Page 7 of Bodied

Lauren stood in her kitchen across from him, took a huge bite of her burger, and washed it down with a gulp of soda. “Hope you weren’t on a diet or anything,” she said. “I was just needing some comfort food.”

“This is comfort food?” He looked up in time to see her swallow another bite.

“It’s nostalgic.” She shrugged. “Reminds me of being a teenager, you know? I was kind of a mess, but at least I was having fun. Late nights at the club. Fast food after with friends. It was a good time most of the time, even if I was just trying to piss my mom off.” She stared past him for a moment, remembering. “I felt… more free in those days.”

“I think we all did,” Wesley added. “When everything seemed possible, and there weren’t so many walls and rules.”

“Right?” She perked up when he empathized with her. “I feel like I’m in some kind of glass prison these days. My mom’s career and the entire country being her audience completely controls my life.”

“Speaking of walls and prisons and your mother’s career.” He set his burger back on the plate. “We have to lay down some ground rules.”

“Excuse me?” She raised her eyebrows at him. “Ground rules?”

“I can’t protect you if I don’t know where you are.”

“I thought you were just going to stalk me until you’re job was done.” She didn’t even look at him as she said it, and Wesley got the impression this was going to be a point of contention with her.

“I do have to sleep, you know,” he said. “You’ll have a replacement detail just outside the building overnight, but it won’t be me.”

She rolled her eyes. “Bummer.”

He did his best to ignore her attitude. “You won’t be able to leave your building after ten p.m. And you shouldn’t go anywhere without informing your detail first. So give me a call in the morning, and at night, before ten p.m., you’ll call this number.” He handed her a card, which she immediately tore in half and threw in the trash. Wesley dropped his head into his hand and groaned. “And we were starting to get along so well.”

“Don’t mistake my being nice to you as us getting along.” She waved a French fry around like it was some kind of laser pointer. “I’m civil because I know you’re only here because my mom is forcing you, and you’re just doing your job. I feel bad for you, that’s all. Just not bad enough to accept a curfew and sanctioned stalking. I go where I want when I want. I’m a twenty-six-year-old woman, not a teenager.”

“You’re not being treated like a teenager.” Wesley took the last bite of his burger and washed it down. “You’re being treated like the daughter of a politician who may have just made some unhinged enemies by winning an election.” Convincing his client’s daughter to accept the protection she was being offered was not in his job description, but if he could manage just that, it was sure to make his job easier. So, he gave it his best shot. “You don’t want to end up like… Jane Simpson.”

“Who?” She gave him a doubtful look.

“The daughter of Harry Simpson, the representative. He’s been retired for some years now, but he had enemies. No one could have predicted they would go after his daughter. Even so, her parents gave her a strict curfew, just in case. But she was stubborn and rebellious, and her best friend was throwing a house party while her parents were out of town. So, Jane snuck out after midnight to go to her best friend’s party, only she never showed up. Her friend assumed she’d gotten caught by her parents, and her parents thought she was safe and sound in bed. She was gone all night without anyone really missing her. They didn’t find most of her until a week later.” He let his voice rumble low and menacing. “It took another month to locate her head.”

Lauren immediately spit out her drink, and for a moment, Wesley thought he’d really gotten through to her. It turned out she was just laughing maniacally. Wesley frowned across the bar at her while she cackled at him.

“I’ll take ‘stories that never happened’ for two hundred, Alex,” she said when she’d caught her breath. “Nice try, though. Really, that was a super entertaining campfire story.”

“It happened,” he insisted.

“Not a chance,” she said with a smile that was far too charming for how much of a brat she was being right now. “Bring the receipts.”

“Huh?” Wesley had no idea what she was talking about.

She shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “Proof. I mean, that must have been a pretty big deal when it happened. Some newspaper or magazine or online rag must have covered it. So break it out. I want to read all about it. C’mon, you have a phone. Show me.” She gestured to his phone, which he’d taken from his pocket and laid on the counter when he sat down to eat, just in case his replacement needed to contact him.

Wesley racked his brain to come up with an excuse as to why he would not be able to produce these “receipts” she demanded. The truth was every word of the story was a lie he’d made up on the spot to try to get through to her. Apparently, Lauren was more savvy than he had originally assumed. “They were trying to keep it under wraps,” he said.

“Bull.” She leaned across the table and tapped his phone. “Receipts or it didn’t happen.”

He sucked up the last of his soda and heaved a deep sigh. “Fine. It didn’t happen.”

“Ha!” She thrust a finger into his face. “That’s what I thought!”

“But something like it may have happened. I bet I could find an incident if I really looked for one. Even if it didn’t, you could be the first. Do you really want that to be your legacy?”

She planted her elbows on the counter. “You know, scaring me into behaving never really works. Just ask my mom.”

Wesley shrugged and tried not to care about how quickly his plan had failed. “Well, it was worth a try.”

“Can’t fault you for the effort,” she said with a grin. “Look, it’s pretty obvious neither one of us is getting out of this arrangement anytime soon, so let’s strike a deal. We’ll promise to be civil to each other while we’re stuck together and not make the other person’s life harder than it hast to be.” She extended a hand to him.

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