“You’re fired.”

“I’m not fired.”

“I did not want to fire you, but I have no choice. You’re unpredictable and I cannot have unpredictable in my business.” Petra, my boss, had summoned me to her pre-selected, off-the-grid meeting place, her limo.

It was where she’d made me an offer five years ago to be security for her high-priced “associates.” It was where I’d accepted the offer and become a professional voyeur for the most gorgeous women in the world. And now, sitting in her luxury, soundproof, bulletproof, fully appointed back seat, she was kicking me to the curb. Firing me. I can’t say I didn’t deserve it. I’d become a liability in a very volatile situation.

“I did not kill Barchek.” Petra’s latest assignment had me guarding an associate who looked exactly like Marilyn Monroe. Petra had even named her Marilyn Fields. Marilyn stood to make a fortune for Petra and herself. Her face and figure had men out of their minds, me most of all. I was insane over this girl.

But I hadn’t killed for her. Yet.

Donny Barchek, Marilyn’s first official job as an associate, went missing after their date. I had also beaten the shit out of him. I told myself it was to teach him a lesson about bruising her delicate skin. But in reality, I was insanely jealous and had taken it out on her client. It was my job to watch him run his hands and teeth all over her. He did. And afterward, I ran my fist all over him. You can see the flaw in Petra’s business plan if I kept this up, right?

If an associate’s bodyguard’s only instinct is to kill the clients, the business would understandably fail. Petra was keenly aware of how I now threatened her bottom line.

“Fine. Because you have had an impeccable track record with me up to now, I’m going to give you a second chance. This is against my better judgment, but the deal is this. Not one more mistake. Not one more moment of you losing your temper. If you go rogue again, keep going, because you’ll not find a safe haven with me.”

“I got it.” I looked into her steely eyes and she gave me one more bit of managerial motivation.

“I know where your little nest egg is Abe. I happen to be quite close with the CEO of your favorite bank. He’s a phone call away if I get the slightest indication that you’re behaving in a way that will harm Marilyn, my company, and really yourself. I am looking out for you here too.” Petra’s eyes did seem to soften when she said that. Did she have some affection for me? Maybe. It was enough to keep me employed, for now.

“One more thing. I’m going to stay unretired, but only for Marilyn.” I honestly had no interest anymore in any other job.

“Marilyn says she feels safe with you. I can’t ignore my associate’s preferences. I need her to be comfortable so she can make the clients comfortable. So yes, you’ll be assigned only Marilyn.”

Aha. So my little Marilyn Fields a.k.a. Leslie had given me a good recommendation. I felt a warmth bloom in my chest upon hearing the news.

“We’re done. Expect her next assignment in a few days. The Maldonado Brothers like to play with their toys in public, so you’re going to have your work cut out for you.”

The warmth quickly turned to bile as I imaged what that would entail. I got out of the limo back into my truck, parked at the highway commuter lot. No one would trace our meeting this time. It was Petra’s design.

I was relieved on one hand. I could continue on as Marilyn’s security. I could be there if she was overwhelmed or if the Maldonados got too rough, which they would. But the short-term fact of life was that I had nowhere to go.

 I’d packed up my apartment. I had planned to hit the road in my new pick-up and go East (young man). My property in Montana waited, but it would now wait a little longer.

The acreage I’d purchased had a kind of lean-to on the land to keep a roof over my head when I got there. I planned to build a cabin a little at a time. In between ranching.

That was my American Dream. It’s where every penny I’d saved went from watching the sexiest women in the world do everyone but me. Focusing on my personal American dream kept me detached from the sex I watched; it kept me cool, professional, and motivated.

Then Marilyn wiggled into the picture. I astonished myself at how quickly I put every single thing I’d worked for in jeopardy.

American Dream aside, I was going to have to try to sleep in the cab of my truck. My apartment was gone.

If I was going to be uncomfortable, at least, I’d be close to her and make sure she was safe, that no one bothered her. So I parked my truck a few doors down from Marilyn’s duplex, in her shitty neighborhood. If I wasn’t going to sleep anyway, I may as well not sleep near her.

I did. However, sleep sitting up in the front seat. Not ideal. I was awakened by a tap on the window. It scared the shit out of me. But there she was, spilling out of some sort of filmy looking robe. Making the “roll down the window” motion, she was young enough to probably never have been in a car with a crank to roll down the window but there it was.

“Good morning Lincoln. You’re here early.”

“Yeah, you need to cover up.” The nightgown plunged in front but was actually covering her legs to the ankles. She’d draped the robe over it. The silk clung to her. It was sexy as hell.

“I am covered up.”

“You’re in the middle of the street in broad daylight in that.” She was braless, pantyless, and guileless. It was lethal for me.

“Well then, come in for breakfast and I won’t be in the middle of the street. And what’s wrong with this? Don’t you like it?” She pouted at me. It was the best Marilyn act I’d ever seen, and this was Vegas.

“Fine. And stop with the flirting. You’re not on the clock.” She stepped back and I got out of the truck.

“Grumpy.” She smiled, and I followed her up to her half of the run-down duplex she was renting.

As we got to the porch Retta, her neighbor emerged. “OOOH, good morning beefcake!” She followed it up with a whistle. I gave Retta a wink.

“Your man’s winking at me, Marilyn. Better watch out sister.” Retta was again in the muumuu I’d seen the other day.

“I will Retta, but he’s not my man, just my friend. He’s fair game!” Marilyn opened the door and walked into her apartment. I shrugged at Retta and I heard her yell after me.

