Page 10 of Trust My Bodyguard

“Yes, of course. I just need to change first.” I turn away from Kerianne and wave Callum over. “Come with me.”

“I’ll see you around, Brody,” Kerianne calls behind me.

I sincerely hope not.

“Sorry for breaking up your conversation.” Callum walks astride me.

I should thank him. He did me a solid getting me out of that human flytrap’s grasp. “Is something wrong?”

I glance over my shoulder. The women trail behind us. One has her head tucked low and the other one, the who held my gaze, looks straight past me. The need to see those defiant dark green eyes fixed on mine again grips me. It’s so sudden and consuming that I nearly miss a step. I force my head to face forward.

“I’ll tell you in a moment,” Callum says.

Curiosity brings me back from my spiraling thoughts. He drove out to meet with me, meaning something important must begoing down. I cannot afford to be distracted by a woman right now.

The second we’re in my room, I gesture for my surprise guests to sit in the sitting area. Then I grab fresh clothes from the closet. I don’t wait to get in the bathroom before I pull off my shirt.

Whatever it is they are here for, I’m sure it’s going to be interesting, and I can’t wait to jump on it.

CHAPTER FOUR

Ivy

RANGERS LEAD THE WAY.

Those are the words tattooed on Brody’s upper back along with other inscriptions I can’t make out from where I’m seated. Not that I’m trying too hard. My attention shifts to his defined back muscles glistening with perspiration. Each step produces a ripple and flex that holds me captive. His strong wide shoulders taper to a slim waist and down to a firm—

The bathroom door slams shut, cutting off the nice view.

My god. I snap my eyes away and stare at the blank TV hung up on the wall. A side glance at the Iris and Callum proves that neither caught me staring.Still.

Minutes pass and Brody doesn’t come out.

I’m in a sour mood. I only keep myself in check because of Iris. All of this is for her safety, and I don’t want her looking over at me and thinking I’m mad. But I’m barely holding back from exploding.

My sister folds in on herself like a pile of dirty laundry, keeping her hoodie pulled tight over her head even though we’re in the hotel room away from curious eyes.

I want to tell her to relax but how could I? I’m anything but myself. I hardly slept last night even though Callum declared the hotel where we were holed up safe. Iris kept tossing and turning. At one point I was sure she was sobbing. But when I turned her over, she was fast asleep, which meant she was crying in her sleep.

I spent the rest of my waking hours writing to my boss and asking for an indefinite leave. My polite, reasonable letter was met with a caustic response that threatened my job security if I didn’t sort myself quickly enough. And to add to that, I’m not getting paid while I’m away.

Iris was kind enough to allay my worries about how we’ll keep our heads above water without my salary.

“The label is paying me the royalties directly after what Dad did, remember?” She’d squeezed my hand. “We’ll be alright.”

I don’t want to be like my parents who used her for what she could give them. I’m her older sister. I should be providing for her. But any argument I put up was met with her stubborn rejection of my self-sacrifice.

“It’s not even a lot. Let me do this for us, okay? You’re going out of your way to help me. I want to contribute too.”

I don’t push the issue. I hate feeling useless and since we’re sisters, we must share some of that DNA that drives us to be self-sufficient, or try to be.

My eyes are gritty and heavy but sleep eludes me. I fell into a fitful sleep sometime between four a.m. and five a.m. only to get woken up by Callum thirty minutes later. Ever since, I haven’t been able to close my eyes and get some rest. I usually dislike early mornings… And given the whole freak show that was last night and today, this has been one of my least favorite mornings in forever.

I look at the closed bathroom door. It doesn’t open under the weight of my stare.

I thought Callum would bring us to a safe house out in the middle of nowhere like in the movies, but no. We’re at a fancy ski resort. A ski resort! Already, a few folks looked Iris’s way and kept looking despite the attempt at a disguise with her hoodie. Hell, that lady flirting with Brody—ugh—looked like she recognized her. Which only made my sister withdraw into herself even more.

I glance her way and my heart tightens. She’s the shell of the bright, happy girl I used to know.

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