by Ivy Harper
“Impressive, what makes you think hurting him will make me stop the party?” I asked.
She lifted her chin. “I don’t think anyone would have a lot of fun after one of their guest’s arm is broken.”
Dereck released another pained cry. “Fuck, Tak. Tell her to let me go.”
I met her gaze. Her eyes were hard. I searched for the anger I usually experienced when a plan didn’t go my way, but it was nowhere to be found. Who had fucking hired her? Oh right, Kole, the dick.
“Let me think about it,” I said, drawing out the time.
I’d thought a dip in the pool would run her off, but instead she’d proven to be more difficult. I searched for what step I would take next. Clearly, she wasn’t the type to be easily deterred. Kole had found a real stubborn one, hadn’t he?
A part of me couldn’t believe Kole had actually hired her to work for me. The woman wasn’t the behemoth or over-muscled stallion that I’d imagined. She was curvy and somewhere around five nine. She had almond-colored skin and brown eyes. Her chin-length hair was plastered to her head.
Swiftly, I went through the pros and cons of giving in. It would be in my favor to go along with her, for now.
“Shit,” I cursed aloud. “Fuck it.” I looked at the DJ behind her, who’d grabbed some towels in an effort to dry his equipment. “Brody, I’ll pay you for it, leave it.”
Brody looked from me to his stuff before sighing. “Fine.” He shot Jazz a dirty look before he tossed the towels down and left.
She didn’t seem happy with my move. She gave a pointed look to those who still hung around. “I think you should dismiss your other guests,” she said, releasing the man at her feet. Moving back, she turned and grabbed up a towel. “I would hate to give them the same treatment as your friend here.”
“You bitch,” Derek yelled.
“Enough, take your people and go,” I ordered.
“Are you seriously letting this bitch walk in here and call the shots?” Derek questioned, looking from me to the crazy lady. He stood. “Nah, fuck that.”
“Call me a bitch one more time and I’ll knock out your teeth,” she said as she rubbed a towel over her short hair. She let the towel drop, giving him a hard smile. “I don’t know why, but I’m a little on edge.”
Nope, I wasn’t getting hard because she just threatened to dentist Derek’s teeth, shit. Two things occurred to me immediately. One: this bodyguard of mine wasn’t easily intimidated and two: I found her very attractive.
Kole had made a fatal mistake in sending her to me. I decided I wouldn’t put my energy into bullying her, but into seducing her. I grinned.
Then, she’d get fired. Win-win for everyone. She wasn’t lacking in the looks department with soft brown eyes that narrowed at the ends, a cute straight nose and delicately curved lips. Ms. Bodyguard looked a lot softer than she acted.
“Tak—”
“Fucking leave, Derek,” I ordered, glaring at him before turning my glare on all the others still hanging around. “All of you, leave.”
There was a beat of silence. “Leave,” I shouted.
Finally, the leeches realized I was serious. Oh yes, please, they needed to go so I could get my bodyguard comfortable and tap her ‘til she couldn’t think about anything else. Shit, I would have her on her knees, calling me her daddy before this day was through.
Turning back to her, I bit back a hiss. She’d taken off her shirt altogether. Giving me a glimpse of the lacy bra she clearly wasn’t shy about showing.
I loved a woman who was bold. Time to turn on the charm. I closed the space between us, but closed my eyes and prayed for patience when I heard my name.
Releasing a groan, I turned. “Yes, my dear and lovely cockblocking manager.”
I won’t admit to the level of hate I feel for Chelsea aloud, but if I did it would be as big as the fucking globe.
“Cockblocking?” Chelsea repeated, looking me over before her amused gaze found mine. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I need to show her around your home.”
I took a step closer to Chelsea and pointed at her. “Aka cockblocking,” I whispered, glaring at her.
She rolled her eyes, walking around me. “Ms. Ryland, follow me. I’ll get you a change of clothes, hopefully your luggage arrives before the end of the day.”
