Passenger Princess: A Grumpy Sunshine Bodyguard Pageant Queen Romance (Evergreen Park Book 1)

‘Ava, we’ve gotta go,’ I shout, knocking on her door.

While I wait in the hall, I remind myself that no matter what she says or does, I need to act professionally. I’ve come to the realization Ava will do whatever it takes to push my buttons, and I have to stop showing her that it works.

Tonight is dinner at some fancy restaurant with Miss Massachusetts, some press, and Anne.

‘Come in!’ she shouts.

When we arrived at the hotel two hours ago, I got a key to her room as well as mine, just in case of some kind of emergency, before we each went to our own rooms to unwind and get ready for the night. I use it now to let myself in, the door slamming shut as she steps out of the bathroom.

“So,” she says with a twirl. “How do I look?” She’s wearing a slinky cream-colored dress with light pink silky bows tied on her shoulders as straps and high heels with matching pink bows at the back.

Instantly, my mind wonders if I tug on one of those bows, would the top slip down, revealing her full tits?

“You look…” I sigh, trying to wipe my mind of these uncontrollable thoughts and say something appropriate. What the fuck is happening to me? “You look very pretty.”

She pouts. “Pretty?”

“Yes, Ava. You look very pretty.”

She moves, heels clicking as she walks to the full-length mirror and takes herself in.

“Hmm,” she says, turning left, then right in the mirror. “Not good.”

“Not good?”

“Not the vibe I’m going for.”

“This seems like your exact vibe, Ava.”

“On your arm, I’m going for hot, big guy, not pretty.”

I close my eyes and take a deep breath before speaking. “You’re not going to this event on my arm, Ava.”

She rolls her eyes at me, and I think about all those mothers who tell their kids if they keep doing it, their eyes will get stuck that way. I hope they never meet Ava Bordeaux, irrefutable proof that’s a fucking lie, considering it seems she does it every five seconds in my presence.

“Okay, listen, we have to have a talk about this bullshit,” she says, standing in front of me, face fierce, hands on her hips, and glaring up at me.

It takes everything in me to fight the smile because, fuck, she looks adorable like that, like an angry pixie. I bet if she put on the costume, she’d look like a dead ringer for Tinkerbell.

Instead, I raise an eyebrow in a go-on way and wait for her to continue.

“I don’t care how this job normally works for you. I don’t care if you normally just sit in the shadows on the lookout. That’s not how I roll. I already told you you’re not following me around for three months like a creep. You’re not sitting in a corner when we eat meals. You’re going to have a fun summer, too, do the fun stuff with me.” She stops, thinking, before adding more. “Maybe think of yourself as my companion more than anything. You’re here to keep me safe, yes, but also to keep me company. Be my friend.”

‘That’s not how this job works, Princess,” I say as soon as she’s done with her tirade. “I know what I signed up for, and that’s not it.”

“Well, you better prepare for something new and different.”

“My boss pays me well to be invisible. Clients want it, and I promise it’s what you want.”

Something in her face changes in the blink of an eye, going from joking and assertive to self-conscious and nervous.

“Look, Jaime. I got into this by accident. This isn’t some goal I’ve had in my life. Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s an adventure, and I’m so excited to be here. I love to travel, love to see new things, so getting paid to do it is absolutely insane and crazy and fun. But I’m going to be lonely. I also don’t really know any of these people. At all of the events before the actual pageant, I was the odd man out because all these girls knew each other ahead of time; they’d been in these pageants together for years. I didn’t know a single one of them. Having someone—anyone—that I know and can talk to when it gets weird would really make me feel a lot better.”

The sincerity in her face cracks something in me, as does the pleading in her voice that, against my best judgment, I give her an offer. “You get nervous, you feel uncomfortable, you come back and hang with me until you’re ready to go back, okay?’

“Great, appreciate that, really, I do, but again, I’m not having you sit in the corner like the hired help while I eat or have fun. That’s weird as fuck and makes me itchy.’

“Ava, my boss would never approve⁠—”Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

“Let me talk to him,” she says.

