“Then I say we go for it.” Gwen’s baby blues widened slightly with a set of raised brows. Grabbing her jacket, she slid her arms into the sleeves. “It’s not like we have clients lining the sidewalk out front, anxiously awaiting the day we finally open.” She reached back and adjusted her collar. “Plus, I’m sure it’ll take some time to get the word out that we’re even here. Hopefully by then, Barclay will have decided to join us permanently. If not, maybe McQueen can come up with someone else he thinks will be a good fit. Either way, if the big dog out in Texas says we’re good to go, I think we’re silly to keep on waiting.”
Emmett couldn’t keep his lips from twitching attheir corners. “You’re really not one to hold back what you think, are you?”
Without hesitation, his explosives specialist shook her head with a decisive, “Nope.”
“Good.” He dipped his chin in approval.
Gwen picked up her purse with a grin. “’Night, boss.” There was a slight but purposeful emphasis on that last word as she walked out the door with a wave.
A soft chuckle escaped Emmett’s chest on his way down the hall toward his office. Something told him that woman was going to cause him a world of trouble.
His thoughts shifted to Gwen’s suggestion that they officially open for business despite being a man down. While he didn’t necessarily disagree, Echo wasn’t a team of two.
First thing tomorrow, he’d call the team into the conference room for a meeting. They’d go through the pros and cons, and after that, they’d vote. He may be the leader of the team, but if his people weren’t on board, his opinion meant squat.
We’ll meet, discuss, and then?—
“Hello?”
Emmett stopped dead in his tracks a few feet from his office door when the unfamiliar voice sounded from behind. Looking back, he was too deep into the hallway to see the person who had just walked in, but someone was definitely there.
Should’ve locked the door behind Gwen when she left.
Holding back a groan of inconvenience, he began walking back in that direction to tell whoever had just wandered into their office that they were in the wrong place and needed to leave.
“Is someone here?” the slightly husky female voice called out again as Emmett grew closer to the hallway’s entrance.
A few yards from the reception area, the woman finally came into view. Her back was to him as she slowly inched her way around the space, giving him the chance to assess what he could see.
She was taller than the average female. Five-six, maybe five-seven, if he had to take a guess. A pair of well-worn jeans hugged her long legs and heart-shaped backside with mouthwatering perfection. The green sweater she wore feathered across her belted hips as she moved, and his fingers itched to run their way through her long, dark hair.
The hell?
Emmett wasn’t the finger-itching kind of guy. Especially when he’d only seen this woman for a brief moment, and only from behind, at that.
He picked up the pace and covered the remaining stretch of the hall. When he walked past the reception desk, he found her meandering her way around the waiting area’s black, leather chairs.
“Can I help you?” His deep voice seemed to almost echo throughout the quiet space as he greeted the stranger.
The woman started a bit and turned his way. Almost instantly, Emmett found himself struggling to take in even the smallest of breaths. Meanwhile, the woman put her hand to her chest and smiled.
“Oh, hi.” A soft chuckle left her delicate shoulders shaking. “Sorry. I wasn’t sure if anyone was still here.But the door was unlocked”—she pointed that way—“so I thought maybe . . .” Her entrancing voice trailed.
For a moment, all he could do was stand there and stare. She was truly the most beautiful woman he’d ever laid eyes on.
She’s also standing in Echo Team’s office, and you still have no idea why.
Emmett cleared the sudden dryness from his throat. “Sorry, but we aren’t actually open for business yet.”
The woman’s long lashes fluttered with a blink of surprise half-a-second before disappointment flooded her almond-shaped eyes. “Oh.” She did a quick scan of their immediate surroundings. “Sorry. I thought . . . A friend of mine suggested that I reach out to you and your team. He thought you might be able to help me with something.” Her blue gaze returned to his. “Apparently he was mistaken. Sorry to have bothered you.”
A quick flash of a smile was all he got before she made a bee line for the door. And that was a good thing because, as he’d pointed out to her, they weren’t taking on clients.
That would all change after tomorrow’s meeting, of course. Once the team discussed it at length and voted. Until then, he’d apologize for not being able to help and suggest she give them a call in a couple of days to set up an appointment.
That’s what Emmett had intended to say. What actually came out of his mouth was?—
“Wait!” His booted feet carried him slowly toward her.
