Secured Undercover

by Charity Parkerson

  “Years you say?”

  She looked in both directions down the hall. “How did you get here so fast?”

  “The stairs,” he answered on a shrug. “So years, huh?”

  The stairs? He didn’t even appear to be winded.

  “Who are you?”

  He held out his hand for her to shake. “Shannon Smith, Smith Security Services.”

  She shook his hand lightly, regretting the loss of his warmth as soon as she reluctantly dropped his hand. “Flower Calloway,” she returned.

  “I know,” he said flashing another sexy grin.

  She was momentarily flustered. “Okay,” she moved around him, taking out her key card. She reached her door and swiped the card. “It was nice meeting you Mr. Smith. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you around.” She quickly stepped inside, closing the door in his face, but as soon as she did, she thought better of it and reopened it before he could get away. He turned to walk away, but as soon as the door reopened, he turned back. “It has been several years,” she emphasized before closing the door once more on his stunned expression.

  She managed to kick her shoes off and make it halfway across the room before a knock sounded on the door. She laughed all the way back to the door; throwing it open wide.

  “That was not an invitation to have hot monkey sex….” she trailed off as she recognized Chad standing there, leering. “Hot monkey sex, I’m in.”

  “No, you’re not,” she told him as she closed the door in his smug face. She slammed it a little harder than intended but gained so much satisfaction that she couldn’t find it in her heart to regret it. She wasn’t sure why Chad decided to target her again after all these years, but he had been laying it on thick for the past few months. There were several flower delivers and more offers for dinner than she could count. There was also one ill-fated marriage proposal that still made her cringe when she remembered it. It came right after Chad returned to Flatline after years of living and working in the city. He drove into town and straight to her door, confessing his inability to stop thinking of her. At first, she was flattered since he did still have a full head of hair. She hadn’t forgotten how those finely shaped lips used to take her breath away, but after one dinner date, she realized quickly that he was still an asshole. Once she experienced her, “Oh yeah, I remember now why we’re no longer together” moment, she tried desperately to shake him with no success, but she wasn’t beyond hoping.

  CHAPTER THREE

  This gig was turning out to be even more of a security nightmare than he could’ve ever dreamed possible. At least every fifteen minutes, one of the diva’s tried to make off with a jewel. One even went as far as to demand a trunk load of the designer dresses, claiming they were his own, and forcing them to intervene. How they managed to stuff so many kleptos into one room was beyond him. The only thing keeping him from snapping was the sight of Flower. She chose a gown of deep green that matched her eyes exactly, and it dipped so low in the back that it ended right at the top of her perfectly shaped ass. Just as he thought he might be getting accustomed to the view from behind, she turned, giving him the full frontal view. The sight nearly knocked him on his ass. The dress dipped almost as low in the front, and there wasn’t much left to the imagination, but he was cool with it; so was every other man in the room, even some of the ones dressed like women.

  What did bother him was the Mr. Sleek asshole that spent the entire night trailing her. He knew a little bit about reading body language. It was obvious she didn’t want the guy hanging around, but still the jerk managed to be at least five steps behind her at all times. He reminded Shannon of one of those used car salesman, always quick with a false promise, just looking for that next big sell. He really hated those guys, so while Mr. Sleek kept Flower in his sights, Shannon kept him in his.

  Shannon began to make his way through the crowd, but when Flower caught sight of him, she took off in the opposite direction. He was determined not to let her get away. She already admitted it had been years, and wasn’t that just such a shame—a beautiful woman like her going without for years. What she needed was for him to fix that.

  She spotted him right off the bat. Even though she felt quite sure he’d already seen her, she still tried to lose herself in the crowd. Damn he was looking extra yummy tonight. She thought he looked pretty hot the night before, with his t-shirt stretched tight across his muscular chest, and his aged jeans hugging him in all the right places, but now, dressed in a black tux, he was enough to make a woman drool.

  “Why are you running?”

  His lips brushed across her ear as his fingers stroked down her spine, and she made an important discovery; every place Shannon touched held a direct line to her hoo-ha.

  “Are you stalking me?”

  Shannon’s amber eyes flashed with humor at her question. “Would you like me to?”

  Oh yes, she definitely did, but she couldn’t very well say that. His hand went to his earpiece and he muttered a curse. “I’m sorry but I’ve got to go. Will you sit with me at dinner?”

  She could feel her cheeks aching from the intensity of her smile. “I’d love to.”

  He flashed a boyish grin and was off like a shot. A small giggle escaped. If she knew this crowd, and she did, Steven Alfred, aka Candy, was trying to put the silverware in his purse.

  “Who was that? Yum, yum.”

  Bradley’s voice didn’t match up with his words, but Flower grabbed his hands in excitement, barely suppressing the desire to jump up and down like a little girl in her happiness. “He’s working security. His name is Shannon and we met last night in the hallway.”

  Bradley leaned a little to the side trying to get a better view. “Damn, sugar, he’s a hot one.”

  “I know,” she squealed barely suppressing the urge to cackle like a mad woman.

  “Not that I really care, but what about Chad? I just saw him skulking in the corner.”

  “Shit,” she muttered. “I forgot all about Chad.”

