Page 6 of Wickedly Played (Checkmate #1)

Chapter Four

MAX

“Fuck you, Max. I’m not telling you shit!”

I chuckle as I walk around the man hanging from the chains in the warehouse we use for messes.

Callum is a fucking mess. “That’s funny because I heard you stole money from Franky,” I taunt with my hand wrapped in the chain.

I punch him in the back with a hard jab and relish the fact that he starts screaming out of pain.

“Better start talking or I’m removing body parts,” I tell him. I wrap the chain around his arm, which is tied, and then tighten the steel around it.

We’ve been going at this for over an hour since I left Serena’s.

That little bratty bitch got me pissed off, and I needed to let off steam.

Luckily for me, Callum needed to be taught a lesson.

Franky let me know that the money was short by twenty grand, and Callum was the last person to be seen with the money.

“I hate you and I hate Franky!”

Smirking, I drop the chain to begin to search through his stuff.

He was leaving his restaurant, My Way, with a duffel bag.

He made it too easy to pick him up and shove him into the back of my SUV.

My hands touch the cash in the bag, causing me to smile at the loser hanging from the chains.

“You should have just told me you took it. We didn’t have to play these games. ”

“Max! I’m sorry! I needed to-”

He didn’t finish once my gun was cocked and aimed at his forehead.

I hit the button on the treadmill to increase the speed.

I have so much adrenaline flowing through my body, and there are only two ways of getting it released: sweating it out through exercise or losing myself in a woman.

There was something about meeting Serena today and then being dismissed that annoyed me.

I’m embarrassed to admit it has been a lot longer than I could have imagined since I sank into a woman.

My shrink made it a point to me that sleeping with women to escape my demons is not going to make them go away.

To prove a point, I went to the bar, took home a woman, fucked her for three hours, and had the worst orgasm since the first time I learned how to whack off.

My shrink enjoyed telling me, I told you so.

“Fuck!” I grunt once I complete the fifth mile. I’ve been at it for over an hour, alternating between running and weight training. Even though I’m no longer an active SEAL, I’m determined to remain in shape. Plus, that bitch from earlier has got me going.

And to be honest, my brother pissed me off. I have a feeling he is doing a little more than providing protection and security details for his clients. I can’t fucking prove it because he’s a swarmy asshole. I should just go over to his house and kick his ass.

I have a feeling he said he wanted this job for a different reason than Miguel.

My ringing phone interrupts my music, and I slap the emergency stop button on my treadmill to answer it. I see it is my brother calling me. “What?” I pant.

“Jesus. What the fuck were you doing?” Adam demands.

“Working out. You should try it sometime, old man,” I rib back.

“There was a problem at Serena’s house. Jim wants you there ten minutes ago.”

I swallow a whole bottle of water before answering. “I wasn’t hired. I’m not going over to some chick’s house who doesn’t want my protection.”

My brother is grasping at words that aren’t coming to him.

He knows I don’t feel comfortable being someplace where I’m not wanted.

This is why I avoid half of our family. After I came back from my last tour, my family started to give me a wide berth because they were afraid of me.

They were fearful of what I could do to them when provoked.

So, I made it easier on them; I no longer attend family functions.

“Jim is upping your monthly salary if you’re willing to take her on.”

That got my attention. “To what?”

“35k for the month.”

“What are the requirements?” There has to be a catch. No one is going to pay that much for nothing.

“Uh, this is where you’re going to be in a mood,” Adam begins. “You start today and then move into the bodyguard’s room.”

“For fuck’s sake. So, I’m getting paid that much to babysit some sex worker who is being stalked and then stay in her house?”

He groans. “Look, get your ass over there right now. I’m forwarding you the address right now.”

“There has to be something else involved here, bro,” I retort.

“Fuck,” he mutters. “Look, her family is well-known in the area.”

My eyes narrow. “What does that even mean? Could you stop with the riddles, please, and just tell me?”

“There’s rumors her family is in the McGuire Family,” he delivers the final blow.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I snap. “You know how I fucking feel about that family.” Adam knows I’ve been doing some moonlighting, working as their hired gun, and so does Franky.

“Nope. You have to take it. I’m not fucking around, Max. This is very important to my firm. God damn it. This could ruin everything I have worked for if it crashes.”

I don’t get another word in as my phone pings with an incoming text message.

Well, I guess I’m her new bodyguard.

After a quick shower, I get dressed in a pair of jeans and a Henley, then grab my weapon, wallet, and keys, and lock up my house. This is going to be an easy fucking job.

In about ten minutes, I’m turning into her driveway, throwing my car into park, and then running up the stairs to get into the house. I see Jim standing there with Serena at the front entrance. Serena answers the door for me with an exasperated look on her face.

“How much is he paying you to take me on?”

I would chuckle, but I’m not here to be her friend. I’m here to make sure her ass stays alive, and that means I have to keep everything I am to myself.

“Doesn’t matter. What happened?”

“Uh. Jim is probably blowing this shit up. Some of my clients and fans get a little too excited about me.” Serena is flapping her hands back and forth as she looks at Jim.

“Ser, are you kidding me right now? Tell Max what you found. Right now.”

I look expectantly at Serena to tell me what happened. “Look, I can’t do my job if you don’t tell me what the fuck is going on.”

“I had to go on the cam for a little bit this afternoon, then I had two virtual clients. It was nothing out of the ordinary.”

I feel like throttling this woman already. I don’t give a fuck if she’s a Domme or whatever she calls herself. She’s frustrating me already. “And? I dropped everything I was doing to be here. What else?”

She hands me a box with a note. “I was packing for my event tonight. I got a notification that there was some activity at my front door. I came downstairs to find this and my front door open.”

