When I'm tired, it takes me far longer to process the idea of danger. My house could be on fire and if I am half asleep, I will stare at the breathtaking flames, wondering why such a beautiful site showed up just for me until it suddenly hits me FAR later than it should that I am about to die. My brain is useless when I am tired.

But my mouth on the other hand works on autopilot. It takes me zero seconds to get irritated when I'm tired. So that is my go-to, which is very unhelpful in a dangerous situation and is frankly, the most dangerous course of action that I could have possibly taken.

So as I stood staring up at a man in the shadows, who had chosen to ask a stupid question while I was trying to walk into the girl's restroom at six o clock in the morning, I didn't have time to adjust the filtering on my brain before an answer fell out of my mouth.

"Is it possible for you to skulk back into the shadows far enough for me to walk past you and get to the bathroom?"

My cheeks flamed into an unhealthy red beacon of embarrassment as my body caught up to my mouth's stupidity. Why had I just said something so insanely stupid to a guy a foot taller than me and could probably snap me in half? Did I want to die in a dark hallway forty feet from an old guy who was probably signing a contract to become my bodyguard?

The guy took a step forward, moving out of the shadows. He had blond hair that was pulled back into a ponytail and stubble that came in around his lips and chin. If he wasn't leering at me, he wouldn't have looked so utterly terrifying, towering over me like a possessive maniac.

"Woah. Chill out!" Blondie said with an easy laugh. "I just wanted to get to know you better."

"In a dark corner of a bathroom hallway?" I replied before I could shut my mouth. I took a step to the left, intending to walk around him. "Not the best flirting move."

Blondie stepped into my path, blocking my destination. "Hey!" He moved forward, cornering me against the wall. His hand moved down to land on my shoulder. "Don't be such a—."

Blondie was suddenly three feet away, stumbling back against the wall on the other side of the hallway, gripping the hand that had intended to land on my shoulder, with a shocked expression on his face. "What the hell?"

I turned as a new figure moved out of the shadows. A boy in his early twenties with black wavy hair that swept across his face and framed a strong jaw. He had the bluest eyes I had ever seen and oozed a confident and powerful aura of protection as he stood next to me.

The new arrival had been so quiet, that I hadn't realized how close he had gotten to me until he had all but chucked Blondie three feet. Blue Eyes was at least six foot two and wore an immaculate and well-pressed black suit with a blue tie that made his eyes sharp and crisp like the morning horizon when it met the ocean.

He was breathtaking and apparently not quite finished being my savior because his eyes were glued to Blondie, a hard expression on his face.

"The lady said she was going to the restroom," he motioned for me to go, his eyes still on Blondie.

"Stay out of it, Knock Off James Bond. We were just talking," Blondie responded.

I finally got my body to move, dashing towards the bathroom. Stumbling inside, I locked the door behind me and turned towards the sink. Splashing water on my face, I took in several deep breaths, trying to calm down. My hands were trembling and my heart was five beats away from jumping out of my chest and making a break for it.

I could hear voices on the other side of the door, but couldn't piece together any words. I didn't really want to hear the commotion, but I couldn't hide in the bathroom all day. I had just come here to try and collect my thoughts after Brandon showed up to become my bodyguard. I groaned. I needed to get back before they both thought I was either dead, going number two, or had just straight up left.

I allowed myself a few more beats to breathe before I forced myself back to the door. Peeking my head through the doorway, I glanced down the hall and caught Blue Eyes staring at Blondie with the coldest stare I had ever seen. He all but growled. "It's six o clock in the morning. It doesn't take a genius to know that no one in their right mind wants to get hit on—."

Spotting me, Blue Eyes moved to block Blondie, giving me a clear path through the hall. I all but ran past both boys and dashed back to the table where Sanders and Brandon were deep in conversation.

I slid into the booth next to them. "Sorry, what'd I miss?" I asked, feeling breathless. I could hardly wrap my head around what had just happened. Shoving my hands under the table, I weaved them together, hoping to stop the trembling and make myself look far less frazzled than I felt.

"There you are!" Sanders smiled, shuffling a set of papers. "Just finishing up." She pushed the papers over to me. "We just need your signature."

Dread washed over me. I couldn't do this. I didn't want Brandon to be my bodyguard. I wanted to crawl under my blankets and pretend that my life was normal. But that was it, my life wasn't normal anymore, and if it was, I'd have to face things that being busy had allowed me to forget about.

I looked between Brandon and Sanders and bit my lip, frustrated by the sudden inability to speak. Why was it when I needed to keep my mouth shut, I couldn't and when I needed to speak, I was frozen? After a few failed attempts, I got something somewhat coherent out of my mouth. "Um... No." I pressed the papers away and turned to look at Brandon.

"I'm sorry."

I heard Sanders groan next to me, but I continued before she could try and change my mind. "I'm sure you're really good. But I'm not interested in having you as my bodyguard."

Brandon's brows shot up, surprise clear on his face. "Quite blunt of you. Are you always so honest?"

I looked down. "Not normally no."

"You sure? You seemed quite blunt earlier." I was startled by the familiar voice. I looked up and found a pair of familiar shockingly blue eyes. I blinked, half expecting him to disappear into the shadows again.

Blue Eyes slid into the seat across from me, settling in next to Brandon who had begun to belly laugh. "Wait, you thought that I was going to be your bodyguard?"

Brandon threw his head back, laughing harder. "I'm seventy-five years old!"

I flushed, staring down at the table, suddenly finding a groove in the wood tabletop to be the most interesting thing in the room. "I can see why you were hesitant!"

Sanders offered me a comforting pat on the shoulder as she tried to stop herself from laughing out of loyalty. "Laliana... sometimes I wonder where you get your crazy conclusions from."

I shot her a look. "It's six in the morning. Forgive me for not being fully coherent." I laid my head down on the table, feeling suddenly too tired to care if there was a mysterious and utterly attractive set of eyes looking at me from across the table. I thought that two near-death experiences back to back earned me the right to not care about anything for a moment.

Brandon stopped laughing, but I could hear his smile as he spoke again. "No, I don't guard anyone anymore. It's a young person's game. I own Silver Gate."

I lifted my head and nodded awkwardly. "I'm sorry about that."

He smiled, doing his best not to laugh again. "It's fine. I'm flattered. Although considering you didn't want me guarding you, I do have to add in a sprinkle of 'being insulted.'"

I rubbed the back of my neck, speechless. "So are you open to the idea if you have someone else?" Sanders asked.

I shrugged, still a little too distracted by Blue Eyes to think clearly. Why was he at the table? It was too early to be making decisions and going places.

Brandon filled in the blanks when he gestured to Blue Eyes next to him with a proud smile. "Aiden here is your bodyguard." And suddenly, just like that. The idea of a bodyguard didn't sound so bad.

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Are you a morning person, a middle of the day person, or a night person?