by Jess Bryant
“I think your live body will work much better at keeping him the hell away from our girl, don’t you?” Lemon’s voice had gone light and he knew she was smiling even though he couldn’t see her.
He rubbed a hand over his forehead, “Why do I get the feeling there’s more to this story than what you’re telling me?”
“Because there probably is but if that’s the case, I don’t know it. Millie keeps a tight lid on her personal life. She doesn’t even like that I know about her jaded history with Joshua. She hasn’t told me anything except that he was very controlling and he cheated on her constantly, but like you, I suspect there’s more to that story. Much more.”
Controlling? All of Hunter’s senses went on alert. He didn’t think Lemon realized she’d let that one word slip, or if she did maybe she didn’t realize where his thoughts would immediately jump. Then again, maybe she knew exactly what she was doing and the questions that one word would raise for him.
Hunter scowled, “And not even her brother seems to know about this… more?”
“From what I’ve gleaned, no. She doesn’t want her family to know anything about her relationship with Joshua and honestly, I guess that’s her decision.” Lemon gave a sad sigh, “It’s her life and its her story to tell, or not tell as the case may be.”
“She’d rather take a fake date to her brother’s wedding than admit the best man is a douchebag?”
“No. She’d rather skip her brother’s wedding completely. I convinced her to take a date to act as a buffer instead.”
Hunter snorted as he pressed at the spot between his eyebrows where that headache now throbbed, “You didn’t tell her you intended to ask me to be her date though, did you?”
Lemon was oddly silent. Any sort of silence was odd when it came to Lemon, which made him shake his head. He should have known.
“She won’t be on board when she figures out its me.” He frowned, remembering the speech he’d gotten about boundaries the last time he’d worked up the nerve to ask her to go out with him.
“She’ll get over it and realize it’s for the best. Trust me.”
Lemon seemed to have faith. He wished he did. But he wasn’t so sure Millie would get in a car with him once she saw that he was the man Lemon had sent to help play buffer between her and her ex. She might take one look at him and decide the ex was the lesser of two evils.
Millie might be young but by God, the girl was also the most stubborn person he’d ever met which was really saying something considering he’d been a member of the United States Army for all the formative years of his life. Maybe he was a masochist, but it was that stubborn streak of hers that had first attracted him to Millie, even if now he cursed it every time he set sights on her.
Spending a weekend with her, outside of work, meeting her family and friends, seeing the Millie that they got to see, would change things between them. It would have to. Whether it would be for better or worse remained to be seen but it was a chance he was wiling to take. He didn’t even hesitate; in fact he jumped at the opportunity.
“I’ll do it.”
“I know.” Lemon was smiling again.
“Try not to sound so smug.” He huffed.
“You try not to kill her ex this weekend, ok?” Lemon’s tone turned serious again, “I know what I told you about their breakup made you mad and I know you know what it means when I say I think there’s more to the story, but that’s why I want it to be you with her. You’ll have her back no matter what goes down at that wedding. You’ll be whatever she needs.”
He was just glad that he and Lemon were on the same page. The story she’d told him didn’t add up. Millie had broken up with her longtime boyfriend because she’d caught him cheating. She’d told her family but it didn’t seem to matter to them. They wanted Millie back together with the asshole no matter what, but both he and Lemon sensed Millie hadn’t told them the whole truth, a big truth that could have gotten her ex and her family off her back all in one admission.
But why?
If the more to the story was that he was a serial cheater, or worse, that he’d somehow hurt Millie, surely she’d want to tell her family so that they’d back off. She could have used that information to keep this Joshua guy out of her life for good. So why was she keeping whatever had really happened between them a secret? And not just from her family, but from Lemon too?
What was Mille hiding?
“I’ll take care of her. I promise.” He cleared his throat when he glanced up and saw his older brother standing in the doorway of his office. “I need to go so I can get my things in order. Text me the details about where to be and when, and anything else you know about the event.”
“Thank you, Hunter.”
“Don’t thank me yet. If that bastard tries anything, you may have to bail me out of jail.”
Lemon giggled, “You’re not going to do anything that might end with you in jail because then you won’t be at Millie’s side where you can protect her.”
One corner of his mouth twitched because Lemon knew him well. She’d become a friend in the time since he started working for her. He liked and respected her. And she was right. He wasn’t going to leave Millie’s side until she was safely back home, away from the prick that had broken her heart.
“Touché.”
“I’ll text you the details.” Lemon added, “And don’t forget, weddings are supposed to be fun.”
She hung up before he could tell her that this was a job to him, not a vacation. But maybe that was for the best. He wasn’t entirely certain that was true and he didn’t want to lie to her. He would be working to keep Millie safe and to gauge her relationship with her ex so he could figure out why she needed a buffer in the first place. But he would also be spending a weekend alone with a woman that drove him absolutely crazy with want.
Maybe he’d call it a working vacation.
“What’s going on? Sounded like you were making weekend plans.”
Hunter looked up to see that his older brother was still leaning against the doorframe as if he was holding up the entire building.
