If the performance had lasted any longer, I might have thrown it all away to escape the suffocating feel of the spell Iris had cast through her music, coating my skin. I cleared my throat and tightened the knot of my tie, watching Iris and her bandmate. She tipped a bottle of water and took swallow after swallow without a breath while he packed away his guitar. Then they spoke to the Goodmans. Saul gestured toward me, and as a group, they approached.
The guitar boy had his arm clamped around Iris’s waist in a show of possession. For her part, Iris seemed entirely disinterested, glancing around at the other partygoers, anywhere but me.
Saul patted Iris’s shoulder and held a hand out toward me. “Iris, this is Ronan Walsh. He’s head of security at LSS. Ronan, Iris has had some trouble recently, and I’d like her to have a complete overhaul on her security. A woman can never be too careful in this city.”
With a sigh, Iris finally lifted her eyes to meet mine. A practiced smile faltered on her pillowy lips when our gazes locked.
So, she hadn’t forgotten me.
I held out my hand. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m sorry to hear you’re having trouble.”
After a beat of hesitation, she slipped her hand in mine, tapping her index finger on my wrist before letting go.
“You look familiar.” She narrowed her deep blue eyes, as if really searching her mind for where we’d met, but the twitch of her mouth gave her away.
“Aye. I could say the same about you. You remind me of someone.”
The man beside her slid his hand higher on her waist and pulled her closer. “Iris’s face is kind of everywhere these days. You’ve probably seen her on TV or a magazine.”
Tipping my chin, my attention squarely on his claiming hold. “That must be it.”
Her nose scrunched, and she gave me a long once-over before meeting my eyes again. Something hard passed over hers, freezing out any warmth that had been there. “You’re a bodyguard?”
“Among other things. If you’d like to have a conversation about retaining LSS’s services, I would be pleased to supply you with our office number to make an appointment.”
Saul made a choking sound, and his eyebrows spiked like lightning bolts on his forehead. “Iris is top priority. Why don’t you give her your personal cell number? She needs to be seen to ASAP, not next week.”
Her stance stiffened, shoulders nearly to her ears. “My phone is with Adam’s guitar.”
He peered down at her, curling his fingers at her waist. “I’ll go get it. No worries.”
“Thanks.” That one word dripped so heavily with sarcasm, an ocean laid at her feet. I didn’t know what I’d done to this woman, but her disdain radiated off her smooth tattooed skin like a radio signal—one aimed squarely at me.
Adam quickly snagged Iris’s phone, and I gave her my new number while he reclaimed his hold on her waist. Saul loomed over her shoulder, watching her text me so I had hers. Then he stood there, staring us both down until we set a time to meet the following day to discuss her full security needs.
I tended to bristle under anyone giving me orders. Had since I was a child. However, a decade in the Irish Army had taught me self-control. Now, I didn’t even blink, even as my blood boiled.
Underneath Iris’s sugar and spice, her inner snake hissed, but I seemed to be the only one who took notice. I sensed she disliked being told what to do as much as I did. Like recognized like.
Once Saul and Vanessa made their excuses to go mingle with their other guests, my time at this party came to an end.
“I’ll be off as well.” I tipped my chin to Adam. “Have a good evening.”
He shook my hand and wished me a good night as well. I made eye contact with Iris, who was already staring at me. Or glaring, as the case may be. Her dark eyebrows were pulled into a violent slash, arms crossed tight over her chest. It was a shame her beauty wasn’t in any way tempered by her spiky attitude. Not even the knowledge she was famous made the tightness in my gut ease. This could be a problem if I didn’t rein myself in. Then again, losing control had never been one of my vices.
“I’ll see you tomorrow.” In a more formal meeting where I wouldn’t be caught completely off guard. “Please do me the courtesy of letting me know if you won’t be able to make the appointment.”
Her pouty lips snarled, and it was a sight. A disfigured heart I had the urge to suck into my mouth and set right. I even caught my foot lifting, as if to move forward to do just that. That was how tempting this woman was. Those lips were the devil’s work.
She tossed her mass of waves behind her shoulder. “I don’t make it a habit of not showing up to appointments. The last time I missed one, my apartment had been vandalized. If that happens again, you’ll be the first one I call.”
Understanding hit me at once, and a twinge of remorse hit me directly after. It wasn’t my place to be put out with her for standing me up, doubly so knowing the reason. My job would soon be to keep her safe, so I would have to cut off any lingering personal feelings.
“I’m sorry that happened to you. We will work hard to make sure it won’t again.”
With that pledge, I swiveled on my heel and strode toward the entry. Finn was nowhere in sight, probably taking advantage of the open bar and bounty of tipsy women. Matt and Jay breathed an audible sigh of relief when I passed them without reprimand, and my lips quirked with amusement. I’d never minded my subordinates fearing me, as long as they respected me more.
In the elevator down to the lobby, I stared at my reflection in the doors. My tie was straight, shirt starched and unwrinkled, suit impeccable, but I couldn’t shake the feel of something being off.
What it was, I couldn’t say, but I knew myself well enough to know I would shrug it off by my meeting tomorrow. Seeing Iris again had shaken me, but I’d be prepared the next time. She was a job. Nothing more.