“I mean it. I’m looking forward to working with you and your team on this. Logistics management isn’t our strong suit, and I know there is a lot we can learn from you.”
“That’s because you stick your field people behind desks and expect them to be able to plan and coordinate security ops. It’s not at all the same skill sets.”
“And yet, you were planning to send your people from behind your computers out and expect them to succeed in the field,” I say, knowing she wants to get this contract for herself just as much as we do.
“No. I was planning on hiring new people for it.”
“Hiring…to expand. You’re thinking expansion,” I say, the weight of her words hitting me. If we win this contract long-term, it’ll be a big get, but Trent has already declared we’ll be filling the positions vacated by Kelsey’s small team with internal people, mostly me. Kelsey’s looking to grow her business—a move that, while unlikely, could be the downfall of Mitchell Security. There are only so many security jobs in the world, and if she’s getting bigger, that slice of the market has to come from somewhere.
“Yes,” she says simply. “Few respect a security firm unless you’re able to provide big, buff guys like you to stand in front of a bullet or a camera. Even if all of those risky things can generally be avoided if you do the pre-work well enough.” She picks at something on her pants. “Unfortunately, there is still a lot of bias in the industry.”
My mind latches on to the wordsbig, buff guys like you, and I barely catch the rest of what she says, a real dick move, but that’s what happens when your dick pulls all the blood from your brain for its own purposes. I casually drop my right hand into my lap, hoping between it and the darkness, Kelsey won’t notice the semi I’m now sporting.
“Sure,” I grunt, mentally face-palming. Real intelligent response, asshole.
When it becomes clear I’m not going to say anything else, Kelsey props her elbow on the door, her head into her hand, staring out the window. The sun is rising behind us, washing the world in hues of green and yellow. The soft light hitting her blue eyes causes my chest to tighten, the sexual attraction from before morphing into something softer—sweeter. I want to pull her into my arms, to run my fingers through her long hair, and to press my lips against the smooth skin of her forehead.
I shake my head, forcing my mind away from those thoughts.
“Anything in particular you want to listen to?” I ask when the silence becomes too heavy again.
“Whatever is fine.”
“We’ve got a long drive ahead of us. I’m happy to listen to a podcast or one of your playlists.” I say it to be a good host, but the truth is, I would love to know what type of music Kelsey listens to, what type of podcast she likes.
“Okaay…” she says, tilting her head slightly to the side. “I’m actually really interested in this podcast about business acquisitions. They just released a new one yesterday on BulkCo—you know, the big warehouse stores. Supposedly, it’s really good.”
“Sounds good to me,” I say, handing her the cord to plug her phone into the speakers. “And yes, I know what BulkCo is. Best steaks you can find.”
She smiles at me, a real, genuine smile, and my heart stops beating for one glorious moment as I soak in the rare sight. Then the sound of the podcast host’s voice blares from the speakers, and the moment is gone.
As I attempt to listen to the story of how BulkCo came to be, I can’t help but think about the situation Jaxon put both of our companies in by forcing us to work together like this while competing with each other for the same long-term contract. I want Kelsey to do well, for her business to succeed, but IneedMitchell Security to do well. I can’t afford to lose my job or have my pay cut if things go wrong. My mom’s expenses are just going to keep going up, and if Bill is right, the meager income she already brings in is going to continue to decrease. I’m notsure how we’re going to make it work if I don’t help Trent win this contract and then leverage it to bring on a few more big clients.
As much as I hate to admit it, I need Kelsey to lose this contract. Unfortunately, based on the work I’ve seen so far, it’s going to be a very tough battle to beat her.
Chapter seven
Kelsey
“Ihategettingtoairports early,” I say, dropping into the seat next to Carter in the waiting area. I wanted to go to the lounge area, but it’s not in this terminal, so we opted to sit by our gate.
“We only have an hour until our flight boards,” Carter says, his dark brows pinching together as he looks at the large smartwatch on his wrist.
“Exactly. We could’ve waited at least another thirty to forty-five minutes,” I say as I prop my feet up on my suitcase, eyes scanning the seats around us.
His large frame shifts, turning to face me fully. “Are you joking?”
“No. I just don’t see a need to be here earlier.”
“So you don’t miss your flight if something unexpected happens,” he explains slowly.
“Ehh, it’s not that hard to get another flight.”
I pretend not to notice his wide eyes blinking as he takes in my statement.
“Kelsey, how many flights have you missed in your life?” he asks.
I shrug. “Not that many.”