My brows furrow, and her face has somehow become even more determined and stubborn. “What?”

Her hand goes out like she is asking for something. “Give me your phone; I’ll call your boss and talk to him.”

“No,” I say firmly. She is not talking to Greg. The man will eat her alive.

“What’s he going to do, bite? I just want to talk to him, explain my side. If he insists you’re not allowed to hang with me, I’ll accept it. I’m a pain in the ass and pushy, but I wouldn’t put your job at stake,” she says, like it’s obvious.

I weigh my options for a moment in my head before shrugging, unlocking my phone, and handing it to her. “His name’s Greg. Probably my last call.”

“God, your phone is so boring. You don’t even have fun apps or a background,’ she says with horror, then taps the contacts icon and finds Greg easily. “And there’s only like five contacts in here.”

“Can we stop hyperanalyzing my phone and just call my boss so we can get to dinner?”

She smiles wide before hitting call and lifting the phone to her ear. It rings for just a moment before she smiles again.

“Hi, Greg, is it? Yes, my name is Ava Bordeaux, Jaime’s new assignment, we met briefly. No, no, he’s totally fine; he’s standing right in front of me.” She looks down at her feet, blonde hair sliding down to cascade around her face. “So we’re on our way to our event for the day, but we had a bit of an argument in Jersey that I want some clarification on.” A deep, throaty laugh leaves her chest, and her head tips back with it.

Greg, asshole Greg, is making Ava laugh like that?

“No, he’s a total gentleman, no need to worry. It’s just that when we were all sitting to eat, he refused to sit at the table with us, saying he needed to lurk in the corners to watch us.”

“I did not say that exactly,” I say loudly, hoping Greg can hear me.

Her smile widens. “Yes, that was him. But personally, I think it’s kind of weird to be enjoying myself and have him just being a bored rando in the corner, you know? So I politely requested—” I scoff, and she rolls her eyes at me. “He sit with me or partake in whatever event is going on. Otherwise, it feels weird and very diva-like, which I totally am not, you know?”

I raise an eyebrow at her, but then she laughs out loud, and once again, I wonder what the fuck Greg said to make her look like that.

“No, exactly! He’s so hard-headed. He told me if he ate pizza with us, it would be unprofessional, and that was why he had to hide in the corner. I told him he was being ridiculous.” She listens with a smile, eyes locked on me, and I think, somehow, she’s won over Greg in three seconds.

How the fuck does this woman do that?

“Okay, so to clarify, Jaime has to do whatever I say within reason and participate in activities, or, God forbid, eat with me, which will not put his job in jeopardy?” I close my eyes and breathe in deep. “Perfect, thank you so much for clearing that up for me!” A pause before she shakes her head, twirling a lock of her hair around her finger. “He’s a complete gentleman, Scout’s honor.” She starts to pace with my phone, and I watch her as she moves, looking at her feet, listening intently.

“Absolutely. And thanks so much, Greg, so sorry to bother you.” Her head pops up and she stares at me with a wide smile. “Oh, definitely. I’d love to give you my number just in case you need it.”

Jesus fucking Christ.

She rattles off her number with a laugh and then says a warm goodbye, like my boss is an old friend, before tapping to end the call and handing it over to me.

“You’re stuck with me, big guy. Turns out, your assignment is to chaperone me to everything.” I close my eyes and take in a deep breath. “Don’t worry, I won’t make you do anything crazy, but I’m not being some crazy woman who has her security stand in the corner, watching everyone like they’re going to attack me at any moment.”

“You never know⁠—”

“And you’ll be at my side, so if something does happen, you’re close by, right? Seems like a win-win all around.”

I want to argue.

I want to call Greg and ask why the fuck he gave in to her.

But something tells me that even though she’s all pink princess energy, she’s a rottweiler when she wants something.

And for some reason, this is what she wants.

So, instead of arguing, I sigh and nod, pulling a wide, wide smile for her. She jumps and then claps her hands three times excitedly before stepping closer and looping her arm around mine.

“All right, buddy. Let’s go to dinner.”