Chapter 18 Milosh
18 MILOSH
I finish another lap of the pool and swim up to the edge, running back through the events of the day. Today was an absolute mess in all kinds of ways. That kiss being the messiest of all.
‘Good job, baby.’ Why the hell did I say that?
At the start of the trip, when we agreed on the whole fake relationship thing, she was stiffer than a board, but throughout the day she really relaxed into it, leading me to second-guess if any of it was real.
And then there was that kiss.
Her lips were softer than I ever could’ve imagined, and her taste? A delicate mix of mint and sugar. That little moan she let out when her hands were buried in my hair had me suppressing a growl of satisfaction, and left me aching for more. We both knew that guy had gone, but when she pulled me back into that kiss everything melted away, our whole situation forgotten. It was just me, her and our wandering hands.
I honestly don’t know how I restrained myself. Everything about her beckons me. Her honeyed voice, her soft chestnut skin, her kind heart, her regal face with those plump lips, honestly, I could go on forever. I mean, don’t even get me started on how her body felt beneath my touch.
She’s one heck of an actress, too, because the way she was looking at me made me believe it was real, and had me ready to risk it all, job be damned. But I had to swiftly regain control to get us out of that situation safely. How anyone could want to hurt her is beyond me. But they did, and I had to get her out of there.
As I was taking Henry through what happened, leaving out a few minor details, she fell asleep. Her head rested gently on the window and her chest rose and fell steadily. She even sleeps with poise.
When I picked her up out of the car, she instantly curled into me, with one hand coming to rest on my chest. I felt such an overwhelming need to place a gentle kiss on her head, but when I looked over and saw Henry looking between us with a stupid smirk on his face, I decided against that.
Job. Her.
Employee. Me.
Blur the lines and you get a stupid decision waiting to happen.
I dunk my head under the water, holding my breath, trying to clear my head. I blurred the lines so viciously today, and now I truly don’t know where we stand or how I feel. But what I do know is that my actions kept Daphne safe, so ultimately I’m not too fussed.
‘Oh, Mr Petrov, I didn’t know you were down here.’ I hear muffled words from above me. I surface and look up to find Daphne standing there in her robe, her straight hair in a sleek ponytail, holding a bowl of blueberries.
She must have had another nightmare.
‘I was just finishing up,’ I say as I make my way out of the pool.
‘Please don’t leave on my account, the pool is big enough for both of us.’
‘You had another nightmare?’ I ask, changing the subject, walking towards her.
She looks at me, confused for a second, before glancing down to the bowl in her hands, a wave of understanding washing over her. ‘Uh… Yes, yeah.’
‘You wanna talk about it?’
Yeah, Milosh, great idea. Getting her to open up even more will definitely help with the already blurred lines.
Smart man. Really, I should give myself an award or something.
She shakes her head as I silently breathe out a relieved sigh. ‘Thank you, really.’ She gives me that small, sweet smile, before dipping her head again. ‘But, no, I just want to take my mind off of everything.’ I don’t miss how her eyes peruse my bare chest, my body heating as her eyes pass over me.
‘Okay,’ I say in response and walk past her to grab a towel. The Greens have a fully functional mini spa and gym down here with a sauna, steam room, heated pool and workout equipment, with amenities better than any gym I’ve ever been to.
A mini fridge is stocked with cool, damp washcloths that smell of essential oils. Next to it is a cupboard full of warm, fluffy white towels of varying sizes, with grazing snacks and a variety of beverage options laid out in the corner of the room.
It’s all absolutely unnecessary, but I’m not complaining. Going from basic military-grade training facilities to this highlights just how different mine and Daphne’s worlds truly are.
I hear her enter the pool behind me as I take out a towel from the cupboard. I walk back over to the chair where I left my belongings, using the towel to dry my damp hair, and look over to the pool where Daphne is doing laps.
She has a clean, concise technique, swimming with conviction and drive. She’s wearing a white swimsuit, and the contrast of the stark white against her brown complexion is so strikingly beautiful. Although at this point I’m not sure there’s a colour she couldn’t pull off.
Sitting down, I grab my phone and scroll to check if Major Davis has messaged me back with any information about the two Daveeno members at the mall. As I begin to read through his response, the previously calm and consistent sounds of Daphne moving through the water turn rushed and sporadic. I shoot up from my seat on high alert as I see Daphne chaotically lurching around the pool, not swimming but not walking either. Kind of a weird mix of the two.
‘Miss Green,’ I say loudly so she can hear me over all of the splashing. ‘Miss Green.’ I try again, a little louder this time. ‘Miss Green, what are you doing?’ She looks up at me, her expression laced with panic.
‘My necklace,’ she splutters, splashing water everywhere. ‘The necklace I had on fell off and I can’t find it.’
‘Get out of the pool,’ I say calmly.
‘What?’
‘Get out of the pool so you can get a clearer view.’ She stares at me a moment, considering if there’s any validity to what I’m saying. Evidently she decides there is, as she walks to the edge of the pool and hoists herself out. I avert my eyes, because now, with no water as a barrier, every part of her perfect body is on display. I don’t want her to feel uncomfortable – she clearly thought she was going to be down here alone – and I’ve never seen her in such little clothing, so I bring my eyes back to the pool, intently watching the water settle.
‘What does your necklace look like?’
‘It’s gold, with a locket,’ Daphne replies, coming to stand next to me. Somehow, even after being in the pool, I can still smell that sweet, innately feminine scent of hers.
