“I think Lucia was searching for you too.” He comes to a stop by my side. “She’s distracted by Tobias right now, but I’m going to need your help saving him.”
Camille barks a laugh, “Alright, alright. I’ll go tear her away. Keep me updated, will you?”
“Will do,” Reuben nods.
He doesn’t look at me and I’m sure to avoid his gaze because remembering Christian has left my feelings bare. I’m scrambling to put them back in the box before he sees them, but the moment Camille is gone, he’s turning to step in front of me, right into my space.
It takes every focused effort I have to not step back.
“Christian.”
It feels like I’ve done something wrong, but I don’t think I have. Still, I try to brace myself as much as I can before meeting his gaze.
Reuben’s eyes are cold, but there’s a scary smile touching his lips, “I think it’s the first time I’ve ever seen you smile.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck—
Reuben steps closer and though I hold my ground, I can feel the tension in my back and shoulders. Tension that is somehow made worse by the scent of him, a soft, deep trace of woods and pine that makes my insides soften and those shivers start up at the base of my spine again.
Stars, that must be dread.
“Have you forgotten what I said already about flirting with our clients?”
Reuben, I think we had that conversation in a completely different setting.
But I can't say that. He's too close. His grey suit is tight around his body and his jacket is open. The top buttons of his collared shirt are undone and I can practically see the toned muscle beneath the surface. Dark strands of hair fall across his face, with stormy eyes hiding behind them and for the first time, I'm noticing the piercing on the edge of his right ear.
“Me estás mirandofijamente,estrellito?”Reuben’s eyes darken, his mother tongue tumbling from his lips in a low murmur that breaks me out of my ridiculous daze.
“I didn't mean to,” I speak quickly just in case he really does feel inclined to shoot Camille like he promised, “I just wanted her to feel more at ease.”
Reuben hums for a moment through disbelieving eyes and for a moment I can’t tell yet if he’s going to shoot me.
I suppose flirting with clients does make Christian look unprofessional. If I keep doing it then maybe it’ll hurt how he's perceived in the future.
My stance straightens, “I didn’t mean to be unprofessional. I’ll be sure not to get too close in the future.”
He barks a laugh and releases a stream of Spanish that’s too fast for me to make out before stepping back with an expression that is quite visibly ire, that strange expression from a moment ago so quickly gone.
“Just watch your checkpoints and keep an eye out for anything suspicious.” He doesn’t even wait for all the words to leave his mouth before walking away.
Music starts up across the deck, but there’s a simmering bitterness in my stomach that roots me to the spot, tension in my shoulders that wasn't there when Camille was here.
And the terrifying suspicion that Reuben sees through me.
It's like a nagging warning in my chest, even when I move from that spot at the edge of the deck and make my way to the first checkpoint, the gangway.
Xavier and Tobias are there, dressed in sleek black suits, but my mind is too muffled to give them any more than a nod of acknowledgement. From what I understand, our team is responsible for the security of the event as Miss Dayton’s detail, so the boarding of the guests is our responsibility. I’d made sure to create a mental checklist of what to look for, but the moment I stepped forward to do the usual body checks, Tobias was pulling me back by the collar with a forced professional smile.
“This is ahigh society event,” he’s practically glaring with his eyes as he talks through his teeth, “just make sure their invitation matches what's in the book.”
My eyes narrow.
You're kidding.
Tobias gestures to the deck with a sweep of his hand and the couple I was about to pat down waltzes through with grateful smiles.
“Some of the people here are serious hotshots, traitor-killer.” Tobias pats my shoulders reassuringly as he whispers in my ear. “If you touch them, you'll be sleeping with the fishes before the party even starts.”
