“WHERE do you think you’re going?” Ri-Ri was so surprised she almost cried out when she heard Zion’s voice from somewhere. She thought he was already asleep in his room. It was already well past ten, almost eleven, and she assumed everyone was asleep. She felt her heart rise to her throat as she looked at him. He scared her big time. And in her surprise, she dropped the key to her car. Before she could grab it, he was faster and snatched it first. Damn, he was fast.
“Give that to me!” she tried to snatch it back, but he raised his hand quickly. Zion had the advantage—he was tall. “Damn it, you’re not being fair!”
“Go back to your room if you don’t want me to do to you what I did yesterday,” he threatened.
She narrowed her eyes. “Try it, and I’ll jab my high heels into your ass.” She deliberately dangled the pair of heels from her fingers. She hadn’t actually worn them so they wouldn’t hear her leaving. But obviously, it was an epic fail—Zion still caught her.
Before she could react, he violently snatched the heels from her fingers and tossed them aside. And then, like déjà vu, she was being thrown again over his shoulder, as if she weighed nothing. The bastard was too damn fast he was giving her whiplash!
“It doesn’t work on me,” he said.
“Damn you!” she punched him in the back. “Put me down! You bastard!”
As usual, he didn’t listen. Matteo materialized out of nowhere and just shook his head when he saw the two of them. When they reached her room, he gently set her down on the floor. “Don’t you dare try to sneak out again, or I’ll lock this door. I mean it, Fruity.”
“You don’t get to tell me what to do!” Out of anger, she threw the purse she was holding at him. He didn’t expect it, so he didn’t dodge and it hit near his left eye. He looked back at her, rage blazing in his eyes.
“For fuck’s sake, get your head out of your ass and look around you! It’s not always about you and your goddamn privileged-ass problems!” he shouted at her. His eyes were terrifyingly dark, and Ri-Ri felt scared for a moment. “Stop being a selfish brat! Have you ever thought that your former bodyguards have families to feed? I bet you don’t. You’re too damn proud and too selfish to care! Matteo’s wife, my sister, is expecting. I won’t let my sister or her child go hungry because of a spoiled brat like you who only thinks about their own happiness! For once in your fucking life, get off your high horse and grow up!”
“Zion, that’s enough,” Matteo said from outside her room. Zion angrily turned away and slammed the door shut.
Ri-Ri didn’t realize her tears were already streaming. His words had hurt more than they should have. She cupped her hands over her chest and quietly sobbed.
THEY were both silent in the car while Matteo drove. Zion was in the front passenger seat, and she was in the back. She wore sunglasses that covered almost half of her face. She didn’t want either of them to see her swollen eyes. Her mother had confronted her that morning. Both her parents had heard her argument with Zion last night. She had gotten an earful from her mother during breakfast. Her mother agreed with what Zion had said and even praised him for finally cutting an inch off her horn, so to speak. She stayed silent and accepted her mother’s words. Thankfully, only the three of them had breakfast because the others had eaten early. Otherwise, her mother’s lecture would have dragged on even longer if her father hadn’t intervened.
When they arrived at the site, she immediately hopped out of the car and headed straight into the beach house where her music video shoot was to take place. She felt Zion following her.
“Ah, finally! You’re here!” Bella, her flamboyant makeup artist, greeted her happily. She was immediately seated in front of the vanity mirror. From the reflection, she noticed Zion positioned behind her, like background scenery, leaning against the wall and observing. He even crossed his arms as he watched. It was the first time she noticed what he was wearing. His dark jeans were now paired with an equally dark denim jacket over a white inner shirt. His hair was definitely dark brown, even indoors, and it looked natural on him. She secretly pinched herself. She shouldn’t be staring at him through the mirror.
Bella took off her sunglasses and gasped. “Oh, dear! Who made you cry?”
She mentally pictured choking Bella. Zion had heard that. Through the mirror, she saw him staring at her. She caught how his eyes softened a little, but she hung her head low, unable to meet his gaze anymore.
“Just get on with it, will you?” she said, annoyed. “I know you can conceal that.”
She smiled. “Ah, of course!” she said proudly. She first changed into her makeup robe, which even had her name on the back, before Bella began applying makeup to her face. She closed her eyes, not wanting their gazes to meet again through the mirror. Even with her eyes shut, she could still feel his stare burning at the back of her head. She didn’t want to risk opening her eyes and catching him in the mirror again. She didn’t want him to see that his words from last night had affected her.
After almost an hour, Bella turned her attention to Ri-Ri’s hair. Using a curling iron, Bella styled it into beach wave curls. Some time earlier, Ri-Ri had opened her eyes and was relieved to see that Zion was no longer standing behind her. She didn’t ask Bella where her bodyguard had gone, even though she really wanted to know. But after a few minutes, he returned carrying a frappé coffee.
Ri-Ri didn’t know why her heart raced as she saw him approaching. As he walked closer, his eyes were on her, and she couldn’t look away. When he reached her, he extended the frappé toward her.
“Raspberry truffle. Just the way you like it,” he said. She glanced back and forth between him and the frappé in his hands. Was it a peace offering?
She accepted the frappé from him while averting her gaze. “Thank you,” she muttered softly. She could feel his stare as she lifted the drink to her lips and took a sip. She almost moaned. It was her favorite, and she had been craving it these past few days. Another question formed in her mind: how did he know her favorite?
At that moment, the production assistant arrived, bustling with news. Everyone’s attention shifted toward them. She was about to ask a question when the assistant approached her with some information.
“Your leading man can’t make it today. There was an emergency. And goodness, we can’t cancel the shoot today,” the assistant said, wringing their hands in frustration. “I can’t believe this is happening. Of all days!”
“Well, let’s just find a replacement,” Bella interrupted, now finished with her hair. Surprisingly, everyone agreed with her suggestion.
“And who could possibly replace Aries?” asked the assistant director. “Everyone here looks old enough to be Ri-Ri’s brother. No offense.”
“Well, certainly not everyone,” said the production assistant, now staring at Zion. She could see the glint in the assistant’s eyes as they appraised Zion from head to toe with clear approval. They nodded repeatedly, clearly thinking this idea was brilliant. Ri-Ri internally freaked out. Definitely not Zion!
“I think the bodyguard could do the job perfectly,” said Kenan, the production assistant, beaming. To her horror, everyone nodded in agreement. Some even clapped. Then Kenan turned to Zion and asked, “Is it okay with you to be Ri-Ri’s leading man?”
“Wait, no,” she interrupted. “Zion is out of the question. He doesn’t know what to do and he can’t—”
“I’ll do it,” he said, immediately turning his gaze toward her. His face was serious as he looked at everyone, saving her for last. She could see the glint in his eyes. “I can do it,” he said, and she had a strong feeling those words were directed at her. He definitely took her earlier words as a challenge. She swallowed hard.
“Perfect!” Kenan replied happily, clapping his hands. The rest of the crew followed suit. They even escorted Zion enthusiastically to the dressing room.
Oh, crap.