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“I know. That guy was such a tool. I can’t believe he would harass her like that in the middle of the airport.”
I suddenly see red. What the fuck happened to Autumn?
Gage hits my arm. “Check this out,” he says as he hands me his phone with a video queued up. I hit play and see Autumn go to town on this guy who must have said something about his cock. The video didn’t catch the beginning of the interaction, but whatever happened, Autumn wasn’t going to take it. She was calm and collected yet ripped him right to shreds.
She’s a wildcat.
And there’s no way I’m letting someone else protect her. She’d chew Aiden up and spit him out.
I hand the phone back to Gage. “I’m going to go find her.”
Before I can get a step, he stops me. “Hold on. Let me get a hold of her. We can’t go charge security.”
I know I can’t, but it doesn’t mean I won’t. To hell with the consequences. “I don’t like this.”
My body is tight with tension as I watch Gage try her cell and she doesn’t answer. I want to see that little wildcat sweeping down the escalator with her head up high after that successful counterattack.
“You know she walked away. Let’s give her a minute.” Gage takes in all the people around us. There’s still a lot of buzz about the encounter and I have a feeling many of them are sticking around to catch another glimpse of Autumn.
“I think you need to go to the car,” Gage says.
“What?”
“We can get by with one friend picking her up, but it’ll look a little weird that her boyfriend isn’t here. If we’re going to get Aiden then you need to go to car and not be seen, because we’re definitely going to be seen now. This video will be hitting the mainstream news sites any time now.”
“We’re not bringing in Aiden. I’m going to do it.”
Gage blinks at me. “I don’t understand. You just said-”
“Yeah, I changed my mind. Last-minute jitters, but I’m good now. I’ve got this.”
“You sure? No turning back after this.”
Am I sure? About pretending to be Autumn’s boyfriend…no, not really. But I am sure that no one can protect Autumn like me.
“I’m sure. Try her again.”
He does and this time Autumn answers. Relief hits me like a Mack truck. From what I gather from the bits I can overhear is she hid away in a bathroom.
“We’re at carousel three,” Gage tells her. “Jackson is the big guy standing to the right of me. You need to go to him first and make a show of being happy to see him. Wasn’t really planning to start the relationship stuff now, but since eyes are already on you, we have to sell it.”
My nerves kick in. I know how to be abodyguard. I know how to assess situations and prepare and plan accordingly. I know how to protect those who are preyed on. I’ve been doing it long before I entered the military and started this business with Gage. The only acting I’ve done is to deceive the deceivers. Butboyfriendis a different story. Can I do soft smiles and loving eyes? Probably not.
I can do lust though. And it wouldn’t even be acting.
I keep my gaze on the top of the escalator. Every second that goes by feels like an eternity. I don’t like that she’s taking this long. That tells me the encounter affected her way more than she’s letting on.
A woman wearing sunglasses and a black hoodie, with long blonde hair spilling down over her shoulders comes into view. My heart slams against my chest. A mixture of relief and panic rushes through my body. She’s here.
Finally.
The thought jars me, or what it really means, so I ignore it.
Autumn looks around until her gaze stops on me and Gage. Though I can’t see her eyes, I feel the moment they land on me specifically. How she’s assessing me, the man who will be her fake boyfriend.
Suddenly, she smiles. It feels off. Then it hits me, it’s not real. She’s realized eyes are on her and she’s got to sell this reunion. As she gets off the escalator, she whips off her sunglasses and zeros her gaze on me, her smile widening as a look of pure happiness comes over her expression.
And I feel it right in the gut.
