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“What? Tell me you’re joking.” I spied a flash of fear in her goddess eyes before she covered it up with a scowl.
“No. I wish I was, but this is as real as it gets. And those flowers tell me we have to look at more than just the club patrons. We need to consider your employees too. Someone who had access to your office to put them in here.”
“They were signed for by one of my girls and put back here.” She shrugged, like that ended the discussion about her stalker.
“That’s beside the point. I’m staying because we’re going to get to the bottom of this. Plus, you’ve not read the damn letter. Evan’s final orders were to see that you did. And I’m not leaving until then. So you’re stuck with me, sweetheart.”
“You do realize I could hold out until you need to report back in, right? That I don’t have to cave just because Evan decided to play god.”
I hadn’t considered she would do something like that because I figured she would want to read it. “If it comes to it, I will restrain you and read you the damn thing myself. Don’t make me go to that extreme, Moira.”
She snorted. “And I can kick you out of my house and bar you from entering my place of business. So we’re at a stalemate. You can try to force my hand, but I will retaliate in kind. I don’t appreciate what Evan did and will not read the damn thing until I’m good and ready.”
I wanted to applaud her diatribe. She might be half my size, but she was fierce, and determination rippled from every pore. In a physical fight, I would win because of my size and skills, but I knew she’d fight dirty, and that made her a wild card. I nodded. “Noted.”
“Why aren’t the others staying? And why are you the one staying behind?”
“We’ve only got thirty days of leave before we each have to report in for our next assignments. And we’re burning time here.”
She digested the news with a slight frown. “I see. And you? Why you, Ben? Why are you the one staying behind?”
“Evan was my best friend. I will see the last orders he ever gave me are completed.” It was as simple and complex as that.
“Fine. You can stay.”
“What does the card say?” I nodded toward the flowers.
She gestured to them as she took a seat in her desk chair. “Find out for yourself. I have work to get done.”
“I didn’t think you were dancing tonight.”
“Originally, I wasn’t, but one of my girls called in sick. On weekdays I might allow an intermission of sorts, but on the weekends, forget about it. All dance slots need to be filled. They’re the busiest nights for the club. I don’t even know why I’m explaining myself to you.”
“So, you have to dance again tonight?” I didn’t know what I would do if I had to sit through another one of her routines. I practically came out of my skin with the first one.
“If I can’t get one of my girls who are off tonight to fill in, I will. That twelve-thirty slot is a popular one I can’t have go empty.”
I just had to face the fact that I was going to be sitting in the audience with a hard-on after her next show. “We’re not leaving until you’re done for the night.”
“Well, then, you and the boys better make yourselves comfortable because you’ve got a long night ahead. You might want to think about ordering some food. I recommend the pulled pork sandwiches.”
“That’s it? Just get some grub and hang out?”
“Yes, unless you want to take a spin around the pole. I have work to do.” She shooed me away with her hands.
I’d been subsequently dismissed. She ignored me as I stood before her desk and began working on the computer.
Damn fool, stubborn woman. She wasn’t going to make this easy. “This isn’t over.”
“It is for tonight, Ben.”
Clenching my hands into fists and needing the last word, I strode to the desk, planted my hands atop the smooth wood, and leaned forward so she would be forced to look up at me. “Let’s get one thing straight. Until this perp is caught and behind bars, you will inform me of anything that arises. If you’re getting text messages or flowers delivered, I need to know about it. You’re going to inform me of everything this creep does.”
“And if I don’t?”
“You’re a smart woman, Moira. You’ve got a problem that needs to be dealt with. Only an idiot would allow themselves to be terrorized this way and not accept the help offered.”
I pushed away from the desk and sauntered out of the office without a backward glance. It was either that, or I’d do something I’d regret, like see if her lips were truly as soft as they had been the first time. And while I had black marks tarnishing my soul, I didn’t intend to add more to the list.
