Page 4 of Stuffing My Obsession
Myles
The last person I expect at my door is Paris.
But there she is, cheeks flushed from the cold, blue eyes shining, silver-blonde hair loose around her shoulders like she rolled straight out of some dream and into my hallway.
“Good morning, neighbor!” she chirps, her face brightening up with a big smile.
Damn. How is she so…bright? So pure. So fucking beautiful.
I grip the edge of the door, my knuckles tight. My first instinct is to pull her inside and never let her leave. My second is to slam the door and keep her safe from me.
“What do you need?” I ask gruffly, keeping my voice flat.
She shakes her head quickly. “Oh, nothing—well, I mean, yes. I’m sorry to bother you.” She tucks a piece of hair behind her ear, her smile turning nervous. “But I—I really need your help.”
Every part of me locks up at her words.
Help. From me.
If she only knew.
I step back. “Come in.”
She slips past me, small and soft in a space that’s all sharp edges. My apartment isn’t much. Bare walls, a couch, weights stacked in the corner.
“Want anything?” I ask, and she immediately shakes her head.
“No, thanks. I—I just really need your help.”
“What’s this about?”
“I think I’m being stalked,” she says in a conspiratorial whisper. “For a few days now. Someone keeps leaving roses on my doorstep. And last night…I woke up, and I swear someone was in my room. The police don’t care. They think I’m overreacting.”
I stare at her blankly, but inside, the words burn like fire…because I’m the culprit—the shadow following her every step. I’m the reason she can’t sleep.
And I’d do it all again. To keep her safe.
“What do you want me to do?” I ask.
She squares her shoulders, raising her chin to look me straight in the eyes. I can tell she’s practiced this in her head at least a hundred times. “Could you…maybe be my bodyguard? Just until after Thanksgiving,” she adds quickly, like that would help her case.
She takes my shocked silence as a refusal and keeps talking, trying to convince me to do a job I already do, day and night. “I’m traveling home to Asheville, and I’m worried my stalker might follow me, that I’ll be in danger on the road, or even bringthe danger home to my parents. I don’t want them to worry. They already think I’m reckless, living in the city alone.”
She hesitates, then blurts, “Captain says you work security. I’ll pay you. I don’t know what you charge, but…I can pay a grand for a whole week.”
I almost snort at her offer. I earn three times that for a days’ work, but for her, I’d do this for free. Hell, I’ve already been doing it for free. But she’s looking at me like she needs this to be a deal, not a favor.
“Fine,” I say, looking directly into her eyes. “I’ll do it.”
Her face lights up with relief, and I have to look away before I do something stupid. Like pull her into my arms and tell her she doesn’t need to pay me a damn cent because she’s already mine.
Outwardly, I seem disinterested, but inwardly, I’m thrilled. This is my chance to be close to Paris without hiding. To protect her out in the open, where no one can question it.
“When do we leave for Asheville?” I ask.
She bites her lip, her cheeks turning a beautiful shade of red. “Uh…in about thirty minutes.”
Of course. She made this decision on a whim, completely unaware of what she’s just signed herself up for.
