Page 14 of Get Undressed With Me

Brittany was opening her mouth to tell Kyle exactly how much she wanted to slice him with razors when suddenly he was yanked several feet away from her. Gus’s towering form was now between her and Kyle, and even though Brittany had on the heels she was currently hired to sponsor, she was still too short to see over Gus’s back.

“You don’t touch her,” Gus said, the steel in his voice cutting deep through Brittany’s psyche. Kyle held his hands up in supplication.

“Whoa, bro, I didn’t mean to try anything, she was just in the way.”

Gus must not have liked that answer because he took a step forward. Brittany, already seeing where this was going and knowing in her bones that Kyle wasn’t worth the drama, grabbed Gus’s arm and pulled him back.

“It’s fine, Gus. Let’s go, we’re late.”

For a second, Brittany wondered if he even heard her, he was so focused on Kyle. To his credit, Kyle had landed on the “maybe if I freeze, he’ll just sniff me and go away” method of dealing with danger and was determined not to make any sudden moves. Brittany tightened her grip on Gus’s arm, squeezing until he turned his head and looked at her, his body still tense.

“He’s one of my roommates,” she told him in a quiet voice. “He didn’t mean anything, he’s just handsy and doesn’t think.”

Gus kept his eyes on her, but his body was still tense. “You don’t like being touched without permission.”

Brittany blinked. It was true, she wasn’t a hugger, didn’t like to be randomly touched by people she wasn’t close with. But she never really talked about it, so she was surprised Gus had even noticed.

“It was an accident, he won’t do it again. Right, Kyle?”

Kyle nodded emphatically.

“Great. Can we go now?”

Gus just looked at her, and in that moment Brittany felt more seen than she had ever been, which was saying something since she regularly streamed her life to thousands of people online. His gaze seared through her, looking for what she may be hiding from him, and she found suddenly herself feeling exposed, that he could see her secrets and was weighing him in that Gus way.

Whatever he was seeing calmed him down, and the arm she was holding finally relaxed. Kyle must have sensed the change because in the next instant, he was slipping away and heading for the stairs.

“Brittany, next time warn me when you get a new boyfriend. I don’t need this drama in my life.”

He was gone before Brittany could correct his assumption, but it didn’t matter. Kyle was a doofus and not worth explaining things to. Brittany squeezed Gus’s arm one more time before releasing it.

“Can we go now?” she asked.

Gus threw one more glance toward where Kyle had disappeared and then nodded at her.

Breathing in a sigh of relief, Brittany headed to the elevator. She had never seen Gus act like that before, so protective and riled up, but she wasn’t surprised. Gus was a guy who liked to take care of his things, and for better or worse, Brittany fell into that category for the weekend. Gus had effectively claimed her, which was going to hurt her plan to find a guy to give her an orgasm this weekend. But Brittany was crafty, and Gus wasn’t going to be on the clock twenty-four/seven, so she felt like she could manage. And he had said he could blend into the background. Brittany didn’t believe it, but maybe if he disappeared long enough, she could find a cute guy for a nightof fun. It had been too fucking long since someone other than herself had given her an orgasm.

They rode the elevator without a word, Gus clearly a master of the silent treatment, and then walked out the door together. Her hotel was close enough to the convention center to walk there, a must considering her crazy schedule. When they stepped outside, they were immediately surrounded by other convention-goers, all heading in the same direction as them. Gus moved closer to her, his eyes scanning the crowd.

“Stay close.”

They slowly made their way up the street, Gus using his size to knock people away when they got too close. His hand hovered behind her, not touching but close enough that she could feel his heat through her thin blouse, which was comforting in a way she didn’t want to think about.

They crossed the street to the convention center, Gus not saying a word but keeping his eyes moving constantly looking for threats. They easily spotted the long line to enter, and Brittany stopped, going on her tiptoes to scan the line.

“She’s over there.”

Brittany followed his arm to see her friend Min wildly waving in her direction. Her boyfriend, Hayden, stood with his hand on her hip, looking around them as if someone was going to pop out of the crowd and attack Min with an autograph request.

It wouldn’t be the first time. Hayden had built his streaming platform as DeathsHead with only his voice and his love of games—but never had actually shown his face. Until trouble went down at a gaming tournament last year, and he outed himself publicly to show his commitment to Min. Previously rivals, FlameThrower and DeathsHead were now considered a celebrity couple in the streaming circles, and so events like Kickoff meant they were often recognized. Especially since they were usually together because they were disgustingly in love.

Brittany tried not to hold it against them. Mostly because it was nice to see Min so happy. She had had a rough time last year when her asshole ex posted racy pictures of her online without her consent. Hayden was a good man, for all that he was an idiot for a hot second before they got together. But now he was committed, and Brittany could appreciate his obvious devotion.

Once Brittany got near, she threw herself at Min, who gladly caught her in a hug with a laugh.

“You bitch, where have you been hiding?”

Min squeezed her tighter. “Me? You’re the one locking down uber-important design deals and having meetings with fashion houses. No time for your lame gamer friend.”

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