backstop the last nine months with an admin gig instead of this one. That way anyone looking will find a real person. And let’s give you a reason for not staying there for long. Like you’re bad at your job. That way no one will be inclined to keep you busy with actual work.”

  I nodded. “Okay. That’ll work.” I had nothing to hide. And given my family situation, it would make my life much easier. Not to mention my military background wouldn’t set off any alarms. Everyone had to do national service.

  Derrick turned to face me, his gaze hard and impassive, his clear gray eyes framed by thick lashes. “Are you sure you can sell this? Everything hinges on you.”

  I lifted a brow. That was a dare. A challenge, a bait. I gave him a sweet smile then leaned closer to him. I gently a placed a hand on his cheek, crossing into his space. His eyes turned dark gray and stormy as his gaze locked with mine. The zap of electricity sent a potent charge through me. Could he feel it? “Of course I can sell this, Derrick.” I made it a point to soften the way I said his name.

  His gaze dipped to my lips, and his jaw twitched. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. My gaze held his as I rolled my shoulders. Then I released him and turned my attention back to Ariel as if he wasn’t present.

  For a long moment he stared at me.

  I shouldn’t have done that. I didn’t need to prove a point. I knew I was good at this. Ariel didn’t say anything, but she raised a brow.

  Once we made the final arrangements and Derrick left, Ariel held me back. "Zia, is everything okay with you?"

  I forced a smile. "Of course.” I cleared my throat. “But maybe Tamsin should—I mean, if maybe I could be tech, or anything really, I can still be of service. But I don't know, the guy rubbed me the wrong way."

  "Is there a reason?" Ariel eyed me.

  Knowing who he was, I realized that I probably should have reported the incident at the reception. And interestingly enough, since Ariel didn't seem to know about it, that meant that Derrick hadn't reported it either. "No, I just came off assignment, and I was looking for something a little lower profile this time around."

  "Sorry. Your profile is still low enough that no one will notice."

  I swallowed hard. "Well, what about the guys? Trace, Jax..."

  "Well, considering they're men, and neither of them has the tech expertise that might be needed, they don't make good candidates."

  "Why does them being men have anything to do with this?"

  Ariel pursed her lips, and I could tell she was getting annoyed with me.

  "Zia, can you handle this? I didn’t miss that exchange. I know he goaded you, but you weren’t supposed to rise to the occasion."

  I gritted my teeth. "He called my abilities into question.”

  She sighed then leaned back on her chair. "Derrick Arlington is Sebastian’s cousin. Given his profile, this is important. Can you handle yourself and him?” When I didn’t answer, she added, “Is there a problem? If there is a reason that you can't do this, I need to know now."

  I swallowed hard. Ariel was pretty much everything I wanted to be in this business. I couldn't very well tell her that I'd been having sex dreams about our new client. Nope. That fell under the whole not a good idea to reveal kind of thing.

  There’s no way she would ever take me seriously for any other client again. "Sorry, I’m just a little out of it. Of course, I'll take the assignment." I forced the words past my closing throat.

  Ariel studied me closely. "Look, you're not going to be on your own on this. We'll all be right there. But think of this as a personal favor to Sebastian and Penny. Derrick Arlington might not use his title, but he's still family. So we have to give our best for this. Get me?"

  I nodded slowly. "Yep, I got it." This job meant everything to me. If I lost it because I let personal things get in the way, then what would I have?

  Nothing. You'll have nothing. So, get over yourself and make this happen.

  "Okay. Why don't you pack your things? He'll send a car for you."

  "Right." Ariel dismissed me, and I headed to my room for a few moments of silence.

  But I was too slow. Tamsin was already waiting for me. "Um, are we going to talk about the fact that you are now assigned to the hot fucker from the wedding?"

  "Nope. I'm not going to talk about it at all. Everything is fine. Totally fine."

  She stared at me. "Please tell me that you didn't run out after him and bone him senseless."

