Chapter 3

Daisy’s POV

I couldn’t write .

It felt like I had a lot to put down, and then, nothing . All I had was one sentence that made no sense. My editor was going to have a hell of a day. The manuscript was due in three days, and I had nothing.

All because I couldn’t stop thinking about him.

My asshole of a neighbour.

My eyes strayed to my phone just like it had done a hundred times already, even though I already blocked both his numbers. I had no idea why I was waiting for his stupid text.

It rang from where it sat.

Dad.

I thought about ignoring it for the first few seconds, but knowing how dramatic he was going to be about it, I picked up.

“Hey, Dad!”

“Daisy.” My dad, despite his role in the military, could be very sweet with me. But not today. His tone was clipped. Serious. “I need to discuss something with you.”

“How are you doing, too, Dad? It’s so nice hearing your voice.”

I knew he rolled his eyes. “This is about your safety, Daisy. I think we can both agree that the pleasantries can come later.”

The smile on my face dropped. “What’s wrong?”

“Your sister was attacked a few days ago. From the cam, we saw two men in masks outside her apartment in D.C. They knew who she was, Daisy. She was a target because of me.”

Oh my God!

“Is Emily okay?” I managed to get out amidst the loud roar of my blood against my ears and the familiar panic that coursed through me each time Dad’s military role made us suffer from something.

It was the reason I had to move away.

“Yeah,” he breathed. “I mean physically. But this means that you can be targeted as well. Any of you. And so…”

“Dad…”

“I’m hiring personal security for you.”

“Dad!” I got on my feet even though I knew he couldn’t see me. “That’s not necessary, and we both know it. No one knows I’m your daughter...”

“I don’t care, Daisy,” he blurted. “Do you know how wild the internet is these days? I’ve already hired someone. He’s good, okay? Formal special ops, runs his own firm…The best.”

“I already told you…”

“His name is Killian Darth.”

Never heard of him.

“He’ll contact you today to set up a meeting,” my dad continued, not minding the million and one ways I was trying to tell him that he was overreacting. A bodyguard was only bound to draw attention.

“Be careful, Daisy. Don’t open your door for strangers, and if anything feels off…”

“I’ll call you,” I muttered. It was a routine of ours, even though nothing strange had ever happened since I moved here.

“I love you, honey. Even if I don’t say it often enough.”

The vulnerability in his voice caught me off guard. It took a second before I could respond. “I love you too, Dad.”

I waited for the line to click dead before plopping back down on the couch, trying to process it all. My quiet life was about to get interrupted, and I had no say in it. How great.

And who the hell was this Killian Darth? I hated him already.

When my phone buzzed a second time, I was about to yell my head off. I thought it was my Dad, probably about saying he forgot to mention it was two bodyguards and they would have to be by my bedside even when I napped.

It was an unknown number, but even before clicking the text open, I knew who it was.

“Miss me already?”

Why wasn’t I ignoring it?

“How many numbers do you have, stalker?”

“Enough. Did you think about me while you were writing?”

I scoffed out loud. “I haven’t been writing because I’ve been too busy blocking you.”

His response made my lips part slightly.

“Lair. You’ve been thinking about this morning. I know how your pretty little head works. You want to know what I would have done if I were there with you.”

I was grateful he couldn’t see me in that minute. If not, he would have been able to see the heat creep up my skin and the deep flush that settled there.

“You need to stop.”

“Do I? A part of me thinks you want me to keep going.”

My fingers trembled as they hovered above the keyboard. “You’re wrong.”

“We’ll see. Sweet dreams, Daisy. And try not to touch yourself without me watching. It’s not as fun.”

I didn’t text back. Instead, I blocked the number, more for my sanity than his. And then, I walked to my window and pushed the blinds open, glaring into his dark apartment. Without thinking, I matched back, grabbed a paper and marker, and then wrote in bold letters:

FUCK OFF.

Holding it against the window, I waited, knowing that he would see it. His silhouette appeared. I might have imagined it because it disappeared again.

And then, a message chimed in on my phone.

“Cute, but we both know you don’t mean that, honey.”

“Urgh!”

Groaning, I tossed my phone onto the couch and closed the blinds again. He was right, and I hated it. I wanted him to stop. Yet, a dark, desperate part of me wanted him to keep going.

Rather than think about that, I wrote, channelling every ounce of frustration I felt into the manuscript. My female lead wasn’t just desperate anymore. She was in control, and she knew exactly what she wanted.

And what she wanted was the man who’d been watching her.

Two hours and fifteen new pages later, my phone rang again. I checked, narrowed my eyes at the unfamiliar contact, and then picked up.

“What the hell do you want?” I snapped.

“Daisy Macklin?”

I did a double-take. The voice sounded different. It was professional.

“Sorry,” I sighed, shaking my head. “Yeah. Who’s this?”

“Killian Darth,” he replied in a clipped tone. There was something about it. Something I couldn’t place my hands on.

“The bodyguard.”

“You’ve been briefed then,” he continued. “Great. I’d like to meet tomorrow at 2 pm to talk about the arrangement.”

He wasn’t even asking if I was available. He was dictating his time to me, and I could do nothing about it because of my father. The least I could do was control where we met.

“My apartment works,” I managed.

“See you then.”

The frown on my face had deepened when he hung up. Killian Darth was probably some grumpy military guy in his forties with a bad haircut and a permanent scowl.

At least, he would make it impossible for me to think about that asshole of a neighbour. I would be too worried trying to work around my schedule with a bodyguard on standby, getting in the way.

That night, I barely slept. Between thoughts of Emily’s attack and the sexy neighbor’s texts, my mind wouldn’t just let go.

And wait a minute. Did I just call him sexy?

