I focused on the croissants. The last thing I needed was the fantasy turning into an erection. I’d save that for when I wasn’t meeting with the boss’s boyfriend. Daydreaming was for the shower. When at work?—
“Mr. Oliveira will see you now.”
I stood. So did he.
I raised an eyebrow. “Which one of?—”
She cut me off with a sharp “Both of you.”
Oh.
I took a seat in one of the two chairs sitting opposite Ricardo’s desk. As soon as we entered, his smile vanished.The speed at which he turned on his poker face should have been alarming. Thanks to his relationship with Arthur, I knew about his ability to transform into liquid metal. He didn’t moonlight as a hero often, but now and then, I spotted him on the streets.
Of course, because Janet and Orion were nosy, everyone knew that he and Arthur had a vibrant sex life. Or at least that’s what the mops and brooms in the second-floor supply closet would reveal if they could talk. The man across from me, though, I didn’tknowhim. A year of sharing a building, and I only knew what made the news. Unfortunately, that’s what brought me here. Synergy had become a target for villains. It was one thing when they came crashing in from the outside, but Ricardo had a hiring problem.
The woman next to him stood out against the muted colors of his office decor. Purple. I applauded the dedication to such a bold shade. Her dress rode the line between business and evening, in part because of the ample cleavage. If not for the jacket, I’d think she was leaving us for the club. She hadn’t moved since we arrived. If Ricardo told me he had a robotic assistant, I wouldn’t be shocked.
My companion took his seat and handed Ricardo the manila envelope. There were no words as Ricardo opened it. I set the croissants on his desk. Baked goods wouldn’t alleviate the tension, but it wouldn’t hurt to try.
“If anybody’s feeling peckish.” Nobody even glanced at my pastries.
I leaned back, tapping the arms of the chair. I had been summoned, and now I felt as if I were the only person unsure of what was going on. What was in the folder that had Ricardo fighting with the grimace on his lip?
He closed the folder, handing it to the woman standing at his side. She finally moved, taking it and inspecting the contents. Ricardo didn’t seem rattled, or at least it didn’t show. Arthur would have stammered and sweated until he sank to the floor in the fetal position. Ricardo leaned back in his chair, hands resting comfortably in his lap.
“It seems this is happening whether or not I like it.” His expression was as steely as his hide. “Your resume has more redactions than a White House dossier.”
I raised my hand.
“Drew, you don’t need permission to speak.”
I lowered my hand while dropping my eyes to my lap. “What’s going on?”
Ricardo gestured to the gentleman next to me. “Drew, meet Booker. He’s been sent by the government to interrogate?—”
“Interview.”
“Tointerviewour employees. They want to ensure we don’t have another incident.” Incident. That’s a nice way of summarizing how his employee attempted to destroyVanguard. I bit my tongue. “They want to protect their investment.”
There was a lengthy pause as Booker studied Ricardo’s face. If I didn’t know better, I’d say they entered a staring contest. While Ricardo’s face looked almost as emotionless as his alter ego, Booker appeared entirely relaxed. I still wasn’t sure why things were so tense.
“I can understand that.” Not really, but I needed to fill the silence.
The woman at his side shut the folder and slid it across the desk. “Sounds more like an interrogation when they threaten to pull our contracts if we don’t comply.”
Oh. Now it made sense.
“To be clear,” Booker said. “Theyare the ones doing it. I’m just doing my job.”
“I see,” Ricardo said.
In front of me, the three played a chess game. The pawn had been moved forward and sacrificed. Would one of them move the knight? How did the knight move again? It’d be easier if they wanted to play checkers. Low risk, easy rules. But no, they?—
“Drew?” I ditched my tangent and snapped back to the conversation. “Did you catch that?”
I nodded. “No.”
The woman let out an exasperated sigh. I wasn’t doing a great job of winning them over. Volunteering might have been the wrong decision.
