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Sophie laughed. “I think I’m pretty straight.”
Beth sighed. “Yes, I think you are.”
“Got any updates for me?” Sophie turned to Stephen.
“Yes. A couple actually,” her friend replied. “The contractors are starting on your house next Tuesday, clearing debris and all that. We’ve got a slight problem with the insurance. They’re classifying this as an act of terrorism.”
“What?”
“Don’t worry, our lawyers are looking into it. Because of the nature of your work the insurance on your house has a clause covering some hostile acts. Not sure exactly how it’s worded—”
“As long as Blanton is on it.”
“He is.”
“What else?”
“Silver Fire Research should reopen on Monday. Divergent Management has given us the go ahead. They’re also beefing up security. I’ve re-scheduled your meeting with MDI that was supposed to be on Friday to Tuesday.”
“Shoot! The mold for the trigger housing, has it arrived?”
“No. I called the manufacturer, and they’re delivering it Monday morning.”
“Good. Anything else?”
“Christopher Blackstone wants to schedule an appointment.”
“Any idea what he wants?”
Stephen gave her a dubious look.
“Well, you did dangle the zefinium cores in front of him,” Beth said cynically
“What time is our meeting with MDI on Tuesday?” Sophie asked after giving the reporter an exasperated look.
“Eleven a.m.”
“If Christopher can come by at 9:00 a.m., that would be great. If not, he’ll have to wait for Wednesday, I plan to catch up on some work in the afternoon.”
Stephen nodded.
“Anything else?”
“How about a new car?”
Sophie suddenly got excited. Her poor SUV had been firebombed along with Maia’s vehicle and she really needed a car right now—new or rental. “Everyone up for some car shopping?”
* * *
Derek knewhe fucked up with Sophie and he had no clue how to fix it without coming across like an asshole. He freaked out, plain and simple. He did not know how to behave the morning after sex because he never had the morning after sex. The women he fucked never slept over—they left after the last fuck—no cuddling. He would get up, take a shower alone and go to the kitchen as a signal that they had to get up and get moving.
He was overwhelmed by how incredible Sophie made him feel, his mind had shattered, and he couldn’t think coherently. After that last time he took her, he stumbled into the bathroom and started the shower. But it took him a while to go under the water spray. He was bent over the sink feeling like he’d gone into a battlefield without a Kevlar vest. A fist of fear in his gut twisting him inside and telling him this was it, he did not want anyone else. She had the power to hurt and weaken him.
So he withdrew.
Big mistake. He was a fucking coward.
And now he had broken it. That tenuous bond he had with her. It was broken. He saw it when their eyes met briefly when he dropped her off at the bungalow. There was hurt, confusion and betrayal. She had just trusted him with her deepest insecurity, and he threw it back in her face. Dumb shit.
