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I scoff as if he is blind. “The shirt is horrendous. And leather? You want me to wear leather pants in the middle of the day?”
He nods like I’m considering his suggestion more than telling him no. “All the rock stars wear leather.”
“I’m not a rock star, River.”
“You’re not,” he agrees. “But you’re in love with one.”
His reply hits harder than a punch to the stomach, but I act like he’s not as smart as he is. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t treat me like I’m stupid, Laken. I’ve seen the way you look at her. You care for her.”
I’m always on the defense when forced to lie. “That’s a bodyguard’s job. They have to care for their target to ensure their safety.”
I realize the lack of an extra chromosome doesn’t make me more intelligent than him when he asks, “Who said I was talking about Nicole?”
With my shock rendering me speechless, he dumps the shimmery shirt onto my bed before heading for the door with the leather pants still in his hand. “If it takes displaying my frank and beans to get a girl like Nicole, I’ll need the stiffness of leather.” A chuckle rumbles in my chest when he says in a sassy tone, “The serving is too generous to leave my modesty in the hands of cotton.”
* * *
“Cheese and rice.”
When I stray my eyes to the cause of River’s near cuss word, a lump forms in my throat and my pants. “Jesus fucking Christ.”
I grunt through the jab River hits my ribs with before dragging my eyes down Nicole’s slender frame. She’s wearing a fire-engine-red dress that makes every man in a ten-mile radius want to gallop in a circle while squealing “wee woo wee woo” on repeat.
Nicole is beautiful. She is downright gorgeous. But today, she’s neither of those things.
She’s sexy.
Her hair is mainly pinned back from her face, her makeup is a natural palette, and the split in her dress shows off enough thigh to be daring but not enough to make her look easy.
There’s only one downfall to her outfit.
She’s exiting our hotel on Knox’s arm, who’s more formally dressed than me. He’s wearing trousers instead of jeans, and a pricy leather jacket hides his button-up shirt.
“I told you all rock stars’ wannabe partners wear leather. Even if it will reach ninety, you should have risked ball chaff for her.”
It takes a few seconds for the “wannabe” part of River’s reply to sink in, but I lose the chance to grill him about it further when the swarm circling Nicole like vultures kicks my naturally engrained protective side into gear.
After pushing past the men Dallas and I forced to the other side of the street only minutes ago, I band my arm around Nicole’s waist and guide her to the awaiting limousine. My clutch could be seen as cruel. I do not mean to hurt Nicole. That is the last thing I’d ever want. I just refuse to consider a rerun of last night.
Nicole’s face when she was yanked away from me killed me. It physically maimed me more than the kiss she shared with Knox.
So I refuse to let anyone take Nicole from me—even Knox.
The crush almost becomes unbearable when the camera lights’ heat is added to the mix.
“Nicole, do you care to comment on the video that was uploaded last night?”
“Nicole, will any of the songs you covered be performed during your West Coast tour?”
“Nicole, how does it feel to have the number-one trending video on both YouTube and Insta Reels?”
Although as shocked as I am by the pleasantness of their questions, Nicole focuses on one thing.
Me.
“When you get a minute, we need to talk abo—”
