Page 30 of Defending Madison

He flicks his head to Carl and Maxim as the two men nod before leaving. Dixon leans against the sofa. “I’m your bodyguard.”

“Fuck. No!”

He purses his lips. “I’m sorry. Yes. I’m the most familiar with the team and you.”

“Seriously? We aren’t friends.”

He nods. “I know. You’re still angry. I get it, but I need you to be safe, and I’m good at that.”

“There has to be another option. I don’t want a bodyguard.” He shakes his head. I knew this was going to be difficult to have someone around, but Dixon… Steadying myself, I smile. “We can keep this professional.”

He flares his nostrils as he takes in a breath. “I’ll do whatever I need to do to keep you safe.”

I flick my hand at him. “It’s late and Maxim said I was safe here, so we can get into whatever specifics tomorrow.” I walk toward the door, leading him. “Good bye, Dixon.” He steps out of the apartment as I close the door and lock it. Why the hell is this happening to me, and how do I get away from him? Answers don’t come from the empty apartment as I grab my bag, walking into the primary bedroom. Sleep. It’ll all seem better in the morning.

MADISON

Looking out the plate glass floor to ceiling window at Glenwood Elite Sports and Talent Management in downtown Dallas, I’m not focusing on anything. Sleep eluded me after Dixon left.

“Benny?” Lily Dornan, my boss and friend calls my name.

“Hey, Lily.”

She pulls me in for a hug. “Why did I have to hear about your stalker from Maxim?”

I sigh. “I was too tired to deal with it last night.”

Lily motions for me to follow her into her office. I grab a seat in front of her desk as she leans against it. “SportGym wants to put you in their ‘women of sports’ calendar.”

“Really? They usually have women athletes that look like supermodels.”

Lily scoffs. “That’d be you.”

“What? I’m not a supermodel.”

She raises her hand and lifts it up and down in front of me. “Tall, beautiful, great body. Hello, Madison.”

“I never thought of myself as any of that.”

She nods. “Of course not. But you are, and SportGym knows it. You got October.”

The smile pings on my lips. “I love October.” Questions swirl in my brain. “What do I have to wear?”

“No swimsuit. That’s the July athlete, a swimmer.”

“Excellent. I’m good. What do I have to do?”

She purses her lips and her face tightens. Bad news, folks. “You’ll need to be in New York on Sunday, so you’ll travel with your bodyguard to Seattle for your Friday game and then go straight to New York.”

I nod. “Okay. I can do that.”

Her face falls further, and she opens her mouth just to close it again.

“Just say it, Lily.”

“Dixon is going with you.”

The sound of the blood rushing to my brain pounds in my ears. “What? What the fuck, Lily?”

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