Page 1 of Vain

Chapter One

AIDEN

I show my ID to the guard on gate duty and wait as he calls up to the house to verify my details.

I take in the sweeping property and wonder again how or why one person could ever need so much space. Still, it’s not my job to think about celebrities and what they do with their money. It’s my job to keep them safe. In this case, one celebrity—Matilda Carson.

Once a child star, making a name for herself on a host of kid shows and made-for-TV movies, she stepped onto the big screen at seventeen and never looked back. There was a fuck-ton of information out there about the woman dubbedAmerica’s sweetheart, but it was hard to know what was true and what was fabricated. Some people spoke about her as if she were a saint, others spoke of how vain and vapid she is. I figured I’d wait and get my information straight from the source, if I ever got to meet her.

In the weeks leading up to flying out here, I’d had to sign so many forms and NDAs. By the end of it, I felt like a circus animaljumping through hoops. If it weren’t for the shitshow of my life back home, I’d have probably backed out. I already have one woman giving me a colossal-sized headache without needing to bring another into the mix.

The guard clears his throat, snagging my attention before my thoughts can turn to my ex and blacken my mood further.

“You checked out. Follow the road up to the fountain. Someone from Miss Carson’s security team will meet you there and brief you.”

“Thanks…”

“Phil Dobbs. I work the day shift here. Davey Nicholls does the nights.”

I reach out the window and take my ID before shoving it into my shirt pocket. “Nice to meet you, Phil. I have no doubt I’ll see you around.”

He tips his hat at me before opening the gates.

I pass through and watch them close behind me in my rearview mirror before heading up to the house. As it comes into view, I realize “house” doesn’t do it justice at all. The place is enormous, easily bumping it from house to mansion status.

“How the other half live,” I mutter as I circle the water fountain and park next to the other cars out front.

Climbing out, I walk around to the trunk and pop it open, grabbing my duffle bags from the back as a guy looking like a missingMIBagent walks around my car to meet me. His sunglasses hide his eyes, so I can’t get a read on him just yet, but it’s only a matter of time. What the black suit, white shirt, and black tie tell me is that the guy is a sucker for punishment. It’s hotter than Satan’s balls out here today, which is why I’m dressed in cargo shorts and a white tee.

“Mr. Church?” He looks me up and down, and I don’t need to look at his eyes to know that he finds me lacking.

I’m not here to suck his dick or work for tips. I don’t give a fuck what he thinks.

“That’s me.” I place the bags on the ground and shut the truck before offering him my hand. He hesitates for a beat. I grin when I see him fighting back a sneer.

“Let me guess. You thought I was the pool boy?”

He splutters, scrambling to come up with something that won’t offend me. Dickhead.

“I wasn’t expecting you to be quite so casually dressed,” he finally settles on.

I roll my eyes, grabbing my bags. I’m sure that’s what it was. “You want to show me where I’ll be staying?”

“I’ll have one of the house staff show you to your quarters. I’d like to talk to you first and tell you what’s expected of you and what’s not.”

“I’m assuming I’m expected to keep Miss Carson safe. That is what she hired me for. And without wanting to sound like a dick, I work for her, not you. That means I don’t take orders from you.”

“My team?—

“Is exactly that, your team. We’re supposed to be working independently of each other.”

“Yes, I understand that is what Miss Carson wants, but she doesn’t understand how these things work.” He shuts up when I hold my hand up.

“I’d argue that she understands how this works better than most. And just saying, talking about your employer in that tone will only end up with your ass getting reamed out.”

“I can assure you, I have no tone,” he remarks sharply.

“You patronize so many people you don’t even realize you’re doing it then, huh?” I turn and head to the house, ignoring him when he calls after me.