Even thinking those thoughts makes me feel like an asshole.
You have questions, I get it.Surely I could tell her it was my mother on the phone—I’m clearly not having an affair with my mother (this is not that kind of story) so why didn’t I if I like this woman so much?
Well, because she’d want to know why Mom called so much.
Why I had to leave a few times a night.At nine, twelve at night or three in the morning.
Valid questions.
Questions I cannot and will not answer.
I’m nevernotgoing to take her calls unless
I’m on a job and it’s physically impossible or dangerous for me to do so.
Does that mean I’m walking away from Caylee now and planning to watch from the sidelines as she meets another man?
I resist the urge to let out a loud bark of a laugh.
No.
No fucking way.
I want her...I want more of her...and I know she does too.I saw underneath the surface how her body reacted.How she craved what I do.
We are not done.
––––––––
PENNY’S SMILE GREETSme as I step through the door.“Welcome to Black Hawke Security.Officially.”
“Thank you, Penny.”I walk up to the reception desk and glance around.
A couple of guys are walking down the hall with gym bags, and another is tapping on a tablet, almost walking into them.He does a little jump and sidesteps them with ease.I recognize him as a member of the tech team who helped find Chen a few weeks ago.
“Bro.”Ryder steps out of a doorway and grips my hand, slapping me on the back.“Welcome to the team.”
“Good to be here.”I release his hand and nod at Aidan and Josh, who follow him out.
“Where did you disappear to on Saturday night?”Aidan asks, sliding a hand into the pocket of his black bomber jacket.“One minute you were going all Tom Cruise on us, the next you vanished.”
For clarity, he means CocktailTom, not Mission Impossible.
I’d been trying to teach the bartender to make some decent drinks.I can’t stand champagne and was over the beer.The idiot let me loose with the top shelf and a shaker bottle.Next minute, I had a crowd cheering me on and was doing some smooth moves.
My gaze sought out Caylee, hoping I could get a smile out of her, but her back was to me most of the night.Except for a few smoldering glances that I caught.
Cole, on the other hand, was drilling holes into my chest with his angry eyes.
Speak of the devil.He walks through the front door and takes us all in.“First day?”
I nod.
“Welcome.”His tone is far less friendly than the others, his nod sharp.“Marsh on his honeymoon?”
“Until next week,” Josh replies and tosses a document onto Penny’s desk.“Let’s go through to my office, Jake.I want to brief you on your first assignment.”
“I’ll bake muffins for the meeting tomorrow.”Penny smiles, obviously thrilled with the compliment I gave her a few weeks ago.
