Page 5 of My Bodyguard’s The Boss

Austin was good at talking people into things. That included convincing security guards he was okay to go wherever he wanted, no security needed. Dominic was the only one on his team who had never given in to that.

“I need to head out soon,” Dominic said as he switched his dumbbell to the other arm. “How are things at the gym? You out and about, or are you on a treadmill again?”

Ben groaned. “Treadmill. Gotta stick around in case these idiots come to me with problems.”

“Wow. Almost sounds like you run the place.”

“Running the place doesn’t give these jackasses an excuse to come up to me every five minutes,” Ben replied huffily. “Who doesn’t know how to change a water cooler?”

“You, Ben. Two years ago, when you took over the place.”

“Yeah, well, the army doesn’t teach you about water coolers,” Ben replied.

Dominic tilted his head in acknowledgement. The army had taught them a lot, but not much they could use when they were civilians again. Hence why Ben took over a gym, and Dominic went into security. He’d even bulked up for it. Not that size mattered a huge amount for being a bodyguard. It was much more important to be able to assess a situation with one glance. To know where his charge was at all times. Having fast reflexes, thinking on your feet, knowing how to diffuse a tense situation—so many things transferred over from his army days. But one aspect more than the others, the thing his commanding officers pointed out in every evaluation: Dominic’s protective instinct was strong. Being a bodyguard was a natural fit.

“Been meaning to tell you,” Ben said, his breathing ragged. “I finally looked him up. You sure he’s all bark and no bite? Even in the interviews, he seems pretty intimidating. And I’m good at seeing past this shit.”

“He’s an incredible actor,” Dominic said. “You’d see it if you spent time with him. Trust me, he’s not scary at all. He just wants⁠—”

Dominic forced himself to stop. He’d already said too much with that drunken “puppy” comment. Never mind that it was true. Austin was a good actor, but Dominic had clocked him within a day of working for him. Austin wanted someone to tell him what to do. It was the only time he finally relaxed. It was why he wanted certain types of directors, why he got along so well with his agent, why he liked Dominic so much. They told Austin what to do. Sometimes they even praised him for it.

Dominic slotted his dumbbell back into place and reached for his water bottle, taking a deep pull to distract him from the memory of last night.

Good boy. It had just slipped out. He’d been wanting to say it all year, and Austin had submitted for him so beautifully. It felt so natural to say it. And Austin had reacted wonderfully, his footsteps stuttering and his voice catching as he called after Dominic.

Too bad Dominic couldn’t do anything about it. It wasn’t the boss thing holding him back; it was the idea of getting too close. Dominic had a rule about keeping his distance. But they were stuck together most evenings. It was Dominic’s job to be attuned to him. If Dominic gave in to Austin, there was no other way this would go.

Dominic would fall. And Dominic never let himself get that far.

A fuzzy voice sounded in the background of Ben’s call.

Ben sighed. “I need to go. Some bastard peed in the men’s lockers. Do me a favor?”

“Sure,” Dominic said, sinking into a stretch. “What is it?”

“Shit or get off the pot,” Ben said. “I’m sick of hearing you moon over him.”

With that, the line went dead.

Dominic huffed a laugh. Then he straightened and headed for the shower. He had forty minutes before he had to be in town, and he was never late.

Austin’s limo pulled up to the charity gala to a chorus of excited screams. There was a small crowd behind the barrier, which wasn’t as reinforced as Dominic liked. The physical barrier was sturdy enough, but there wasn’t enough security to back it up.

But that wasn’t Dominic’s problem right now. His number one priority was Austin.

Dominic ignored the shrieking crowd and walked around the limo, pulling the back door open to reveal Austin beaming up at him.

Dominic had to school his features so he didn’t smile back. He’d never been much of a smiler, especially on the job, no matter how much Austin tried to change that.

“It’s my favorite bodyguard,” Austin said, climbing out onto the sidewalk. “You weren’t in the car. I was worried you’d called out sick.”

“I meet you at the events sometimes.”

“Only when it’s not in the evening,” Austin replied. “I’m supposed to get you all evening. That includes the car ride. What if I got gunned down?”

“Then your other security guys would have handled it,” Dominic said simply. He could see the other bodyguard climb out of the car, but he didn’t look at him. He was too busy scanning his surroundings, looking for possible threats. They always had deranged fans to worry about. Austin attracted them like flies.

“Come on,” Dominic said. “Let’s get you inside.”