My Bodyguard Is My Ex Boyfriend

Chapter Three: Cruel

Brandy

This had to be some kind of cruel joke, right?

"Please tell me you aren't serious." I could hear the desperation in my voice. The moment I saw that twinkle in my father's eye, I knew he had done this on purpose. He knew how much I hated Nate! He knew the pain Nate had caused!

I had never felt so betrayed in my life.

I really wanted to scream and shout, but I knew that's what my father was hoping for. He wanted me to lose my temper, to lose control, especially in public places. It was just one more way to control me, and unfortunately, I knew it.

Damn it!

"Is he here?" I asked as calmly and indifferently as I could. Closing my eyes, I rested my head back. Could this whole ordeal get any worse?

"Yes, he is." In my father's tone, I heard the disappointment at my anticlimactic response. He had been hoping, and possibly even banking, on my unfavorable reaction. His pride and ego had been hurt when his theatrics in front of the doctor and nurses had fallen flat. He was trying to get a reaction to—at least in his mind—prove to those here that I was the problem instead of him.

"Will you please send him in? Alone," I added with a stern edge.

"Of course! I know you two used to be very close. I'm sure you have a lot to catch up on."

I snorted, refusing to rise to the bait he was obviously setting. A few long-drawn out seconds later, my father left the room.

For a few precious minutes, I was alone. I breathed deeply, freely, trying to keep the burning of hurt and anger and betrayal locked within my chest. I wanted nothing more than to scream to the heavens, but it wouldn't change anything. As I lay there, trying to keep my cool, I heard his heavy footfalls. The clacking of his boots. That oh so familiar gait of his. And my heart started doing odd little flips as butterfly wings danced in my stomach.

Stop it! I begged myself. Nate hurt me. He betrayed me! Why was I still so aware of him? Why did I still react this way to his presence?

There was a gentle knock before the six-foot frame of Nathaniel Jansen strode into the room and my mouth was instantly dry. His black hair was shorter than I remembered, his blue eyes just as dreamy, but his lanky body had filled out. His shoulders had widened. That inverted triangular body shape more defined. Muscles played under the fitted white shirt and jeans he wore. I really just wanted to pitch something at his head to spite the beautiful piece of man he had transformed into. Hell! He had been the dreamy hunk back in high school, but dear lord, he was ten times as sexy now! How unfair could the universe be?

My heart felt like it had been cut wide open all over again as I stared at his glorious face. I pressed a hand over my chest, in an attempt to staunch the flow of hurt bleeding from the re-opened wounds.

He paused, his gaze shifting up to the bright lights shining above my head before curiously moving over my face and body and I was suddenly worried about how I looked. I had to be a swollen, horrendous looking beast! A puny, ugly girl that could never compare to him. I wished there was some place to hide.

Without hesitation, he flipped off the lights and made his way to the chair by my bedside and I wasn't sure how I should feel about his consideration. Had he done it out of the goodness of his heart? Or had he done it in an attempt to set a particular mood? Though what kind of mood could he really set in a freaking hospital room? "Hello Ms. Cromp," he said politely enough, his deep soothing voice washing through me. I couldn't help it, my eyes rolled at the formality and he chuckled. "I'm trying to be respectful. I wasn't sure if you would be ... comfortable with me calling you by your first name."

I wanted to laugh. When had he become so considerate? I was pretty sure I was looking at him as if he had grown two heads because he started chuckling.

"I was told to be on my best behavior." That lopsided grin I had once adored so much broke out on his face and drove another knife into my chest. s**t! This hurt!

I snorted. "Does your employer even know you?"

"Better than I'd care to admit," he chuckled. "Mr. Cromp said you wanted to talk to me?"

My gaze shifted to the door and I saw a shadow looming in the hallway. My father, no doubt. Nate's gaze caught what I was looking at but didn't seem concerned. No doubt my father was intentionally eavesdropping, hoping to gain some satisfaction out of the pain-filled rage he was expecting me to lay on Nate because I had refused to react when he had been present. It was at this point I decided to make a very hard decision. One that would, no doubt, cause my heart far more suffering than was necessary. I was getting so tired of my father winning at every turn, it was far overdue for him to be disappointed. "You're going to be my bodyguard?" I asked.

He nodded. "Yes. Your father specifically assigned me to you," he explained. "And, Ms. Cromp--

"Jesus! Just stop it with the Ms. Cromp please. It makes me feel like I'm an old woman!"

"Brandy." My name on his lips sounded like heaven and, unfortunately for me, the heart monitor gave me away. Embarrassment flushed my cheeks and I looked away from him. "Look, I know you probably could have lived the rest of your life never seeing me again after what I did to you," he started gently. "I wish I could take everything I did to hurt you back." Deftly, as if he didn't really know he was doing it, his hand moved to grip mine gently. My heart did an odd little flutter in my chest. I didn’t know what to say or do. I was tired. I was emotionally drained. “I’m not asking for a second chance to be your boyfriend. I’m asking for a shot at being just friends. When I had your friendship, I took severe advantage of it. I naively thought you would always be there. When you left…” his voice trailed off. “I miss you and what we had together.”

