*****
Micah
I drove up to the larger than life mansion at the end of the beach in Montauk. Ronnie James had given me a call near midnight the night before concerned about her daughter. I did a little research after agreeing to the job, and saw that Nicole James had been publicly assaulted by her boyfriend Remy Bronston. Bronston was a stock market whiz who worked for one of the top brokerage firms on Wall Street. He made a small fortune for himself by being some sort of math whiz and accurately predicting patterns in the stock market. Just by seeing pictures of him I could tell the guy was hiding things. His smile wasn’t genuine, it held a hint of cockiness to it and I could tell there was an emptiness about him in the depths of his gaze. All from one picture caught of him as he was leaving his job.
Then to read about and see that video of what the asshole did to a bewildered Nicole James. She couldn’t have seen any of it coming. I was already dedicated to her case without even knowing Nicole at all. Working security for her mom was one of the best jobs I had. I was always on my toes that was for sure and Ronnie was one of the most down to earth celebrities I’ve ever worked for. Not to mention good natured and funny as hell. If her daughter was anything like her I was sure we’d get along.
I got out of my car and went to the door, it barely took one knock before Ronnie opened up and beamed at me in relief.
“You’re on time! You never disappoint Micah, come in, come in,” she said and hurried me inside. I stepped in and glanced around. Ronnie’s house was the same as I remembered it. Open to views of the beach, big and ornate, but not at all gaudy. Ronnie looked the same too and appeared to be the same old Ronnie I remembered. She was speaking fast and leading me through the house, though I caught everything that she said.
“Nicole is a little shaken up from last night, but she’s a strong girl. I’m really just worried about this guy stalking her and making her life a living hell. You have to protect my baby,” Ronnie said and stopped just outside a hallway leading into what looked like the kitchen. She leveled her grey gaze on me and I nodded solemnly.
“Of course I will Ronnie. That goes without saying, I’ll protect your daughter from that douche bag,” I said, and Ronnie searched my gaze a moment before she nodded once.
“Good, she’s my baby no matter how old she is and I don’t want her being hurt,” Ronnie said and I nodded respectfully.
“I’ll keep her safe Ronnie, again, it goes without saying,” I said sincerely and Ronnie exhaled lightly in relief.
“Good, well she’s in the kitchen waiting to meet you,” Ronnie said and led me down the hall. There sitting at the breakfast bar, with a cup of coffee in her hands, was one of the most beautiful women I had ever seen. She looked a lot like Ronnie, but had subtle differences that made her even more beautiful than her mom. She had long thick lashes framing her grey eyes, her hair was long and straight and she had naturally arched brows that weren’t as thin as her mother’s. I blinked a few times to control the inexplicable attraction I felt to Nicole before I walked over and shook her hand in a polite and professional manner.
“Hello, I’m Micah Colden,” I introduced myself and she smiled at me politely in turn.
“It’s nice to meet you Micah. My mom tells me that you’re one of the best,” she said and I chuckled.
“Well I do have background in the Navy as a SEAL as well as five years of being private security. I can assure you that you’ll be taken care of as long as I’m watching your back,” I assured her and she smiled in relief more than anything. Ronnie stood off to the side, at the coffee pot, listening to our conversation.
“I’m glad, I have more than just a crazy ex-boyfriend harassing me. The paparazzi are an issue now too,” she mostly mumbled and I saw her annoyance. For as long as I’ve been celebrity security there was not one person who wasn’t bothered by paparazzi. Really they were unwanted nuisances.
“Believe it or not that can be easily taken care of. I have a couple of guys who make it a profession to run off paparazzi,” I said and Nicole sighed in relief. I could see the weight start to leave her shoulders.
“See, what did I tell you? Micah is good. He’ll take care of you,” Ronnie piped in and went to sit next to her daughter at the breakfast bar.