‘You should take it off next time.’
‘What an astute observation, thank you, Mr Petrov,’ Daphne bites out. I hold in a laugh because, yeah, I like her princessy put-together side, but when she has a bit of a fire to her, with that dry sarcasm…?
That’s when she gets dangerous.
I spot a gold chain glinting in the water and without a second thought I dive in to retrieve it. It takes a moment for my eyes to adjust but when they do I scoop up the necklace and make my way back to the surface, shocked to see that Daphne is also back in the pool.
‘Is this it?’ I ask, holding out the necklace as she swims closer to me, nodding in relief.
‘It’s never fallen off before when I’ve been in the pool. I mustn’t have clasped it properly.’
‘Turn around,’ I direct. She hesitates, then does what I ask, leaving me looking at her now extremely curly ponytail. ‘Pick up your hair for me,’ I say softly, and she does, revealing her slim, delicate neck.
I thread my arms through hers in order to get the necklace into position. This close, I can see the delicate rise and fall of her chest and hear her shallow breaths as I fasten the clasp. I tug on it gently, making sure it’s secure, and lower it back down carefully, my fingers brushing the base of her neck.
‘There,’ I say when I’m finished.
‘Thank you,’ she whispers, turning around to look up at me, her hands snaking around her neck to check on the clasp.
I spend a moment taking her in, revelling in the fact that I’m one of the few people that get to see her like this. Her once-tight, straight ponytail has loosened from the force of the water, giving way to a relaxed one that holds her now tight curls, with a few loose tendrils framing her face. The water droplets that accent her face lead my gaze down to her defined collarbones. But I don’t allow my eyes to drop any further. Her face alone is all I can take right now.
‘I like your hair,’ I murmur before I can stop myself.
‘Pardon?’
‘I like your hair like this.’
She looks confused and taken aback for a second before replying, ‘You like my hair messy and wet?’
‘I like your hair curly,’ I correct as I reach out and tuck a spiralling tendril behind her ear, feeling her gently shudder as I do. ‘It looks pretty.’ You look pretty.
Her warm mahogany eyes catch mine and her mouth parts ever so slightly.
‘Can I ask you a question?’ Her voice is tentative as her shy side peaks through again.
‘Mm hmm.’
‘You said you’re Bulgarian. How do you speak Russian so well?’
‘There was a little boy in my old children’s home who could only speak Russian, so while I was teaching him English I subconsciously started learning Russian from him, which was pretty easy because Russian and Bulgarian are such similar languages.’
Daphne nods, a warm smile dancing on her lips. ‘I like learning more about you,’ she breathes, so quietly I want to lean in and make sure I heard her right.
I don’t respond to her statement, instead opting to flip the focus back to her. ‘How do you know so many languages?’
‘Well, I learned French and Mandarin at school. My cousin, Camilla, is deaf so the majority of my family knows sign language, and I went to an international private school, so one of my best friends is Russian. She taught me all I know.’ She shrugs as if speaking five languages isn’t impressive at all.
‘Thank you again for today.’ She looks down at her hands. ‘You know, for everything when we were shopping and for after… when I was asleep.’
‘Miss Green, you don’t have to thank me for doing my job.’
‘I do when you keep going above and beyond for me,’ she counters, chewing her lower lip. My eyes involuntarily drop there, tracking the movement.
‘Really, Milo.’ My eyes jump back to hers when I hear her say that nickname again. ‘I really do appreciate it. I don’t even want to know what would’ve happened if you weren’t there.’
‘But I was, so you don’t need to wonder. You’re safe and back home, Miss Green.’
‘Yeah,’ she breathes. ‘I guess so.’
More than anything I want to bring her mouth to mine and kiss the worry away, but I remind myself to re-establish some boundaries.
Kissing her was a two-time thing, and it can’t and won’t happen again.
She’s the job. Keep her safe and walk away.
My eyes return to her necklace and I can’t help but reach down and lift the metal off her skin, rubbing it between my fingers.
‘It’s pretty,’ I murmur, trying to figure out if I’ve seen her wearing it before. It looks vaguely familiar.
‘Thank you,’ Daphne snips, a little too sharp.
‘Did your dad buy it for you?’
‘Yeah, he did,’ she answers quickly. I let it fall gently back onto her skin.
‘Hmm,’ I hum. She’s being cagey, but I don’t have time to explore why. The lack of sleep is finally starting to catch up with me. ‘I’m gonna go get some rest,’ I inform her as I start to back away. ‘Are you gonna be okay down here?’
When she told me earlier that she’s been jumpy since the break-in it made me realize that I hadn’t thought about any of this from her perspective. Getting attacked in your own home, your place of comfort and safety, must be awful. I’ve been in multiple situations where I’ve had to sleep with one eye open, always on guard, but Daphne hasn’t. This is completely new territory for her and even though there’s more security around the house I’d completely understand if she still felt unsafe.
‘Yes, I’ll be fine,’ Daphne answers. ‘I’m only gonna do a few more laps then I’m coming upstairs.’
I nod, swimming to the edge of the pool, concluding that I’ll keep an eye on her through the security cameras until she’s back in her room.
‘Milosh?’ Daphne starts when I grab my towel and throw it around my shoulders. I turn around to face her, to hear the rest of her question, but she shakes her head and offers me a small smile instead.
‘Goodnight, Mr Petrov.’
‘Goodnight, Miss Green.’