Page 20 of Guarded By the Phantom

“What are you doing?” she asked, her foot tapping angrily mere inches from my face.

“A penetration test,” I said without thinking, eyeing her foot with unhealthy curiosity.

If I told her the truth, would she kick me?Fuck, did that thought make me tingle. I liked a feisty woman—maybe a little too much. A woman like that was fun to wrestle with until I reduced her to needy whimpers.

What a horribly wrong thought to have right now.

“A pene…” She trailed off, her face growing redder, eyes darker. “Bullshit. You were peeping! What the hell?!”

“If I admit to it, will you get violent? Oooh, will you kick me?” I asked with mock excitement, stretching comfortably on the grass while she seethed.

She paused, some of her fury dissipating as she regarded me with incredulity. It seemed my manner confused her, and rightly so. This wasn’t how I was supposed to behave, but when I saw a hot, angry woman, I couldn’t help but play.

She shook her head.

“I’m wearing pointe shoes,” she said, gesturing at her feet. “You wouldn’t even feel it. Why did you watch me? I thought I was alone.”

I sat up, wondering how to answer that. She pursed her lips and took a step back, her eyes flitting away before they stubbornly settled on my face. She seemed flustered. I knew why it was—the balance of power was askew, with me on the ground, her standing.

I leaned back on my arms and relaxed with my thighs splayed wide, looking up at her with a grin. I was comfortable down here, even more so because she wasn’t.

“You blasted that music for the entire house to hear. I came out to see what the noise was. You have to be more mindful of the people you live with, you know.”

“I have to… What? Do you even hear yourself?” She shook her head in outrage, her hands clenched into fists. “That was private! I was in my private studio, and you had no right!”

“I mean, the windows were uncovered,” I said, raising a finger, “sotechnically, anyone could have seen you.”

She growled. I wondered idly why she was so pissed. Did she really hate it so much that I saw her dance? It was so fucking beautiful. I wanted the whole world to see it.

Barbara stomped the grass with fury. “No, they couldn’t! You climbed a tree to peep. It wasn’t an accident.” She took a deep breath. “I’m going to report you. My mother will fire you.”

I crossed my ankle over my bent knee, wiggling my foot tauntingly. I should have stopped at that point, I knew, but a little imp sat in my brain, urging me on. The same hunger that I failed to satisfy with Jordan, and then again last night when the mind manipulator got away, reared its ugly head, demanding a meal.

“And who will protect you if I’m gone?” I inquired mildly, projecting unconcerned languor. “I am the only abomination in the employ of the Monster Security Agency. No other species can resist mind manipulation.”

She huffed quietly and rolled her eyes, her foot tapping in irritation. I grinned, an idea popping into my head. Just as she opened her mouth to argue back, I cut in.

“Besides, if anyone was harassed, it was me! I should reportyouand demand compensation. Youflashedme! I am scarred for life! I fell off the tree because of you!”

I sat up straighter, playing up this new angle. It was true, after all. I wasn’t peeping to see her in the nude, for fuck’s sake, I just wanted to see a ballerina dance. That was far more innocent and not at all the nasty thing she made it out to be.

My accusation wasn’t received well. Barbara paled instantly, clutching the front of her top and backing away. “You… You saw that?”

I almost said “fuck”. Almost. I bit my tongue to keep it in and tasted blood, because of course, my teeth were razor-sharp. Never a good idea to bite anything I wasn’t planning to eat.

“Well, I fell off the tree at once, so I didn’t see much,” I said, backpedaling fast. “Actually… I saw nothing. Nothing at all. Pinkie promise.”

I offered her my armored pinkie in an attempt to lighten the mood. She took a deep, shaky breath, eyeing me warily. After a thoughtful pause, her forehead smoothed, her eyes gleaming with determination. The change was eerie, as if all of her anger had been wiped with a sponge, replaced by cool calculation.

The back of my head tingled. Never a good sign.

Before I could retract my hand, she extended her straight leg to bump my pinkie with the tip of her pointe shoe.

“Fine, I’ll believe you. If you do me a favor,” she said with a stern look that was utterly too cute on her pretty face.

Aha. She wanted something from me. Unfortunately, she had some good leverage. Ididfuck up, and if she reported me, there would be consequences.

I groaned, rubbing my temple. “A favor. Right. Well, for your sake, I hope you’re about to ask me to be extra careful while guarding you, and not, say, pop out to get you some tampons while you ditch my protection.”

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