She felt sweat trickling down her back. “Look, I’ll argue on your behalf if you get into trouble. It seems to me your boss would reward you for helping a regular tenant.”
“You’re a regular tenant?” His gaze drifted down her body.
“Yes.” She sighed in exasperation, feeling suddenly tired. Instinctively she knew she was safe standing at the booth with even as unlikely a guard as this, but there was still the threat of the inner garage to overcome. She wanted nothing more than to be locked in her car and on the road, headed for home. “Please. Just walk me upstairs. You could have been up and back in the time you’ve spent talking with me.”
He grinned. “Yeah, but talking with you beats sitting here by myself.” He cocked his head to one side. “Sure. I’ll walk you upstairs.”
Lauren jerked her eyes toward the thick pipes overhead. “Thank you,” she breathed. By the time she looked down, the guard had let himself out of his cage and was swaggering toward her.
She glanced worriedly back toward the exit, but it remained empty.
“Come on, love. Up we go.” He took her elbow and she jumped, wondering for an instant if she’d leaped from the frying pan into the fire. Unfortunately, she was the proverbial beggar who couldn’t be choosy. So she clamped her mouth shut and let her cocky gallant lead the way to the stairs.
He dropped her elbow to open the door. Her apprehensive gaze examined every nook of the stairwell as they started up.
“Floor?”
“Third.” Had the stairwell always been this narrow?
He chewed away at his gum. “Work around here?”
“Yes.” Had the stairwell always been this confining?
“Kind of late leaving, aren’t you?”
“Yes.” He wouldn’t try anything. He wouldn’t dare. She knew where and for whom he worked.
“Hot date?”
“Yes … he’ll be waiting for me on the corner as soon as I leave here.”
They climbed the last set of stairs in silence. Though Lauren didn’t look, she could feel the smirk on her companion’s face. He hadn’t believed her. She’d hesitated too long, then spoken too quickly. Damn, but she wasn’t good at this.
He swung open the door, then stood aside to let her through. “Always park on the third floor?”
She was looking nervously from side to side, trying to see into corners where a tall, large, dark form might be lurking. “It depends,” she offered distractedly. With no assailant in sight, she blindly fumbled in her bag for the keys.
“Where’s your car?”
She pointed. They reached it half a minute later.
“There,” he announced as she unlocked the door, checked the back seat, then all but threw herself behind the wheel. “Safe and sound.”
She locked the door and rolled her window down, just enough to murmur a heartfelt “Thank you. I do appreciate what you’ve done.”
“How about a ride down?”
“Uh …” Dumbly, she looked at the passenger seat, then leaned over and tugged up the button on the opposite door. Already striding around the front of the car, the guard let himself in.
She had her window up tight and the car started before he’d closed the door, and she took the ramps at break-neck speed. Her passenger didn’t seem to mind. She suspected he enjoyed the daring ride.
She brought the car to an abrupt halt by the booth, let the guard out and quickly relocked the door. By the time she’d straightened up, he was at her window and making a rolling gesture with his hand. Again she lowered the window several inches.
“Your card?” he asked with an impudent grin.
“Oh.” She rummaged in her purse, drew out the card and handed it over. While he studied it, her gaze alternated between the rearview mirror and the windows on either side.
“Looks okay … Lauren.” Chomping briskly on his gum, he returned the card, then winked. “Drive carefully now.” The last word was muted through her reclosed window. He twisted backward in a move she was sure he practiced regularly on the dance floor, pressed a button and released the gate.
