Page 7 of The Bodyguard and the Bombshell

And she would work her way up.

It would be okay. Although what had they said? “What did you mean I need a bodyguard?”

* * * *

Nate Carter had been working at McKay-Taggart for exactly one week, and he was fitting in well. It was good to be around the men and women of the bodyguard unit, good to feel this brotherhood thing they had going.

It wasn’t the lightning bolt he wanted, but it was enough for now.

He was about to finish up his first week on the job, and tonight was his first night at The Hideout. He planned to spend his weekend settling into his new space.

“Hey, I thought I’d come down and hang with you while my sister is being interrogated for her latest adventure.” Aidan O’Donnell strode up to the desk Nate had been assigned. “It’s a doozy.”

He’d heard a lot about the ball of chaos known as Daisy O’Donnell. “What’s she up to this time?”

She was a mystery. He hadn’t seen a picture of her since he didn’t do social media, and Aidan was packing up to move in with his fiancée, so his part of the house was looking pretty sparse. He hadn’t seen his other roommates yet since Cooper McKay and Tristan Dean-Miles were… He had no idea where they were since it was classified.

He’d worked with both young men on a CIA op in Sydney a few months back, so he was certain he could hang with the guys. Though everyone had thought Tristan would be moving out with Aidan since they’d been involved with Carys Taggart since they were kids. For reasons he didn’t understand, Aidan was marrying Carys in a few short weeks, and Tristan was out of the relationship.

It was a lot of drama, but they were all blokes so they dealt with it by drinking beer and not talking about anything but sports.

“So my sister recently took a job as a receptionist for a private investigation firm.” Aidan sat in the chair across from Nate’s assigned desk. He was in the back of the floor, fairly close to the boss’s office. He and Aidan had fallen back into an easy friendship. Like the years between them hadn’t mattered at all. It was comforting to be around Aidan.

“I thought she was going into real estate.” He’d heard many stories of the chaos that seemed to follow Aidan’s baby sister. She was a complete mess, but it was obvious her brother adored her.

“Yeah, real estate did not work out. She passed the test and everything, but then she put the wrong keys in all the lockboxes they use and mistakenly put in some list prices she said seemed more in line with the neighborhood.” Aidan shook his head. “She lives in her own world.”

She sounded like a hoot. “So now she’s a receptionist. How much trouble could she get into there?”

Aidan’s eyes went wide. “She managed to uncover a cocaine distribution organization.”

Nate felt his jaw drop. “She did what? How? How does answering the phone lead to exposing criminals?”

Broad shoulders shrugged. “I have no idea how she does it. She should have a patent or something. Anyway, to hear her describe it there was a client looking for her cheating boyfriend and the new bosses were out for lunch, so she took the case.”

“But she was the receptionist.”

“My sister has a confidence only Hollywood stars have. The men, I mean. Daisy plows through life never understanding how dangerous the world can be, probably because our da chased after her making sure she never had to deal with anything. Don’t get me wrong. My sister is a wonderful woman. She would do anything for a friend. She’ll literally give you the shirt off her back. She did it one time when this woman she met had been dumped by her boyfriend at the lake and he’d taken off with her clothes. She was in a bikini and crying. Daisy told the girl she spends half her life in fet wear, so walking around in her bra wasn’t a problem.”

Nate tried to wrap his head around the idea. “She’d just met the girl?”

“Yup, and she managed to find the girl a ride home and talk her parents down from grounding her because she wasn’t supposed to be out late,” Aidan explained. “All while wearing short shorts and a pushup bra.”

He was rapidly becoming fascinated with the idea of Daisy. “So did she get hurt? When she exposed the cartel? I assume she called the police.”

“No, she was too busy not understanding what she was doing. She was taking a selfie memorializing her first ‘case’ as a detective.” Aidan used air quotes around the word case. “Her best friend caught it when she posted it on Instagram and Brianna called the police. Luckily she’d tagged her location. So now she’s a material witness against a drug lord. Just another day in the life of Daisy O’Donnell. Not even her worst day.”

“Is your dad freaking out?” Liam was famous for having a distorted view of his daughter. He claimed she was a saint most of the time. When he’d seen the man the last few years, Liam would always announce his Daisy was the sweetest, most perfect child in the world and Aidan… Aidan was a boy.

Aidan nodded. “Beyond freaking out. It’s why I spent last night at Daisy’s. Carys and I had to be with her because my da wouldn’t let her stay alone. Daisy loves her little house. It’s a dump, by the way, but she bought it for a song, and for some reason she’s obsessed with living on her own. Though if the meeting goes the way I think it is going to, she’ll be coming back to our place tonight.”

“Why?” He didn’t mind. In fact, he was curious. If she was anything like she was when she was a kid, she would be pleasant to be around. She used to tell him how smart she thought he was, how much she liked being around him. He’d only been a year older than she was, but he’d been so big physically the age difference seemed larger. “I thought we were going to the club. Isn’t there a party tonight?”

“There is, and we wouldn’t miss it. It’s our annual masked ball.” Aidan’s lips curved up in a devilish grin. “It’s the best night since everyone’s in a mask and you can pretend to not know you’re playing with the sub you’ve always wanted to play with. It’s fun.” He sat up. “I mean that in a watch the drama way. Not in an I participate way. Trust me. I know exactly what Carys will be wearing. But it’s funny to watch the others fumble their way through. My cousin Lucas likes it because he can pretend he’s sleeping with someone new. He has to pretend since he’s gone through most of the available subs already. Seth will try to find Chloe Lodge because he wants her so bad, but he wants to pretend like he doesn’t want her at all. Chloe will stay away because she’s the smart one. I won’t even go into what Kala and Coop would do. They won’t be here because they’re saving the world or something. But it will still be a crazy night.”

He was looking forward to it. Not because he would play tonight. He intended to take it slow, to get into the groove of the club before looking for a play partner. He would put on his leathers and the mask Aidan supplied him with and sit in the lounge for most of the night. He might watch some scenes. “So what’s Daisy doing while we’re playing?”

“She usually sits in the locker room,” Aidan explained. “She doesn’t mind. She’ll grab a bottle of wine from the lounge and pop some popcorn and watch bad reality shows on her tablet. You need a ride? I was planning on going home and grabbing my kit and Carys before picking up baby sis.”

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