Bennett - Milly Taiden Page 0,1

actually the job she had set her eyes on. Ever since her search for work had kicked up again two weeks before. Dakota had walked out of her temp job at a doctor’s office. The office manager had been a grabby hands menace. She had managed to scare the daylights out of him, and he would no longer be a problem for the female population.

That had given her the idea of going into protective work.

There was no way in hell she was going to be accepted into a police academy. Not with her track record for jobs. She didn’t have the patience to study for her private investigator’s license. There was too much book learning, and it had made her head ache just thinking about it.

Working as a bodyguard and specialized security personnel for Nick Milan’s company was the best option precisely for that. She was a shifter, so she had the necessary skills needed to protect humans from whatever threat they anticipated.

She would be able to put her sassy attitude to good use. The job also came with a guarantee that she couldn’t get bored. Every client would bring his or her own challenges. No day would ever be the same.

It was perfect for her free-spirited tigress.

As the speakers of the car made the entire vehicle shake, Dakota belted out her anthem. She tossed her long brown hair. Oh, yeah. She felt good as hell and ready to take on the world of protection agencies.

Just hear her tigress roar.

Chapter Two

Dakota

Dakota didn’t do nervous.

It wasn’t a useful emotion, or so she tried to remind herself as she crawled out of the passenger door. Hopefully, no one from Nick’s company had seen her. It didn’t exactly scream professionalism to climb out of your car. What it shouted was train-wreck, and that’s precisely what she didn’t want to portray to her would-be employer.

With a quick hand, she tugged on her black slacks to remove the wrinkles that had bent the material as she exited her car.

She fluffed her hair and smacked her lips together as she looked herself in the reflection of the window. She looked presentable, and the angry blush Mick had caused was nearly all gone. It was giving her tanned cheeks a healthy glow.

With all of the confidence she could feel as a college dropout who hadn’t held the same job for longer than six months at a time, she pushed the door to the offices of Nick Milan’s protection agency.

Dakota was immediately greeted by a tall, handsome man. His scowl seemed to be permanently installed onto his face. She tried not to take offense to it.

“I’m Dakota Alcott, here to meet Nick Milan?” She wasn’t too pleased by the pitch of her voice. Why had that come out sounding more like a question?

This was the last interview she had lined up, and this was the one she cared about. She couldn’t fuck it up.

Let’s be confident, she told her tigress.

“Follow me,” he grunted as he turned on his heels and disappeared down the hall.

Dakota followed him into an office, and she wasn’t even surprised when he sat behind a desk that held the nameplate that read Nick Milan.

Was it grumpy male interviewer day?

“Do not start without me,” a pretty blonde instructed as she rushed in.

Nick’s jaw clenched down. “This isn’t necessary,” he snapped at the woman.

She scoffed with an impressive eye roll. “I promised your wife you would find someone. She wants you one-hundred-percent present and focused on her during the trip. If I have to sit in on the interviews to make sure you’re picking someone, then so be it.”

“You’re a pain in my ass,” he mumbled as she shuffled the papers on his desk.

“Hey,” she said to me, extending a hand. “I’m Blake Milan. It’s nice to meet you, Dakota. Why don’t you start by telling us a bit about yourself.”

“That isn’t how you interview people, Blake.”

She shushed him. “Go on,” she instructed with a smile.

With a nervous glance toward Nick, Dakota went through the usual spiel. It was uninspired, but she had to stick to the truth. Both Nick and Blake were lion shifters. She wouldn’t even have tried to stretch the truth. They would have figured her out immediately.

“You’ve led an interesting life,” Blake stated. “I was a model before my dear cousin gave me a job here.” She shot him a pointed look. It was full of silent warnings.

He didn’t seem to be getting whatever message she was quietly trying to convey.

“Right,” Dakota