Chapter 3
CHAPTER 3
GUS
G us had known this would be a bad idea. Fucking Val.
“Hey, killer,” he said, keeping his voice casual. Brittany was a small woman, but she had a temper big enough to fill the train. She rarely unleashed it unprovoked, but Gus wasn’t willing to take any chances. Currently, her arms were crossed, which wasn’t a good sign, and her signature glare was definitely in her eyes. But as he studied her, he could also see how tired she was. Something about the tense set of her shoulders made it clear that she was approaching the end of her rope and would rather be anywhere but here. Gus tried not to take that personally.
She waited, her rolling bag tucked next to her as she stared him down. Some women would’ve just walked away, but Brittany always confronted problems head-on. It was one of the traits he admired. And it meant he wouldn’t be chasing her down the street in the middle of the night just to talk to her, which was a bonus.
Brittany tossed her hair with practiced ease. “If you’re here to get me to replace Robbie’s equipment, the answer is no. I bought it, it was all registered under my name, I get to decide what to do with it.”
“You also ruined the carpet and caused some damage to the wall which had to be repaired.”
She hesitated, and Gus silently berated himself. He wasn’t here to argue with her. She just brought it out of him.
“I can send you money for the repairs.”
Fuck, this wasn’t what he was going for. He shook his head.
“I’m not here for money.”
“Well, whatever this is, I’m not in the mood. Just spit it out so I can tell you no, and we can move on with our lives.”
She had a point. But he had no intention of letting her go anywhere.
“Can we move this to the car?” He pointed down the street to his hybrid. “I’d prefer not to have someone live stream us arguing.”
“So you admit we’re going to argue,” she deadpanned.
Gus sighed. If there was one thing to know about Brittany, it’s that she wasn’t afraid to cause a scene, especially when she was angry. And she had clearly decided to be angry at Gus.
He sent a significant glance toward the other people exiting the train station, some throwing the two of them curious glances. Gus wasn’t a face that most people would know, but Brittany was a popular influencer, and her thousands of followers knew she was here. Gus had done his homework since getting the text from Val. Brittany documented a lot of her life online. And even though she was careful not to post about personal details, such as travel arrangements, she had been promoting her upcoming panels and appearances at Kickoff. Which meant her stalker could already be here, waiting.
Gus didn’t like that.
She followed his gaze around, suddenly uneasy, her eyes flitted across the people exiting the train, and he could see her internal debate, which was when he made his move. She may not want him there right now, but if she was doubting her safety in the public space, it was time to relocate her somewhere she would feel secure.
With a swift grab, he took her suitcase with one hand and planted the other on her back, ushering her toward his SUV, never pausing. If you paused with Brittany, she would sense your hesitation and react accordingly.
“Hey, asshole, hands off.”
Gus immediately lifted his hand from her back but still kept it hovering as he led her steadily toward his vehicle, listening to the familiar click of her heels. Which was ridiculous because she had just been on a train, and normal people didn’t wear those fuck-me heels to travel. But that was Brittany.
When he got to the SUV, he stowed her bag in the back and shut the door before turning to face her. Gus was glad to see that, while she was clearly irritated, she didn’t seem angry. That was good.
Their eyes locked in a staring contest, and Gus refused to lose. Gus knew she wanted to tell him to fuck off, but she also didn’t want drama to leak online, and the street had just enough people to be wary of someone filming them. She was caught and she knew it. He could see it in her cold, ice-blue eyes, and he felt the sensation of her gaze run down his spine. Brittany had a way of being the sexiest woman in the room while also making you feel like she was the most dangerous predator you’d ever met.
“Gus, I’m not going anywhere with you. My security detail will be here any moment.”
“I am your security detail.”
She paused at that, surprised, no doubt making the exact same face Gus had made when he read the file.
“Is this some kind of joke?”
He shook his head. “I wouldn’t joke about that.”
She glanced around, thinking fast, and Gus braced himself. She knew what he did for a living, even if he didn’t share too many details with her or Robbie. And for all that they weren’t really friends anymore, they had been once, so she knew him. He wouldn’t lie about something like safety.
