The bodyguard trope has been a staple in romance novels not just since the movie The Bodyguard with Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner. It’s a popular trope in sapphic romance too.
For this category of the Sapphic Book Bingo, read a book with a main character who’s either a bodyguard (often protecting the other main character) or works in security, e.g., as a security guard or a doorwoman.
Check out the rules & download your Sapphic Book Bingo card
If you haven’t done so already, check out the rules of the Sapphic Book Bingo, read the descriptions of the categories, and download your bingo card. Then come back here to take a look at my suggestions for the “bodyguard” square below.
15 sapphic books with a bodyguard or security guard
Here are my recommendations for the “bodyguard or security guard” category:
The Roommate Arrangement by Jae
Comedian Stephanie Renshaw hopes to finally get her big break in LA. A chance encounter lands her the perfect apartment close to the comedy clubs, but it comes with a catch: she needs a roommate to afford the rent.
Enter Rae Coleman, a former police officer working the door at one of the top comedy clubs. After getting injured in the line of duty and losing her job with the LAPD, Rae guards her wounded soul behind a tough exterior.
At first, the two clash horribly before a tentative friendship develops. Bit by bit, Steph manages to break through the walls Rae has built around her.
But Steph has never been in a relationship, preferring casual flings, and Rae isn’t sure she’s ready to be happy again. Will they find the courage to open themselves up to love?
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Keep Her Safe by Claire Highton-Stevenson
She’ll do whatever it takes…
Barely into her 30s, Laura Ryan was living the perfect life. She had everything she thought she wanted until the moment her mother-in-law passed away. Instead of leaving her fortune to Laura’s husband, her son, she skipped a generation and left the house and £5m to her granddaughter, under the supervision of her parents, who must both agree and sign for any spending on Sienna’s behalf…unless one of them were to die, then the other would have full control of the money.
So, is it a coincidence when the same blue car almost hits Laura three times? She doesn’t think so, but the police aren’t interested. When The Organisation hears about it, they jump in to offer help, and Cat Roger’s is dispatched, with one instruction: Keep Her Safe.
Cat Rogers had been with The Organisation for a while now. Her police background and sense of justice made her the ideal operative. In her 40s now, she’d seen her fair share of, mostly women, ignored by the laws of the land and left to their own devices, and she didn’t like it, not one bit. Especially someone as beautiful and endearing as Laura Ryan.
On the run for their lives, Cat soon discovers that attraction isn’t so easily ignored, and protecting Laura and Sienna soon becomes more than just a job.
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Elemental Attraction by K. Aten
Two people find themselves in a quandary: Aderri, a powerful dragon shifter with some light defensive magic, and Ellys, a half-elven swordswoman for hire, one of the best across the six nations.
When Aderri gets news that she must come home for the naming ceremony of a new hatchling, she’s forced to hire Ellys and her telepathic steed, Roccotári, to see her safely there. Of course, things are never as simple as they seem. Not only do they have to traverse the land between two kingdoms on the brink of war, but Aderri’s Clan expects her to return with a romantic interest. So, for the added promise of triple Ellys’s normal fee, the half-elf agrees to pretend to be Aderri’s suitor.
Ellys and Aderri have to convince a Clan full of magical mixed-shifters for a week that creatures of differing elements can burn with the flames of love, without actually lying. A situation made even more difficult by a matchmaking mare, steamy baths, and an innkeeper with mischief on the mind.
Caught between the weight of the past and expectations of the future, they must find their true destiny within the heat of fire.
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Ignis by KJ
Felicity Davis, principal of Rawson Girls Grammar School, is a passionate educator, an inspirational leader, some say even an ice queen, although she’s not sure about that last one. But one thing Felicity knows is that she is perfectly happy with her life. That is until the trauma, the darkness of her past, comes crashing into her present, revealing a deeply buried secret, and placing Felicity and those she loves in incredible danger. Inspector Tal Diamandis takes on the case, attempting to extinguish the flames of Felicity’s past before they consume her. Matters become complicated as Felicity and Tal realise their mutual spark of attraction but when they finally connect the shocking links, the explosive conclusion will leave everyone reeling.
Can Felicity play with fire or will the fire become an inferno?
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Glorious Day by Skye Kilaen
Elsenna Hazen left spaceport security and ended up a royal bodyguard. She should have known better than to fall in love with a princess.
It’s been two years since one ill-advised kiss in the garden pulled them apart. With uprisings in the streets, the nervous princess transfers Elsenna back into her service. Her Highness has no idea Elsenna is leaking data to the revolutionaries bent on overthrowing the princess’s oppressive father.
