“Cha Cha. If you don’t face him now, you won’t know what sort of a man is coming for you,” he says evenly as I back across the open space behind me.
I shake my head, my arms wrapped around myself. “I don’t want to see it again.”
“The real one?” He’s in front of me in a second, and I can’t work out how he moved so fast.
“Any of it.”
Warm, scarred hands rest on my waist. Drake is a solid presence before me, unrelenting. Merciless. “Choose to be in denial, Cha Cha, and this threat will rob you of your peace. He will steal fragments of your sanity until you can’t sleep. You won’t be able to sit in a room alone and wonder if this last breath is it. If he's coming for you tonight.”
My heart slams into my chest as my vision grays at the edges. I force my head back, my neck aching as I meet his eyes.
“So I’m panicking,” I breathe. “Is this what you want? Maybe this is why no one ever told me.” My teeth chatter, cold sinking into my arms, but warmth radiates from my waist where Drake holds me.
“Yeah, they never told you because they didn’t want you to react. Because they couldn’t help you.”
“And you can?" I clamp my teeth shut, refusing to let my body react. Refusing to let this unnamed person take possession of my body.
Drake smiles. “Good. That’s good, Cha Cha. Keep pushing it away. The fear. Don’t let it rule you.”
I glare at him. “Fuck. You.”
“My pleasure.”
He doesn’t mean it in a sexual way, though his eyes glitter, dark and dangerous. No, Drake takes pleasure in seeing me fight back, I think, rather than being the inactive diva doormat I’ve made a career out of, all temper tantrums and acts and stuffies in dressing rooms watched by people who don’t care who I really am, just who they think they want to be instead.
“Fine, I get it. This is reality and I have to live it. So, Mister Bodyguard. Show me what you got.” My chin stays up even as my bravado falters.
“Big words,” Drake mutters, watching me closely. “I’m going to teach you how to defend yourself so that when that ego fails you, princess, you’ve got a whole toolbox to rely on.”
“What about you?”
His hold on me drops away. “What about me?”
“Isn’t that your job? You’re supposed to be there, protect me?” My defiance switches to curiosity.
Drake laughs, soft and low. The sound reverberates around the open room, sinks into the wood that imbues with the sound. “This is me protecting you, Cha Cha. The rest of what I do? If you can see it, then I’m doing it wrong.”
My nose twitches. I want to challenge him further, because sassing him is both safe and fun. He’s taken what was a terrifying moment and reduced my fear to something strong and manageable.
“I don’t want to be shut out of my own life anymore." I suck in a long breath. “I want to learn.”
“Yeah?” He considers me. “Are you willing to take direction from me? Because what I’ll teach you is dangerous, and if you don’t listen well, one, or both of us, are gonna end up hurt. Can your ego handle that?” His dark eyes glitter at me like before.
He’s baiting me, right after I nearly ran from him, but I understand why. Drake needs to know if I’m going to be a catastrophe in the making of him if I say yes. But something changed last night, between the dressing room and the girl who snapped the letters in his face, the one seeking answers. Because that version of Cha Cha Min didn’t understand the threat. She didn’t know the secrets. And now…
“I’ll listen.” My words come out stronger and softer than I expect, surprising both of us.
Drake rocks back onto his heels, his face clearing. “Alright. I’ll teach you what I had planned for this morning, but the lessons stop the moment you play the princess on me. Is that clear?”
He intended to show me anyway.I just stepped into his plan and threw my ego into a showdown with a man I don't understand. Part of me wants to rant and rave at that. The other half knows that if I don’t play this his way, he’ll clam up and I won’t get another word out of him.
But my bodyguard isn’t the only one who can play games. I’ll listen, and I’ll soak in everything he’ll teach me. But he’ll get the full Cha Cha experience for his efforts. No matter how dangerous this man is, he’s also strangely safe. His touch is warm, and knowing. I want to push his boundaries. Maybe after the lessonsare over for the day, I’ll show him another side of me. The part my other bodyguards never got to experience.
I lick my lips. “It’s a deal, Drake. How do you want me?”
The sharp breath he inhales tells me I’ve nailed what he wants from me.
Cha Cha: 1, Bodyguard…
