Page 41 of Trust My Bodyguard

She shakes her head, sending her long waves about. “You know what? Doesn’t matter. As long as you make sure to keep your ladies in line and don’t have them bothering my sister, then we can coexist in peace.”

My ladies?She’s good at getting to me, I’ll give her that.

I scoff a laugh. “We have never coexisted in peace, Miss Spitfire. You’re too busy picking a fault with everything I do. If you want peace, allow me to do what you hired me for instead of running off and thinking you can handle shit every time!”

“Well, you were slow.” She gestures at me.

The seriousness of the situation dawns on me. Just because she’s light on her feet doesn’t mean she’s allowed to hop off like an overexcited rabbit. “And you were careless. What if it wasn’tKerianne but an actual bad guy? What if you not only put Iris but also yourself in more danger?”

Her eyes shift to her sister, doubts diminishing her confident stance. “I’m not a fool. I’d have assessed the situation and then made a plan to disrupt whatever was happening!”

“My god. You can’t accept that you’re wrong, can you?”

“I’ll accept I’m wrong when hell freezes over because you’d never apologize for your negligence!” Her finger is awfully close to my chest again.

This stubborn woman. Maybe I’ll follow through and punish her after all.

“Stop!” Iris cuts between us. “Both of you, stop.”

“Can’t you see the way he acts?” Ivy tries to get around her.

Iris pushes her back. “I said stop. If anyone should be mad, it should be me. I’m the one in danger.”

“But I care about you and I don’t want to see you get hurt.” Ivy’s voice cracks. “I don’t know what I’ll do if anything happens to you.”

An unusual feeling grows in my chest. My annoyance toward her flickers out replaced by something tender. I want to pull her in my arms and tell her she doesn’t have to be so strong all the time. She doesn’t have to be afraid. I’d never let anyone get to Iris or her.

“If only he”—she stabs a finger in my direction—“did his job then we wouldn’t have to worry about that.”

And there goes all the warmth I felt toward her. “If you just stop interfering then maybe I’ll be able to.”

“If you’re faster on your lumbering feet then maybe you’d have gotten here before me.”

“I don’t lumber,” I say.

“Jesus.” Iris slaps a hand over her face. “Shut the fuck up, you two. It’s no one’s fault but mine. I started this. I’m the one who left the cabin without telling anyone.”

Ivy frowns. “Don’t say that.”

“It is. Stop fighting Brody because you’ve convinced yourself that you’re not permitted to be mad at me.” She gives her a firm look.

Ivy opens her mouth, probably to argue but Iris holds a hand up. “Seriously, Ivy.” Iris pushes her hand toward her face. “Give it a rest.”

It’s a fucking miracle that Ivy doesn’t press the issue. I look down at my hand. Is that something I can do too to shut her up? Hand in the face? I lift it up to test and she gives me a death stare. I’m certain she’ll bite my wrist off if I put my hand in her face.

Iris turns to me. “I’m sorry I left, okay? It’s my fault all of this is happening.”

“I can’t protect you if I’m not with you, Iris,” I say as gently as I can despite how riled up I feel. “I don’t want to police everything you do but you need to tell me when you want to be anywhere outside the cabin. The whole point of this is to keep you safe.If you run off without my knowledge, anything could happen to you and I won’t be there to protect you.”

“I know. I know.” She rubs her temple with gloved fingers. “I’m going to tell you from now on. I just needed some time alone.”

“You can always ask for space if I’m bugging you,” Ivy says. “I won’t mind.”

I try to make myself scarce. A fly on the wall so the ladies won’t feel smothered by my presence. Obviously, I haven’t been doing well enough. “You have every right to ask, Iris. I can give you all the space you need.” Ivy looks at me and for a split second, gratitude shining in her gaze.

Iris tucks her chin against her chest and moves a few paces away. “It’s not that. You guys don’t bother me.” She turns around and looks at both of us with soulful eyes. “I just feel... like the ground has been washed away from beneath my feet. I don’t know where I stand. I don’t know what to do.”

“Iris...” Ivy steps forward.

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