“Hopefully, I’m sorry for the inconvenience,” my new bodyguard said brightly.
“Don’t worry, I was expecting some type of mess from your first meeting with Tak. Lucky for you, it’s only wet clothes.”
I groaned, watching as Jazz was escorted away by Chelsea. Her hips swayed in her wet slacks. “Jazz, that body is pure Jazz,” I said, already hearing the smooth soulful saxophone explode in my mind. Wincing, I looked away from her. “Dammit.”
I’d thought the music had calmed, but it was back. Distracted from the interesting addition to my staff, I quickly left the pool and made my way to my studio. Until the music turned off, I wouldn’t be able to focus on anything else. It was my blessing and curse, but it was also the time I felt the least lonely.
However, once I dealt with it, I’d turn my attention on Ms. Jazz. Mmm. She would be out of here before the end of the week if the hardness of my dick was anything to go by.
Chapter 10
Sassy Lady
Jazz
* * *
“I’m impressed with you,” Chelsea said as she led me along the hallway, past the large windows that gave a view of the large yard that rested around the pool. “I wasn’t sure if you’d be able to handle the situation.” Her heels clicked along the marble floor as we turned right. She stopped, looking over her shoulder to face me. “Tak can be stubborn, and he has no problem saying what he thinks. Not too many can stand up against him.”
I bet. He wasn’t some small child. I wouldn’t call him stubborn, more like an asshole who was used to getting his way, but that didn’t stop the part of me that cheered because I’d seen him in swim shorts. In fact, if his manager wasn’t staring at me, I’d probably be halfway to imagining him without them.
I brushed a hand over my cheeks feeling the heat there. “Well, I’m tougher than I look. I’ve dealt with my fair share of stubborn VIPs.” I couldn’t help giving her a dry smile. “I just can’t believe I thought it would be easy to be friends with him. I feel kind of stupid now for answering the way I did at the interview.”
She shrugged, facing forward as we continued on. “Your answer wasn’t bad. If you like your work, you’ll get close to those you work with. Tak and I clash because I’m the one who tells him what he doesn’t want to hear. So, we’ll always clash, but you still have the chance of becoming his friend.” We entered what looked like a den.
“There are ten bathrooms, including the one that will be your room. There’s a studio located in the north wing. That’s where Tak locks himself away when the music comes to him.
“You’ll have to urge him to leave when he’s really into it. There’s a gym down the hall from your room and his rooms are located in the southern wing.” She paused in front of a bar giving me a long look. “I don’t think you’ll be called over there more than maybe once a day. That’s only if he’s bored enough to keep working on getting rid of you.”
I bit my bottom lip and nodded. Not only was I going to have to pay attention to finding out who was after Tak’s life, but also to the man himself. It was pretty obvious he didn’t want me around.
“Outside of him calling for you it’s best to routinely check on him. He has a habit of sneaking away and causing mayhem,” Chelsea continued. “Make sure you maintain a line of professionalism, even though you’re both living together, don’t become too comfortable with him.”
Hearing this I felt both excitement and anxiety.
Any fan imaginings of being the love interest of Tak had already been dashed with his tossing me into the pool. I wasn’t so sure I’d like to be in any kind of relationship with the ass. All my dreams and obviously unrealistic desires had
washed away with the pool water.
“You don’t have to worry about that, I follow all the Rejected One’s edicts.”
Hearing this, her stare turned probing. “I didn’t take you for a fan. I usually only hear that from Tak’s top fans.”
I’m an idiot. How could I have exposed myself so easily? Rejected One edicts were the rules put out by the biggest fans of the band.
Rules we adhered to for both their and our safety. One of those rules was never to covet the members, they belonged to everyone. Laughing, I waved the end of my towel.
“No, no, I’m not a fan, my cousin is. She’s actually one of the portal leaders for the fan board and she told me about the job opening. That’s how I knew about it.”
My underarms prickled as she looked me over. A part of me felt like she could see through my small lie.
“Hmm, well that’s good. If you were, we’d have to move you out ASAP.”
