Embrace the Darkness (The Maura Quinn Series Book 1) - Ashley N. Rostek Page 0,78

given me.”

Jamie rolled his eyes. “Just eat it,” he ordered, taking a seat next to me.

I bit into the cheeseburger and moaned. “I think I’ll hire Jamie as my own Brody,” I said in between bites. He’d be perfect for the job. He’d bring me all the foods I loved, and I wouldn’t have to worry about getting fat because he’d help me burn off all the calories with multiple orgasms. It’d be heaven on earth.

“He already has a job. Find someone else.”

Well, that just shattered that fantasy. I frowned at Stefan. How come Brody could do both his job and take care of him, but Jamie couldn’t? It frustrated me that I couldn’t call him out on that. At least not until he was ready to talk to me about their relationship.

“Speaking of hiring someone, when should I expect my own personal goo—I mean, security?”

Stefan gave me a look that said he wasn’t fooled.

“It’s like smoking. It’s a bad habit to kick. Especially since the nickname fits so well.”

“Your new security should be here next week when he’s done with another assignment.”

I nodded. “Until then, I want Dean assigned to me and possibly for the future along with my new security.”

“He’s not ready for that. He’s barely been with us a year,” Jamie argued.

“Then make him ready.” I wasn’t going to budge on this. If I had to have security with me, then I was going to choose who I was going to be stuck with. “I will not be cooped up in this house for a week.” Plus, I liked that he was new and that he was an asshole. He wasn’t a kiss ass like the rest of them. He was perceptive and thought for himself. He'd sure as hell questioned my every move yesterday until he'd found out I'd been lying. He was also loyal and didn’t feel the need to throw me under the bus to prove it.

Jamie didn’t appear happy as he turned to Stefan for back up. They exchanged a look before Stefan sighed tiredly. For once, he was in the middle. “I’m good with it.”

Jamie frowned.

“But you need to tell Jameson or myself where you’ll be going when you leave the house.” That seemed to placate Jamie a little and it was a compromise I was willing to make.

“I’m fine with that…for now.” I wasn’t a child anymore. I should be able to come and go without having to tell someone. Stefan didn’t seem pleased but didn’t argue. I took a bite of hash browns. “Yum,” I moaned around my food. I noticed the side of Jamie’s mouth twitch. I think he secretly liked that I loudly enjoyed my food.

As I chewed, I caught Stefan looking from me to Jamie. “Something you want to know?” I asked.

“No,” he replied with a strange look in his eye that I couldn’t decipher.

I didn’t dwell on it because, well, bacon was calling my name.

CHAPTER 24

Chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. It was a magical concoction I wholeheartedly believed was the cure for bitchiness and homicidal tendencies when Aunt Flow came to visit. That was why Ben and Jerry's was always stocked in the freezer.

I fondly remembered when Stefan had discovered ice cream was the key. I'd been fifteen, Aunt Flow had been rearing her ugly head, and Stefan had received a call from my principal to come get me. I'd been sent home and possibly expelled for making a fellow student cry. In my defense, the pimple-faced jerk had groped my ass and I'd given him the beat down he'd deserved. Had I taken it a little too far by breaking his nose? Maybe. Had I lost sleep over it? Not a wink.

I'd still been itching for another fight when Stefan had strolled into the school’s office, looking superior in his tailored suit, while giving off an intimidating aura. At one look from Stefan, my principle had paled and nervously fidgeted while he'd explained their zero tolerance for violence policy.

I hadn't gotten expelled. I'd had no doubt I ever would, but I had gotten sent home for the rest of the day.

Stuck in the car with a raging hormonal teenage girl, Stefan had taken all my lashing and bashing like a pro. He hadn't engaged. To my complete and utter surprise, he'd silently driven to an ice cream parlor. I'd immediately cooled down and sweetened after two bites of my favorite cookie dough ice cream. Stefan had then explained that I was just like my