CHAPTER SEVEN
JAYDEN
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I was wrong. Air conditioning units are much more interesting than this shit. I’ve been standing at the back of the room for almost two damn hours listening to these insane people rave about glossy fucking this and sticky fucking that.
Pinks.
How many goddamn pink shades can there be?
I’ll tell you how many: four million.
Or so it feels.
At least in my sales role, I could cruise around the city in my car, listening to music, make calls...not go insane.
I’m still reeling from her decision not to have monitored security cameras. I understand her reasoning, but if she’s six feet under, privacy will no longer be a concern.
Surely her father has hashed this out with her.
“This shade is going to fly off the shelves,” Zade opens the gloss and, as he’s done throughout the meeting, walks and talks. This time, he’s heading in my direction. “Even your lovely security guard could wear this one.”
Bad move.
If he comes any closer, I’ll pull my weapon.
The women all giggle when my hand lands on the top of my holster, but not Tiffany. Her mouth parts as if she knows I’m not joking.
Stop.”
The entire room freezes, and I almost laugh.
Zade isn’t fazed though; he waves the glossy stick in my direction. “Very alpha male, I love it. Girls we need to bottle that for future campaigns.”
What now?
When he returns to the table, Tiffany shoots me with an apologetic look.
Ten long minutes later, they wrap up and the hugging begins. It takes another fifteen minutes before I have Sadie and Tiffany loaded into the Cadillac.
“Sorry about that,” Tiffany says, shooting me a look in the mirror. “Zade is a bit over the top.”
He was nearly a statistic, but whatever.
Our eyes connect in the rear vision mirror, and I give her a quick nod. Keeping my thoughts to myself is the best course of action here. The traffic distracts me as I weave through it and drive the two women home.
“He’s so funny, though, isn’t he?” Sadie giggles. “The event is going to be amazing. They are so clever.”
“Creative people are clever...and quirky,” Tiffany says, and I know she’s talking to me.
Zade wasn’t being quirky; he was testing me, and it got my attention.
As far as I’m concerned, everyone is a suspect until we can find the person who stole not just her valuable diamonds but very personal items.
It’s odd.
A professional thief wouldn’t have bothered, or they did it to throw authorities off the scent. At least that’s the conversation I had with Ryder on the way to Tiffany’s this morning.
It could be someone envious of her success. Someone who works closely with her. I’ve ruled out Sadie, mostly, as she seems to adore her boss. I don’t see any red flags, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any.
My eyes are wide open.
“What about this Nadia?” Ryder asked. “How was she with Tiffany?”
“Friendly. I mean, she has the code to get onto the property. Either Ms. Stallone trusts easily or they’re good friends.”
I should have stuck around, but I’d wanted to see the rest of the property before I left last night. If they’re close, I suspect the Russian will visit again soon.
During our chat, Ryder gave me a brief rundown of the resources we have available at BHS.
“You really should’ve had a better induction before hitting the ground running. I’ll get one of the guys to cover you next week for a day so you can spend some time here.”
“That would be great,” I replied, but in the back of my mind the idea of someone else spending the day with this sexy dark-haired beauty didn’t sit well with me.
Whatever that was about.
Liam had introduced me to Thomas and the guys in the tech team, so I wasn’t running blind. I was the kind of guy who picked things up quickly. Josh and Aidan seem to run a tight ship, so knowing how the team worked as one—just as we did in the forces—would benefit me.
“For now, we need to lighten her calendar and reduce the risk,” Ryder shared.
“Yeah, I tried that, and she wasn’t buying it.”
“Try harder.”
I groaned.
I changed lanes and glanced in the rear mirror again, having tuned out the two women.
“Sadie do you attend the events with Tiffany?”
“Sometimes I do, yes. It really depends.”
Beside her, the sunflower with legs glowers at me as if she knows what I’m up to.
I wonder how she’s living without her vibrator, and the thought makes my pants tight immediately. After the moment we shared in her kitchen last night, there’s no way she wasn’t impacted.
Did she think about me and slide her hand between her legs?
Does she wish I’d spread her legs and run my tongue over her quivering folds?
I do.
I fucking wished that all night when I was stroking my cock. Christ, I bet she tastes as sweet as the sunshine that pours off those little yellow shorts.
“What about the event this week?” I inquire.
