Page 2 of The Desire

“Not a chance. I don’t care if you are next door, we don’t let a female friend walk on her own, at night, after a few drinks,” Nic replies in his deep voice as Tori looks up at him in admiration for looking after her friend.

I have only met Elouise a few times. She’s beautiful and she will turn any man’s eye, including mine each time I see her, but personality wise she’s so not my type. Quiet, reserved, and conservative at times, all the things I’m not. Although, when she’s with Tori, she lightens up, and with a few drinks in her can match wit with the best of us. For some reason Flynn seems to think she is his type, but he’s definitely dreaming. She could never keep up with him.

Both Tori and Elouise are thirteen years younger than Nic but only ten years younger than me. I’m the baby of our group, being thirty-six, while they are all around forty or over. The girls might be younger and have no real worldly experience, but they fit in with our group perfectly. Elouise might be the quieter one when we’re around, yet from what I’ve seen, Tori is a fiery one, and she can hold her own, that’s for sure. She has proven that already. Anyone who gets Nicholas Darby to settle down has tenacity way above her age and life experience.

“What he said,” I reply and point my thumb over my shoulder toward where Nic is now standing, then I take her hand and link it through my arm. It’s warm, but so tiny as her little fingers wrap around my bicep. I pat her hand to reassure her.

“I don’t want to bother you, Remington.” The squeak in her voice makes me look down at her. Oh yeah, there is no way she would cope with Flynn, although he hasn’t given up trying.

“No chance of that. We’re on the same floor. Now stop worrying and let’s get out of here before we see something neither of us want to be witness to.” Her giggle tells me she knows exactly what I mean.

The door of the suite closes behind us, and our footsteps are hardly noticeable on the expensive Italian wool carpet in the corridor. Silence falls effortlessly between us, and the trip in the elevator is not long, but I can tell I make her nervous. It’s not intentional, but the way she’s looking at the floor and scuffing her feet is a dead giveaway. The ding of the elevator doors opening has her looking up, and as we step out, I turn to the right, heading to her room.

“How do you know which room I’m in?” Her legs are moving fast, trying to keep up with my stride.

“Head of security, remember? I know everything about everyone in our little circle.” I chuckle at her shocked look. Reaching her door, I use my card that opens all the rooms belonging to our group. It is for safety only, and I would never use it unless there was imminent danger.

“What… how did you do that? That’s…”

I stand to the side and push the door open for her to enter. “Creepy, weird, yeah, I know, but it’s for your own safety. I need to be able to get to you in a hurry if there is ever a problem. But rest assured, I would never use it for any other reason. Your personal space is just that, unless I need to protect you.”

Surprisingly she accepts that and just steps past me into her room, turning to look me directly in the eye. “You really are the eternal tough guy, aren’t you?”

I can’t hold in the laughter at her seriousness. “Yes, Elouise, I’m your private bodyguard whether you like it or not. It comes with the territory now that you’re close to the boss man.”

“But I’m just a little nobody.” Again, her eyes drop to the ground. Oh, this woman really needs a good dose of self-confidence.

“Wrong, you are Elouise Patterson, teacher and tamer of the little people with snotty noses who can’t tie their shoelaces. Award winner of best teacher in your county last year, and from what I hear, a very well-respected staff member at your school. Daughter to Jan and Bob Patterson and sister to Robert, Neil, and Arthur who are all older than you. You are the only one in your family to have attended university, and also, impressively passing with honors. I’m sure all of that makes you an important someone to a lot of people.” I didn’t mean to spew out all my intel on her, but I have a photographic memory for the fine details, and once I recall information, it just all comes rushing back into my brain.

“Oh my…” Her hands come up on to her cheeks that are now blushing at how much I know about her. “Do you know what size underwear I wear too?”

“Do I need to answer that?” I say, chuckling at her comment.

She shakes her head at me with a smile that tells me she is impressed with her witty reply.

“Now, is there anything else you need help with? I trust your room is to your liking.” I’m trying to keep the conversation going with her to stop her from being so embarrassed.

“Um, yes, it’s so posh. I’ve never stayed anywhere like this,” she says, turning her back to me and waving her arm around the room. She is not in a suite but one of our best king-sized rooms in the hotel.

“We aim to please. Well, I will let you settle in for the night. I’m sure you would love to climb into the deep spa bath and finish the night off with some relaxation to send you to sleep.” My hand is still on the door handle, not stepping into the room uninvited.

“If I knew how to work it then I might have, but I’ll just take a shower instead.” She slowly turns to me with a look of disappointment on her face that she is trying to hide but not very well. I have a feeling she couldn’t get away with lying even if she tried.

“Why didn’t you call the concierge or one of us and we could have shown you?” I can feel the sternness on my face. “That’s what we’re here for. Damn, surely we aren’t that scary.” I know I can be at times when I’m in strict work mode, but I would hope she isn’t that worried about me.

“I didn’t want to make a fuss.” The look she gives me, I feel like there is more to it than that.

Shit!

It dawns on me now. She’s embarrassed and doesn’t want to say anything. Nic mentioned that she hasn’t traveled at all, and staying here must be like going from eating two-minute noodles to caviar in one swift jump.

I need to make her feel more comfortable here.

“Can I come in and show you? I know they are hard to work out. Took me a few tries before I got the hang of it.” Waiting for her to acknowledge, I start walking straight into the bathroom.

Everything is so tidy, and it’s like nothing has been touched. Hopefully the more she travels with us, she will become more comfortable in her room. I make a note to talk to Nic about it so he can get Tori to have a little chat with her. Elouise never has to worry about cost when she is with us. Nic has more money than he will ever know what to do with, and it’s my job to protect him and his fortune.

Turning the taps and adjusting the temperature to nice and warm, I reach for the bubble bath on the vanity to make it perfect.

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