diamonds and gold

there were certain things he knew he could pass off as simply doing his job. fingers ghosting against amelia’s back when they were walking by large crowds, or even lounging only inches away on the beach after today’s earlier events. he was always prepared to explain his actions to her father, the man he owed everything to. he knew his betrayal was the worst thing he could do to mr van buren, but some things were simply inevitable. even before he started working for the van burens, he was closed off to anything relating to an emotional relationship. he thought he could keep that up, but that had been proving more difficult as of late. a grin spread on his lips as she reassured him, and a short laugh followed as she jabbed at his flirting tactics. “well of course. you are a van buren after all. though, from my experience, your taste is a little below your standards. and pretty dangerous.” he teased. historically, hooking up with bodyguards was never the greatest of ideas. he quirked an eyebrow at her question as she turned away from him to finish cleaning off the towel. dominic fought off a small smile at the words as he sat himself in the sand with a sigh. “well, there is one distraction i can think of. even though her swimsuit probably cost more than my first two cars combined, she’s got me hooked.” he slid his ray-bans back over his eyes, leaning against his arms as he looked over at her, taking in the sight one more time behind the veil of his sunglasses.

dominic rarely took his breaks inside the bar. however, with the rain that had started at the beginning of his shift, he decided to prioritize his comfort for once and sat himself on an empty stool beside the blonde. her question reminded him exactly why he didn’t take his breaks inside. he looked around for any other living soul that could be more comforting than he to answer her question, but found no one. “no.” he answered dryly. “nothing just ends up being it. something’s always bound to happen. and if nothing happens for, like, twenty years, one of you will end up dying either way.” he had tried to add on to his negative response to be consoling. clearly that wasn’t his strong suit. at her slumped stature, he reached out a large, tentative hand to pat her back quickly. “i’m ---- uh, sure you’ll get over it. things can’t be that bad.”

mercy, or even compassion, weren’t words that were at the top ( or even the lower middle ) of dominic’s vocabulary. seeing the girl trying to rally her friends was nothing to dom. in his mind, if you’re not prepared to deal with your ‘friends’ consequences, you shouldn’t be friends at all. which is why when she pulled out the cash, he took it with an icy glance at her clique, nodding at the bartender before turning back to the girl. “sorry,” he started, the lie barely making it through believably. “you’re out for the night. gather your friends, or don’t. someone’s leaving this bar for the night and frankly i’ve already wasted too much time on this.” he sighed, waving his arm to the entrance pointedly.

he can’t help but notice the way she looked at him, his jaw tensing at the conflicting feelings that were always threatening to come up, the same ones that kept him up most nights. he knew mentioning her father was dangerous territory ---- figuratively and literally. he’d spoken the words with the intent of shocking her, though at her next question, he gave a shrug. “i think we both know the answer to that.” dominic replied, almost regretting mentioning the assignment at all. he’d let himself forget what he was here to do too many times already. being in the city his loyalty to her father was never questioned he ---- well, he loved the man. but here, things were different. there were no distractions to amelia. her gaze was set upon his, searching for the answer he thought was so clear. dominic just wouldn’t be able to leave this assignment, no matter how annoyed he got on a daily basis. her soft voice as he walked away was enough to make him stop in his tracks, but he let her take his hand before turning towards her again. “i guess the beach isn’t all that bad.” he huffed, squeezing her hand slightly before letting it go, fingers tracing the outline of her hand before brushing it away completely ---- not being cautious in his position would be enough to get him a death sentence. he couldn’t risk being unprofessional in public, not even this far from home. “i’m sure as hell not giving that joke of a bartender a chance to offer you a ride home.” he gave a teasing smirk at that, unable to help himself.