“No, she’s not attending,” Tiffany tells me. “That’s an awards evening hosted by TikTok. The best and biggest account holders from across the country are nominated and invited. It’s a great honor.”
Great.
In other words, she won’t cancel that, either.
“It’s so cool you got nominated again. She won last year, Jayden. I was so proud.”
God, she’s like a little lapdog.
But adorable, nevertheless.
And definitely not capable of breaking into a safe. Sadie is off my list.
“So, not just makeup people?”
“Makeup people.” Tiffany snorts. “No, there are DanceTok, MusicTok, BeautyTok and all kinds of creators attending.”
“The fuck is DanceTok?” I frown as I change lanes.
I feel like we are talking two different languages. Maybe three. Then again, these people wouldn’t have a clue what an MK22 precision sniper rifle or Barrett M107 is.
“Oh, do you have your dress?” Sadie swivels abruptly in the leather seat as if a disaster is about to strike.
“Yes. No. Oh! Jayden, we need to swing past Prada.”
“Roger that.” I search for the address on the navigation, because surprise-surprise, I didn’t have the Prada address in my memory.
I do know where Tactical Pro Shop in Burbank is, but I bet they don’t shop there.
“Roger that,” Sadie parrots, then chuckles. “You are so cute.”
This time when I glance into the mirror, Tiffany is smirking, but with a sexy blush on her cheeks. The two girls share a look.
Fuck.
I really want to kiss her.
I want to slam my mouth down on hers and wrap that long hair around my fist. I want to push her back against a wall and let her feel my hard cock against her stomach.
Then I hear her beg me to fill her.
Someone beeps at me.
Shit.
Focus, Jayden, focus. At least I’m not having an anxiety attack, but in the back of my mind, I’m aware this assignment could be boring as fuck or turn into something dangerous.
Or maybe I’m catastrophizing.
I read online that can happen with PTSD.
Shit, I should drive straight to BHS and tell Josh I’m not fit for duty. If I put Tiffany’s life in danger, I don’t think I could live with myself.
I’ve been good for a month, but I know that’s not how these things work. It doesn’t just go away.
Shaking my head to myself, I find a park near Prada and shadow the girls as they wander into the store excitedly.
Then I get to watch Tiffany parade around in front of the mirror with the shortest fucking black dress known to man.
Fuck me.
I cross my arms and pretend not to be affected as she slides her hands over the sparkly fabric covering her hips and then lifts her eyes to mine.
“What do you think, Jayden?”
What do I think?
I think if you belonged to me, I wouldn’t let you step foot in public wearing that thing. You’d keep it for me and me alone. I’d make you wear it with no panties, and when my fingers were sliding in and out of your wet pussy, I’d yank down the top and slide my cock between your big tits.
“Good.” I nod instead.
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AFTER DROPPING SADIE home and listening to the two women have a mini work meeting in the back of the Cadillac, we pull into Tiffany’s driveway.
She lets me open the door for her, and I like it more than I’m letting on. Her long legs appear out of the vehicle, and she teeters on those high heels.
She’s still a short ass compared to me—a sexy damn short ass—and each time she climbs to her feet she’s taken to glancing up at me. Those globes fill with questions.
I know what she wants to know.
Do I feel this chemistry?
I fucking feel it. It’s so tangible I could almost reach out and throttle it. Which I should, because it’s a distraction and the last thing a guy like me needs.
We walk to the front door, and I follow as Tiffany unlocks it and pushes it open.
Then we step insi—
Boof.
Tiffany slams into my chest when she turns. “Oh, God. I’m sorry. I left the dress in the car.”
My hands are on her hips, steadying her.
“We need to stop doing this,” I rasp, my head dipped as the heat of her body seers my palms. A spark shoots through me, one my cock wants to explore right, damn now.
Tiffany isn’t breathing, her mouth parts, wet lips just begging me to be claimed. To be tasted.
Let her go.
“I forgot you were behind me.”
“No, you didn’t.” I rasp, still holding her inches from my thick cock.
“Are you saying I did it on purpose?"
“Didn’t you?” I smirk, enjoying the game.
“No,” she says more quietly. “Why would I?”
I glance down and find her nipples hard, giving away her secret. One both of us are not willing to admit. But it’s getting hard, really damn hard.
Tiffany clears her throat.
I slowly remove my hands and step aside. “I’ll get the dress.”