  Bradley’s eyes sparkled with mischief. “Don’t you worry about a thing. I’ll take care of Chad. You just worry about yourself, and remember to have fun, but you don’t know that guy, so take care.”

  Flower grabbed Bradley around the shoulder’s hugging him tightly. “You are the best friend ever!”

  An odd look passed over Bradley’s face, but it was gone as quick as it came, and Flower couldn’t be sure it wasn’t a trick of the light. “You too, babe,” he said before rushing off again. The click-clack of his heels followed him across the room in Chad’s direction.

  With another disaster averted, Shannon stood on the fringes watching the crowd. Despite the many issues they encountered, it could still be deemed a pretty successful night so far. A lot of money was being raised for a good cause, and everyone appeared to be having a great time. No matter how hard he tried to concentrate on his job, his gaze continued to return to Flower. She spoke animatedly with a tall blonde in spiked heels and a Marilyn Monroe wig. She was clutching the guy’s hands laughing, and he could tell by the way they leaned towards one another that it was someone she considered to be a good friend.

  “I just broke up a cat fight in the men’s room.”

  Shannon turned his amused gaze to Weave. “Did you find out what it was over?”

  “Someone pissed on someone else’s six-hundred dollar shoes.”

  Shannon raised an eyebrow at his answer, almost hating to ask, “On purpose?”

  “No. Apparently it is a lot harder to jack up an evening gown in order to take a piss than it is to unzip pants.”

  “Well, who knew?”

  Weave shrugged. “We’re going down to a skeleton crew during dinner, and some of the guys are going to go in on some pizza. Do you want to get in on it? The shit they’re serving here barely looks edible.”

  They were all invited to join in on the five-course meal, but it was fancier than most of them were used to. “Sorry dude, but I’ve already made plans.”

  Weave’
s eyes lit up with interest. “What kind of plans? Do they have anything to do with the hot designer I saw you talking to earlier?”

  Shannon glanced away, his eyes moving over the crowd once more, before he admitted. “I asked her to sit with me at dinner.”

  Weave let out a low whistle. “And she agreed? Sweet.”

  Shannon nodded. He hadn’t really expected her to say yes. She flirted with him the night before, but there wasn’t any denying, she was way too classy for the likes of him. His father was a professional MMA fighter and the owner of a club that trained other fighters. Shannon’s mother was a military woman and she was just as rough-and-tumble as the men. Shannon was raised around a tough crowd, leaving him a little rough around the edges. He could wear a penguin suit just as well as the next guy, but it didn’t change who he was on the inside, and this wasn’t his scene. Despite that, he was going to wade into this classy gathering in an attempt to get to know Flower a little better. She truly was one hot woman and worth the attempt that would most likely end in utter failure.

  Bradley wondered if his smile was as evil as if felt. Every time that he tried to smooth out the lines of his face, the damn smile popped back up again. When he was a child, he was teased constantly, but Flower always stuck by his side. She seemed not to care that he was overweight or that he preferred Barbie over Trucks; she only wanted to be his friend. That was the wonderful thing about Flower; she loved everyone. She didn’t care about the color of their skin or their sexual preference. She only wanted to make people smile. That was why people like Chad Williams preyed upon her. The Chad’s of the world were given everything in life, and they never knew, even for a moment, what it felt like to be looked down upon for whom or what they were. There was one person in the world that loved him no matter what, and that person was Flower. Now he couldn’t shake this stupid grin because Flower unwittingly gave him permission to take Chad down. Chad was a user, and he didn’t care who he hurt, or maybe he didn’t even realize other people experienced feelings, but nonetheless, Bradley did know.

  There was a time in Bradley’s life, right after he lost the weight and the headgear, when girls started to notice him. Back then he worked his way through quite a few of them. Sometimes it was a form of revenge, since all the girls he used and threw away were the same girls that teased him just a few years before. But when he moved to Abernathy, his life changed, and the lessons he learned as a child reared their head, forcing him to straighten out his life.

  But not Chad, he was still a prick, and he was still chasing Flower—thankfully, so far without success, but Bradley feared Chad would eventually wear her down. The flowers he sent to the boutique were only the beginning. This new guy she spent all night talking to was a little more problematic because he might actually have what it took to win Flower over, but he wasn’t that worried about him either. Bradley would make damn sure he didn’t get enough alone time with her to be able to do much more than flirt. He spotted Chad across the room making his way towards Flower, and he moved to intercede before Chad got the chance to catch up with her. Throwing his arms wide, he pitched his voice as high as it would go. “Chad my darling.”

  Chad cringed at the sound, and Bradley mentally chuckled. He was so going to fuck up Chad’s world and have the time of his life doing it.

  “You look beautiful by the way. I don’t think I got a chance to tell you earlier.”

  Flower smiled at the compliment. “You’re not too shabby yourself. Who designed this?” Grabbing Shannon by the collar she tried to pull his neck towards her for further inspection, but she froze at his look. “I’m sorry,” she said trying to smooth his collar back down while working at stifling her nervous laughter. “You must think I’m insane attacking you like that, or in the least really rude.”

