Kids going missing all over the city had me spooked. So, I put up a post on my socials – big bucks for a bodyguard. Didn't expect my ex to answer the call. Just as I was about to slam the door in his face, a bunch of figures in hazmat suits surrounded us. "Close contacts. Take 'em both." The guy talking? My forensic pathologist husband, Cole, who was supposed to be out of town on a work trip. 1 Married to Cole for half a month, and I'd seen him exactly twice. Once at the wedding, once last week when he came back to grab stuff for that "work trip." Honestly, the main perk of having this husband was the massive allowance he gave me. I wasn't complaining about the freedom. But lately, these missing kid cases were piling up, and I had tickets to see Shawn’s gallery opening tomorrow. My bestie, Quinn, "helpfully" suggested, "Hey, I know a bunch of hot guys from my gym. Want me to set you up with one?" "Uh, I don't know, Quinn," I mumbled. "Feels kinda wrong. I mean, technically, I'm a married woman." If Cole found out and cut off my allowance, how would I ever afford that Tiffany diamond I've been eyeing? "It's just hanging out, Maya," Quinn scoffed. "Nobody's asking you to cheat. Get your mind out of the gutter, girl." Still, the thought of a ripped bodyguard... my weak-willed self couldn't resist. I gave Quinn the green light to post it. 【Hot bodyguard needed ASAP. $10k/day, plus expenses (travel, food). Must be discreet. DM for details.】 Not even five minutes later, Quinn called back, practically buzzing. "Done! Sent him your address. He said he's on his way. Get acquainted!" The doorbell rang the second I hung up. Damn, I thought, that's some serious speed. Must be ripped AND fast. But when I opened the door and saw Jayden standing there, all dressed in black, I nearly hurled. My freaking train-wreck of an ex? "A 'personal' bodyguard?" he sneered, looking me up and down. "Didn't know you were into that kind of thing." "Ten grand a day? Seriously? You couldn't even spot me for a bag of chips back when we were together." I swear, if Quinn was here right now, I'd knock her teeth out. "What's it to you, you scrawny jerk!" I snapped, trying to shut the door. Jayden's face darkened instantly. He wedged his foot in the doorway. "Who are you calling scrawny?" He yanked off his jacket, revealing a tight black tank top underneath. His arms were seriously jacked, easily twice the size of mine. Okay, so maybe two years had turned him into a beefcake. So what? Still didn't change the fact that he was a cheating scumbag. I raised an eyebrow, letting my gaze drift pointedly downwards. "Where exactly are you not scrawny? Don't you know?" Let him chew on that one. Jayden just smirked. He pushed the door open wider, stepping inside. His hands went to his belt buckle. "Seeing is believing, right? How can you judge what you haven't seen... recently?" My eyes widened. Before I could scream at him, the hallway filled with people in full white hazmat suits. "Potential exposure! Quarantine required!" one announced. I kicked Jayden hard in the shin. "You idiot! You're flagged and you came here?" Then, the hazmat guy next to me handed me a suit. "Secondary contact. You're coming too." My brain short-circuited. No! My Shawn gallery opening was tomorrow! "No, wait, officer... uh, sir," I stammered. "I've been home isolating! I literally just saw this guy, like, two seconds ago! I don't need full quarantine, right?" The figure in front of me paused. He tilted his head, looking straight at me through the face shield. "What did you call me?" 2 That deep voice, the slight upward lilt, those narrow, dark eyes peering through the plastic shield, glinting with... amusement? I swallowed hard. The word "Honey" or "Babe" felt lodged in my throat. Someone please explain when forensic pathologists started moonlighting in pandemic control? I froze, trying to formulate an excuse. But Jayden, not even bothering with his hazmat suit yet, slung an arm over my shoulder. "Yeah, officer, she totally needs to be quarantined," he chimed in, grinning like an idiot. "Major rule-breaker, this one. Inviting me over from way across town during a health crisis for a little... gathering." Gathering my foot! I swung another kick, but he dodged, pulling a face. "Missed me!" "Alright, alright, break up the lovebirds," another hazmat suit sighed, coming down the hallway. "Get dressed, both of you. Let's go." "Who's lovebirds?!" I yelped, feeling a scorching gaze lock onto me. I instantly regretted shouting. Even buried under layers of protective gear, I could feel the icy waves rolling off Cole. Help! What happens when your forensic pathologist husband gets mad? Does he dissect you in your sleep and flush the pieces? My imagination was running wild. "Maya," Cole's voice was dangerously calm. "Sounds like you've been having quite the time while I was away." Jayden, standing between us, looked back and forth. "Wait, you two know each other?" "H-husband," I mumbled, wishing the floor would swallow me whole. Silence. Then Jayden practically jumped. "Maya, you're MARRIED?!" His shouting gave me a headache. Right now, these two guys felt like the grim reapers fighting over who got to drag me to hell first. According to protocol, Jayden's recent movements had to be logged. He pointed straight at me. "Well, shouldn't you track her movements too? She's a close contact! Maybe she's the primary source!" I shot up from my seat. "No! Don't check!" Cole, sitting across from us now at some processing center, looked up, his eyes dark pools. He uttered one, chilling word: "Check." It felt like a death sentence. I wanted to bang my head against the wall. Soon, the system spat out our recent digital footprints. The intake worker stared. "Okay... one of you pinged at every single bar between downtown and the west side, and the other... daily visits to late-night spas and massage parlors? What kind of 'gathering' were you two planning?" His look was pure judgment. I couldn't even lift my head. Mentally, I cursed Quinn a thousand times. If I'd known it would come to this, I never would have let her drag me to those sketchy 24-hour "wellness centers." I slumped forward, resting my forehead on the table, already mourning my allowance. Someone tapped the table twice. I looked up. The room was empty except for Cole and me. He'd taken off the head covering of the suit. "Spending my money," he began, his voice low, "to hire another man... while you're out getting foot rubs every night? Are your feet made of gold?" I cleared my throat. "It was Quinn! She dragged me there! Besides," I tried weakly, "think of the small businesses! They're struggling with the pandemic and everything. I was just... supporting the local economy..." Cole picked up his phone and made a call. "Yeah, the one frequenting the spas? There's an accomplice. Alert the local health department, check if she needs quarantine too." I... "Accomplice? That sounds so criminal!" Before I could argue further, Cole leaned in close. He still had his mask on, but his eyes, intense and deep, were inches from mine. My breath hitched. I just stared. "Miss Miller," he murmured, his voice dropping even lower, "have you forgotten exactly who your man is?" My face flushed crimson. I... I... my man is Cole!
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