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“Thinking about switching jobs?”
There was a slight pause. “I’m surprised that you ask but I've given that some thought.”
“I have an offer to make you. Joe senior has gotten a couple guys through my security, and I need an expert to handle these things. It would be somebody that would have a lot of authority and not be stuck in one position they would be able to move around and keep an eye on things. There might be some travel and I can't be sure at this point because this is a new position. I can guarantee it pays better than you make now and has a place to live included as well as meals on site. You'll probably need to think about it, and I look forward to hearing back from you.”
“I can start in two weeks. I'm going to put in my notice immediately and get out of this place. It's too frustrating to want to do my job and be unable to.”
“My PA will get with you, and he will address anything that’s needed including your tickets to get over here. If we have a plane running at the right time you can just ride the private plane. I look forward to you starting and I hope everything goes well with your move.”
“Thank you and goodbye.” She said and she was gone.
He looked at the phone and there was no one there. It must be a matter of the right offer and the right time. That was the easiest negotiation he had ever had. Not that he minded it being easy, it was just that he hadn't expected it to be that easy. A quick call to his PA and everything he needed to do until she arrived was done. Ranger should have done this the first time they had become involved with Joe senior the day he was brought to their attention. That had not been the way he chosen to do things and now he had to make up for it.
It was lunchtime and he needed to go get Toni and go to the new seafood buffet. When he went back to their office where she was hard at work and clearly hadn't even an idea that it was lunchtime. He knocked on the door frame to get her attention. she looked up at him and smiled and it warmed him.
“You don't have to knock. Did you need something?”
“I just didn't want to startle you. Are you ready for lunch?” Ranger asked.
“I just need to go wash my hands and we can go.”
There was a small bathroom in their office, and she left the door open as she quickly washed her hands and came back out. she took nothing with her because she was with Ranger and the meal would not cost her nor would she need any IDs since she was here at the resort, and they knew her. He saw she was getting excited as they headed toward the new place at the end at the hall. They were highlighting some lovely meals that were a mix of seafood and other types.
They sat at a nice comfortable table for two and the waitress came immediately. “Can I get you some drinks?”
“Yes, we'll take two fuzzy navels. We'd also like to go ahead and order the shrimp basket appetizer.” Ranger chose. The waitress hurried away.
“Should we have something to drink when we're on duty?” Toni asked.
“You're allowed to drink during working hours. Maybe it'll relax us and help us to get back to work with a clearer mind. It's also not like we're going to be driving anywhere.”
It looked like what he had said had calmed her down and she would probably drink the drink and he knew it was one of her favorites. Looking at the menu, there were several specials that looked good like the steak and lobster. The problem with several of them is that they require time to cook and enjoy properly. He wasn't sure what she wanted but he was looking at the baked cod double special and thinking that it looked really good and that there would be a fair amount of food because dragons liked to have plenty. They used tons of energy and they needed food so they would have all the energy they needed.
“Can I take your order now?” The waitress asked.
“I'll take the double baked cod with wild rice, asparagus, stuffed mushrooms, and tomato basil soup.”
“The single baked cod with the same sides for me except I'll take the salad.” Toni opted.
The waitress hurried off to put their order in and she had already left their drinks. They were beautiful with the cherries, oranges, and pineapple with a sword through them and the little umbrellas in all kinds of festive colors. Ranger took a sip and thought it was wonderful. He looked at Toni and she seemed to be enjoying hers as well. They spoke a little business, but they were really more to the point where they needed to start doing instead of just talking.
They both had long lists of people they needed to call and talk to and a list of tasks someone needed to be assigned to. In his mind, they were a little ahead of where he thought they would be even though Zaya had caused them some trouble and caused them to lose some time. All things considered, he was pleased with the rest of his group. The fences were coming along well, the animal specialist had come and been interviewed. He had agreed to a 10 year contract which was far more than Ranger had thought a human would normally accept. The terms had been generous but still it was a long time to commit.
It wasn't long and their meal came, and everything was delicious. They spoke on and off, but mostly they ate and enjoyed their food. At least right at this precise moment nothing seemed to be going wrong. He'd heard the expression don't borrow trouble, but he'd always considered that just another human superstition. When he saw the guy with the machine gun come in, he was about to rethink some of those superstitions.
“No one get up or try to make a call and everything will be fine. I'm just after one person and that is the only person I need identified. Someone just wants to talk to her, and no one will get hurt if no one does anything stupid.” He looked right at Ranger’s Toni.
He felt sure that Toni had already pressed her button and that had alerted security and they would be on their way. Ranger nodded at her because the hallway would be a better place to deal with this guy. The man had to be suicidal because there was no way to get all the way out of this resort without being taken out.
Toni seemed to be getting entirely too used to being attacked. She calmly stood and began walking toward the guy that was holding the machine gun. Ranger was ready to take action if it looked like anything serious was about to happen. When it did, he was as shocked as the machine gun guy was. Toni was close enough that they could touch. It was true she looked delicate and sweet and like she couldn't hurt a fly, but she flew into action grabbed the machine gun and slid it along the floor and then slapped him as hard as she could.
Before he could react, Ranger had moved with blinding speed and took the guy out. He was on the floor unconscious, and Ranger reach down and slapped restraints on him. When he was done, he looked up and saw security coming in to deal with what was left. It irritated him and he knew that made no sense since they had arrived quickly. It was more important to figure out how this guy made it in here with a machine gun. At this point he was sure that he needed more than one agent to work on this mystery.
He wasn't even sure that Joe had been the one to send him. But if not Joe, could it be the rebels. They knew about technology and if they had gotten ahold of a ship that carried it, they could flash people in past the guards. In that case, he had no reason to be upset at security at all. If he found any sign that it was true, he would have to get a force field that would not only keep them out but warn when they were trying to get in.
It seemed that life since he had come to Earth had been anything but simple. He was having to deal with the issues of the empire that he normally did but also all the things that being on this planet involved. Either of those issues would be plenty but he was dealing with both. Ranger wondered if he mated Toni and she learned all the secrets of his kind, would she be a big help with some of the things that were going on now.
Every time he felt like they were getting closer something like this happened and made things harder. ”Why did you attack him?” Ranger asked.