  “No, that was just a first for me. Most women at least let me finish eating my dinner before they try to rip my clothes off, or they at least wait until we’re in private.”

  Flower wrung her hands uncomfortably. She really didn’t mean to attack him like that and she didn’t have a single doubt that every word he said was the truth. She felt the need to explain her actions. “I get excited about other people’s fashion lines, and I’ve been hanging around this group for far too long,” she said the last as if she was reading her own death sentence.

  “I thought you had a lot of friends amongst this crowd.”

  Flower looked around at the faces that surrounded them and took special note of some wonderful people. As far as good friends went, she could only lay claim to one of those, and he wouldn’t be keeping her warm at night, not to mention as much as she loved him, she wanted someone to love her for more than friendship. “I do have a lot of friends here, but I’m open to meeting a new friend,” she said it in a way as to leave no doubt about her meaning. He smiled showing a sexy set of dimples, and she knew he hadn’t missed it.

  “What are you doing after this?”

  “I have to go to the fashion show and auction. Since it’s my pieces up for sale, I can’t miss it.”

  “I meant what are you doing after this, like tomorrow?”

  Flower blushed. “It’ll take a day or two for the crew to load everything up so I’ll be here until then with no plans.”

  “Spend the day with me tomorrow then,” he suggested.

  “Okay,” she agreed shyly. He smiled down into her eyes. Then his eyes locked on something over her shoulder. “Damn it, that guy just stuck an entire candle holder in his purse.”

  “That’d be Steven. See ya later,” she said, knowing he was as good as gone now.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  The morning wasn’t going at all the way Flower planned. She thought to meet up with Shannon early, and take in some of the sights since she this was her first trip to Nashville, but, apparently, keeping up with security issues on the charity pieces was a bigger job than she could’ve ever imagined. Finally, around eleven thirty, he called her room letting her know he was downstairs waiting with a car. As she stepped out of her room, the door across the hall opened, and Chad stepped out looking nervous. His hair was standing up in every direction, and his normally clean suit was wrinkled beyond repair. Under normal circumstances, she would’ve tried to avoid talking to him as much as possible, but her curiosity was getting the best of her since Chad prided himself on his appearance.

  “What happened to you?”

  He looked right and left as if planning his escape. “What to do you mean?”

  She waved in the direction of his clothes, and he glanced down as if just noticing what he was wearing. “Good God,” he breathed, horrified.

  “You’ve just noticed?” she asked. Then she wanted to kick herself for extending a conversation she was sure to pay for later with at least two weeks of flowers that made her sneeze, and dinner offers that came three times a day. There were only so many times you could be shaving your legs, washing your hair, or making a list of the merits of becoming a lesbian.

  “I looked fine last time I looked in the mirror. What time is it?”

  Flower glanced at her watch. “Its 11:35.”

  Chad stood in shock for a moment before rallying. “In the morning?” he asked, sounding mortified.

  Flower nodded. “Yep, how come you didn’t know what time it was? I thought you were wearing some really expensive watch last night. You felt the need to show me at least five times,” she added wryly.

  “I don’t know what happened to it.”

  “We’re you robbed?” She asked, exasperated with the entire conversation. Not to mention he was making her late for her date.

  “I don’t know.”

  Flower rolled her eyes. She was really tired of it now. “Well. Why don’t you know?”

  “I fell asleep, and then I don’t know.”

  Flower sighed loudly. Having her fill of Chad’s drama for the day, she cut their conversation off before she got dragged into God knows what. Tossing a quick wave over her shoulder she headed out as quickly as her feet wo
uld take her without looking like she was making a run for it.

  Down in the lobby, she found Shannon waiting by the front door. Unfortunately, her good mood was ruined after her run in with Chad. She still tried valiantly to smile.

  “Hey, Shannon. How’s it going?”

  He didn’t look any happier than her. “This job is shit. It was supposed to be simple, but every time I turn around, someone has stolen something, and I’m forced to run in circles, chasing my tail, never getting anything accomplished.”

  She patted him on the arm in sympathy, unable to keep from noticing how hard his muscles were. “You know what you need?”

  “What?”

  “A very strong drink. Is there any place around here serving alcohol this early?”

  Shannon was quick to warm up to Flower’s suggestion. “As it happens, I know just the place.”

  “Cool.” She followed him out to his SUV, and in an exaggerated motion, he turned his cell phone off before tossing it into the back seat. They climbed in and peeled out as if they robbed the joint. It only took ten minutes to get to the bar Shannon was thinking of.

  By two thirty in the morning, Shannon and Flower partook of every redneck bar in the greater Nashville area. Back at the hotel, Shannon carried a passed out Flower past a six foot Marilyn Monroe on the way through her hotel room. Twenty minutes later, after he managed to get her comfortably tucked into bed, he turned his cell phone on to find he missed several calls. He listened to the messages while watching Flower sleep. He was seriously considering climbing in next to her, when Bob’s voice sounded in his ear telling him he was arrested earlier in the evening for trespassing on hotel property.

  “What kind of fucked up job is this?” he muttered to himself, hanging up the phone.

  He debated on whether to wake up Flower to let her know he was leaving, but, in the end, he decided to leave a note.