Close Protection

Chapter 25 Daphne

25 Daphne

I walk out of the snug and round the corner.

After Josh treated my injuries the best he could I stayed in the snug so I wouldn’t have to be alone with my thoughts, but it got a little too much when Josh and Bethany kept asking questions.

Why did Teddy do this?

Do you think he’s working with that group?

Weren’t you and him supposed to… you know…?

Why didn’t you just give him the necklace?

These were all valid questions, I just didn’t have it in me to answer them, so when Meelie conveniently felt dizzy again and they rushed over to tend to her, I took the chance to escape.

I turn the corner only to come face to face with my father.

‘Are you okay—’

‘I’m so sor—’

We blurt at the same time.

‘Are you okay?’ Daddy asks again.

I nod. ‘Josh patched me up, so I’m okay.’

‘I’m not talking about physically, Daph. I’m talking about everything else. You and Teddy were close. This mustn’t be easy for you.’

‘It’s not,’ I admit. ‘But right now, I don’t think my brain is letting me fully process anything so maybe check back with me in the morning.’ I let out a small laugh, but it comes out flat. I want to know what they found out when they questioned Teddy, but my brain already feels overworked and overtired and asking about Teddy would only add to the noise I so desperately want to quiet in my head.

I’m drained and numb, and honestly I just want to sleep.

‘All right, well, I should go. I need to put this somewhere safe, I guess.’ He holds out the locket.

‘Daddy, I’m so sorry I lied about losing it.’

‘I can completely understand why you did.’ He shrugs. ‘I haven’t been a very good role model or father to you recently, Daphne. What with the lies and secrecy and so forth. But I want to change that. And I mean it this time. I want us to have open and honest conversations, about everything and anything.’

‘I’d like that too.’

‘Well, all right then.’ My father smiles. ‘It’s settled. Goodnight, darling.’

‘Night, Daddy.’

I watch him as he retreats up the stairs and wait until I hear the faint sound of his bedroom door close until I move again. My movements are slow and stiff, and I have to stop every couple of seconds when a new throb of pain rakes through my body.

I begin to make my way up the stairs but stop halfway, sitting down on one of the steps to gather myself. I drop my head between my knees and try to even out my breathing.

I’m not sure how much time passes, but after a while I hear someone coming up the stairs, stopping when they get to me. I know it’s Milosh purely from his footsteps but I get confirmation when he sits down next to me, his clean scent filling my nostrils. We sit in comfortable silence for a couple of minutes, only hearing the gentle tick-tock of the clock in the entrance hall.

Lifting my head from my knees I place it on his shoulder. ‘How did you know to come outside?’

‘I heard a gunshot from my room and when I looked outside my window I saw a little dot of pink. I didn’t know what you were doing, I didn’t even know Teddy was with you, I just knew you were there so I went to check.’

Tick, tock, tick, tock.

‘Well, thank you,’ I say, my voice barely above a whisper. ‘For saving my life. Again.’

‘I wasn’t all that fond of Build-A-Bear anyway, so really it was a win-win.’

I breathe out a laugh, and I think it’s my first genuine one of the night. ‘Build-A-Bear?’

‘I think it has a nice ring to it. Sure beats Teddy anyway.’

‘You’re not wrong about that.’

Tick, tock, tick, tock.

‘I can’t believe I got Amelia hurt.’

‘What are you talking about?’

‘If I’d just told Daddy I had the necklace and given it to him, all of this could’ve been avoided.’

‘Hey, look at me,’ Milosh says, his voice stern. I lift my head off his shoulder and turn my face to his. ‘This is not your fault at all.’

‘Yes, it is,’ I stress. ‘The only person to blame for all of this is me. The first night you came here my father asked if I’d seen the necklace, and I said no. If I’d stopped being a hypocrite for a second and just told the truth, Amelia wouldn’t be sitting in the snug with a mild concussion and I wouldn’t have got shot and beaten up.’

‘You wanted to keep that necklace to feel closer to your mother. You weren’t to know what was actually inside.’

‘Actually inside?’ I frown. ‘What are you talking about?’

His jaw tightens. ‘The toxin and the antidote formulas your father made are written on the back of the pictures inside the pendant.’

My jaw drops. ‘You know what? Of course they are. Why am I surprised?’

I don’t even get into the fact that the writing is probably illegible from the amount of times I’ve worn the necklace in the water, or the fact that I’ve been unknowingly carrying those formulas around with me for years. Today’s been a long day.

I just need to sleep.

Milosh’s phone vibrates in his pocket but when he pulls it out, all I notice is the state of his knuckles. ‘Milosh, your hands,’ I gasp. He glances down at them and shrugs.

‘It was worth it.’

His knuckles are bloody and rough. I can’t tell if it’s his blood or Teddy’s so I pick up one hand for further inspection. ‘This needs to be cleaned up,’ I decide. I start to rise from the step but a sharp, painful throb has me clutching my stomach and Milosh’s hand snaking around my back to steady me.