Vaughn St. James had always had that way about him. It wasn’t just that he was built like a linebacker either. It was his ego, his aura, his mere presence that seemed to suck up all the free space in any room he walked into. People had a tendency to take one look at Vaughn and assume he was just a pretty face with a gym membership. What they only learned after they underestimated him was that he’d gotten a perfect score on the SAT’s, graduated both high school and college early and with honors and used his massive brain to start a company that did more than just provide muscle for hire.
Vaughn had started All Saints Security & Protection Services on his own, with nothing but a dream and a bank loan. Just a handful of years later and they were the premiere agency in the southern United States working for clients ranging from country music stars like Lemon Kelly and her touring partner Trent Thorne, to billionaire executives, party girl heiresses, tech geek start-up CEO’s and everything in between. They provided bodyguards and security details but they also had a tech division that monitored everything from the cameras on a client’s property to thwart stalkers to their bank accounts to keep an eye out for fraudulent charges. Vaughn’s company did it all and yet he still managed to single-handedly run the business and check in on his little brothers almost hourly to make sure Hunter and Tyler weren’t doing anything they shouldn’t be doing.
It only figured that Vaughn would show up while Hunter was on the phone with Lemon agreeing to a job that wasn’t really a job when he was already booked with another client for the weekend.
“That was Lemon. She needs me to handle something for her this weekend so you’ll have to get someone else to cover the detail at the surprise Bluebird performance tomorrow night.”
“She has a job for you?” Vaughn frowned.
“Kind of.”
A dark eyebrow rose, “Kind of?”
“She asked me to do her a favor, okay
? Her assistant, Millie, needs some protection this weekend and Lemon asked me to handle it. I said yes.” He glanced up from where he’d started organizing his messy desk and saw Vaughn’s frown only deepen, “What was I supposed to say? No? Lemon is my biggest client.”
“What does her assistant need protection from?”
Hunter really, really didn’t want to get into this. Especially considering he had no proof. But his gut had filled in the blanks and he knew trying to hide anything from his older brother was useless so he stopped what he was doing and met Vaughn’s piercing stare.
“Abusive ex boyfriend.”
That made Vaughn’s jaw twitch and Hunter recognized the gesture. He was sure his own had been jumping during that call with Lemon. She hadn’t outright said that Millie’s ex was abusive. They’d danced around that topic. But he’d known they were both thinking it. Vaughn rubbed his chin before he spoke again, a habit of his when he was thinking.
“Why is the girl going anywhere near an asshole like that?”
“Family wedding.”
“I take it her family doesn’t know then.”
It wasn’t a question so Hunter didn’t bother answering it like one, “It’s two nights away. I leave tomorrow afternoon. I only had the one job booked for tomorrow night, so as long as you can get someone to fill in for me…”
“I’ll get Tyler to cover you.” Vaughn gave a short nod and then turned as if he was going to leave the office before pausing and turning back, “And Hunter? What I overheard about going to jail if the asshole tries anything? I’m your first call. Always.”
Hunter grinned, “And here I thought you were going to tell me to not get arrested.”
“That would be my preference but if it comes down to protecting the girl, I know you won’t hesitate to take matters into your own hands if necessary. Try to think with your head, the one on top of your shoulders, while you’re on this job, and be careful.”
“I’m always careful.”
“No, Hunter.” Vaughn shot him a serious look, “You’re not. You lead with your emotions and as your boss I see that as both the asset and the liability that it is. It makes you good with the clients. It’s why Lemon didn’t hesitate to call and ask you to do her this favor. She trusts you. But as your older brother, I’m asking you, seriously, to be careful this weekend. You’ll be alone, without backup, in a place you don’t know, with people you’ve never met before. Think before you act. Okay?”
“Okay.” Hunter nodded and Vaughn gave him one last look before nodding and then leaving his office.
Hunter smiled once Vaughn was out of sight. It wasn’t often his big brother gave him a compliment and he couldn’t deny the words had been nice to hear. Sometimes he wondered if Vaughn only kept him and Tyler on the payroll because they were related. They shared a last name and even if some people would only call them half-brothers, Vaughn had always been one hundred percent there for Hunter and Tyler.
Hunter knew it couldn’t have been easy for Vaughn. He wasn’t just older. He was old enough to be Hunter and Tyler’s father himself. Their father had married a woman only a few years older than Vaughn and Hunter knew that had caused friction between the old man and his eldest son. But even when Vaughn had pulled away from their father, he’d never walked away from his brothers. He’d taken them under his wing, been the best older brother they could have asked for and had even given them jobs at the agency.
Vaughn was a good man. He was a good brother and a good boss. He put up with a lot from Tyler and had never once threatened to fire him, even though Hunter sometimes thought his older brother should do just that. Vaughn kept them close, but he never doled out special treatment and he certainly didn’t hand out compliments, which was why Hunter wasn’t at all surprised he’d followed it up with a warning.
Vaughn thought Hunter could be reckless but nothing was further from the truth. He did let his emotions rule his decisions sometimes but he didn’t think that was a bad thing. He cared about Lemon as more than just a client and Millie… well, what he felt for her was in a whole other ballpark. But that didn’t mean he was going to go rushing into a situation unprepared.
