Don’t waste time on unrequited crushes
DON’T WASTE TIME ON UNREQUITED CRUSHES
Brynn
Three Weeks Later
I waved one last time to my fans as I rushed off the stage, followed by my dancers.
They went left backstage, and I went right where Wyatt stood sentry as he did during every show.
My core clenched as my gaze dropped down his tall, fit body.
This man had looked fine as hell in a suit, but the blue button-down and khakis he was wearing tonight were doing something dangerous to me.
Every night after a show, this man tempted me like no one else ever had.
He’d laid down the law three weeks ago, and I had every intention of respecting the boundaries he put in place.
But you know what they say about the road to hell…
I was pretty sure I was on my way there if the dirty images my mind was creating were any indication.
I hadn’t apologized for masturbating to the image of him, but I was sorry he caught me.
Okay, maybe not one hundred percent sorry since the thought of him watching me had now played on an endless loop in my head whenever I was lying in bed waiting for sleep to pull me under.
I’d never masturbated in front of someone else before, and even though it hadn’t been intentional, there was something invigorating about knowing his eyes were on me while I made myself come.
And now I couldn’t stop thinking about doing it again while he watched.
There was something about the ultimate trust you had to give that person to not sit there and laugh at you or judge you, but to just watch you enjoying yourself.
I couldn’t think of a single partner from my past I would’ve wanted to watch me, but the thought of Wyatt watching me again never failed to make me wet.
Wyatt handed me a towel which I used to wipe off the excess sweat on my forehead from my performance.
He’d caught on quickly that I always headed straight to the table backstage to grab one and wipe off.
I don’t know if he started holding it out to me to save us time or what, but I appreciated it more than he knew.
“Thanks,” I said, glad I had my performance as an excuse for the heat in my cheeks, so only I knew it was really from the way this man affected me.
He gave me a silent nod and then his gaze was scanning the area around us. Wyatt was always observing our surroundings. I was sure he never missed a thing, except maybe my growing—and completely unrequited—crush on him.
I dabbed at my neck with the towel and took advantage of his focus being on the things going on around us.
My gaze traced the sharp edge of his jaw, memorized how his dark eyebrows arched as his brown eyes narrowed on something to our left.
His mouth was set in a line, and occasionally there was a slight tic in his jaw when he was especially focused.
The only real indication of his age was the fine lines around his eyes.
There were no signs of gray in his hair although I had no doubt this man would be an exceptionally sexy silver fox when the day came.
But as much as his face always mesmerized me, it was his hands that captivated and enticed me even more.
He had thick veins along the backs of his hands, and his palms and fingers were callused.
He was a man who had used his hands a lot, and I often wondered what he did in his spare time.
Were the rough calluses from building something?
Or from a career before he became a bodyguard?
I knew he was ex-special forces, but wasn’t privy to the details of his time in the military. I had so many questions, and I couldn’t ask a single one because it would cross a line that he had clearly drawn in the sand, as he should have.
He worked for me.
I needed to remember that he was a professional doing his job. The reminder finally sobered me up. I hated when people objectified me and yet here I was doing the exact same thing to him. I needed to get a hold of myself and treat him like I would any other employee that worked for me.
Thankfully, my backstage assistant chose that moment to come rushing over with a small bowl of almonds and a stick of string cheese.
Every night since the night Wyatt had first asked her to get me a snack, she’d had something at the ready that my nutritionist would wholeheartedly approve of.
She passed me the bowl and gestured for me to hand her my towel.
I gave her a nod of thanks and then turned back to Wyatt.
“You ready?” he asked me, doing one last sweep before looking down at me.
I was not going to admire how tall he was.
I wasn’t.
“Yeah, let’s go,” I said and then popped an almond in my mouth so I wouldn’t say anything else.
We started walking toward the dressing room so I could change.
“Are you going out with the dancers?”
I paused, my steps stuttering slightly, but Wyatt—observant as always—caught it. Knowing he was watching my facial expression and could read me better than anyone else in my circle, I did my best to keep my face neutral. “The boss doesn’t get invited to those things.”
He frowned. “The barhopping a few weeks ago…?”
I shrugged. “I wasn’t invited. You assumed, and I let you think what you wanted since you said no to it anyway.”
He faced forward, but I caught his eyebrows slanted over his eyes in a stern frown like he was reorganizing information in his head. It was strangely endearing watching this man classify new facts in his brain. I could practically see the wheels turning.
I expected him to remain silent, but he surprised me. “You never go out much.”
“No, I suppose I don’t. Is that different from your other clients?”
“I’m not allowed to talk about other clients.”
My heart sank a little at that. For a minute it had felt like we were bonding, and as much as I was trying to remind myself not to find him attractive, I couldn’t deny it would be nice to feel like we were friends.
“But yes,” he said, his voice lower as we reached my dressing room. I spun around to face him as I pushed the door open with one hand, my snack still held in the other. His brown gaze drilled into mine. “You’re definitely different than I expected.”
My heart caught in my throat. “A good different, I hope.”
He didn’t say anything, his gaze locked on mine for a second too long, and then he gave one nod and broke our stare. “I’ll be out here when you’re ready.”
I swallowed thickly. “I’ll be just a few minutes.”
True to my word, I was changed and ready to head back to the hotel within five minutes.
He gestured for me to walk and we fell in step together.
The extra security at the venue pushed open the back door to where my car waited.
Cameras flashed and I smiled and waved, prepared for this since they were always waiting after every show.
Even ten years into my career, it was still overwhelming to see all the flashing lights and hear the cacophony of voices screaming demands for my attention. Then there were all manner of things being shoved at me to sign.
I waved, but didn’t stop. Wyatt’s hand was braced at my back as he pushed his other hand out, using his body as a blockade around me.
A blur caught my attention a split second before a woman was moving forward and screaming at me.
She moved to throw something at me at the same time that Wyatt hauled my body against his and spun us, protecting me with his body.
The chaos lasted only seconds, security quickly catching the fan that rushed toward me, but as I glanced up into Wyatt’s fierce and protective gaze, time felt like it stopped altogether.
We were chest to chest, my nipples pebbled hard and pressed so tightly to him, there was no way he could miss them. Something sticky dripped on my hand that was partially on his hip, and when I pulled it closer, my heart sunk at the sight of red.
“Oh my God. Wyatt, you’re bleeding.” There was no way he could miss the panic in my voice as I frantically tried to spin him around to see where he was hurt.
But there was no moving a man as big and sturdy as he was unless he wanted to be moved.
Instead, he grabbed my hands and held them against his chest.
“Brynn, look at me.”
I looked up into his calm eyes. “I’m not hurt.” He looked down at my hands, assessing the liquid, and then back at me. “This looks like red paint. I promise I’m fine.”
The combo of the adrenaline from the show, the scare of the attack, and the terror that he could’ve been hurt made tears burn in my eyes.
His jaw clenched and his hands tightened on mine as we heard the other members of the security team handle the threat.
I’d told myself this was only a crush, but as he held my gaze, I knew my feelings had already become so much more than that.
I knew without a doubt that there was no way I could ever look at Wyatt as just my bodyguard. It was too late. I already cared about him more than was professional, more than I cared about most people in my life.
It was stupid for a million reasons, and completely one-sided, but I couldn’t ignore the way this man made me feel anymore.
I just wished I wasn’t the only one falling.