Scarlet stood frozen in shock at seeing Ryder standing in her living room. How the hell had he found her? And what had he told Claudia? And why had he even bothered to look for her? Did he want a repeat of what had happened the previous night? But then why did he look at her with an expression of utter surprise on his handsome face?
“Come in, Scarlet,” Claudia coaxed. “Meet your new bodyguard. He’s replacing Grayson as of today.”
Her new bodyguard? No, no, that couldn’t be! How had this happened? This wasn’t fair! No wonder he was looking so shocked. He hadn’t been searching for her after all. He was here because he worked for Scanguards. And there was nothing she could say to him to make him leave her home immediately. Not in front of Claudia in any case. Neither Claudia nor her father could ever find out that she’d had mind-blowingly fantastic sex with Ryder.
When Scarlet didn’t move, and Ryder remained just as frozen, Claudia added, “Is something wrong?”
“Not at all, Mrs. King, uhm, Claudia…” Ryder said with an innocent smile. “I’m sorry for my momentary silence. It’s just, whenever I take on a new assignment, I’m somewhat anxious whether I’ll measure up to my clients’ expectations and vice versa. But I think all my worries were entirely unfounded.”
What an actor he was! Christ, even Scarlet believed his statement even though she knew he was flat out lying.
“Your openness is so refreshing,” Claudia said with a broad smile, eating up Ryder’s boy-next-door charm like a cat a bowl of cream.
Ryder took a step toward Scarlet and stretched out his hand in greeting. “It’s very nice to meet you, Scarlet.”
She was forced to shake his hand. The warmth of his touch sent the same tingling feeling through her body that she’d felt when he’d touched her clit and made her come. Judging by the way he locked eyes with her, he probably knew what she was thinking. She felt her cheeks flush with heat, embarrassment making her tongue-tied.
“Nice to meet you too,” Scarlet said, knowing if she continued her silence any longer, Claudia would suspect that something was wrong. At least Ryder had the decency to pretend that this was their first meeting. She was grateful for that.
As quickly as she could, Scarlet let go of his hand.
Claudia looked at her wristwatch. “It’s getting late. I’d better get my errands done. Scarlet, why don’t you show Ryder around so he knows his way around the house. I’m assuming you already have a house key, Ryder?”
“Yes, thank you. I was given Grayson’s key.”
“Perfect,” Claudia said. “Scarlet, make sure you give Ryder a schedule of all your appointments, and don’t forget that my nephew will visit in a couple of days. Keep some time available. Don’t over-schedule yourself, okay?”
“Okay,” Scarlet said.
Claudia’s cell phone chimed and she looked at the message. “I have to run.”
“When will you be back?” Scarlet asked.
“Oh, I won’t be staying the night. I’ll drive back to Palo Alto after I’m done with my last appointment. The contractor who’s designing my new walk-in is coming bright and early tomorrow morning, and I don’t wanna be caught in morning rush-hour traffic.”
“Oh.” She didn’t know whether to welcome the fact that Claudia wasn’t staying. It meant that she wouldn’t interrupt the talk she needed to have with Ryder just as soon as she left the house. But it also meant Claudia wouldn’t be here to stop her from doing something stupid.
“Again, nice meeting you, Ryder. Bye, Scarlet,” Claudia said before she hurried out of the living room and left the house.
Scarlet listened for the garage door to open, the sound of the car’s engine reverberating from the garage below the house a moment later, and for the car to exit. It appeared Ryder was doing the same, because he too remained silent until it was certain that Claudia had left.
“So your name isn’t Sara but Scarlet,” Ryder finally said. She detected no malice in his voice. “Scarlet suits you better.”
She tipped her chin up. “Did you know last night that you would become my bodyguard?”
“Trust me, had I known, I would have never touched you. I don’t need that kind of trouble in my life.”
That annoyed her. He called her trouble? How dare he? After what had happened last night, he insulted her? “Clearly, last night was a mistake.” She pressed the words out with as much conviction as she could muster.
“I see.”