Now Elsenna wakes up each day wondering what will happen first: her own execution, or that of the woman she could never stop loving. When rebel attacks escalate and the king plans retaliation, Elsenna discovers that the fights for her love and her life are one and the same.
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The Bodyguard Affair by Anna Stone & Hildred Billings
Bianca Black lives a privileged but sheltered existence. The youngest daughter of the wealthiest family in Seattle, she yearns to spread her wings and gain her independence. So when her mother insists she get a personal bodyguard to protect her from a threat she refuses to explain, Bianca isn’t happy. Until she meets her protector.
Founder and CEO of Rainier Protection Services, Sam Reddy has built her bodyguard firm from the ground up. She and her team are the best there is. When she takes on Bianca Black as a client, she’s expecting it to be a simple job. A young heiress is no match for a hardened military veteran like Sam, whose past has taught her to never let down her impenetrable guard.
But Bianca has a way of getting under Sam’s skin. And Sam longs to put the bratty princess in her place in more ways than one.
Embroiled in a scorching hot game of push and pull, temptation ignites. But with a malicious stranger targeting Bianca’s family and a secret threatening to shatter her world, she and Sam risk losing everything—from their budding relationship to their lives.
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The Lesbian Billionaires Seduction by KC Luck
European billionaire Lila’s well-being, even quite possibly her life, is in danger. While keeping her promise to the club of no lovers for a year, she hides at extravagant locations around the world. Unfortunately, the threats still come and the billionaires decide she needs added protection. Only the woman they pick drives Lila wild with passion. Jael Nassar, the tall, dark, and handsome soldier from the Middle East is asked to take leave and serve undercover as her bodyguard.
When she joins Lila at a lavish and very private resort in the French Alps, Jael takes one look at the woman she must protect only to be struck with an undeniable desire. With a passion forbidden, how will Lila and Jael coexist while they crave each other? Will they be seduced by the burning chemistry pushing them together?
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Guarding Evelyn by Erin Zak
After an unfortunate incident and a forced leave of absence from the Secret Service, Arden Ryan is moving back to Chicago where she can get over her failures in the comfort of her childhood home. Her parents, who are lovely, if not a tad overbearing, will provide the support she needs. Healing is hard, though, and when she’s prodded by her best friend to get back out there, Arden reluctantly takes a job guarding one of Hollywood’s leading ladies, Evelyn Glass.
Evelyn Glass disappeared from the silver screen unexpectedly when she decided to have a family. At least that’s what the public thinks. She’s making a comeback, though. After landing a role as the star on a top-rated television show, she feels invincible once again. As her ego starts to grow, so does her fan base, and attention, unwanted and otherwise, comes from every direction.
Evelyn and Arden butt heads at every pass. Evelyn’s desire to prove herself puts her in harm’s way more than once, until a situation occurs that put her children’s lives at risk. Her change of heart regarding not just Arden’s protection, but the attraction simmering between them, will change her entire life.
Can Arden prove her love means more to Evelyn than fame before it’s too late?
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The Blood We Spill by Jo Havens
What would make the most ruthless ice-queen assassin in the Kingdom hesitate?
Bound to the Kingdom for life, Cie serves a cruel King, her knives pledged to his word, her life at his mercy. She is also one of the Kingdom’s most privileged slaves – one of the Praetoria: five of the best, sworn to protect the Prince and, one day, to rule at his side. It’s not a bad life – luxurious parties in any of the eighteen worlds, beautiful women falling over themselves to land in her bed, her orders to be obeyed by over forty-eight billion citizens.
But when a routine job goes spectacularly wrong, Cie discovers there is a witness to her failure – a witness to a political assassination the King would never want revealed. It’s Cie’s intense misfortune that the witness is a beauty – a woman with sweet, warm skin that Cie longs to sink into, with deep, brown eyes that hold promises that Cie has only ever dreamt of, a woman whose embrace offers a gentleness and a kindness Cie craves above all else.
Jemma thought she’d been in love before, but when she falls for the King’s assassin, she falls hard. Cie burns her up – the assassin plays fast and loves harder, and Jemma’s head is whirling even as her body is thrilled. Jemma watches as a growing terrorist threat pushes the King to madness and Cie’s orders become more and more violent. The woman she thinks she loves is steeped in red. Is it even possible for a girl from the suburbs to love a person so drenched in blood?
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Errant, Volume One by L. K. Fleet
Aspen Silverglade used to be a force for good, but now she’s just a sword for hire. On the run from the people she once trusted most, she needs to keep her head down and keep moving.
But old habits are hard to quit. One night in a tavern, Aspen tries to save a woman from some unwanted attention. The woman, Charm Linville, is in the middle of a subtle and delicate act of thievery, and she does not appreciate Aspen blundering in.