“In fact, if you can write down your address, I’ll give them a call now and the paparazzi issue should be cleared up by noon,” I said and Ronnie stood up to get Nicole something to write with. Once I had her home address, I quickly looked up the address of the lounge Nicole owned and forwarded both addresses to my guys. They sent back an affirmative and then I turned my attention back to Nicole.
“While the photographers are being cleaned up, can you tell me a little bit about Remy?” I asked Nicole and she sighed deeply.
“Well, what do you want to know?” she asked me and I leaned lightly against the counter across from her.
“Mostly what he knows about you, where he can find you, if he knows about any of your normal routines. Things like that,” I said and she took a deep breath.
“Well he knows where I live, he knows where I work out, where my business is…he knows what grocery store I often visit…really the only thing he doesn’t know is where my mom lives,” she said and I nodded as I took note of everything she said. “He said…that he’d be everywhere I was,” she said quietly and Ronnie put her arm around Nicole.
“I will look out for you Nicole. He has to try and get through me to get to you, and I promise you that no one has ever gotten through me,” I said and she nodded, her eyes steady on mine.
“Okay…” she said, still slightly unsure, but her gaze was trusting. Anyone who thought it was okay to terrorize Nicole, no matter to what degree, was an enemy in my book.
*****
After I got some more information on Remy, I put a call out to a few of my old SEAL friends to be on the look out for him. The guys were always looking for a side job to keep things interesting. Nicole and I stayed at Ronnie’s house until I got the all clear. It was clear to tell that both Ronnie and Nicole felt marginally better that I was there and taking control of the situation. I wouldn’t let Remy control Nicole’s fears; the man didn’t have the right to make anyone feel unsafe…especially her.
“So will you drive me around everywhere until he’s caught?” Nicole asked me as we rode back to the city from Montauk. She had left her car at Ronnie’s as I reasoned that it was less likely Remy could get a bead on her if she wasn’t driving her car, which was definitely a recognizable one.
“I will, it’s imperative that I do. Like I said earlier, it makes you more difficult to track,” I explained and glanced in the rear view mirror. She wore a pensive expression as she gazed outside at the moving highway. Suddenly her eyes met mine in the mirror and I quickly focused on the road once more.
“Has anyone ever told you that you look like…the new superman? Man of Steel?” she asked me and I chuckled.
“Yes I’ve been told that Henry Cavill and I have a resemblance,” I said and glanced back at her again, she smiled faintly before turning her head to look out of the window again.
“Your eyes are green though,” she said softly and I glanced at her again, her expression was pensive and I let her keep to her thoughts. It was strange how Nicole’s mother was so outgoing, yet Nicole was a lot more mellow and thoughtful.
“So um…what was it like being in the Navy? As a SEAL no less,” she asked and I tilted my head to the side slightly.
“Well it was tough, being a SEAL was one of the toughest jobs I’ve ever had. But it was gratifying work and I liked it really. I liked carrying out missions and completing them with a favorable outcome,” I said and glanced at Nicole, who nodded sagely.
“So how did you get into security work?” she asked and I shrugged slightly.
“The physical demand of being in the Navy was finally taking its toll on me. Once my contract was up I didn’t renew service. Instead I took contract work outside of the program, and then that sort of
naturally led to me getting into security. I’m good at my job and I enjoy it,” I said.
“How old are you?” she asked me and I smiled at her through the rearview mirror.
“I’m thirty-five,” I answered and she seemed surprised.
“You look a lot younger, like my age…I’m twenty-seven,” she said and I nodded.
“That’s not too big of a gap…then again, I have good genes,” I joked and she actually laughed. Mission accomplished.
“I’ll say,” she said under her breath, but I caught it. I tried not to smile and focused on the road. Soon we were pulling up to her house and I parked in her space on the curb. There were no paparazzi to be seen and I wondered how the guys had managed to pull it off this time.
“So um, I’m guessing that you’ll pretty much be with me all the time?” Nicole asked and I nodded once.