jaw tensed as the words left her lips. there was no question about who he’d actually wanted to tackle today, and it wasn’t the poor guy caught in the crossfire. “and just how nice are you planning to be?” as his anger was rising, her satisfaction seemed to grow. he should have known the bartender meant nothing to her, and he had no right to be possessive over her on this front. surely this wasn’t in his job description. yet he couldn’t help it. he pushed up his sunglasses into his tangled curls, eyes locked on her. “if you have a problem with my methods, why don’t we ask your father what he thinks, next time we visit. i’m sure i could be replaced quite easily.” he spoke the words gruffly, but he was already over it. he knew he’d always be over-bearing, and he also knew she’d always fight it. “m’not jealous.” her tease made him tense up again. of course he was jealous. he couldn’t help but give her a once over now that he was closer. she was out here looking like a fucking goddess, he was sure the guy with the frisbee would have attempted to give her his number as well. how could anyone not? he brushed the sand off his chest with a sigh. “i’m gonna go back in the shade. i fucking hate the beach.” he grumbled as he walked away, back to his sitting position against the shack.

he could hear curse as he pushed the stranger to the ground. this was what he was tasked to do. ( and frankly, he kind of missed wrestling other bad guys ) dominic glanced back at her as she spoke, giving her a sarcastic laugh. “oh yeah ---- no it’s definitely just a mojito. i’m sure your good friend the bartender will make you another one for free.” he glanced down at the now soaking napkin with the ten digits on it, rolling his eyes once more. he was trying to give amelia more space, he really was. he thought it would be better ---- safer for them both. but clearly he couldn’t help himself. he knew she was angry with him, she could barely find the words to express it. he tried to fight off a small smile as he watched her, instead turning back to the guy he had a grip on. he sighed as she spoke, though his grip had already loosened the moment she’d took hold of his forearm. he finally took his hand off, muttering a half-assed apology to the stranger, who ran back to his friends shakily the minute he was let go. he turned to the petite blonde. “amelia. you know it’s my job to do this.” that was as much of an apology as he could physically muster up. he didn’t want to fight, but they were both too stubborn for any alternative. 

of all the things that dominic finds annoying in his current life ( which is a lot of things ) being the bouncer at this club is on the top of his list. back in the city, he was tasked with babysitting one drunk. now he had a full bar of them. it was nearing the end of the night and the bartenders had called him inside. someone had reached around and stolen a bottle of tequila. he rolled his eyes and stepped into the dark space, moving towards the suspected party. he set his eyes on the tall blonde, arms crossed with an unpleasant look on his face. clearly, he didn’t like to be called inside. “which one of you stole the bottle?” he asked. “i’ve got better shit to do so one of your friends better own up to it and pay it.”

dominic had been walking down the street, mind on the phone call he’d be giving mr van buren when he heard a shout from a car. his body immediately tensed up, until he realised it wasn’t anyone out to hurt him or amelia, just nova. “fuck, nova. you’re like the drive by shooter of baked goods.” he replied, though the offer was too good to resist. “you know i can’t resist a pumpkin cookie.”

dominic had been trying his best to keep his distance. it was a perfect day, and there couldn’t be much harm in amelia sketching by the beach. he’d be out of his mind if he didn’t stay near her, even for a harmless activity like this. bare back was leaning against a lifeguard shack, dark eyes squinting at the people sharing the beach behind black ray bans. he’d already watched the kid bartending ogle amelia and not so subtly give her his number, which had made his eyes roll in annoyance. if that was the biggest threat to come by them, he’d have a long day of sitting in burning sand and sweating under the bright sun. that is, until he noticed a man running full force toward amelia. though it seemed he was trying to catch a frisbee, dominic’s instincts flared up. he sprung from his position, running towards the person. he’d been too far away, and they’d managed to knock the blonde’s drink over. still in defense mode, he tackled the stranger into the sand. he moved, bringing them into a headlock as dominic glanced back at amelia. “you okay?” he asked gruffly, examining the person quickly and loosening his grip. he didn’t seem to be anything but an idiot, so he got back up, hand gripping the other’s shoulder. “you gonna fuckin’ apologize to the lady, or do i have to knock some more sense into you?”