Well, it sounded like it pissed him off that she’d said it first. “Well, then we’re in agreement. You’ll tell your boss that you can’t be my bodyguard because you’ve taken an instant dislike to me, and the feeling is mutual and—”
“That would be a lie,” he interrupted.
“Which part?”
“Everything. I haven’t taken a dislike to you.”
“Of course you have. You just said so yourself.”
“I said nothing of the kind.”
There was nothing wrong with her short-term memory. “You said, and I quote: had I known, I would have never touched you. I don’t need that kind of trouble in my life.”
“And from that you conclude that I dislike you?” Ryder shook his head.
“It’s pretty evident from where I stand.” She crossed her arms over her chest.
“How about your claim that the dislike is mutual? It’s pretty evident to me that that’s not the case.”
It was clear that he was talking about their sexual encounter.
“Are you saying I’m lying?”
“If I remember correctly, last night you liked me just fine. Or do you fuck any guy, whether you like him or not?”
Scarlet glared at him. “That’s none of your business.”
“Fine. Don’t tell me. I don’t care. For all intents and purposes, last night never happened.”
His voice had an edge to it that sounded like retaliation for hurting his pride. Well, she could play the same game.
“Fine. Let’s pretend it never happened. It’s better that way.” Though it didn’t mean that she could forget about it. Her mind kept going back to the way Ryder had made her feel. What if no other man could ever make her feel that way again? “If you ever tell anybody what happened, I will go to your boss, and I will have you fired.”
“Well, then we’re in agreement,” he said icily. “You’ll see as little as possible of me. All I need is your schedule of all your appointments that require you to leave this house. While you’re home, I’ll stay out of your way. Just pretend I’m not here.”
As if that was possible!
Ryder’s words were matter-of-fact. It further proved to Scarlet that the previous night had meant nothing to him. But she couldn’t pretend that his presence didn’t affect her. Even now, her body betrayed her. She felt her nipples transform into hard peaks and her pussy turn wet at the mere memory of the things Ryder had done, the way he’d touched her, how he’d made her feel. How hard he’d come inside her. She’d felt his cock spasming inside her, had enjoyed how his hot semen had filled her.
Her memories screeched to a halt. It had never even occurred to her until now, but all of a sudden, she remembered it very clearly. Ryder hadn’t used a condom. And she’d been so delirious with lust that she hadn’t insisted on it. That was the first time it had ever happened to her. She’d always been so careful.
Fuck! How could she have been so stupid? Not only had she slept with a stranger who turned out to be her new bodyguard, she’d put herself at risk for an STD, and even worse, a pregnancy.
“I need to go to a pharmacy.” She prayed that it wasn’t too late for the morning-after pill.
“Are you feeling sick?” he asked. “What do you need?”
“Not that you care, but I need the morning-after pill. And probably some antibiotics. She turned to the door. “Let’s go. Now.”
Ryder snatched her arm and made her turn back to him. “You won’t need any of that.”
She ripped her arm free and glared at him. “I wouldn’t if you had worn a condom, damn it!”
“You won’t get pregnant,” he said.
“What are you, a doctor now?”
“No, but I’m sterile. You won’t need the morning-after pill.”
“Oh.” That surprised her—if he spoke the truth. “Are you making this up?”
He simply shook his head. “I was born sterile. As for antibiotics, I assume you’re worried about STDs?”
She looked at him, trying to read his expression, but she couldn’t.
“I don’t have any STDs. We get tested regularly at Scanguards. I’m clean. And I don’t sleep around.”
She raised a doubting eyebrow.
“Last night was an exception,” he claimed. “Doesn’t matter if you believe it or not. I guess the evidence speaks against me on that.” He paused. “But I would never lie to anybody where their health or safety is concerned. I took an oath when I became a bodyguard. I’ve never broken it, and I’m not gonna start now.”
Scarlet surprised herself when she realized that she believed him, even though she had no reason to know whether he spoke the truth. But she saw something in his eyes, something that made her hear the truth in his words.