“Ha ha, well, I’m definitely not a fan. Not me.” I laughed nervously.
She turned on her heel. “Good, I’ll be taking you to your room. I had one of the staff bring you some of my spare clothes. I’ve had to stay a few times overnight, but hopefully your own clothes will arrive before you have to use them.”
“Thank you,” I said.
“No problem, I will tell you your duties now. You’re a bodyguard, your job is to protect Tak from outside threats, but you also will protect him from himself. Which means, while I do not expect you to hang out in his wing. You will wake up with him, you will ensure he eats, you will make sure he makes his appointments, and that he keeps to his agreement with the label. Don’t worry, it’s not every day, you’ve been given Monday off for personal time.
“The job sounds more like one for a manager,” I said jokingly.
The more I listened to her, the more it felt that way. She paused and glanced at me. We stood in front of what I assumed to be my room.
“Well, the way I see it, me and my wife wish to try for a baby and I can’t do that chasing him down all the time. So, why not have his live-in bodyguard take care of in-house things? Don’t you think so?” She smiled like the cat who’d gotten the crème.
She opened the door and entered. “Your room has all the comforts. There’s an intercom system from his wing to your room, when he presses the button in his room, he will be able to call you if he needs you, but it shuts off at eleven p.m. If he really needs you after that, he’ll sound an alarm.
“After all, anything that’s happening after eleven p.m. isn’t going to be good. On the desk is a tablet and phone. You’ll use those to communicate with me, Tak, and others who work for the label.
“Otherwise, don’t use it. The tablet will be updated daily with his schedule and appointments. Also, there will be a list of people who aren’t allowed to meet him. Or more so, if he meets them, we’ll have another scandal to deal with.” She turned around and crossed her arms, smiling. “Any questions?”
I swallowed and shook my head. “No, I… I don’t have any.”
“Okay,” she said, moving toward me. “The shower is free for use. Hopefully, it has everything you’ll need. And that’s it for your introduction, welcome to the Rejected One team.” With that, she passed me and left the room, closing the door behind her.
I stood in the bedroom wondering what had just happened. It felt like time had been speeding forward with no brakes and suddenly it had slowed down. I took the towel from around my shoulders, tossed it on the bed beside the set of clothes that’d been dropped off and gave a heavy sigh while looking around the room.
I, Alicia Jasmine Roarke was in her favorite artist’s home “I—”
I brought my hands up, covering my mouth to keep from screaming it out. I did do a little hop before taking a deep breath a few times so as not to hyperventilate. It was like I’d become the main character in a teen romance drama.
This was awesome.
Turning, I tossed myself onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling. Giving a slight wiggle, I hopped off the bed and ran into the bathroom. It was nice with black tiles and a sleek silver design.
Taking my bra off and undoing my pants, I let them drop. Walking into the shower, I turned the water to hot and washed up. Once I was finished, I grabbed a gray towel and wrapped it around my body.
Stepping out, I looked at my short haircut. It was getting frizzy. They might have had a bar of soap that actually smelled good, but it looked like that’s where my luck ended.
Groaning, I grabbed the extra towel from the wall and began rubbing it through my hair. Opening the door, I stopped. Parting my lips in silent wonder.
Tak Jensei sat on my bed. His ringed fingers going through my belongings that must have been delivered by the staff after they’d gathered them from the pool. He glanced up, and I swore his eyes were like fiery stones that seared me all over before they met mine.
“Hi, I wanted to see if you needed anything and to apologize for my earlier actions.”
Now, there was something the top one percent of Tak’s fans knew better than others, and that was when he was lying. His left eyebrow that had a slice through it—an old injury from when he was twelve and wanted to fly—would twitch, and it was twitching now.
I was caught between being amused he’d thought I’d believe his bullshit and being fascinated with how he fit so well into holey black jeans, a black T-shirt with a deep V cut—that should have been banned—with a dark gray cardigan. He had changed out of his shorts. I decided not to go the super fangirl route. Which involved screaming and throwing myself at him.
