Page 6 of Wickedly Played
He doesn’t react physically to my statement. “Have your other guards slept in there?”
I nod. “It is the easiest way for my guard on duty to get to me.”
“What is the current schedule?”
I blink a couple of times to clear my mind. “What?”What schedule? My schedule? My schedule is booked for the rest of the month.
Max crosses his thick arms across his beefy chest with a look of amusement on his face. It takes him about a second to recognize that I was checking him out.Shit, mother fucker, god damn.
When he chuckles deep in his chest, I want to punish him. “Am I funny to you?” I question him with my shoulders squared, looking him head-on.
To his credit, he stops laughing, but his face looks like he wants to start again. “Oh, little girl. This is going to be fun.”
I’m wildly aware we are still in the busy downtown area outside many offices. I’m also not blind when I clock a few people looking at me over their lattes like they are trying to place me. No doubt in my mind that a few of them are my clients.
“The schedule?” Max asks again.
“Jesus. How many times do I have to tell you to get with my agent? I’m done with this conversation.” Spinning on my heels, I walk away from him, but feel his eyes on me the whole time I’m in front of him.
Jim is waiting for me outside the office as he measures the situation. “So?”
“So?” I snap back.
“Is it going to work for you, Ser?” Jim’s a balding man with a slight beer belly. We all know the money I pay him for his services, which was used to pay for his mail-order bride. I hired Jim to be the in-between once my business and my involvement with the Checkmate Club became well-known.
“He’s a cocky asshole,” I reply.
“Good. So, you’ll get along with this one.”
I shake my head. “I want a different one. I can’t work with this chucklehead.”
“That’s Captain Chucklehead, to you,” Max’s deep timbre of a voice washes over me as I register his words.
“Are you serious?” I ask incredulously.
The intensity in his face has me wanting to lash out. Who does he think he is talking to me like this? When was the last time I allowed someone to talk to me like this? I can’t even remember.
“What about my face makes you think I have a sense of humor, Serena?”
I try to walk away, but feel his hand grab my elbow, turning me to look at him. I flit my eyes to my agent, who doesn’t have anything to say about the exchange. He’s about to get fired.I need to get out of here.
“Why do you want to work for me? You don’t even like me,” I blurt.
He chuckles mirthlessly. “It is probably for the best that I don’t like you. Did your other guards like you?”
I’m about to end this conversation when there is a nagging voice in my head that tells me he is probably correct. “Of course they did. They loved working for me,” I quip with my cocky remark. “They loved the benefits they got from me, too.
Max’s eyes darken. “Do you think that might have been the problem? If they weren’t so busy trying to see under your skirt, they might have protected you a little better, and you wouldn’t be receiving death threats. Don’t you think?”
My hand feels heavy with the need to flick my whip at his back.The scarier thing…My skin tingles at the thought of him dominating me.
“Fuck off,” I spit. This time, I’m able to get away as I climb into my car to leave. I don’t wait for Jim to get into my Maybach before I speed off to go home.
Why would Jim think this was the best option for me? I don’t want some weekend warrior thinking he can watch my back better than I can. Damn. So, what if one of my fans is stalking me? I’m fine. I have gates around my house and a security system.
I’m not surprised when my phone starts to ring, letting me know Jim is calling. “What?”
“Look, Serena, I’m doing my fucking best right here. I would like for you to stop being a little brat and let me help you,” he barks. He snarls at me. “I made a promise…”
