Page 2 of Taming Scarlet

Not ten seconds later, the door was opening, and the blonde receptionist was pushing in a silver coffee cart.

“Can I get you a cup?” she asked.

Only because she seemed eager to get the task done, I nodded. “Black.”

She was quick to get us each a cup before scurrying back out, leaving the cart behind as she went.

“So, you have a job offer for me,” I said when Marcus finally sat.

At the mention of the job, though, he… sighed.

“I do,” he agreed, reaching for his coffee, but just turning the mug in his hand on the surface of the desk.

“This is where you’re supposed to tell me about it, sir,” I invited.

“Ex-military, right?”

“Yes,” I agreed.

“Special operations, if I remember correctly.”

“Yes,” I said, not volunteering more since I couldn’t even if I wanted to.

“That’s good. I think that experience will be vital to this position.”

My brows furrowed at that.

“To protect your daughter?” I asked. “From whom?”

“Herself, mostly,” he said with a smile that went nowhere near his eyes. “There are threats, of course. On my life. And, by extension, hers. When you get to a certain stature in the world, someone is always out to blame you for something, to want you to pay for some real or imagined slight. I’ve always had my own security for any social events.”

“And your daughter hasn’t?” I asked.

“She has. She certainly has,” he added on a sigh. “The thing is, Mr. Flynn, no one has lasted. I need someone who is serious about this job, and won’t leave me in the lurch because they had a bad day.”

Christ.

His daughter sounded like a fucking nightmare.

But if I could put up with the whiny new recruits while serving, I was sure I could tolerate some bratty rich kid.

“I understand. I’ve never been one to quit when things get hard,” I said.

Quite the opposite.

Everything I have ever lost in my life had claw marks on it.

“That’s good to hear. As for the job itself, it is simple work, really. Being wherever my daughter is, keeping an eye on her, making sure no one hurts her or gets into any… sticky situations.”

Did he have no control over his kid?

What kind of ‘sticky situations’ could a child be getting into?

“Alright,” I agreed.

“In case this was not made clear in the email, this is a live-in position.”

A live-in position?

---