Finally, she nodded. “Let’s get this over with, then,” she tossed over her shoulder as she headed to his passenger door. He just managed to beat her there with his longer stride, opening the door for her before her hand could even reach for the handle. When he shut her door and walked around to the driver’s side, he tried to control his sigh of relief. This was going to be a long weekend for both of them.
Brittany was quiet, watching as he climbed in, buckled up, and, after checking that her seat belt was on, started driving.
“I’ll call the company in the morning and request a different detail,” she finally said, breaking her silence.
“We’re short-staffed. Daryl’s wife went into labor.”
“It’s you or nothing?”
“Basically.”
She drummed her fingers on the door, and Gus could feel the rhythm on his skin. He scanned the mostly empty streets for activity, but it was still the day before Kickoff, and the town was quiet. But then Gus thought about what he had read in her file, and he felt his blood heat just a bit.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
She looked away from him then, out her window. “Tell you what?”
“You know what.”
Brittany blew out a breath that felt long and deep.
“Why would I tell you about my stalker? It’s not like we were friends. You made that crystal clear the last time I saw you.”
“I’m always your friend, Brittany. Even when you’re ruining the carpet.”
“That carpet was ugly. I did Robbie a favor.”
She was deflecting, but Gus couldn’t let her. She was his client now, and he needed to know everything to keep her safe.
“The file says you’ve been dealing with this for a year. As long as you were with Robbie. You never mentioned anything.”
“There was nothing you could’ve done. I went to the police. They made it clear that without real evidence or the guy escalating, I had to wait and hope he lost interest.”
Red. That’s what Gus saw at her words, the idea that she finally worked herself up to go to the police and they just sent her away. And gnawing in the back of his mind was the knowledge that she had never, not once, mentioned this to him.
“Did Robbie know?”
“Yeah. He was at my place when one of the packages was dropped off.”
Robbie knew and never told Gus. Which probably made sense, since Robbie was the one dating Brittany, but still. Gus should’ve known she was going through this.
“What did he do?”
“What do you think Robbie did?”
Gus thought about it. “Probably was worried out of his mind. Wanted to install security cameras and new locks to keep you safe. I’m surprised he didn’t call me to help.”
She was quiet for so long that Gus glanced over at her. She was staring at him again, her expression hard to read.
Finally, Brittany answered. “Well, then you don’t know your brother very well.”
There was something about that statement that rubbed Gus the wrong way, but he didn’t know how to respond. Because it was true. Whenever he thought he knew Robbie, Robbie went and did something completely out of left field and often made a huge mess that Gus would end up having to clean up. And if he hadn’t even bothered to tell Gus that Brittany had a stalker…
“You might be right.”
Brittany rubbed her temples. “How the hell are we going to get through this weekend? This is awkward as fuck, I’m already stressed about work, and I’m not sure how much more I can handle.”
“I’m only here to watch your back. I stay in the background, out of the way. You’ll barely notice I’m there.”
She snorted at that. “Gus, you’re a lot of things, but you don’t fade into the background.”
Gus didn’t know what to say to that. He had made a career of being able to blend, to not be noticed. And when Robbie was around, it was even easier, since Robbie liked to soak up attention. But now Brittany was saying otherwise, and he wasn’t sure how he felt about it.
Which meant it was time to change the subject.
“I have your schedule for Kickoff. I’ll pick you up at your hotel in the morning, and we’ll make our way to the center together. You’re not to be out of my sight.”
“That sounds like a lot of fun.”
“More fun than the possible alternative.”
“And what about Robbie?”
Gus’s gut clenched. “What about him?”
“What are you going to tell him when he wants to hang out? That you can’t because you’re busy hanging out with his ex-girlfriend? The one who went ballistic on his gaming equipment?”
“I’ll tell him I’m busy working. Which I am. He’ll understand that.”
“He won’t, and you know it.”
“Then he’ll get over it. I’m not leaving you unprotected with some stalker out there just because it might hurt Robbie’s feelings. I’m already annoyed you didn’t tell me about this in the first place. I thought we were friends.”
She gave Gus a funny look, like she was trying to figure him out.
“Yes,” she said slowly. “I would consider us friends. I’m just surprised you feel the same way.”
He looked at her then, surprised. “I never stopped.”
And it was true. Robbie had introduced him to a few girlfriends over the years, but Brittany had been his favorite. They had spent time together, talking, hanging out, always friendly. When Robbie had broken it off with her, Gus had been disappointed at the thought of not seeing her regularly. But he had never stopped thinking of her as a friend.
