Personal Protection by Julie Miller

Author:Julie Miller
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2019-05-13T16:43:36+00:00

Chapter Seven

“Danya!” Just as Carly was twisting away from the bodyguard’s rough grip, with her free hand poised to strike his bulbous nose, Ivan palmed the center of the bodyguard’s chest and shoved him back. With a precise turn of his wrist, Ivan had the bodyguard’s arm pinned behind his back and his face planted on a display table. “You overstep your duties, Danya. You are not to touch Miss Valentine again.”

His warning was as crisp and concise as an officer commanding his troops.

“Are we clear on this?” Ivan prompted when he got no response beyond Danya’s heavy breathing.

Carly stayed back, mindlessly massaging the five future bruises on her upper arm. She had nothing against chivalry, but what the hell? Where did a prince learn a move like that?

Allowing time for his anger to ebb, Danya finally nodded. “Yes, sir. We are clear.”

Only then did Ivan release the stocky man and back away. His glance across the store to Eduard and the wide-eyed clerk dared either one of them to utter a word about what they’d just seen. Eduard nodded and turned his attention back to the clerk to reassure her that everything would be okay. Ivan straightened his cuffs and the front of his jacket, keeping his body positioned between her and Danya. “You will apologize to Miss Valentine.”

“My apologies.” Danya straightened his own clothes and made a token effort to stack the piles of scattered T-shirts back into place. “I am too loyal a patriot who has had too little sleep. I was not...thinking clearly...when I touched you.”

“A change in plans messes with your routine. I get it. No harm, no foul.” Both men looked at her with a quizzical expression. “Basketball? The phrase comes from when referees call too many fouls for little infractions...” She was the one who needed answers about what had just happened. “You didn’t do any serious damage, so there’s no penalty. Apology accepted.”

Ivan’s eyes narrowed. “I will have to learn more about this sport. It sounds violent.”

As good as their English might be, apparently, they didn’t teach American idioms in Lukinburg schools. She was guessing they didn’t teach that hand-to-hand combat suppression trick, either. “How long ago were you in the army?”

Ivan smoothed his hands over his short hair and adjusted his glasses instead of answering.

“I could have handled Danya myself,” she insisted, stating a fact, not bragging. “You shouldn’t put yourself at risk like that.”

“I saw you do something very similar at the precinct office to the last man who assaulted you.”

Carly shook her head at his faulty reasoning. “I’m not about to be crowned leader of my own country. You have responsibilities. There are precautions you need to take.”

Danya cleared his throat. “That is the point I was trying to make. I am only concerned for your safety and your reputation, Your Highness. I feared you were being reckless.”

“And you thought insulting my companion was the way to express yourself?” Ivan challenged. “I will not allow this.”

“Of course not.” Danya’s head remained bowed.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.