It’s futile though.
My family would tear down heaven and earth to find me.
And how can I save lives if I can’t even finish my degree?
I stare into my coffee, contemplating my fate. It suddenly seems less therapeutic and increasingly murky.
I blow my hair from my face with a huff. ‘Any idea who they’re sending to replace you?’
Jared shakes his head. An engine slows to a stop outside the thick pastel pink front door (Sasha did say I could paint it any colour I like).
We eye each other with wary trepidation. Jared extends his leathery hand for a formal shake, but I wrap my arms around him in an awkward embrace.
Guilt eats at me. It’s my fault he’s been sacked. ‘I’m sorry I got you into trouble.’
He coughs to mask his embarrassment. ‘It’s fine. I’m getting too old for this line of work, to be honest.’
‘What will you do?’ I’d hate to see him stuck for a job, even though I know Ryan will have given him a generous pay-off.
‘I’m going to take some extended leave with my wife. We might go to Spain for a couple of months.’ A small, crooked smile sprouts as he reaches for the front door. ‘Try to stay out of trouble, Doctor Sexton.’
‘From the look of it,’ I pull a face of distaste in the direction of the car outside and the figure clambering out, ‘I’ll have no choice.’
Jared takes a deep breath and yanks the front door open, finding himself face to face with his replacement.
A broad silhouette towers over him, sneering with an air of disgust.
I’m not sure which of us is more shocked. Time stops and the rest of the world disappears as I drink in the sight of my new bodyguard.
A crisp white shirt compliments flawless, lightly tanned skin, but it’s the trademark black Armani suit that sets my underwear on fire. All Ryan’s security wear them, but Archie wears it better than any of them. The way it sculpts those enormous shoulders, showcasing that familiar bulky, powerful physique.
A physique that’s born to protect.
Or serve.
Or, in an ideal world… both.
Familiar luscious lips command my attention. Full, plump perfection simply made for sin. Or maybe I’ve simply been reading too many romance novels.
The hair that was once dirty blond is now darker, a consequence of swapping sunny LA for dreary Dublin, but it’s him.
Archie Mason’s startling blue eyes finally land on me, boring through my flimsy cami pyjama top, deep enough to sear my soul. Sparks dance across my skin, and my nerves crackle with need.
‘You’re a magnet for trouble, Victoria.’ Archie lifts the suitcase next to him like it’s weightless and shoves roughly past Jared, charging straight into my home.
Jared adjusts his jacket, eyeing Archie’s disappearing back. ‘He looks like a whole heap of fun. Good luck. Goodbye, Doctor Sexton.’
Loitering against the solid wooden doorframe, I raise a hand at the car Jared climbs into. My tongue’s so busy hanging out of my mouth, I can barely muster a final farewell.
Not because I’m feeling sentimental.
No.
Because I’m avoiding confronting my new, overtly masculine bodyguard.
The same perfection-personified bodyguard who repeatedly turned down this job before.
The very man who leaves every room I walk into each time I return to Huxley Castle.
