Tempted By The Bodyguard. Elle James

list for tomorrow.”

      “Don’t take too long.” Shelby hugged a couple of the others, then broke free and headed for the back exit and the staircase that led up to their apartment above the bar.

      Daniel grabbed her arm before she put her foot on the first step. “Let me go first.”

      “Fair enough.” She handed him her key and followed him up the stairs. “The lock can stick a little. You have to wiggle the door when you put the key in it.”

      He inserted the key and attempted to twist it in the lock. As she’d predicted, it didn’t work.

      “Like this,” Shelby reached around him and wrapped one hand around his holding the doorknob and the other over his fingers and turned the key, wiggling the handle at the same time.

      When she touched him, a jolt of electric awareness burned through her.

      As soon as the handle turned and the door opened, she jerked her hands away and moved back. In her hurry, she forgot she was so near to the edge of the landing. She teetered on the steps and nearly fell.

      Daniel slipped an arm around her waist and crushed her to his chest. “Steady there,” he whispered into her hair, his mouth touching her temple.

      Her pulse slammed against her veins, shooting red-hot blood through her body.

      Though she’d gotten her feet under her, he didn’t let go, holding her longer than was necessary, and she was glad. Had he let go, her knees would have given way and she’d have melted like a puddle of goo at his feet.

      “Are you okay?” he asked, his lips brushing against her earlobe.

      Hell, no, she wasn’t okay. The man made her turn to mush whenever they touched.

      Digging deep, she summoned enough willpower to pull herself together and look up at him. “I’m…”

      That was her second mistake. In the fading light, she stared into his smoldering green eyes and lost herself all over again. She leaned up on her toes and pressed her lips to his.

      He cupped the back of her head and sealed the kiss with one of his own, his mouth consuming her, his tongue thrusting between her teeth to caress hers.

      When at last he lifted his head, he dragged in a deep breath and stepped through the door, pulling her behind him. “Wait here,” he commanded.

      Wait? Her body on fire, she stood rooted to the spot, afraid if she moved, she’d collapse.

      In the span of a few minutes, Daniel had searched the entire two-bedroom apartment.

      But those few minutes were barely enough for her to come back to earth and get a grip on her rioting emotions.

      “Get your things,” he said, his voice stern. “We’re going back to Raleigh.”

      She’d been ready to march into her room and do just that, but having him come back at her as though what they’d shared hadn’t happened was a slap in the face. Anger rocketed up inside her.

      “What just happened here?” she demanded.

      His gaze met hers briefly and he looked away. “Nothing.”

      “Are you telling me that kiss meant nothing?”

      He faced her, and for a long moment, he stared down at her, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “Really, Miss O’Hara, I’m just doing my job.” He turned and walked toward the door, where he stopped and glanced down at his watch then back up to her. “Five minutes.”

      Daniel waited outside the apartment door, sucking in fresh air and sanity. The kiss had rocked him deeply and he had been far too tempted to drag her into the apartment and take it ten steps further. And, damn it, that was the worst thing he could do.

      He was on the job, not on vacation. He wasn’t supposed to kiss the woman he should be protecting. It violated every ethic in his books. As a bodyguard, he was supposed to remain detached and observant. When he’d kissed Shelby, he’d lost track of everything. If someone had decided to shoot at them, they’d have had plenty of opportunity to kill.

      The best way to end this was to make a clean, if ugly, break. Piss her off and she’d never get close enough for him to be tempted to kiss her again.

      By the sound of drawers and doors slamming and the curse words coming from inside the apartment, he’d accomplished his mission.

      That didn’t do anything to lessen his desire for her. He’d have to deal with it. No more kissing the girl.

      After five minutes on the nose, she emerged from her bedroom, a duffel bag slung over her shoulder. She breezed past him and clomped down the stairs, her eyes blazing and her back ramrod straight.

      Oh, yeah. She was mad. And damn if she wasn’t even sexier.

      Swallowing a groan, he followed her down the stairs.

      A few steps ahead of him, she entered the back door, the spring slamming it shut between them.

      He had his hand on the handle to open the door when he heard a piercing scream.

      Daniel ripped open the door and ran in. At first, he didn’t see Shelby. She couldn’t have gotten that far ahead of him. He rounded the corner into the kitchen and found a group of the staff gathered in a tight circle.

      Daniel pushed through, zeroing in on Shelby’s light brown hair. “Shelby, are you okay?”

      She shot him an irritated glance. “I’m fine, but Lana isn’t.” Shelby held the woman’s hands tight, bright red blood dripped from both of them.

      Patrick O’Hara hurried through from another door, his face pale, the lines around his eyes and mouth deeper. “Here’s the first-aid kit.”

      “Someone give me the gauze and surgical tape. I can’t let up on the pressure until we can apply more.”

      Lana’s face was pale and tears streaked down her cheeks. “I can’t believe I was so stupid. I knew there was a broken glass in the dishwater, but I wasn’t careful.”

      “We’ll get you fixed up enough to stop the bleeding,” Shelby reassured her. “But you’re going to need stitches.”

      Lana swayed. “I’m feeling kind of dizzy.”

      “Get her a chair.”

      One of the busboys ran out to the dining area and returned with a chair. Daniel seated Lana, then took the first-aid kit from Patrick. He pulled out a roll of gauze and medical adhesive tape. He made a tight pad of gauze and applied tape on two sides. “Can you stand long enough to dip your hand under clean water?”

      Lana nodded. “I think so.”

      He eased them toward the sink.

      Marisa turned on the cold water and Shelby held Lana’s hand beneath the steady stream. “I’m going to let go. Look at me, not your hand. I don’t want to pick you up off the floor.” She smiled. “Come on, Lana, you’re tough. You can do this.”

      “Okay, Shelby, just do it.” She stared at Shelby as they pushed her hand beneath the water.

      Once Shelby let go, the blood flowed heavily.

      Daniel pulled her hand from the water and clamped the wad of gauze over the cut and taped it down. He added another wad of gauze and more tape. “She needs those stitches.”

      Shelby washed the blood from her hands and found a clean dish towel for Lana to hold under her hand. “We can take her.”

      “No, let me. As the owner, I should take her.” Patrick hooked Lana’s arm and guided her toward the exit. He paused and turned back to Shelby. “I just let Kayla go home sick and we have a group scheduled to come in. They’re going to be shorthanded.”