Chapter 38 Bodyguard..?
Amrah
I sat down on the space Zayd patted beside him feeling heat radiating from his body due to how small the space between us was.
"So what else did you want to talk about?" I asked, trying to sound casual like I wasn't thinking about sitting on his lap and…
"I want to be your bodyguard."
"What? No… bodyguard? Absolutely not”
"Why not?" He asked seriously, his eyes trained on my face.
"Because I already have enough, you just fought with one of them”
"And I won.”
“You didn't, you… Besides you broke into my apartment, that…”
“That doesn't matter.” Is he smiling?
"Doesn't—" I stared at him in disbelief. "Of course it matters! And you can't just decide to be my bodyguard. That's not how this works."
He turned to face me more fully, and the intensity in his gaze made my breath catch. "Why did I suddenly decide this?”
"Yes, you have better job offers waiting for you"
“Of course” He didn't say it arrogantly, just matter-of-fact.
"Then why—"
"Because I only take jobs I want," he interrupted softly. "Like how I want to be your bodyguard."
Before I could respond, he reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. The gesture was so gentle and intimate that I forgot how to breathe.
His fingers lingered near my face, trailing down to my chin and his eyes, oh God, his eyes were fixed on my lips that it felt like a physical touch.
My tongue darted out to moisten my lower lip unconsciously.
"Being your bodyguard would be the best job I have had," Zayd continued, his voice low and rough. "Because I get to be close to you all day."
My heart hammered against my ribs.
"So you want to take over Edison's work? That's pretty shameless, even for you." I laughed trying to ease the tension building between us.
Zayd let out a low laugh, and something inside me melted further.
“Edison can continue getting his pay. I don't care about that." His thumb brushed against my cheek. "I care about being close to you."
I was definitely going to pass out if he kept looking at me like that. "So what, you want to work for Edison then?" I joked weakly.
"I want to be paid, actually."
That surprised me enough to pull me out of my flustered state momentarily. "Oh? How much are we talking about?"
"Two."
I tried to calculate quickly. "Two million? That's cheap for someone with your skills—"
"No."
"Two hundred million?" My eyes widened.
"Two kisses every day."
Time stopped and his words hung in the air between us, because I couldn't quite process them.
"I... what?" My cheeks flamed so hot I was sure I'd spontaneously combust. "You can't be serious."
Zayd's lips curved into an amused smile. "I'm completely serious. And I'm starting now, so..." His hands settled on my waist. "Pay me for today."
Before I could formulate a coherent response, before I could even think, he pulled me onto his lap. I landed with a gasp, suddenly straddling him and my hands instinctively going to his shoulders.
"Zayd—"
He cut off my words with his lips.
The kiss started carefully, almost tentatively, like he was giving me a chance to pull away. But I didn't want to pull away. I had been thinking about this, about kissing him again all day even though I was convincing myself to stay away from him.
My hands slid from his shoulders to tangle in his hair that I had been wanting to touch and I felt him smile against my lips.
That seemed to break whatever restraint he had been holding onto.
The kiss became hurried, hungry, desperate. His tongue darted into my mouth, tasting and nibbling wildly. His hands tightened on my waist, pulling me closer until there wasn't an inch of space between us.
A low moan bubbled in my throat as my nipples brushed his hard chest, and he swallowed it, his lips moving against mine with an urgency that matched the frantic beating of my heart.
One of his hands slid up my back, his fingers tugging my hair gently tilting my head to deepen the kiss further. I couldn't think straight or breathe well, just what I wanted.
When we finally broke apart, both of us were breathing hard. Zayd rested his forehead against mine, his eyes still closed, his hands still holding me like he was afraid I would disappear if he loosened his hold.
"God, I missed you," he breathed, his voice rough and raw with emotion.
My heart did something complicated in my chest. "You saw me two hours ago"
"Too long." He opened his eyes, and the look in them made my stomach flip. "Any time away from you is too long."
I should have teased him or deflected or done something to protect myself from the feelings drowning me. But instead, I just looked at him, at this impossible man who had broken into my apartment and fought my bodyguard and demanded to be paid in kisses, and I felt something inside me shift irrevocably.
"That was only one kiss," I whispered.
"Are you saying you want to pay me in advance?"
"I'm saying..." I trailed my fingers along his cheek, poking at his dimple "I'm saying you're really bad at negotiating. You should have asked for more."
"Oh?" His hands tightened on my waist. "What would you have offered?"
"I guess you will never know now. We already agreed on terms."
"Amrah." The way he said my name made my breath catch. "If you keep looking at me like that, two kisses a day won't be nearly enough."
"Then it's a good thing I didn't hire you for your self-control," I murmured, and kissed him again.
This time it was slower, deeper, more intentional. This time I poured into it all the confusion and fear I had been feeling. All the anger that had already melted away, and all the longing I had been trying to deny.
When we finally pulled apart again, I stayed on his lap with my arms around his neck and my face buried in his neck with a racing heart.
"So," Zayd said, his voice still rough. "Does this mean I'm hired?"
I should say no, but I have decided to go with the flow.
"The payment structure is terrible," I said instead.
"Negotiable."
"And you'll still have to deal with my Dad and Edison."
"I can handle Edison and I'm sure your Dad would love to work with me”
"And I'm still mad at you."
"I can work with that too."
I sighed, but I was smiling. "You're impossible."
"You said that already." He pressed a soft kiss to my temple. "But you haven't said no."
He was right. Despite all the reasons I have to refuse, I couldn't bring myself to say no, because the truth was, I wanted him.
I wanted him close.
And maybe that made me weak or foolish or reckless, but right now, sitting in his lap with his arms around me, I couldn't bring myself to care.