Master Unchained (Stealth Guardians Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page B

evening traffic. “I think you got the wrong impression of me earlier.”
    “Did I?”
    “Apparently. And I know that’s partially my fault. I’m not used to my charges refusing protection.”
    “And I’m not used to somebody telling me where I can and cannot go.”
    “I realize that. That’s why I propose a truce.”
    “What kind of truce?”
    He looked at her briefly. “The only kind of truce there is: where both parties lay down their arms and agree not to start a fight.”
    She shrugged. “I never started a fight with you.”
    He opened his mouth, but then closed it again. For a moment he said nothing, then, “Well, then I guess it’s up to me to apologize for the argument in your office.”
    “Guess it is.” She wasn’t going to make this easy on him, because she had to set one thing straight: she was the client.
    “I’m sorry if I came on a little strong earlier,” he started, his voice a little gruff, as if it irked him that he had to apologize—or as if he’d never done it before and was entirely unfamiliar with the concept. “But all I’m concerned about is your safety, and I’m not going to make any compromises when it comes to that. As you may have guessed, I’m not too wild about having to pretend to be your boyfriend, but from now on neither you nor anybody else will notice that. I guarantee it.”
    While she appreciated his apology, he’d practically negated it with his last words. He wasn’t too wild about being her pretend-boyfriend? “And you think I’m wild about it?” She blew out an outraged breath and looked out the side window. “If I had time to date, you wouldn’t be my first choice either.”
    “Ouch,” he said, accompanied by a barely suppressed chuckle.
    She whirled her head to him and saw him grinning. Damn, why did that annoy her so much? Or was it not the smile that riled her up, but the fact that he didn’t like the idea of dating her? As if she wasn’t good enough for him. Or pretty enough. Or—oh screw it! Why did she even care? Well, she didn’t!
    “Hmm, now that we’ve cleared that up, I’m sure we’ll get on famously,” he prophesized. “Nothing helps a relationship flourish like low expectations.”
    “Aren’t I lucky?”

6
     
    Hamish took a deep, calming breath, stopping himself from replying to Tessa’s comment.
    Keep it together, man!
    Fuck, he wasn’t good at this. It had been hard enough to apologize, and he’d be damned if he made any more concessions. Maybe she could treat a real boyfriend like this, but not him. And everything had started so well. He’d paid her a compliment, kissed her on the cheek, led her to the car like a gentleman. He’d even opened the car door for her. What else did she want from him?
    If I had time to date, you wouldn’t be my first choice either.
    Her cold words echoed in his mind. She’d made it pretty clear that she didn’t like him. He should be happy about it. After all, didn’t that make things easier? At least he wouldn’t be tempted to act on his inexplicable attraction to her, knowing she would reject any advances anyway. But instead of welcoming her indifference toward him, it pissed him off.
    “We’ll be there soon,” he said into the silence.
    “There’s a lot of traffic,” Tessa said, her voice sounding doubtful as she pointed to the intersection ahead of them.
    By the time they reached it, it was clear why no one was getting through. On the street to their left, an angry mob had formed. What or whom they were angry at wasn’t immediately discernible. After all, random riots seemed to break out pretty much every other day lately. And this mob was armed with baseball bats and stones.
    “Shit!” Hamish cursed and looked for an escape route. He was already blocked in by traffic behind him. And while he had enough space in front to do a U-turn, oncoming traffic had blocked that lane too, preventing him from turning around the way they came.
    Crossing the intersection wasn’t an