Page 10 of Just a Bit Guarded

“Bribe me,” Will repeated, amused despite himself.

“Yes,” Gadiel said earnestly. “I’ll pay you double what you’re currently being paid to have your absolute loyalty to me only. You’ll truly bemybodyguard. Mine, not Zain’s.”

Will almost laughed. This job was turning out to be the most lucrative of his life. “What would that entail?”

“I wouldn’t demand anything unreasonable,” Gadiel said. “You will keep getting paid by Zain too. You will keep reporting to him about my comings and goings—for the most part. But you won’t tell him anything I don’t want you to.”

Will narrowed his eyes. Was Gadiel finally going to tell him about Scott? He’d been waiting for days for any indication that the kid actually returned Scott’s feelings. Scott had led him to believe that they would have been boyfriends if they could see each other, but Will was starting to have doubts.

Gadiel didn’t act like someone in love. Will had caught him texting Scott a few times, but the expression on his face wasn’t particularly keen. He didn’t smile giddily with the besotted expression Scott tended to wear every time he was infatuated. Gadielwas prone to being quiet at times—when he wasn’t being obnoxious on purpose—but he didn’t seem to be pining. If he had feelings for Scott, they didn’t seem deep enough to make him mope. He hadn’t even attempted to sneak away once since Will had become his bodyguard.

“And what is that?” Will said.

Gadiel chuckled. “Nope, I’m not telling you anything incriminating until you agree to give your loyalty to me.”

This felt like a good moment to reveal that he was actually related to Scott and wouldn’t have told Zain about them anyway. Except he’d given Scott his word to remain silent about being related.

“All right,” Will said, shrugging.

Gadiel eyed him suspiciously. “Really? Just like that?”

“Yes,” Will said.

“And you aren’t even going to lecture me that bribery is bad?”

Will shrugged again, his lips twitching. “I’m not sure where you got the idea that I’m all that principled. There are things I’ll never agree to, but getting paid more for doing my job isn’t one of them.”

Gadiel cocked his head to the side before grinning. “That’s a good point!” He walked over and stretched his hand out. “So, truce? You’re mine now?”

Will blinked at the odd phrasing, but figured it was the language barrier. “I pledge my loyalty to you,” he said wryly, clasping his hand.

Gadiel laughed a little. “Unless someone pays you more?”

“That’s right,” Will said, involuntarily charmed by the twinkle in those blue eyes. The guy really was uncommonly lovely; even Will could see it. There was something both angelic and devilish about him, about the way he tilted his head, smiled, andlookedat you. No wonder Scott was so besotted. He was exactly Scott’s type: a pretty twink who practically begged to be held down and wrecked.

“All right, this calls for celebration!” Gadiel said enthusiastically.

Will let go of his hand and raised his eyebrows. “Celebration?”

“But of course!” Gadiel grabbed his hand again and all but pulled him toward the elevator. “Let’s go.”

Bemused, Will decided to indulge him.

He could indulge him this once.

Chapter 6

It turned out that Gadiel’s idea of “celebrating” their truce was a lunch at his favorite restaurant.

That caused another argument that lasted all the way there.

“We can’t sit together,” Will stated again, opening the door of the restaurant for him. “I’m your bodyguard. I’ll be over there by the wall.”

Scoffing, Gadiel grabbed his hand and all but dragged him to the table in the corner, away from the other patrons of the restaurant. “Don’t be silly. We can’t celebrate our truce if you stand by the wall and watch me eat.”

“Eating with you would be unprofessional,” Will said, pulling his hand out of his grip.

Looking at him over his shoulder, Gadiel smiled. “You can guard me more effectively when you’re close to me, right?”

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