“Did I mention how sick I am of games?” he muttered to his subconscious.
How had he let this situation get so out of control? His task had been simple—find Ellie, convince her to come home and let Josh deal with the rest. In his line of work he’d learned to keep a distance, to watch over the people he’d been hired to protect and leave when the job was over. The life of a bodyguard was rarely ever like the one portrayed in that movie with the same name. You didn’t fall in love with your assignments, you didn’t get too close, and you didn’t let emotions interfere with your mission. Doing any of the above usually meant you got someone killed.
Not that there was any danger in the mission Josh had sent him on, unless you counted this ridiculous attraction to Ellie. But the same principles remained. Letting Ellie get under his skin would only slow him down. And turn him on.
He might have agreed to her preposterous ultimatum but he had no intention of taking her to bed. No matter how much his dick begged him to.
“She’s bluffing,” he mumbled to himself.
That’s what he needed to hold on to, the knowledge that, like him, Ellie had no intention of following through on it. She wanted to scare him. She thought she could use his basic male needs against him.
Well, Ellie wouldn’t win this round. He’d play her little game, he’d outplay her, and in the end she would be the one to back down.
Not him.
“What the…” A flash of movement from the corner of his eye caught his attention and prompted him to slow the vehicle to the curb. He turned his head swiftly and found himself looking at a two-story, Spanish-style home with a green stucco roof. It wasn’t the house that ensnared his gaze, but the couple leaving it.
He had to blink a few times to convince himself he wasn’t hallucinating. He recognized Vivian instantly, as it was hard to miss a body that curvaceous and blonde hair that shiny. But was that Josh with her?
“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Luke muttered under his breath.
He watched as the couple across the street got into the bright yellow Jeep he’d seen parked behind the Dancehall. Vivian took the driver’s seat and both she and her companion were oblivious to his parked SUV as the Jeep reversed out of the driveway. Luke kept his gaze glued to them, only looking away when the yellow vehicle took a left at the end of the street and disappeared.
Stunned, he loosened his grasp on the steering wheel to reach up and rake his fingers through his hair. A barrage of questions invaded his confused brain.
Josh was in town? Was he staying with Vivian? Why had they been looking at each other in that perplexing way?
And the most daunting question of all. What the hell was going on?
Chapter Eight
Later in the evening, Ellie got her usual ride to the club from Marlene, one of her fellow dancers. Making the fifteen-minute walk under the dusky night sky appealed to her as much as getting behind the wheel of a vehicle, but luckily Marlene lived nearby and had no problem with playing chauffeur four times a week. The two women were about the same age, though Marlene’s bubbly personality and deep love of gossiping made her appear far younger. Because of Marlene, Ellie seemed to know the most trivial details about everyone in town, from the bartender at the Dancehall to the old Native American man who sold dream catchers in the market.
Tonight, though, she was startled to find Vivian the object of Marlene’s chatter.
“So obviously you know who he is, right?” Marlene had one hand on the wheel of her beat-up red Honda. The other hand fumbled around in her large leopard-print purse.
Ellie cringed. “Both hands on the wheel, Marly.” Please.
Marlene produced a pack of cigarettes and pulled one out, then tossed Ellie an amused grin. “You realize you tell me that every time we’re in the car together? Don’t worry, honey, I’ve never had an accident in all the years I’ve been driving.”
The night’s still young. Ellie pushed away the cold knot of fear pressing down on her chest and took a calming breath. Marlene hadn’t killed her yet, she reminded herself.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, by the way,” Ellie said, hoping the change of subject would ease her nerves. “Viv would’ve mentioned if she was seeing someone.”
Marlene’s hand left the wheel again as she lit her cigarette with the car lighter. She exhaled deeply then blew a puff of smoke out the open window. “Trust me, my source is never wrong. He swears he saw Vivian and some guy earlier at El Delicioso,” she said, naming a romantic restaurant on the outskirts of town.
Ellie rolled her eyes. “What source?”
“My cousin Paul. He works as a waiter there.”