Page 39 of Close Protection

‘Hi, Daph,’ Amelia says when I walk into the kitchen to pick up some blueberries and water to take downstairs with me. I look over to the end of the kitchen where Amelia and Henry are sat in the breakfast nook, eating their dinner. ‘I didn’t know you were awake. Would you like some dinner? I think Josh left you a plate.’

‘I’m good for now, but thank you for offering,’ I respond, retrieving the berries from the fridge and heading for a bowl.

‘How are you feeling, sweetie?’ Henry asks.

‘I’m fine, Henry,’ I say sincerely, turning around to give them my full attention. ‘Thank you for coming to get us today. I really appreciate it.’

‘Daph, part of my job is to ensure your safety. You were in danger, so I did my part. Milosh did all of the heavy lifting.’

Yeah, I can’t disagree with him there. Without Milosh I definitely wouldn’t have made it back home.

‘Hey, random question,’ Henry starts, a sly smile emerging on his lips. ‘How did he get you out of that changing room? I know that you went in there to change your clothes but wasn’t one of those guys hot on your heels? How did you get out? I wasn’t fully listening in the car.’

‘Oh.’ I clear my throat, the memory of what happened in that changing room flooding back to me all at once. ‘Um, well, w-we just distracted him and then left.’

I return my focus to the blueberries and start picking out the nice-looking ones to put into my bowl.

‘And how did you distract him, again?’ Amelia asks innocently enough, but I know if I look up right now I’ll see an irksome smirk on her face, and another on Henry’s.

‘We just did.’ I shrug, still keeping my eyes glued to the blueberries as if they’re the most fascinating fruit in existence.

‘Okay,’ Henry probes, ‘but paint us a picture, I want to feel as if I was there.’

No, you really do not.

‘We pretended we were a couple to make the guy feel uncomfortable so he would leave without properly looking at our faces.’ I blurt. They’re going to hear the story anyway, so I might as well tell them now.

‘Huh,’ Henry says and I can practically hear the smile in his voice as I make my way over to the sink to give the blueberries a rinse. ‘And how exactly did you pretend you were in a relationship, Daph?’

I finally look over to face them and I’ve never seen anyone more fascinated. They’ve both got the most ridiculous grins on their faces while still trying to feign innocence.

‘We just did, okay?’

‘Daph,’ Amelia says, dragging out my name, ‘did you kiss Milosh?’

I don’t even know what to call what we did. Yes, technically it would be classed as kissing, but it felt like so much more.

It felt deeper, more meaningful and intimate.

Even though it was fake, it felt anything but.

When I don’t reply, Amelia lets out a small, satisfied giggle. ‘I’ll take that back rub now, along with my thirtypounds.’ I look over at them to see Henry shaking his head and reaching for his wallet while Amelia gloats.

‘You two bet on me?’

‘No, we bet on you and Milosh,’ Amelia corrects.

‘That’s literally the same thing,’ I deadpan. ‘What was the bet?’

‘Meels was certain that you two would get together within two months, whereas I said it would take three,’ Henry explains.

‘Milosh and I are not together, we just had to play a role to stay safe.’ I sigh.

‘Okay, well, let me ask you this,’ Amelia says. ‘Did you enjoy it?’

I look down at my berries, wishing I was anywhere else but here. ‘It was an act. There was nothing to enjoy.’

Lie.

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