Page 47 of On the Double

“What about my charm?”

I could practically feel the wince in his shoulders. “Well, that’s something we have to work on.”

“She’ll hate me when she realizes I’m a bodyguard.”

“Are you kidding? A man who can protect her granddaughter and look amazing doing it? She’ll be eating out of your hands!”

He seemed a lot more sure of this than I was.

“I swear, I won’t leave your side the whole time. I’ll keep her so busy with talk of musicals that she won’t have time to even speak to you.”

I nodded vigorously. “So…I just have to talk to Harper.”

“Exactly! And you’re great at talking to the ladies. And since she’s already obsessed with you, you know it won’t be an issue to get information out of her.”

I stopped nodding and frowned at him. “Why would I want to get information out of her?”

“Because on the off chance that you do speak to the grandma, you need to know something about Harper.”

“Right.” I swallowed hard. This was going to be hell.

“Hey, you’ve got this. I’ve never known a man more capable of taking on the impossible. You’re like…Mr. Mission Impossible. You’re better than Tom Cruise and Ving Rhames!”

“Yeah, I am. Wait, what about Simon Pegg?”

Fox winced. “Well, he’s a complex character. I’m not sure you could pull him off, but definitely the other guys.”

I nodded, feeling my confidence build by the second. I could do this. I was James Bond. Or Ethan Hunt? Which was it? It didn’t matter. I had this. This was nothing more than a job, and I was a fucking professional.

“Now, get on your feet and get rid of that puke bucket.”

I did as he said, flinging it to the side. “Yeah, I don’t need that.”

“You don’t need that! You’re not Scottie!”

I huffed out a laugh. “I most definitely am not Scottie. I don’t puke mid-flight.”

“Well, you did jump out of a plane.”

“Because he told me to!” I argued. “But did I flinch?”

“Hell no!”

“Did I get scared and puke all over the place?” I shouted.

“Not even a single drop,” he said encouragingly.

“That’s because I am Edu, king of the OPS company. I rule with an iron fist, and I will not be thwarted by some grandma and her stalker granddaughter!”

Fox winced. “Okay, that may be taking things a little far. If anyone is king, it’s gonna be me, but you could be a prince.”

I narrowed my eyes at him.

“Okay, fine! You can be king! I’m the court jester. They’re the best, anyway.”

Feeling much better about the situation, I stomped into my bathroom and turned on the shower. I was going to get cleaned up and be the best fucking fake fiancé anyone had ever seen. I’d show this grandma person just how amazing I was. I didn’t need to sing and dance. I was fucking Edu, and when she saw just how amazing I was, she’d fall at my feet and thank me for taking her psycho granddaughter off her hands and giving her a stable environment where she could be something other than a cash register—as her grandmother put it.

I emerged from my bedroom fifteen minutes later feeling refreshed and ready to take on the world. Dressed casually in my tactical gear, I knew I could take on the world and squash this grandma like the bug she was.

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