  I gulped. "No, I did not bone him senseless."

  Lady Parts: I would have.

  "Because that would explain why you’re white as a sheet."

  "I'm fine. It's fine. Just didn’t expect to see him, that's all."

  "You don't want the job? Think of this as your chance to prove yourself. I mean, you keep saying how you really want to impress Ariel. I'm pretty sure if you can keep the king's cousin in one piece, then Ariel will be all kinds of impressed."

  "Yeah, I hope so."

  She frowned. "You're sure nothing is wrong?"

  "Yeah, I'm sure." Lies. “It’s not like he’s my actual boyfriend.”

  Tamsin laughed. "Is this the part where I remind you that those are the famous last words our own boss basically said herself?"

  "Except I know firsthand what happens when you mix business and pleasure. I won't be making that mistake again."

  "Okay, listen, if you don't want to do this, I'll switch with you."

  "No. I already told Ariel I could do it. It's fine. I’ve got this. What's the worst that could happen? It's not like there's any danger of me falling for him. He’s a dick. All I have to do is make sure I cover his ass. That's easy, right?"

  Something told me that it was going to be easier said than done.

  Six

  Theo…

  I was not watching the clock. I swear I wasn’t.

  You're absolutely watching the clock.

  I was supposed to go pick up my shiny new bodyguard at noon before my round of afternoon meetings. And to say that I was anxious was an understatement. I didn't want this. I was already tense enough trying to be someone else. Having her around was going to be much worse. She’d be next to me the whole time, looking over my shoulder, questioning everything. It was going to be impossible.

  You don't have a choice.

  The king had seen me, so I had no fucking choice. I was going to kill Zia Barnes. It didn't matter that her dark eyes could see clear to my soul. I didn't want that. I didn't ask for that. I wanted to do this job and get back to my life. But oh no, there she was, interfering in things that were none of her damn business.

  Not for nothing, she saved your life.

  I decided I was just going to ignore that little note. She'd probably absolutely saved my life, because e
ither I could have been shot right there, or I would have been shoved in the trunk, tortured somewhere else, and then shot.

  At least my mother was safe. I just hoped I could convince her to stay with my aunt longer. If someone already knew who I was, I needed to get to the bottom of this as soon as possible. Who the fuck were these people and where the hell was Derrick?

  I dragged my hands through my hair and forced my attention back to my monitor. But before I could focus, my assistant came in.

  "Um, Mr. Arlington, what’s this about a new assistant?” The hint of bite abraded the final word.

  I frowned up at her. "Yes, Olivia. I have special projects I’ll need some additional help with. "

  She pursed her lips. I wasn’t sure why, but she wasn’t pleased about the new development. What kind of relationship did she have with Arlington exactly?

  The way she was looking at me wasn’t sexual. It was more appraising but still somehow possessive. She had closed crop red hair that made her look like a pixie and she was wearing a boxy blazer and some kind of dress thing that was also boxy as if deliberately refusing to show her body. God, was Arlington that much of a fuck up?

  Are you really asking that question?

  “I get the feeling there is a problem, Olivia, explain.”

  She blinked rapidly. “It’s just I’m in charge of hiring new assistants and you didn’t even disclose you had special projects, or I could have picked out the perfect assistant. Honestly I don't even know her qualifica—”

  I stopped her there with a raised brow. “Pardon me, Olivia, but let me get this correct. Who is the CEO of Arlington Tech?”

  She pursed her lips. “You are.”

  “Okay, right. And who is ultimately in charge of hiring?”

  The lines around her mouth only deepened. “You are, but as you know, I worked for your father before you and I know what’s necessary to run—”

  Again, I stopped her. “I think you’re under the mistaken impression you still work for my father. Let me remind you he was ousted by the board for conduct unbecoming a CEO.”

  She didn’t flinch as she met my gaze. “That might be but you really don't understand the inner workings of the day-to-day administration operations.”