THE (UNSOUGHT) BODYGUARD

FIRST MEETING

Like Ram, this man was fairly tall, and well built, with a strong, well-muscled frame. He had broad shoulders, meaty biceps or triceps or whatever they were, and was dressed all in black. Unlike Ram, this man tanned, and had dark, stormy cerulean eyes. And also unlike Ram, he seemed closer to her in age and Annika felt a sharp, unmistakeable surge of primal lust for this man.

"This is Shivaay," Harsh Trivedi said, and Annika blinked, looking down to gather herself. He is so off limits it's not even funny. And on a scale of one to ten for hotness, he's a twelve, and you're an eight, maybe nine with the right outfit, hair and makeup. Out of your league and off limits, she told herself sternly.

"Hi," she said tersely, looking back up. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise," he said easily, and Annika forced a smile.

"I want to go to market today," she said conversationally. "Do you eat Chinese food? The real kind?"

Shivaay, the dark haired, tanned sex god, smiled a little. "Yes. But I prefer Thai food."

Annika smirked, glad the guy wasn't a total stiff like the guys who watched her father's back, and finished her coffee. "Hmm, Thai isn't my thing. I could compromise with sushi," she said.

Shivaay shrugged. "Sure. If it's food, I eat it, for the most part."

The girl got up and headed toward the stairs for her purse and a hoodie to go over her jeans and tee to ward off the early February chill. "That's good. Meet me in the garage." Annika got there ten minutes later and they headed out, with her driving herself in her own vintage Volkswagen Beetle. "So, you're the new muscle," she said to break the slightly awkward silence.

S: "Yes."

The girl pulled up to a red light and glanced over at him. "You don't look very old."

"I'm old enough," he said simply.

"So, anything else to add?" she asked, hoping this guy wouldn't disappoint in the personality department. Harish had been a complete stick in the mud, and even though Ram had been an improvement, Annika was hoping the personality deficit wasn't a prerequisite for working for her father. Because even Ram had been kind of dull, although he was sweet.

"No." Annika shrugged. "Unless I'm allowed to mention how outrageously obvious it is that you aren't wearing a bra." The girl glared. "Just saying."

"Well, now that we have that delightful observation out of the way," Annika said, tugging her sweatshirt together over her boobs, "I suppose I should brief you on the rules."

Shivaay pursed his mouth ever so slightly, but nodded. "Very well."

Annika held up a finger. "Rule one. I go where I like. You follow, but if you try to stop me, I'll make you wish you hadn't." One corner of the man's mouth twitched. "Rule two," she said, holding up her second finger. "I'm sure my dad told you not to let anyone take my picture, right?" Shivaay nodded. "Yeah, forget that. Someone wants to eat by selling my photo, I can handle that."

A black brow arched slowly. "You're aware-?"

"Yes. I know, soulless nutters who get their jollies seeing people in compromising situations and making a quick buck. Why even bother pretending to be nice, right?" Annika pulled up to another light and looked at the massive, well-built man in her passenger seat. He seemed patently too big for her car and she was suddenly very aware of his proximity and the faint, tantalizing smell of him. Focus. "Well it's been my experience they get rabid when you don't feed them. So I let the paparazzi get their jollies and photos for their rags and continue on my way. And there's even a few who aren't so bad." Shivaay looked politely disbelieving and she shrugged and shifted gears roughly. "So, if you're going to try and run interference, best of luck, but they'll make you look like an imbecile."