Page 32 of Close Protection

‘Girls,’ Eddie interrupts, looking through the tuxedos on display, ‘do we need tails or not?’

‘No tails,’ Isabella and I say at the same time.

‘All right,’ Isabella says, dragging me off to the side, ‘tell me everything!’

‘There’s nothing much to tell, Bella,’ I say, very aware that Milosh can still hear us. ‘I met him, we started talking, he asked me out and now here we are.’

‘Okay, but tell me, what’s he like? I kind of expected to see you with someone a little more…’ She trails off, sneaking another look back at Milosh.

‘Like Eddie?’ I finish for her.

‘Well… yeah, kind of.’ We both look over to Eddie and Milosh, silently comparing them. They’re around the same height, with Milosh being an inch or two taller, dressed pretty similarly, and are both white. That’s where the similarities end. Where Milosh is obviously very muscular, Eddie is slimmer. Think the Flash and Captain America. Both strong but in vastly different ways. Eddie has a very sweet, kind, boy-next-door look to him, with fluffy blond hair and blue eyes, whereas Milosh looks like the guy your mother would warn you to stay away from. Dark hair and sharp features. He’s one tattoo sleeve away from a biker-Bruce Wayne crossbreed.

‘He looks like he’s a heartbreak ready to happen, Daph.’

‘I know how it looks, Bella, I really do, but he’s notlike that. He’s kind, protective and soft with me. That’s all that really matters.’

‘What do his parents do?’ Meaning – does he come from money?

‘They’re in commercial real estate,’ I lie.

‘Well, all right then.’ Bella looks sceptically at him for a moment before turning back to me. ‘I’m happy for you. Just be careful, okay?’

‘Of course.’

‘All right,’ Eddie interrupts as he and Milosh walk over to us, suits in hand. ‘These are the ones we’re starting off with. Are they good?’ He holds the tuxedo up to show Isabella and Milosh does the same, holding his up to show me. He’s picked out a traditional, single-breasted, black wool tuxedo with sharp lines, a crisp finish and silk lapels, whereas Eddie’s tux is a double-breasted cream jacket and black trousers combo.

‘Looks like a good choice,’ I say to Milosh. ‘Yours too, Eddie. Why don’t you guys go and try them on and we’ll look for some pocket squares?’

‘I’m not wearing a pocket square, Miss Green,’ Milosh states.

‘Correction,’ I breathe, turning to him and rising up onto my toes to whisper into his ear, my lips brushing his lobe. ‘You’ll wear whatever I want you to,boyfriend.’

‘Is that so?’ he responds, eyebrow rising ever so slightly as he turns to look at me, green irises burning right through me.

Is that so?

How three little words can sound so… charged… is beyond me. But nevertheless, here we are.

When I don’t respond, Milosh dips down again, angling himself so now his lips are barely brushing my lobe.

Jeez, it’s like a game of cat and mouse, but I don’t know who is who at this point.

‘I’ll wear whatever you want me to, Miss Green, but not a pocket square. Okay?’

‘Fine.’ I breathe out. Why is he so hung up on a pocket square? To be honest, I really don’t care, he can be hung up on whatever he wants to be as long as he whispers into my ear like that again.

‘Good,’ he says, smirking slightly before he takes his eyes off me and glances over to Eddie and Isabella who are staring at us with the same weird look on their faces. ‘You ready?’ Milosh asks Eddie and he nods, before walking with Milosh towards the changing rooms.

As they disappear I look back over to Isabella and can’t help but chuckle when I see the current expression she’s sporting.

‘What?’ I ask mid-laugh.

‘Daphne, how did the two of you make a conversation about a pocket square so…’ She walks over to the seating area opposite the changing room, still trying to find the right word. Honestly, so am I. ‘Dirty?’ she settles.

‘What are you talking about?’ I breathe out a laugh, hoping I sound nonchalant.

‘Daph, the tension in the looks you two were sharing was one thing, but the whispering? The stares? Even me and Eddie were starting to get turned on.’

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