The Walls of Troy by L. A. Witt

Author:L. A. Witt
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Navy, military, special ops, bodyguard, college, university, abusive ex, stalker, romantic suspense
Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
Published: 2014-10-07T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

The next morning, my body was predictably sore. My forehead was tender, and I still felt like I’d had my ass handed to me, but I felt better than I had a few hours ago. If anything, I was exhausted from a restless night.

I made my way from the guest room into the kitchen, where the MAs had been given unlimited access to the high-capacity coffeemaker. Someone had already put the coffee on, thank God, so I poured myself a cup and sipped it black.

My head was throbbing a little, and half a cup of coffee wasn’t helping, so I fished a fresh icepack out of the freezer and carefully pressed it against the bruise. The pressure wasn’t pleasant, but the cold was nice, and the throbbing slowly subsided.

“How are you feeling?” Troy’s voice startled me.

When I turned around, my breath caught. He stood in the doorway, arms folded loosely across a plain black T-shirt. The usual dark rings of kohl around his eyes were gone, with only the faintest smoky smudge left behind to imply they’d ever been there at all. His damp hair was finger-combed to the side instead of meticulously spiked and styled, and a few strings hung over his forehead and almost into his eyes.

“I’ll live,” I said. “What about you?”

He gave a taut shrug. “I’m not the one who kissed the pavement.”

“You know what I mean.”

“Yeah.” He came all the way into the kitchen. “I’m okay, all things considered.” He took a deep breath. “So, what do you think we should do now? After last night?”

Probably not be alone together in the same room…

I cleared my throat. “Well, I don’t think the plainclothes approach is working. This jackass doesn’t think I’m your bodyguard. He thinks I’m your boyfriend. He needs to believe there’s nothing between us, and my presence needs to be a deterrent. Maybe if he sees me as a cop instead of…”

Our eyes met, but we both quickly broke away.

“You’re probably right.” He ran a hand through his dark hair. “We just have to make it obvious that you’re there as protective detail, not…” His eyes darted toward me.

I swallowed. “Some stalkers can see a guard as a challenge. Or an acknowledgment that he’s gotten under your skin.”

“I know Ben.” He shuddered. “He couldn’t give two shits about me having protective detail as long as I don’t touch someone. The biggest problem is if he sees me with someone in uniform.”

I cocked my head. “You just said he doesn’t care about protective detail.”

“He doesn’t.” Troy sighed, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. “The thing is, Ben knows I have a serious thing for military guys. That’s all I’ve ever dated.”

“Is that why you wanted me in plainclothes?”

Without looking up, he nodded. “I mean, of course there’s nothing that says I won’t date a civilian. But he knows me. He knows my kinks. If there’s a Sailor or a Marine or anybody so much as talking to me, then…”

“So if he sees you with an armed guard in uniform…”

Troy finally met my gaze.

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