[F4F] Fired Bodyguard, Getting Dragged Back In

Tessa Hale was very good at her job.

That was never the problem.

The problem was that she had a hard time keeping her mouth shut when someone above her made a stupid call. She had a habit of doing things her own way if she thought it would keep her client breathing. Most of the time it worked. This last time it didn’t, at least not according to the people who signed her checks. So they cut her loose.

Now she was in her apartment, lights off, half a bottle of whiskey gone, boots still on because she couldn’t be bothered to take them off. She was face-down on the couch, one arm hanging off the side, when her phone started buzzing on the table.

She groaned, slapped at it until it went quiet, and shoved her face back into the cushion.

It rang again.

“For fuck’s sake…” she muttered, dragging the phone toward her and answering without looking. “What.”

A familiar voice came through. “Tessa. It’s me.”

She blinked hard, trying to place the voice. Right. Lena. A few years back Tessa had been hired to watch her, threats, stalkers, the usual shit. Tessa had pulled her out of a bad situation one night and somehow they never completely lost touch. Not quite friends, not just old client and bodyguard either. Something in between.

“Lena.” Tessa said, her voice rough. “It’s late. Or early. I don’t even know.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I wouldn’t call if it wasn’t important.” She said, and then there was a short pause. “I need a favor. There’s someone… their life might actually be in danger. I trust you more than anyone else for this kind of thing.”

Tessa let out a dry laugh and rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling. “I’m not exactly in the business anymore. Got fired. Today, actually. Or yesterday. Time’s a little blurry.”

“I heard. That’s part of why I’m calling. You free up, and I know someone who needs exactly what you do.”

Tessa was quiet for a few seconds, thumb rubbing over the edge of the phone. Normally she’d shut this down. She hated being pulled back in when she was still pissed off. But the bank account wasn’t going to fill itself, and sitting here drinking alone was already getting old.

“…Send me the number,” she said finally. “I’ll call them later. No promises.”

“That’s all I’m asking. Thank you, Tessa.”

The call ended. Tessa dropped the phone on her chest and let out a long breath. She reached for the bottle again, took one more pull, then set it down harder than she needed to.

Great. Back at it already.

She closed her eyes, already knowing she wasn’t going back to sleep.

---

Heya!

Whew, that was a longer starter than I meant it to be. If you made it all the way down here, thanks for sticking around.

Anyway, hope you liked it. The basic idea is pretty simple: Tessa just got fired, she’s drunk and pissed off, and now an old contact is pulling her back in to protect someone. I left your character completely open on purpose. You could be a celebrity who’s been getting threats, a CEO with some dangerous enemies, a politician’s daughter, a musician on tour, a journalist who pissed off the wrong people, or literally anyone else who might need serious protection. I’m happy to bounce ideas around until we find something that feels fun for both of us.

A few quick notes about me:

I usually write a few paragraphs. I like realistic face claims. I’m good with slow burn, action, smutty or whatever chemistry ends up happening. Discord is my preferred place to write if we click, but I'm happy to stay here as well.

If this sounds like your kind of thing, hit me up. Tell me what caught your eye and we can start figuring it out from there.

Looking forward to hearing from you.