Until she broke into Robbie’s apartment and destroyed his equipment. And then treated him like the bad guy because he caught her.
She didn’t know what to say to that, and so they fell into silence for the rest of the trip.
Gus finally pulled up to her hotel, parking in the drop-off area out front. And then he turned to her, their eyes locking.
“Come on. I’ll walk you to your door.”
Brittany rolled her eyes. “The hotel has security and cameras everywhere. I think I’m safe.”
“Humor me.”
He stepped out of the car and went to the back, grabbing her bag. She was out of the SUV by the time he stepped around toward her. With a glance around, he led her into the hotel, this time having his hand hover over her back. Brittany wasn’t a fan of people touching her without permission. He wasn’t going to piss her off any more than was necessary.
At the front desk, a man brightened at the sight of her. Gus couldn’t blame him. When Brittany was in the room, it was hard to look away. Gus, however, focused on scanning the lobby, searching for anyone who might seem too interested in them. Fortunately, the place was empty.
“Good evening, miss. How can I help you?”
“I’m staying here. Someone should’ve left me a key.”
She gave her name, and the attendant looked her up, flashing her a wide smile the whole time as if Gus wasn’t standing right next to her. Not that she was his, but this guy didn’t know that. Gus glared at him just to get his point across, and the guy visibly gulped and typed faster.
Once Brittany had her key, she turned to Gus, holding out her hand for her bag.
“To the door, killer.”
With a sigh, she headed to the elevators, Gus on her heels. Her hips swayed with that rhythm only she seemed to hear, and he was once again grateful the place was mostly empty. Brittany could draw a crowd just by being herself.
The elevator was thankfully empty, so they settled on opposite sides.
“Was he pissed?”
He knew exactly what Brittany was asking, and what she was digging for. And, considering the night they had, and the long weekend they were about to have, he decided to give her what she clearly wanted… the truth.
“Robbie was livid. He wasn’t able to retrieve any data or any of his saves. Had to buy new equipment and start fresh.”
If he thought she’d look happy at that, he was wrong. She simply took it in with a nod.
“Good.”
The elevator dinged, and Gus followed her down the quiet hall to her door, where she turned and blinked at him, clearly not expecting him to be so close behind her. She looked up at him, those long dark lashes framing those sky-blue eyes that Gus could easily drown in, and for a second, he could feel himself start to sweat. It was one thing to be around Brittany when she was dating his brother. It was another to be around her, standing this close, when she was unattached.
As if reading his mind, she cleared her throat.
“My roommates are asleep, so I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to come in.”
Gus ran through a list of possibilities of what she could find in that room, but also sensed she wouldn’t budge on this. He had to trust the room would be safe. He handed over her bag.
“I’ll be here tomorrow morning. Eight sharp. We’ll walk to the center together.”
“I’m supposed to meet Min and Hayden in line.”
“Then we’ll meet them in line. But I’ll be with you.”
She nodded at that, even though she clearly didn’t like it. Gus stayed close, looking down at her. Even as tired as she was, Brittany was still the most beautiful woman Gus ever laid eyes on. Objectively speaking.
“Who are you staying with?”
Brittany grimaced. “About six other influencers. The bathroom’s gonna be a nightmare.”
Gus frowned. “But you know them? They’re friends?”
“Some of them more than others. But I needed a deal, and they had space.”
“Britt…”
“Gus, don’t. I can’t do this right now.”
Brittany turned, opened the door, and headed inside her room, ending the conversation. She turned to shut the door, pausing when they locked eyes again.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Gus told her, a warning. He didn’t like leaving her here when he couldn’t check the room, but she wasn’t budging.
She nodded and very gently shut the door in his face.
As Gus waited, listening through the door to make sure she didn’t scream or suddenly need him, he thought for the thousandth time about what an idiot Robbie was to let Brittany go. Sure, she had a temper. Sure, she streamed her life to an uncomfortable degree. But there was no one like her.
Shaking his head, Gus headed back down to the lobby and climbed in his vehicle. He had a lot to do before meeting Brittany the next morning, and he didn’t want to get distracted.
Even though, let’s be honest, he already was.