“Yes I will be, no guest room needed,” I said and she rolled her eyes at me.
“Of course I have a guest room for you, I can’t expect you to sleep standing up,” she said and I grinned at her.
“Well I have done it before,” I said and she laughed as we walked to her town house and up the steps to her front door. From the outside, the house looked to be three stories high.
“Oh, I forgot to tell you, but I’ll have to have one of my tech guys come out here so we can install some external security cameras,” I said and Nicole nodded as she unlocked the front door and let us inside.
“Oh, uh sure, if you think it’s necessary,” she said and I nodded.
“It is, especially if Remy comes around here again. It’s always good to have proof that will bury him deeper in jail once he gets there,” I said and Nicole smirked at me as we walked through her front room to the living room.
“You’re confident that Remy won’t be a problem for me now that you’re here,” she said and I nodded.
“Without confidence we wouldn’t hit where we aim,” I said and she looked at me with the cutest crooked smile.
“That’s an interesting saying. I like that,” she said and then gestured to the house in general. “Ah…do you want a tour of the house?” she asked me and I nodded.
“Yeah that would be great. I need to know the layout of the house,” I said and she nodded.
“Well It’s bigger than it looks form the outside, so there’s a lot of room, hidden spaces and whatnot,” she said as she began to lead me through the ground floor.
*****
After Nicole gave me a tour of the house and my guy came back to install a security system, she and I were pretty much left alone together.
“So if I wanted to go to the gym…would you follow me there?” she asked me as I set up the computer controlling the security system in Nicole’s study.
“I would, it’s my job to keep you safe at all times,” I said and she nodded thoughtfully.
“Interesting...” she said and I chuckled at her expression.
“You look like you don’t like the prospect of some guy following you around, but you like having security,” I said and she smiled at me sheepishly.
“Yeah pretty much, no offense though. I mean I’m sure I could get used to having you…follow me…around.” She said the ending of her sentence slowly and I laughed at her expression again, it was a little embarrassed.
“Don’t worry, it isn’t such a hard task looking after you either,” I said and her smile became a little shy, which I thought was amazing, this woman had absolutely nothing to be shy about. I wondered briefly if it was because I respected her mother so much that naturally I would be attracted to Nicole. Then she got up to get her ringing phone from the reading nook in the living room and I got an unhindered view of her perfectly round backside. I forced myself not to react too much. No there was definitely an attraction that had nothing to do with Ronnie. Nicole sighed deeply when she looked at her phone and then she silenced it.
“Was that Remy?” I asked and she nodded.
“I’ve been leaving my phone on silent, he just calls and calls, but today he’s called less than yesterday. Way less,” she said and then tossed her phone onto the couch as she walked back over to me. “I think I need to go for a run,” she said and I nodded.
“That’s often how I clear my head. Let me just get a change of clothes from my car,” I said and she nodded before she went upstairs to change. Once I was informed about a job and accepted it I always made sure to pack clothes, I had to be prepared to stay at a clients’ house if their situation called for that level of protection. I brought my entire suitcase inside and went to the room Nicole indicated would be mine for however long it took the cops to arrest Remy. Quickly I changed into jogging pants and running shoes then strapped on my gun underneath a sweatshirt. I walked out to the door just as Nicole came downstairs to the front room. She was wearing jogging capris and a form fitting sweat resistant top with a loose work out jacket over it. Her hair was pulled up into a ponytail and again I had to force myself not to react like any straight thirteen-year-old boy would.
“I just want to do a few laps around the block,” she said and I nodded.
“I’m following your lead, and run as long as you want. I can run miles without needing to catch my breath,” I said and Nicole laughed at me.
