Page 12 of Guarded By A Savage Shifter

“You don’t have to pay me,” he says like he couldn’t care less about the money. “But you can’t fire a protective mate.”

“It’s so nice that I get to have a say in the matter,” I say, rolling my eyes. “I never agreed to be your mate.”

“You don’t have to,” he says. “It was set before you were born. It’s written in the stars. It’s fate.”

“Is that so?” I ask, leaning on the door as I look up at his big chiseled jaw. I’m showing a bit of cleavage and he notices, but I don’t hide behind the door anymore. I like having his eyes on me. I love the possessive way he looks at me. He looks at me like I’m all his. Like I was made for him. Even though he’s frustrating as all hell, he’s intriguing and sexy and I have a bit of a crush developing even though I’m trying really hard not to.

“Are you going to stand out here all night?” I ask as I look up and down the empty hall.

“Yes.”

I laugh. “Seriously?”

“I’m not leaving your side.”

“On this trip or ever?”

“Ever.”

I’m laughing, but he’s not. Wait, is he serious?

“I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” he says, looking at me like I’m the most precious thing in the world.

“You don’t have to stand outside my door, Ryker. I’ll be fine.”

He just shrugs. “It’s my pleasure, Gracie. I’ve been waiting to find you for a long time.”

I lean against the door as I look up at his calm handsome face. Maybe he’s not so bad. No one has ever been so concerned with my safety before, besides my parents, but they don’t really count. It’s kind of sweet. In its own frustrating way.

I think about inviting him in, maybe even sharing a room, but I wipe that thought out of my head as quickly as it comes in. This is a work trip. I have to keep things professional. I have to stay focused on the interview tomorrow. And if I let him in, I’ll probably be upallnight.

“Can I get you a chair at least? A magazine?”

He shakes his head. “I want to stay alert.”

“Suit yourself,” I say as I step into the hall. He makes a sexy little groaning sound when he sees what I’m wearing.

“Where are you going?”

“Ice machine,” I say, holding up the bucket.

I can feel his heated eyes roaming up and down my back as I head for the stairwell. Of course, he follows me. Apparently, I’m mated to a golden retriever-like man who won’t leave my side. Just my luck.

“I’m going to try one more time,” he says as we walk. “Please cancel the interview.”

I stop short in the hallway, turn, and face him with a steely glare. “Stop asking me that.”

“This man is a killer!” he says, throwing his big arms in the air. “Who cares what he has to say?”

“I do!”

“Enough to risk your life over?”

“I want to expose what he’s doing to this innocent country and get to the truth.”

“You’re going to get yourself killed,” he says, taking a step forward and getting into my face.

I step forward and get into his face right back. “That’s what you’re here for! Remember? To stop that from happening.”

---