What He Guards(6)

But I couldn’t just stand out here in the hallway forever, so after a moment, I turned the knob and walked in.

The bathroom was sprawling and opulent, with sleek grey marble counters and lighted mirrors hanging over the basin sinks. Brushed nickel subway tiles imprinted with an abstract design lined the walls and a huge circular navy shag rug sat in the middle of the tile floor. The actual bathroom stalls were around a corner, along with a row of private showers for associates who stayed late or came in early.

Shonda was setting up a case of makeup on the counter.

“Sit,” she commanded, indicated a black leather swivel chair sitting in front of the row of sinks.

I sat and she turned me around until I was facing my reflection. The lights from above shone down on my skin, washing me out and doing me no favors.

She picked up a hunk of my lank hair and sighed, then got to work.

She shampooed and cut and styled, giving my hair body and long loose waves. She smoothed creams and gels over my face, along with primers and sparkly potions and bronzers. She used angled brushes that she dipped in little pots of color before smoothing them over my eyes and cheekbones.

When she was done, I looked beautiful. I still looked like me. I just looked sexier, more grown-up, more...sultry.

“Wow,” I said, reaching up and touching my hair experimentally. “I look amazing.” I blushed as soon as the words were out of my mouth. I didn’t want Shonda to think I was arrogant.

“Mmm hmm,” she said, sounding bored.

I wondered how many women she’d been called here to do this to, wondered how many times Noah had asked her to take care of someone he was taking to Force. Had she known Dani? Had she done this to Noah’s fiancé, Nora?

“You have to keep your hair conditioned,” Shonda said in her raspy voice, and handed me a bottle of expensive-looking product. “Use this.”

“Okay,” I said, accepting it. “Thank you.”

“Now,” she said, and pushed the chair back so that I was laying flat. “Now we’ll do the wax.”

“The what?”

“The wax.” She handed me a paper gown. “Here. Put this on.”

I stared at it. There was no way Shonda would make me put on a flimsy paper gown if she were just going to wax my eyebrows. “Oh, no,” I said. “That’s not necessary.”

“Mr. Cutler’s instructions,” she said.

“Oh. Um…” I reached out and fingered the thin paper garment. The thought of spreading my legs in front of a stranger while she spread hot wax on me was not high on my list of fun things to do. I hesitated.

Shonda gave me a thin smile. “Trust me, honey, I’ve seen it all before.”

“Oh, I just... I’m not sure I need it.” I blushed saying the words. I was well groomed already.

“Mr. Cutler’s instructions were very clear.”

I bit my lip, considering.

Noah’s voice echoed through my mind.

The rest of this will be by my rules, Charlotte. I will have control of you in every way.

“Okay,” I said, sighing. “Just let me get changed.”

I slipped into one of the stalls against the back wall and quickly shed my jeans and sweater. The paper gown was incredibly skimpy, definitely not designed to cover anyone who had any semblance of an ass or boobs. I had a hard time making it cover my body, and I had to hold the back together with my hands. But when I got back to Shonda, she didn’t blink an eye.

Instead, she nodded at the chair, which had been pushed back even further so that it now looked almost like a massage table.

I lied down and Shonda got to work doing her thing. I gasped as the first strip of wax was pulled off, but after a second of intense burning, the pain began to fade.

I gripped my phone in my hand, ever mindful of the fact that Noah had told me to keep it with me at all times.

Sure enough, it buzzed with a text.

You okay?

Yes, I’m fine.

Good. I don’t like you being so far away from me.

I couldn’t help but smile at his words.

I miss you too, I wrote back.

A second later, he surprised me with another text, this one a series of emojis – a wrapped up heart followed by a balloon.

The elation I felt was enough to dull the pain of the waxing that was going on between my legs.

When Shonda was done, she got to work cleaning up.

“Thank you,” I said as I sat up. I felt slightly awkward. ‘Thank you’ seemed a strange thing to say to someone who had just seen you naked.

She met my eyes in the mirror over the sink.

I gave her a tentative smile.

“You’re going out with Mr. Cutler tonight?” she asked.

I nodded.

She nodded back. “You be careful,” she said. “You girls…” She trailed off as she pulled off the gloves she was wearing and tossed them in the garbage bin. I had the feeling her warning wasn’t specifically about Noah or me. She had a certain weariness in her voice, the same kind of weariness older people got when they were talking about a younger generation.