Page 4 of Bodyguard My Heart

“Royale can’t find out before the five years are up,” I reiterated.

“I’m aware,” he repeated, his voice strained. I knew he felt like this was fucked up, but it was what was best for all of us. Demetrius exited the car, and I gawked at his massive size as if it was my first time seeing him. He walked around to the passenger side to open my door. His face was conflicted.

“Hey, Royale will understand why we had to do this,” I said, offering him a few words of encouragement.

“I’m sacrificing my friendship to give my friend a better chance at life. I’m content with it.” He extended his hand to escort me out of the car. “Aye, let me ask you a question, though.”

“Yes?”

“What if you meet somebody that is trying to marry you before the five years are up?”

I stilled for a moment. I hadn’t thought of that. I wasn’t dating anybody. I was too busy with school. I should have been asking him the same thing.

“We’ll just cross that bridge if we get there.” I climbed out of the car.

“Let’s go get this ring.”

I took Demetrius’s hand, and he led me inside the building.

1

Six Years Later

Samara

“Well, since we dropping secrets, I’ve been secretly dating Demetrius. Tell him I said hi.” I stood from the loveseat and exited my brother’s office before he could say anything further. My heart was pounding in my damn chest.

“I can’t believe you just did that, Samara!” I scolded myself as I headed down the hallway and into the reception area. I was lucky Royale had too much going on to follow behind me. If he hadn’t, he would surely be on my heels, demanding I explain the bomb I’d just dropped in his lap.

“Rebecca, I’m taking my lunch break early.” I notified the medical assistant at the front desk on my way out the door.

“Okay, how long should I say in case Royale asks?” Rebecca and I had become close since working together at Royale’s plastic surgery clinic. My girl was already used to my shenanigans. She knew I took full advantage of working for my brother, and so did she.

“Just an hour today!” I yelled back, making my way to my car. I wasn’t going to be gone long today since we were busy.I just needed to take a minute to clear my head. This day had already been way too much for me to handle.

First, it was everything this day represented. Add to it the rude visitors that decided to show up today and finding out that Royale had married some strange woman, and I was overwhelmed. My brain needed to reset. As a nurse, I would not be good to anyone if I wasn’t mentally okay.

I walked briskly through the parking lot. The closer I got to my car, the more irritated I became. Seeing two dozen long-stem pink roses sitting on my windshield caused me to roll my eyes. Quickly, I snatched up the bouquet and climbed into the driver-side of my vehicle.

I didn’t need to look at the card. I already knew who they were from. Tossing them aside, I started my car and peeled out of the parking lot toward my favorite sushi lunch spot. I wasn’t halfway down the street before my phone rang through my car speakers. Checking the caller ID was pointless. After what I’d just done, I was expecting Demetrius to call. Still, I glanced down at the caller ID, turning my nose up at the private call.

Knowing it was my father, I swiped decline. There was nothing we needed to discuss. I’d long ago stopped speaking to my father. He wanted to have more of a relationship now that he was behind bars than he ever did when he was a free man, and I just wasn’t interested. He was too late. No sooner than I rejected the call, my phone rang again. This time, I was right about the caller. I wanted to decline his ass, too, but that would warrant a pop-up visit, and I didn’t want to see him today.

“Yes, Demetrius,” I answered, as if I hadn’t just blown up both our spots.

“You real funny, Samara. Why you just tell Ro we fucking?” His husky voice sailed through the car. My body instantly reacted to him. He was heated for apparent reasons, but I didn’tcare. This thing between us had gone on secretly for far too long and had slowly spiraled out of control.

“Are we not fucking, Demetrius?”

“Samara, stop fucking playing with me,” he demanded.

“For your information, I never told him we were fucking. I said we were dating.”

“We dating, Samara?” I could hear the smirk on his face through his voice. I’d fallen right into that one. “You gon’ finally let a nigga take you out on a date?”

“Well, no… no… but—”

“If you were gon’ tell him something, why not tell the truth?” He interrupted me, rendering me speechless. “All you did was create another lie.”