I wave her off but smile a bit. “Whatever.”
“Ruby?”
We both turn and see Kooper and Domino staring at us as they stand by the pool table, cues in hand.
“Yeah?” I ask, tone laced with annoyance.
“You wear glasses?” Domino asks as Kooper just continues to stare.
I glare at the obvious answer, but the dumbass just keeps looking. “No, I wear stilettos on my head. What the fuck does it look like I’m wearing?”
“Yeah, but… well, I’ve never seen you with them,” he stammers.
“You laugh and I’ll bust youandyour bike up.” I turn away from them as I threaten him.
“I wasn’t going to laugh. Girl just fucking made all my naughty schoolteacher fantasies come to life.” A loud smack has us looking back to see Domino bent over, holding hisface. “Not that I was going to do anything about it, man. Jesus Christ,” he yells at Kooper, who’s already walking away.
“What do you think that was about?” Milly asks.
I shrug. “Koop’s in charge of most of my security duty. He probably thought Domino was making a play on the president’s daughter. It’s a big no-no. I think they’ve even got it written in the club’s charter or something.”
She snorts. “Yeah, right.”
I roll my eyes. “Dad’s strict about that sort of thing.”
Before I can say more, Abigail and Nat show. Thank God. Because even though I deny it every time someone hints that Kooper might like me more than the job entails, I know it’s false. It has to be.
Over the last year, we’ve drifted apart. Ever since Bailey’s claiming when I got in that car with Lewis, we don’t see each other as much. Hence why the nightmares keep coming. He’s there, but we talk less. If we talk at all. Mostly just spats here and there. Sort of what it was like before he was given my guard detail.
And maybe that’s it. Maybe the job’s done. Duke’s dead. The threat is gone.
But your dad didn’t know about Duke when Kooper started watching you. Why would he stop now?
That one thought is what keeps me up more nights than not.
Chapter 15—Kooper
Iwatch her from the shadows. Not in a creepy way like a stalker, just because the lights are low and the clubhouse has shadows for many reasons. Usually to hook up with a vamp whenever you want but still be private. I use the shadows as a cover for what I want, though: to watch overher. And no one knows. They can’t know.
They all get what my job is. They all know Ihaveto look out for her. But me watching her like this? When she’s safely inside the compound? There isn’t a reason for it. None that I’m willing to discuss or even think on, anyway. It’s just something I do. And I do it in secret to keep the questions at bay.
After the night I took her for food and we played video games, I knew I’d fucked up. I was treating her as a person and not as an asset to protect. And it was… fun. I can’t have fun with an asset. The job requires me to be vigilant. If you start having fun, you forget to look for threats and just live in the moment.
So I’ve kept my distance. More than ever before. I hardly talk with her. It helps that very little has gone on lately. She’s not causing trouble, and trouble isn’t looking for her. Means I can define the line between what’s right and proper and what I think about at night when I’m alone, watching her on my cameras.
I might seem distant, but I’m closer than I ever was before. This past year has tested my skills. Flexing my abilities to blend in with those around me so no one sees what I’m actually doing. Who I’m actually watching. Listening to. Learning about. It has me invested in new opportunities as well. The boys just think I’m getting better because of the trainings we have with Operation Hell Hound, or OHH. I let them believe my tracking skills and aim have sharpened because I want to be part of the missions that I know I’ll never be put on rotation for because of my protection duty over Ruby. They think it’s just my desire to be part of the group.
How wrong they are.
When she gets up and walks away with Natalie, leaving Abigail and Milly talking, I follow. To those looking, I’m going for a smoke. I don’t smoke for the habit but for the cover. Learned early in life that those who smoke get more breaks. At first, it was just to get a bit of time off the jobs I was on. Bosses never complained when you asked for a smoke break, but they sure as shit had an issue if you took a regular break to check your phone or just sit to get off your feet.
I use smoke breaks still, even within the club. Sometimes it’s an excuse to just leave an awkward conversation. Sometimes it’s because I need the peace of being alone. But lately? It’s to track Ruby without anyone seeing what I’m looking at on my phone.
I don’t know when I started acting like this, hiding shit from my brothers. Maybe it’s because ofwhoit is. Maybe it’s because I don’t knowwhatthis is. I have ideas. And if I weren’t too busy denying shit to myself, I’d be admitting things. Which I’m not ready to do.
I’m looking down at my phone, watching her travel north back to campus. She’s got another class to get to this evening. Don’t know why she opted for late classes during the summer, but it keeps her out of trouble, and away from boys. Because that’s all that is up at the school—boys. Not a single man in sight. And boys get stupid and handsy. I might have stayed away from her these past few months, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t made it clear to more than one guy that she wasn’t interested. She has school to focus on. A career path that’s important to her. I’m not about to let some asshole punk kid come in and try to sweet-talk her into losing focus.
Not that Ruby is easily swayed. But some of these guys make a freaking career out of hooking up. They know all the tricks. Ruby isn’t fooled easily, but she’s still so damn young. She could overlook something if she isn’t careful.