“Is you good at changing diapers? Cause that’s the way to my panties!” I, in fact, was not good at changing diapers.

Marilyn laughed and her smile lit up the space. It wasn’t a calculated, flirty laugh, but a guffaw. It was full-on dorky and she snorted.

“Now that’s Leslie right there,” I commented. Her real name couldn’t be further from Marilyn than Norma Jean.

“Oh yeah, the snort and honking laugh, it really spoils the illusion doesn’t it? Lucky neither of my clients has tried to get me to laugh.”

“That’s a shame.”

“So what are you doing here so early? And do you like over easy or scrambled? I’m better at scrambled, smaller margin of error since it’s all mixed up in there.” She made a scrambled motion over her small stove.

“Scrambled is great. I’m here because I’m officially in as your security for your first assignment with the Maldonado Brothers.” Marilyn cracked eggs into a bowl like a pro. I watched as she whisked them, added some cheese and a dash of salt and pepper, and put the skillet on the burner of her tiny stove.

“My first job on the farm was feeding the chickens and then getting the eggs. Do you know brown eggs are a real bitch to hard boil? You pretty much can’t. Anyway, Daddy had me make breakfast every day. I haven’t had someone to share with in a while. Thanks for coming early. Let’s make it our thing. Breakfast.”

“Sure.” She was so bubbly it was easy to forget that her daddy was in prison, put there for killing her uncle after he did god knows what to her. Her disposition ought to be dark, but it wasn’t.

We ate her fantastic breakfast and didn’t talk much. She could get chatty, but being quiet was also okay. I appreciated that. I had a lot on my mind. Namely where the hell was Donny Barchek? And what bullshit would the Maldonado Brothers cook up for Marilyn?

The second question had a quick answer when Marilyn’s phone rang.

“Hi, Petra. I understand. I’ll look for it. Thank you. And thank you for the payment. Yes, it arrived. Okay.”

“So you’re on the way to paying for dad’s treatment thanks to Barchek.”

“It made the job worthwhile, no question about it. I’m saving, though. His lawyer and cancer treatment are going to be five times what I earned the other night.”

“So details on your next assignment. Is that what I can assume from the call?”

“Yep. The Brothers want to take me to dinner. Isn’t that funny? Actually kind of nice. Not straight to a hotel but just dinner tomorrow night.”

“I’ll get the location information and get started. Thank you for the eggs.” I stood up and took my plate to the sink.

“You’re taking off?”

“Yes, one day isn’t a lot of time to prepare the security.” Marilyn had come over to the sink.

“I thought we might spend the day together.”

“Not today. I’ve got work to do.” Marilyn leaned forward and pressed her soft body into mine. I tried not to react the way any male would. But I was immediately and completely aroused by her. Her scent and her soft curves did a number on me. She leaned over to a drawer and grabbed a baggie.

“Here, take a biscuit at least.” She popped a biscuit in the bag and handed it to me. Then she crawled her hands up my chest and reached around my neck. She leaned up on her tiptoes and kissed my chin. It was as high as she could reach without heels or me lifting her up. I desperately wanted to lift her up. But I resisted.

“A biscuit does not evoke fearsomeness. I really can’t be seen with it.” I raised an eyebrow at her and she laughed, nearly the snort again.

“Well then, eat it in the truck on the way to your intimidation errands.”

“Solid plan.” I peeled her off me. I did not want to.

I got out of her place and back to my truck without looking back. Too much looking at her was making it too hard not to touch. I was not supposed to touch. Already I’d broken that boundary. She was easily familiar with me and the kiss she gave me on the chin wouldn’t have happened with any of my other girls, or associates, as Petra called them.

I also did not want to step wrong around her. She was more or less innocently attached to me. Her nerves about her new job as an associate were settled by my presence. She was better at her job if she was free from fear. I gave her that. She said she thought of me the last time. But I didn’t know if that was part of the Marilyn job or not. Was it her survival technique? Attaching me to her so I’d come running when she called?

 I was glad she felt secure near me. I wanted to make her feel better, but I hated what I was making her feel better about. I wanted her for myself. Petra had me pegged.

I was determined to be the one man who didn’t whip his dick out around her. But I was also surprised that in these few moments together, before and after her jobs, we’d fallen into such a comfortable closeness in a short period of time. It would make the job I’d begged Petra to let me keep exceedingly difficult to do.

Attraction to Marilyn Fields aside, I was there to make sure nothing happened to one of Petra’s girls. Every hair on their heads and elsewhere was valuable, and I made sure they were as perfect coming out as going into a job. Marilyn was no exception.

I spent the day scoping out the location of Marilyn’s next appointment. She was to meet the Maldonado Brothers at Caro’s Italian Steak House. It was off the strip and quiet for a Vegas restaurant.

I worked with the manager of the restaurant to discreetly familiarize myself with the layout. I had a lock on the number of exits, the table favored by The Maldonados, and even their typical favorite orders. I scanned the reservations for the evening.

I’d be positioned in the manager’s office. I’d set up my surveillance camera facing the booth, including the microphones, hidden around the table. It was a fast turnaround, and normally I had several days to secure a location, but because this was a public space I’d hoped that the danger was less. I’d have to be more thorough when they brought her to a hotel suite, which was sure to come. If she pleased them tonight, I had no doubt that would be the next location for their date with Marilyn. She would please them. She was made to please.

I convinced myself that this assignment would be fairly safe.

I was wrong, of course. What the Maldonados’ ordered inside that restaurant snapped my control yet again, and let’s just say it was not on the menu of any joint you’ve ever been to.