Theo and I grinned at each other. We had convinced the guys to watch Pride and Prejudice. It was a rainy Saturday and we’d spent most of the day curled up together, watching movies and letting Ben ply us with snacks.
Just then, Cam’s phone rang. He fished it out of his pocket and swore.
I tensed. “Who is it?” After our encounter with the OBS, I was feeling more on edge. Would my mother say anything to my fathers? Would the DC or Pack Madden do something to try to separate us?
“Sorry, sweetheart, nothing to do with you, just a fucking annoying client. I’ll be right back.” Cam kissed my forehead before leaving the room.
Theo paused the movie.
“What’s going on with the client?” I asked.
Ben groaned. “They’ve been obnoxious from start to finish. We did a complete overhaul of their cybersecurity, but they keep coming up with new things for us to check. Their headquarters are about two hours away, and we’ve sent several teams to address their issues, but they keep complaining.”
Cam stormed back into the room. “Fucking obnoxious motherfuckers. I’m going to murder them.”
“What did they say?” Theo asked.
“They’re being paranoid. They said we missed things with their building security and the cybersecurity of their servers,” Cam said with disdain.
“I’ve hired so many people to try to hack into those servers,” Ben said, rubbing his eyes. “They’re solid. No one can get in. This is such bullshit.”
I curled up against Theo. I knew none of them were mad at me, but the tension in the room set me on edge. My body still wasn’t convinced I wouldn’t be harmed.
Cam sat on the ottoman in front of me and put his hand on my thigh. “Not frustrated with you, sweetheart.”
“But you haven’t been working much since I’ve been here and it’s making things harder for you,” I said.
“Our team is completely capable of running the day-to-day,” Theo said.
“This company, in particular, wants to feel important by having us there. They don’t want to settle for any of our staff,” Cam said, rolling his eyes.
I felt obnoxious for needing their constant reassurance, but I loved that they were willing to give it to me.
“We have to follow up with them in person,” Cam said, capturing one of my hands and rubbing it tenderly.
“What?” Ben whined. “Just tell them to get over themselves.”
Cam sighed. “I said we would do one more in-person eval and then we’re done. If they want more after this, they can hire someone else. I wouldn’t even agree to this, except they’re one of the biggest companies in the province, and I don’t want to burn bridges if we don’t have to.”
“So you all have to go?” I asked, trying to hide how anxious I felt about being left on my own.
“I’ll stay,” Theo said, kissing my temple.
“Why do you get to stay?” Ben asked, snuggling closer to me and trying to pull me out of Theo’s grasp.
“Because you need to look at their servers, and I have to evaluate their building security,” Cam said unhappily. “We’ll leave soon and be back tomorrow by midmorning.”
“Okay,” I said quietly.Don’t go, I’ll miss you.
“Are you sure you want to go to class tonight?” Cam asked.
Luc had texted our group chat earlier and asked if we wanted a quick class tonight. A guest trainer was coming to lead classes in the gym for the next week and it would be too risky for us to go in, so it would be our last opportunity to meet for a while. I had hesitated to ask the guys if I could go, but they all agreed without argument. I knew Cam still wasn’t comfortable with it, though, and a part of me wanted to succumb to his hopeful expression and tell him I would stay home.
I bit my lip and exhaled slowly. “Yeah. Is that okay?”
Cam’s jaw clenched almost imperceptibly. “Of course, sweetheart.” He kissed me on the forehead before he and Ben went upstairs to pack.
“Want to finish the movie?” Theo asked.