Friends?

Just friends?

I was skeptical and it showed plainly on my face.

That didn’t sound like the Nate I knew at all. He was a playboy. A heartbreaker. That's what all of the girls in high school told me, but I believed Nate when he told me he loved me. What a fool I had been...

“Just friends?” I asked, pulling my hand out of his. I really wanted to berate him. To yell at him and tell him just exactly what he did to me and where he could shove it all! I wanted to scream at him and hurt him just as he had hurt me! But the shadow hovering at the door forced me to keep it all locked inside my chest. The words burned the back of my throat and I had to look away. “I’ll think about it,” I said in the most believable voice I could muster, even though I already knew hell would have to freeze over first before I gave him a second chance to finish what he started.

He was a liar.

He was a cheat!

Back when he had my trust, he broke it. So, how could I trust him now?

I didn't doubt Nate's ability to keep me physically safe. I don't think my father would have hired someone incompetent to guard me and Timmy. It was the image to him that meant everything. For my father, we had to look like a functioning, loving family. He had to seem believable when it came to his adoration and care for his children. So, he wouldn't skimp on the guards.

No, I was more worried about my heart. It would never be safe in Nate's hands again.

"Don't feel like you have to, Brandy," Nate said gently. "Right now, I am your body guard. All I am asking for is that you allow me to do my job to its fullest. Trust me with your safety and if, after all of this is over, you never want to see or talk to me again, then I will respect your wishes."

“Fine,” I muttered. I was too tired to fight. Too tired to speculate about the future.

He was here on a job. To protect me. As much as I didn't like the fact he was here and had been hired to protect me, I couldn't change that fact. And I already knew if I threw a fit or even asked for Nate to be changed out for a different guard, my father would refuse with a triumphant smirk on his face.

“Just like that?” he sounded surprised.

He had been expecting an outburst. He had expected me to fight , but honestly I was tired of fighting. I was tired of trying. My father had made his decision about Nate and, regardless of what I wanted, he was staying. It was best to just accept it and move on.

"Just like that," I whispered, and was just settling down in bed to fall into the blissful arms of slumber when my father poked his head into the room.

"Hey cupcake," he called out with that fake voice and smile plastered to his face. Could he be any more obvious about his feelings towards me. "I'm going to go home for the rest of the night. I want to check in on Tim and let him know what's going on. He's very frightened with what happened last night and your condition..." Blah, blah, blah.

His voice faded away and, even though his mouth moved and I was actively nodding and responding on autopilot, I couldn't seem to grasp or hear what he was saying.

Satisfied, he waved and walked away. Finally!

Nate

This wasn't the Brandy I knew.

The Brandy I had known back in Connecticut was full of piss and vinegar. Her eyes were alive and could fairly spit flames if she was mad at you or make you feel like she was physically touching you when she was turned on. They were exceptionally expressive. And that mouth of hers! She had a temper like no other and while many had been put off by it, I had always found it intriguing.

I was still pissed at my young, stupid self for how I played her.

But seeing her in this hospital bed... Her eyes dead, her expression blank, that spitfire attitude gone... Something wasn't right.

And I had an inkling it had to do with the man eavesdropping in the hallway.

Her father: Mr. Cromp.

Something about him had changed after his wife's death, and it wasn't for the benefit of him and his family. Even to me, even as he hid his maliciousness behind well-placed words, phrases and practiced expressions, I saw the lies beneath it all. He was a manipulative son of a b***h. I have dealt with plenty of them in my life and could spot one a mile away.

When I had taken on this job, I had taken it with the hopes of gaining back Brandy's trust, and possibly earning a second chance at her heart. I hadn’t kept my past history with Brandy a secret from my employer, and boss, Luther. His warning was still fresh in my mind. He had been tempted to take me off of her detail, and even off the job entirely, because he didn’t want me to screw the pooch in any form of the expression. We all knew Mr. Cromp had a lot of money and was known to take anyone he had any issues with to court. And ninety nine percent of the time, he won. For a few days, I believed I had lost out on the opportunity until Mr. Cromp insisted I be put on as Brandy’s body guard.

At first I had been thrilled. That was until this very moment when I realized he had done this only to bring her pain. Why was he being so cruel to her? Why was he doing this?

While my end goal was still to win over Brandy, I was only hoping to be extended an olive branch for friendship. Her life was in turmoil. Her father was an ass. She needed a friend who would help center her and calm the storm, more than a once faithless partner trying to convince her to give love another chance. And maybe that’s what her father was hoping for? For me to win her heart once more only to break it.

I needed to tread carefully so as not to fall into any of his traps. I needed her to trust me, to open up to me and lay her worries and problems at my feet. I needed to prove to her I could be trusted, that I would help her and wouldn't hurt her again. And starting with her father, and his manipulative abuse, might just be the starting point to begin my operation to win Brandy back.