The disastrous and public rescue-gone-wrong makes the townspeople think Aspen and Charm are a couple. This mistake sets Aspen’s bloodthirsty betrayers on Charm’s trail, tying the two of them together.
Even if Aspen can’t run from her past any longer, Charm shouldn’t have to suffer. Despite Aspen’s determination to work alone, Charm insists on helping—and she has a past of her own. The two of them don’t care for each other’s methods, but as they journey through the villages and wildernesses of Falland, solving problems and meeting magical friends and foes, Aspen and Charm grudgingly come to care for each other. Can these two guarded, stubborn women admit their feelings, or will Aspen’s enemies kill them first?
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Her Royal Bodyguard by Margaux Fox
Following an accident, Sergeant Erin Kennedy gets the promotion of her life, becoming bodyguard to Princess Alexandra, the future Queen of the United Kingdom.
Rule Number One in the Bodyguard handbook is: Never fall in love with the client.
Princess Alexandra is due to marry a Prince. So, when Erin starts to secretly develop feelings for the charismatic Princess she knows it can only ever end in tears.
Erin finds herself drawn deeper and deeper into a tangled web of duty, responsibilities and secrets with the Princess.
How much pressure can both women take before they begin to break?
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Securing Ava by Anne Shade
Ava Prescott has had one goal in life, to carry on the Prescott legacy by taking the reins of Diamond Unlimited Wealth Management. Her father’s determination to uphold the company’s wholesome family image propels Ava into a reluctant fake relationship with Kyle, a man she’s sure is a threat to the business. When her father is the victim of a suspicious accident, Ava believes Kyle is responsible and has no choice but to run.
Paige Richards saw enough violence to last a lifetime during her years as a counterintelligence specialist. She’s ready for some peace on her ranch in Oklahoma and is paying the bills as a private investigator. Paige takes a case to locate and bring back runaway heiress Ava Prescott. It seems simple enough, until she stumbles upon a bungled kidnapping attempt and her peaceful life is turned upside down. Now she must use every skill she has to secure Ava.
As they try to figure out who is out to hurt Ava and her family, Paige and Ava fight to stay one step ahead of the threat and resist their growing attraction. But ignoring their feelings may prove impossible when their hearts and lives are at stake.
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Saving the Star by Rachel Bowdler
Hollywood actress Atlanta Stone has always been regarded as a vain, out-of-control party girl, and she’s more than happy to play that part. However, when she’s assigned a bodyguard after surviving a near-fatal robbery, she finds herself chafing against the sudden loss of her independence — the damsel-in-distress role has never been her style.
And close protection officer Beck Harris isn’t too fond of her new charge, either. As a bodyguard to celebrities, Beck has spent years perfecting her cool composure around the rich and famous, but when forced to handle a wily, superficial actress intent on pushing her boundaries, her professionalism is pushed to its limits.
Their clashing lifestyles and temperaments take a back seat when a string of attacks on Atlanta suggests that she has become more than a victim of a botched robbery — now she’s a target, and if Beck can’t figure out who’s behind it, they’ll never get the chance to see who they are behind the masks they’ve perfected.
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Deadly Secrets by VK Powell
Special Ops Agent Rafe Silva has always been a dedicated soldier, content in the military and jetting from one mission to the next. Her life is structured and clear of emotional entanglements until an old friend requests she provide protection for an industry whistle blower.
Jana Elliott had found her ideal career and a second home within the corporate environment of Alumicor until a coworker dies and Jana suspects the company is covering up a deadly secret. When she starts investigating, her boss quickly shuts her down. Jana is determined to uncover the truth even if it means risking her life. Her friend’s suggestion of a bodyguard seems like overkill, but then Rafe Silva shows up and their irresistible attraction changes everything.
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Secret Sanctuary by Nance Sparks
Alexandria Trenton is tired of living alone, but keeping secrets comes with a steep price. After growing up in witness protection, Alex is now a US deputy marshal specializing in protecting those awaiting trial. It’s a life that she simply can’t share, especially not when omitting the truth feels so wrong.
Alex’s world is turned upside down when her mentor passes away and his granddaughter, Elina Hawkins, shows up at the ranch the marshals are using to hide witnesses. Will the ranch be able to continue the sanctioned work? Or will she get a new assignment and be pulled away from the only place that feels like home? If she stays, can she resist the attraction she feels for Elina?
Even love has to wait when danger threatens everyone at the ranch. It’s the fight of Alex’s life to defend the secret sanctuary, and most importantly, protect Elina.
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Leave a comment and let us know what book you’ll be reading for the sapphic book with a bodyguard or security guard category!
The Roommate Arrangement this time, super lists of books to read.
I hope you’ll enjoy it!