By the time the staff started packing up, I’d made up my mind.
Tomorrow was the last stop. She needed a different guard. Someone who wasn’t distracted and jumpy. Someone who could focus on the job without second-guessing every sound. Someone who saw her only as a client, nothing more.
******
It took three hours to drive from Houston to San Antonio. Three long hours when we should have talked this whole thing through. Instead, Luna slept with her temple against the window, and I spiraled in my own head.
I was desperate for space by the time we got to the hotel.
“I’m so sorry, there was a mix-up with the booking. We only have one room available,” the hotel clerk said, anxiety written on her face.
“No other rooms?” I asked.
“Conference,” she said with a shrug.
“It’s fine. We’ll make do,” Luna said. Her lips were a pursed white line. The tension between us had to be getting to her.
As soon as we opened the door, it was clear that one room wasn’t our only problem.
“The one bed trope,” Luna said under her breath.
Any hope I had of escaping the tension really disappeared then.
Luna let out a resigned sigh and sat on the edge of the bed with her arms folded. “We might as well talk.”
I should have known she wasn’t the type to leave things unsaid. I took a seat in the chair across the room and faced her.
“I heard you on the phone with Gray this morning, and I need to know one thing. Did you request to be replaced because you don’t want to be near me or because you want it too much?”
“It isn’t that simple, Luna.”
She scrunched her brow. “Of course it is. You are a professional bodyguard. You professionally guard bodies. Now that you have touched my body, you want to run away. The question is why?”
“I can’t be distracted, Luna. You know that, and you know why.”
She let out a frustrated groan. “I do, but this job is one more day, Hayes. One. Then you don’t have to watch my back and can throw me on it instead. So is that what you want, yes or no?”
I ran a hand through my hair, irrationally angry that I couldn’t see the situation the way she did. Or even the way Gray did. “I need to make sure you are safe first. Thinking about what comes after is a sure-fire way to miss something. This conference is the biggest part of the tour. You’ll not only be doing signings, but you’ll be on stage doing a Q and A. I can’t get ahead of myself on this.”
She studied me, her usually expressive eyes flat. “So you can’t take one second to think past tomorrow and decide what you want?”
I shook my head. “I’m sorry.”
She nodded once. “Fine, we’ll do this the hard way.” She picked up her cell phone, which had been connected to a portable charger, and unplugged the cable.
“What are you doing?”
“Breaking rule two, no charged phone.”
“Luna, you’re being ridiculous.”
She rounded on me. “I’mbeing ridiculous? Hayes, you can’t even see the big picture for a minute. Or admit what you want. So if all you care about are things that can hurt me, well, I guess I’ll have to hurt myself by breaking your rules.” She stood and started taking off her clothes.
“What the hell are you doing now?”
She tossed her dress in my direction, leaving her in her bra and panties. “I’m going to get dressed up and go for a drink. Alone.” She started digging through her suitcase. “I’m messing up my sleep schedule, my meal schedule, and going out without my guard. That’s what? Rules one, three, and four. But hey, Hayes, I’m taking a break. Slow clap for me following rule six.”
“We both know you’re not going out for a drink. You hate crowds.”