If anything, he was going to do a deep research dive before he went in so that he’d know exactly what he was dealing with. It might not be the kind of situation that involved guns and vests but that didn’t mean it wasn’t dangerous. He needed to do some recon and he needed to do it fast.
Hunter sat back down at his desk and opened his laptop. He typed in his password and once the main screen came up he opened every search program he had available to him. It was time to do something he hadn’t let himself do since he’d first been introduced to the beautiful and mysterious Millie Turner.
He was going to Google her. Then he was going to Facebook her. Then he was going to run a background check and from there he’d expand his search to find the people she was connected with. Namely, he intended to track down the guy Lemon had told him about and find as much dirt on him as was possible in the small window of time he had before he was supposed to pick Millie up.
What did Lemon say his name was? Joshua something? Joshua Bell. He even sounded like a douchebag.
Hunter leaned forward in his chair, pulled up the search engine and typed in Millie’s name. He had to scroll a little to get past all the articles about Lemon that mentioned her assistant by name. Once he did though, he rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. When he stared at the computer screen the article was still front and center and his jaw clenched.
He couldn’t believe what he was reading.
He’d wanted to learn more about Millie and with just a couple of clicks, he had. He’d discovered with nothing but a Google search that he didn’t know a damn thing about the girl he’d been lusting over for half a year. He hadn’t looked into her before because he’d had no reasonable excuse to put her name into their system. She wasn’t a client and Lemon had vetted her long before Hunter joined the team. But he’d also refused to search out information about Millie online because, as much as he wanted to know everything about her, he’d wanted her to be the one to tell him. He’d wanted Millie to let down her walls, talk to him, and trust him with her secrets.
From what he had learned in just one preliminary search, Millie had a lot of secrets.
When he finally flipped off the computer later that night, he’d accepted the truth. If he was going to this wedding as Millie’s date, it wasn’t because Lemon had asked him to. It wasn’t even because he was worried about her wellbeing. He had said yes because he wanted to go, because he wanted to be with Millie and because by the end of the weekend, he hoped that she would trust him with all of the secrets she’d been keeping.
Maybe she thought she needed a buffer because of her ex. Maybe Lemon had only asked him to fake being Millie’s date. But there wasn’t anything fake about how much he liked Millie or the lengths he would go to prove to her that his feelings for her were real.
3
Millie stood in the middle of her living room, hands on her hips, surveying her apartment. She knew she’d forgotten to pack something but for the life of her, she couldn’t remember what it was. Her eyes searched the room again but nothing stuck out at her. She frowned but went back to digging in her purse to check she’d tossed her phone charger, emergency battery backup, and spare glasses inside.
If she’d been her usual, responsible self she would have been packed for her brother’s wedding over a week ago. She’d have carefully laundered and folded her clothes into her suitcase. She’d have hung her bridesmaid dress over the coat closet door in preparation. She would have been ready to go so that all she had to do this morning was grab her things and walk out the door. But of course she didn’t want to go to this wedding, so instead of packing in advance she’d put it off until the last possible minute and had spent all morning running circles around her apartment, haphazardly tossing things into a bag and praying that she wouldn’t forget anything that was irreplaceable.
Why couldn’t a meteor have hit Nashville and stopped this horrible weekend from happening?
She sighed and put her purse aside after checking all of her necessities were inside for the third time. She checked the gold watch on her wrist and frowned. It was five minutes after one. Her date was officially late which made her officially nervous. She hated being late. She’d had the principles of business drilled into her since she was a child and she could practically hear her father’s voice in her head.
“If you’re early, you’re on time. If you’re on time, you’re late. And if you’re late, you’re not worth my time.”
Millie bit the inside of her cheek, a nervous habit she’d been trying to break for years. In times of great stress she often ended up chewing a hole into the sensitive tissue. More than once she’d ended up with blood pooling in her mouth and the taste of mercury on her tongue, making her nauseous. She hated the stupid automatic reaction to her nerves being fried and popped a mint to keep herself occupied. She’d packed several of those as well, certain that by Sunday when she returned home she’d have a hole chewed straight through her cheek if she didn’t.
She told herself not to worry. Lemon had set this up. Even if her friend had been weirdly mysterious about the identity of Millie’s date, she’d assured her that he knew his role and was looking forward to the weekend. Millie still didn’t understand Lemon’s secrecy but she’d decided she had more important things to worry about. If Lemon had hired a date from some expensive escort agency, Millie didn’t even care, so long as he was good looking and up to the task of keeping Joshua away from her.
She scolded herself for hoping her date was good looking. It didn’t matter… not really. She was only being vain. She wanted Joshua to think that she’d moved on, even if she hadn’t. She wanted him to be jealous that not only was she with someone else but that she had in no way downgraded by leaving him. She didn’t want to care what he thought of her. She hated herself for worrying about him at all. She should have been strong enough to show up to her brother’s wedding with her shoulders back and her chin held high without needing a man at her side. Yet even when she’d thought about doing just that over the past few months, she’d known that she wouldn’t. She couldn’t. Because she didn’t trust herself alone with Joshua, not even after all the things he’d done.