I force another smile.
“Thank you, Mr. Everett.”
He nods, and I take my leave.
I get back to my desk, trying to calm my nerves.
Are you out of there yet?Brooks fires off.
Yes,I send back.
Fucking creep. Can you leave early?
No,I write back.I have a few things I need to finish here. I’ll call you when I get in the car.
I put my phone down and log onto my computer, but I’m startled when I see Larry appear at my desk.
“Larry, hi,” I say, putting a hand to my chest. “Did I forget something?”
He shakes his head, eyeing me up and down. I wish he’d keep his creepy eyes to himself.
“Nope,” he says. “Just wanted to echo Cato’s words. We’re very excited to have you joining us. He meant what he said…we think you can definitely be an asset when it comes to closing some of these very important deals.”
I swallow and nod.
“However I can be helpful,” I say with a very forced smile. He just looks me up and down again then taps on my desk as he turns to walk away.
“Oh, and Wren?” he says, turning back. “You are a very beautiful woman. That itself is an asset. Don’t be afraid to show that off in these meetings. You’d be surprised how far that can go.”
Then he turns and walks away.
Holy fuck.
I feel my hand start trembling as my phone vibrates on my desk.
What the fuck did he just say to you?Brooks writes.
Easy, B,Keaton writes back.Stay calm.
Fuck no. This is fucking insane. We need to meet. Now.
I can’t leave yet,I send back.It’ll be suspicious. It’s hardly lunch time.
Calm down, Brooks,Julian chimes in.Pick her up at the regular time and meet back here.
The restof the day drags on, despite the fact that I have almost no human interaction. Very few people actually work in this office, and Cato himself is only here part of the time. As I know, this serves as more of an undercover operation. I wonder how many of the other folks who work here are aware of that.
Finally, it’s five, and I am furiously packing up my things and heading for the elevator. I get out and walk through the backside of the lobby and out the more discreet door. I walk a block over before I get in the car that Brooks sends for me, but to my surprise, he’s waiting for me in the backseat. When I get in, he grabs me and pulls me to him, kissing me hard.
“Hi,” I say with a smile.
He just lets out a breath and holds his forehead to mine for a minute.
“You okay?” he asks.
“Yes,” I tell him. “Are you?”
He pulls me into him tighter.