If her family is mobbed up, why the fuck am I here? They could surely protect Serena unless they don’t agree with what she is doing.

“What’s in the box?” I ask with a raised eyebrow.

She nods at the box. “Uh, yeah. You might want to look at it.” She shifts her weight from one foot to the other as she looks between Jim and me. “I have received some out-of-the-ordinary gifts from fans, but they have never been delivered to my house before.”

“Ser, you piss me off. I don’t get why you pretend none of this is bad. You do realize you could have been killed, right?” Jim continues his tirade, but I don’t focus on what he is saying.

“I’m not stupid, Jim,” she snaps. “It isn’t as if I have never been in a dangerous situation before.”

I read the note first, then opened the box. In the box, there are lingerie, a butt plug, a vibrator, and a picture of someone’s small penis. There is a hand on the penis in the photo, making me want to drop the box. “Is this the first time someone’s been here out of nowhere?”

She nods her pretty head. “Like I said, I get weird stuff all the time. Just never at my house. I don’t know how you want to proceed, but I have to be at the club in an hour.”

I snap. “Do you think it is a good idea to go out in public with someone writing a note like this to you and sending you these types of presents?”

She hisses at me. “Max, if you are going to be my bodyguard, we need to go over boundaries and limits.”

“Let’s do it. What do you have?” I challenge her.

She has a devious smile on her face before she continues. “You don’t get to dictate my schedule. I’m a busy woman who has a lot of appointments.”

I want to chuckle. “What type of appointments?”

Serena’s devious smile becomes even more sinister. “Tonight, I have a dance with one of my partners at the club. Then I’ll be doing a demonstration in Shibari. If you’re going to be here with me, you’re going to have to get comfortable with sex.”

Growling, I get closer to the firecracker. “Sweetness, stop.”

Jim groans. “Why do you always put it like that?”

“How else would I put it, Jim? My dance tonight is erotic. Then, after Shibari, I have another two clients who need to feel some pain relief. I’ll be busy.”

Before she gets too far away, I call after her. “Serena!” She spins to look at me with her eyes narrowed. “Don’t go inside until I’ve done a sweep.”

She rolls her eyes at me with annoyance.

I look at Jim with widened eyes. “Is this normal for her?” I question.

Her agent shrugs. “Kind of. She likes to give people a hard time.”

“I’m beginning to think 35k won’t be enough,” I admonish.

“If you need more to stay with her,” Jim begins, “we can make it happen.” He’s teetering in front of Serena, who is looking anxiously into her house. “You'd better hurry up and clear it. She’s going to be a brat until she gets back inside.”

Before he leaves, I call after him. “What’s her deal?”

Jim shrugs, rocking on his feet. “What did Adam tell you?”

My arms cross my chest. “Not much. Just about her stalker. Some of the threats.”

He points away from the house before leading me over to one of the shade trees. “Serena is special. She’s been through a lot in her life, but she’s special.”

“Could any of those special relationships be her stalker?”

“I’ve looked into it. So have other people.” With one final look at the house, he points to one of the windows. I can see Serena’s silhouette through it. “I would go handle that.”

After grabbing my pistol, I walk through the home to make sure no one else is inside.

I’m surprised to see her house is as beautifully decorated as it is.

Although I’m unsure of what I expected it to be before coming inside.

A large-screen television is mounted on the wall, surrounded by a group of speakers, and a comfortable couch is positioned in front of it, with chairs placed off to the side.

The kitchen, pantry, bathrooms, living room, dining room, and laundry room are all clear.

After a brief check of the basement and then the rooms upstairs, I’m in her bedroom.

Serena’s scent permeates the room like a thick fog.

It is sultry, sexy, and every bit of the immense pain in the ass that woman is.

“Are you done rifling through my panty drawer?” Serena’s voice cuts into my thoughts.

Well, she just shot that horse in the fucking face.

Her bed, which looked inviting, now looks like any other bed. She has effectively ruined my thoughts of what it would be like to throw her on the bed and fuck that attitude out of her. Maybe that is what’s wrong with her. Perhaps she needs a big dick to take the edge off.

“Sweetness, if I wanted to look in your panty drawer, don’t you think I would already have my hands in there?” I ask with an eyebrow raised. “Plus, didn’t I tell you to wait until I cleared the house?”

She looks like she is about to argue but shuts her mouth pretty quickly. “God damn it. I bet Jim picked you specifically because you have a stick up your god damned ass,” she spits.

I lost my fight to keep my mouth shut. “You would probably know about sticking sticks up people’s asses, wouldn’t you?”

“Jim!” Serena yells as her agent ambles up the stairs.

“What?” Jim barks.

Serena’s looking at me with her eyes squinted as if she’s trying to find something about me. “I want a different one. Max is fucking rude.”

Jim chuckles at her as I’m about to walk out the door.

“I don’t need this,” I mutter.

“Max!” Jim shouts at my retreating back. “Look, give it a month, or until her other guards can come back. She needs you.”

I look at Serena’s face, which is twisted in annoyance. “Are you okay with that, sweetness?” I ask her. I cross my arms over my chest and feel the material of my shirt sliding up on my arms, and watch her eyes as she follows the movement.

“Fine. I’ll try anything twice to make sure I liked it,” she flirts back. “You can move into that room behind there. I prefer my guards to dress in a specific manner, so I can order you some clothes. Please leave your sizes with Jim.”

I look at Jim, who shakes his head. “She’s a ball buster, but she does have an image to protect.” Little does she realize, I have more than enough suits to wear.

Little does this little girl realize that I can read her like a book. She can pretend she’s not bothered by this stalker all she wants, but I know the truth. She’s downright petrified.

And she should be, because a stalker like this is going to get fired up after they see me.