Page 32 of Don’t Fall For A Bodyguard

“Like what?” Lennie chuckled, which only made my temper spark. “Like, I wanted to? And hey, you kissed me back.”

“Why is this so funny?” I demanded.

“There’s nothing funny about this situation, Angel. But your reaction is. We kissed, we came, it was nice. You don’t want to make anything more of it, so I’m not.” He paused. “Salt? Pepper?”

“No, I don’t want salt or pepper! Nice? Nice! I’ve never been so insulted in my entire life!” I snapped.

“Payton, you need to take a deep breath and take a large sip of your coffee, okay?”

“I…you…don’t?—”

This man had me totally out of my depth. And, out of words.

“Relax and eat your breakfast, sweetheart.”

“Don’t tell me to relax,” I huffed. “And I’m not your sweetheart.”

I wish.

Lennie’s head fell back, and he stared up at the ceiling. “Dio mio.”

He reached for his cup, took a long sip, and sighed. Then he put one arm around the back of my chair and leaned over. So close, I could smell the soap he used, warm and spicy, and the sweet coffee on his breath.

“What did I tell you last night?”

“When you were coming, or afterward?” I replied tartly.

“Don’t sass me,” Lennie growled. “What did I tell you?”

“That you’re—” I paused and reached for my espresso, my hand shaking. “You’re not going anywhere.”

I took a sip of coffee to distract myself from his intense perusal. But when Lennie sweetly kissed the top of my head, I started choking.

“You okay, Angel?” he asked me as he patted my back.

“Good. Fine,” I croaked, barely able to get the words out. “Give me warning next time.”

“Sorry. My bad. You’re too damn irresistible.”

How could I argue with that?

CHAPTER 11

LENNIE

Ihadn’t slept at all last night, but I didn’t give a fuck. I’d trade any sleep, any day, for more time with Payton. As much as he’d flirted with me for months and months, I don’t think he ever anticipated anything would come of it. I didn’t either.

Until Vegas.

I knew what I wanted, but Payton needed time. For all his talk about wanting to find love and a boyfriend, he was scared. Scared to let anyone get close. Probably the result of some asshole(s) he’d dated who’d gotten into his head. And there was our work situation. I couldn’t discount that.

But I knew my heart. I’d never fallen before, but there was no mistaking it. I’d give him all the time he needed, but I was not about to forget last night. Or the past two days. Or months of flirting. And, with each passing hour, our wedding seemed less like a mistake and more like fate.

Which was probably why, the closer we got to Elias Kain’s office, the more anxious I became.

The office wasn’t far from the studio downtown, so the location was familiar. And being a block from Broadway Street, the heart of the music action, it was busy. The area was wall to wall bars and clubs. I pulled up to the address and parked. Mostof the buildings around here were commercial on the first floor, and rentals on the second.

“Is this the right place?” Payton asked.

---