‘Need some help?’ His low voice drawls.

‘What was your first clue?’

He chuckles, shaking his head. ‘Up you get, smart-mouth.’

I try to ignore the tingle I feel when he calls me that, and how my heart vibrates when I hear his sexy chuckle, but I can’t. I’ve realized it’s getting harder and harder for me to ignore all the little things Milosh says or does that make me laugh, smile or get flustered.

But again, it’s too late to think about that now. I’ll let that be tomorrow’s problem.

His hands are firm around my waist and pull me up slowly until I’m standing upright. He walks at my pace up the rest of the stairs and to my room, opening the door with ease while still keeping me secure. Once we get into my room his hands start to loosen but I grab them, holding them in place.

‘Just because I’m hurting doesn’t mean I can’t clean you up.’ My stomach pain has lessened since we made it up the stairs, so I’m good to walk now, just at a slower pace.

‘Daphne, you’re in pain. I can sort out my own hands, it’s okay.’

‘No, it’s not. You saved my life, the least I can do is patch you up. Come on.’

We walk into my bathroom and stop by the sink. I start to bend down but Milosh stops me.

‘Tell me what you need and I’ll get it for you.’ He gently spins me around then lifts me up onto the counter. ‘You stay here.’

I direct him to a spare flannel and a small first-aid kit in the cupboard and he finds them with ease before coming to stand in between my legs and passing them to me.

‘Th-thank you,’ is all I manage to get out when he rests his hands on my knees.

‘Where do you want me?’ he asks in an innocent tone, but his eyes betray him. They’re laser-focused on me, heat building in them with each passing second.

‘I… um, w-well…’

‘Use your words, Miss Green.’ The undeniable tension crackles in the air around us as he inches his hands up ever so slightly, softly squeezing my lower thigh. ‘Where do you want me?’

Our eyes meet and my breathing dips. As if in slow motion, his tongue darts out slowly, wetting his lower lip, while his eyes stay glued to mine.

So… so… sexy.

Somehow I snap out of my daze, clearing my throat and lifting up the first-aid kit.

‘Could you get out some antiseptic, gauze and a light bandage, please?’ He takes the kit, our fingers brushing together briefly before I let go, pick up the flannel and lean over to turn on the tap, wetting it with warm water.

Once I’ve wrung it out, I lean back and notice Milosh has lined up everything that I asked for next to me.

‘Hands.’

He brings them up for me to analyze again. I gently place the left one back down on my thigh, choosing to start carefully wiping the right one first. I’m meticulous, taking my time to be soft yet thorough. After I finish with the flannel, I set it down and add antiseptic to the area before blowing on his hand.

‘Sorry, I know that’s got to sting,’ I empathize. When I don’t hear a response from him, I look up to find Milosh studying me with a small smile. ‘What?’

He shrugs. ‘You’re cute when you’re concentrating.’

Not quite knowing how to respond to that, I decide it’s my turn to ignore him so I lean over to the sink again and re-dampen the flannel before starting on his other hand.

‘There,’ I murmur once I’ve finished, lifting his hands to my lips and placing a feather-light kiss on each of them. ‘All better.’

He pulls his eyes slowly away from mine, looking down at his hands, a gentle, lopsided smile on his face. ‘Thank you, Miss Green.’

‘You’re welcome, Mr Petrov.’

He throws the flannel into the dirty laundry basket behind the door and cleans up the surfaces, putting the first-aid kit away. Then he lifts me off the counter and onto my feet, restoring our usual height difference.

‘Well, I should go to bed,’ I say, breaking the silence.

‘Hmm,’ he hums. ‘Do you need me to get someone to help you with changing into your pyjamas?’ A light coat of concern sheets his face as he glances to my bandaged shoulder.

I shake my head. ‘No, I’ll be fine if I take my time, but thank you anyway.’

He holds my gaze a moment longer before nodding and turning to the door, stopping to turn back when he’s partway through it.

‘Goodnight, Miss Green.’

‘Goodnight, Mr Petrov.’

He closes the bathroom door behind him and I wait until I hear my main door close before I let out a breath I didn’t even know I was holding.

I walk into my dressing room and start to remove my clothes.

You’re cute when you’re concentrating. Did he mean cute as in ‘Aww, look at that baby’ or cute as in Gabriella Montez dainty and sweet? The way he was looking at me didn’t suggest the former, or am I just reading into it?

I groan, trying to get out of my own head but I can’t. Not when I can hear his deep voice with its Bulgarian-American accent playing on a constant loop in my head.

Milosh has managed to seep into my mind and I don’t know how to get him out. To be honest, I don’t think I want to. But if this is how I’m feeling now, what will happen if he finds his way into my heart?