“You’re like a machine,” she said and I grinned at her charmingly which got me another shy smile. I couldn’t help it then, my cock stiffened in my pants and all I wanted to do was kiss her, just to see how soft her lips really were. Nicole and I then left the house and started jogging after she locked up behind us. It didn’t help my attraction to her at all when I realized that she was in good shape. Her jog was quick paced but even, and she didn’t get tired even after we ran a mile. As I jogged next to her I made sure to scan the area constantly for anyone acting strangely, watching for any lingering looks past the glances that were expected to be drawn by a beautiful woman having a jog. No one followed us, no one was watching her. I did see a squad car circling the block a few times and wondered if that was an effort to find Remy or not. NYPD had a lot of cases, it would be surprising if they were making that much of an effort to find Remy.
We got back to Nicole’s place around dusk and found a white piece of paper sticking out from her door.
“What do you think that is?” she asked me breathlessly, we had sprinted the last twenty yards to her house and I had beaten her by a hair. Her expression was concerned as she took deep breaths to regain her normal breathing.
“Go ahead and pick it up,” I said and then scanned the area behind us as she bent to pick up the piece of paper. I didn’t see anyone watching us, nor did I spot anyone in the cars that lined the street.
“It’s a letter…” she said and I took the house keys from her jacket pocket as she was preoccupied with the note. I needed to get her inside in case there was someone out there watching that I couldn’t see. I guided Nicole inside with my hand to the small of her back and locked the door behind us. The first thing I wanted to do was check the video feed, but from the nervous look on Nicole’s face I waited until she simply handed me the paper.
It was printed neatly in handwriting, black ink, and said; ‘you think you can hire a bodyguard and that will keep me away. If I can dodge the cops, I can get through a guy in a sweatshirt. I’ll be coming for you tonight and there’s nothing you can do to stop me. You may as well shower and wear something nice. I’m looking forward to talking later. Love R.’
“Let’s go and check the security feeds,” I said and Nicole nodded, she was wide eyed and clearly nervous from the message. I hated that asshole for what he was doing to Nicole and settled on the fact that I’d have him taken care of very quickly. I wanted to see Remy behind bars. We went into the study and I quickly rewound through the feed until we both saw a hooded figure come up to the door and wedge the note under it. I played it back slowly and the camera that was angled up from a plant pot on the stoop got a clear view of Remy’s face. His expression was hard, set and grim. It was also calculating and
that’s what made me turn to Nicole with my next suggestion.
“I think our best course of action is to put you up in a hotel for the night, just to be safe. This can easily be a scare tactic, but I don’t like that look on his face,” I said and Nicole nodded, her eyes still wide with nerves and anxiety.
“I don’t either,” she whispered.
*****
Nicole packed an overnight bag and I told her to stay in the house while I loaded the car. Afterward I escorted her to my car and then we were headed to the Nylo Hotel. It was on the Upper West Side, but I took a roundabout route and made sure we weren’t being tailed before actually going to the hotel. I didn’t relax at all until we were checked into a room and safely inside it.
“So what now?” Nicole asked me and I gestured to the bathroom.
“You go ahead and shower, try and relax. I’m going to call some guys to try and find Remy once and for all,” I said and she nodded, her expression anxious, but I saw that she trusted me and that trust in her eyes affected me in a big way. Of course all my clients trusted me to do my job and protect them, but it felt like something different when I saw the trust in Nicole’s eyes. I rubbed my chest absently as I wondered how the hell I could be so attracted to Nicole so quickly. So much so that there were actual feelings growing for her. She gathered her stuff and then went into the bathroom. When I heard the shower turn on I quickly pulled out my phone and called a few of my guys to actively start looking for the douche bag Remy.
I managed to get four ex-military men on the case and by the time Nicole emerged from the shower, there was a full on manhunt starting up.
“I managed to get in touch with a few highly skilled guys, don’t worry, we’ll catch Remy,” I told Nicole and she simply nodded.
“Uh, good…that’s good. It’s past time for him to be caught and turned into the police,” she said softly and I watched her as she put her overnight bag down on the ground near the bed. I walked over to her and touched her arm briefly to get her attention.
Alien Mate Page 120
