Page 22 of Out of the Shadows

Bean treated him like she’d always treated him. Like a friend and colleague who she could give shit to without any worries he’d get offended. But now, when he looked at her—hell, when hethoughtof her—he pictured her seated at his kitchen table, dressed in little cotton sleep shorts and her sweatshirt hanging off her shoulder looking so...

He didn’t even know what. But whatever it was, it was so damn alluring and tempting and completely fucking inappropriate.

“No,” Gavin finally said, shaking his head, trying to dislodge that fascinating image of Bean. No luck. “That would be uncomfortable for her.” Not to mention him.

“Right.” Xander rolled his eyes.

Gavin was tempted to flip his friend off, but before he could, Alvarez pointed between him and Xander. “I don’t know what the fuck this is about. Nor do I want to know. So let’s focus.” Alvarez leaned on the table with his elbows. “Since Frazier’s determined to make this more complicated than necessary, let’s come up with a simple backstory that Bean will actually agree to. Shall we?”

Gavin was grateful for Alvarez’s redirect.

More specifically, he was grateful to get Xander’s attention off him. His friend was perceptive and had uncanny instincts. It was one of the things that had kept Xan in one piece when he’d been a Special Forces operative, and what made him an elite security specialist and invaluable member of the Hudson Security team.

Gavin prided himself on keeping everything close to thevest. But Xander had been there last night when Bean had had him completely out of sorts. For all the shit his friend was throwing his way, Gavin had no doubt Xander had seen every second of it.

As much as he didn’t want to admit it, something had happened yesterday. Bean getting hurt had him seeing her—his longtime friend, trusted colleague, and employee—in a completely new light. A bright and intriguing new light...

Not good. This was not good at all.

CHAPTER NINE

Bean glanced up at the quick rap on her door. A split second later, it opened, and Gavin walked in. He came to an abrupt halt, a frown growing on his face.

“Why are you at your computer?”

She swiveled in her chair to face him and held back an eye roll. Barely. “Because Doc just left and gave me the all clear.” She waved at her monitors. “I’m catching up on some additional background checks for the McClintock security candidates.”

He stepped into her office and closed the door behind him. Leaning back against the closed door, he crossed his arms over his chest. His frown deepened.

She waited for him to say something.

Anything.

But nothing.Okay . . .

“Did you need something, boss? Because”—she tilted her head toward her workstation—“I have stuff piled up.”

He straightened and shifted on his feet. She arched an eyebrow.What is his deal?

“I need you to come with me to a fundraising event onSaturday night. It’s over in Seattle. Owen’s flying us over so we can be down and back that evening.”

“Why?” From her earlier conversation with Esme, she knew her friend was sick, but Bean was still unsure why she needed to go. When she’d tried to call Esme back for clarification, the call had been pushed to voicemail.

“It’s a long, stupid story, but I need to bring someone. Esme’s sick. She and I talked and think you’re the best person to bring.”

Again, she waited for him to clarify.

And again, nothing.

“You didn’t answer my question, boss man.” Suspicion tickled her spine, and she tilted her head to the side. “Why?”

He raked a hand through his dark hair. “To meet a potential client. To get your opinion on the situation.”

She frowned. Esme had made no mention of meeting a potential client. That wasnother area of expertise. At all. Taking a deep breath, she forced her expression to relax. She turned back to her monitors, dismissing him. “No.”

For a few heartbeats, there was blessed silence.

“No?” Gavin sputtered. “But, B, I?—”