The following morning, I changed outfits three times in front of my full-length mirror before settling on a pair of dark jeans and a sweater. It was going to be a serious day.

And at exactly 2 pm, my doorbell rang.

Taking a deep breath, I sauntered across the space and pulled the door open. But in that split second, my entire world stopped.

He stood right in my doorway, staring at me like he had the right to be there.

My neighbor.

He was exactly how I remembered, only seemingly darker and more… intense. Dark curls, the tattoos visible on his biceps, before getting lost in the arms of his t-shirt. And his lips were held in a knowing smirk.

There was a cup of coffee in one hand.

“Hello, Daisy.” It was the same line from yesterday. “I’m Killian Darth, your new bodyguard.”

My head shook at once, a frown settling on my forehead. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move. This was a nightmare, right?

His royal cockiness stretched out his hand. “Can I come in? We have a lot to discuss.”

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.

Just the one thing he needed to feel even better. “Or would you prefer I wait outside while you take this in? I can be very patient.”

There was no way on earth this was happening.

After what felt like an eternity, my tongue finally decided to work. “You! You’re Killian Darth?” What the hell! “You knew! You fucking knew when you texted me that you were going to be my bodyguard!”

His expression didn’t falter. “I found out yesterday afternoon, after our little texting.”

“Bullshit!”

"It's the truth.” He spoke in such a measured tone that it made me feel like an emotional wreck.

“Your father contacted my company yesterday morning. I accepted the job in the afternoon. Then I texted you that evening." He tilted his head. "Though I'll admit, finding out my new client was the beautiful woman across the street was a pleasant surprise."

“This can’t be happening.”

“It is. So we can either stand here in your doorway talking about it, or you can let me in so we can handle this like adults.” A small smile graced his lips. “Of course, unless you’d prefer I tell your father you’re not interested. I’m sure he’d love to hear about it.”

The threat was unmistakable. If I refused to do this, he’d tell my father. And that was worse, because then, my identity wouldn’t be a secret anymore, with the next step he’d take.

At least, with Killian…

I was lying to myself. There was no better option.

Yet, I stepped aside, taking a deep breath. “Come on.”

He walked past me, and I held my breath instinctively, as if to stop myself from drinking him in. Yet, I caught the whiff of coffee.

And something else.

Something that made my stomach flip.

I counted to five in my head before closing the door and turning around to face him. The apartment felt so small with him in there, like he took up the whole space. Or perhaps that was just me and my shame from yesterday.

“Nice place,” he murmured, after what felt like forever. “Very you.”

“You don’t know me.”

He turned around then, his brows arched. “I know you write dirty books, Daisy. I know you like to read while drinking coffee. I also know you haven’t had sex in at least two years.”

I choked on my breath.

“Judging from yesterday. And I know you think about me when you touch yourself.” He didn’t even blink. He could have been talking about the weather. Yet, there I was, burning from every angle.

I could only see red. “Get out.”

“Can’t,” he replied in a clipped tone. “I have a job to do.”

“Then do it without talking.”

The last bit didn’t sound as authoritative as I would have loved it to, but he was already moving, setting his coffee down on my counter and pulling out a tablet.

“Let’s go over the basics,” he started. “I’ll need your schedule. Who you see, where you go, when it happens… I’ll also need a key to your apartment. And yeah, you have to install a security system.”

“No.”

Killian narrowed his gaze. “Which part?”

“Every single thing on that damn list you have made up. I am not installing cameras in my home, and I’m definitely not giving you my schedule.”

He looked at me like I was being unreasonable, and then, he shrugged. “I’ll get it from your father, then.”

I sighed exasperatedly, running my fingers through my strands. “You’re enjoying this.”

He shrugged. “Look, Daisy, I get it. This is invasive. You don’t want me here. But someone attacked your sister, and your father thinks you’re next. So either you work with me, or I make your life more difficult because there’s not a lot of choices here.”

I glared at him, hating how right he was.

It felt like a whole hour before my lips moved again. “Fine. But we are setting ground rules.”

“I’m listening.” He lowered himself onto the stool. The same stool I sat on by the window. And he knew because when our eyes met, there was a smugness in his.

“No more texting me inappropriate things,” I mumbled, looking away from him. “No more watching me through your window. No…”

“I get it!” He interrupted. “I’ll follow whatever professional boundaries you want during work hours. But after that?” His eyes dropped to my lips. “I can do whatever I like. Whatever you like.”

“There are no after-hours.” I was downright flushed. I needed to get out of here. No. I needed him to get out of my home. Yet, I couldn’t ask him to. “You’re my bodyguard round the clock.”

“Exactly.” His smile made me breathless. “Which means I’ll be around twenty-four seven. In your apartment, outside your bedroom…watching. I need to keep you safe.”

But from the way he said it, it didn’t sound like he was talking about protecting me. My core clenched involuntarily.

As casually as he got in, he picked up his coffee and sauntered towards the door. “I’ll be back tonight at eight to set up your security device. Make sure you’re dressed, Daisy. Or not. I can work with either.”

He opened the door and paused.

“Oh, and lock this behind me. Anyone could walk in.”

And then, he was gone. But not totally because I got a message on my phone.

“This is my work number. Save it. And just so we’re clear, I meant what I said yesterday. Next time you put on a show, leave the blinds open.”

I looked up at my phone, towards the closed blinds, feeling a knot work its way to my throat. This was going to be hell.

My phone rang, and I answered without looking at the caller ID.

“What now?”

And then, I heard it. Heavy breathing and a voice I didn’t recognize. Low.

Too low.

“I know who you are, Daisy Macklin.” A lot of static. “And I’m coming for you.”

The line clicked dead.