“Okay, then apologize. I’m not stopping you,” I said, pretending not to be bothered by the fact he was in my room, while I was only wearing a towel. I approached the bed focused on changing into the clothes that were behind him.
His jaw worked as he narrowed his eyes. “You’re a tough one, aren’t you?”
I stopped beside him. “I’m supposed to be the wall between you and those who’d want to harm you. It’s to be expected. What—”
He grabbed my wrist suddenly and pulled me to his side.
“What if I wanted you to be a little nicer to me?” he whispered, his gaze on my lips with a level of heat that was mesmerizing. “You don’t have to keep your guard up against me, you know.”
I wouldn’t melt under his sultry gaze. “I’m not. In fact, I believe you’re the one who needs to soften up here.”
“Maybe I was shy. I’m not used to meeting new people. How about we forget about it and start over. We could do something pleasurable that only requires two players.” He smiled. “Or more than two if you’re feeling adventurous.”
The wealth of bullshit that had come out of this man’s mouth was astonishing. My mind that had been spinning in the web made by his voice became clear as glass when he mentioned a ménage. I took my hand from his weakened grip.
“I have no reason to lose my job over a casual fling. Mr. Jensei, if you don’t mind, could you leave my room so I can finish dressing?”
He leaned back, covering his mouth, he took me in for a long moment. “You’re not gay, are you?”
I flushed. “No, I’m not,” I said, trying not to hit him.
He hummed, looking me over, then motioned to himself. “Then, what’s wrong? Am I not your type?” He gasped. “Are Asian’s not your thing? That’s racial discrimination, you know. I feel like you’re ignoring my sexual identity because of my race. I’ll tell you now, I’m packing.” He winked.
“Were you dropped on your head when you were a baby?” His eyes widened the same time as my own as I realized what I’d said. “Sorry, I spoke without thinking,” I quickly said to save the situation.
Tak
* * *
By her shocked expression, Jazz hadn’t meant to let that question slip out. She faced me, so clearly astonished by her own words, I wanted to laugh. Lucky for her, I found her refreshing.
I’d been insulted by women before. Mostly over my lack of desire to continue seeing
them.
Deciding to play with her a little more, I seriously asked, “And if I had? Is that something you should ask your employer?”
She snorted, before freezing. “Sorry, again.”
“You really aren’t good at hiding your thoughts, are you?”
She offered me a sheepish look. I refused to acknowledge the warm feeling that invaded my chest. I was a hard-ass fucker who ate pussy for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, despite my current diet, thanks to Kole’s rules.
Shit, I wasn’t feeling warm because chocolate, cocoa deliciousness here was smiling at me.
“I’m not used to controlling my emotions on my personal time.”
“Personal time?” I repeated, realizing just how I would torment my new bodyguard. “There is no such thing when you’re with me,” I said, standing so the space between us would disappear.
She looked up at me with suspicion. I shouldn’t have felt as good as I did from the knowledge that she was a few inches shorter than me. “I’ll offer you two choices. Either quit and leave now or quit and leave later in tears.”
She lifted her chin. “I’m staying and I’d appreciate it if you’d stop asking me to leave.”
I leaned down, using my height to let my presence fill up the space between us. She tried to move back but her legs bumped into the side table. She looked down, giving me the chance to get close enough, so my lips brushed her cheek. “Baby, there are only two possible outcomes for you if you stay here. You’ll either run from here screaming or you’ll be in my bed screaming. I, of course, have my own preference.” I smirked, flashing my teeth at her as I straightened.
Jazz huffed. “Or you’ll be screaming because I’ve broken your wrist for sexual harassment.”
“I’m not Derek, sweetheart, don’t bite off more than you can chew.”
“Is that a bet?” She tossed her head in just the right way that showed off her throat.
On my grandmother’s grave, I’d be putting a hickey there. “Oh, do you want it to be? I rarely pick a losing side.”
