Protected

by Lexi Blake

  When she looked up Hutch had completely disappeared. But she wasn’t alone. Her boss occupied the entrance to her cubicle, his massive body damn near blocking out the light. He was frowning and holding a file folder.

  “You want to explain to me why you’ve completely screwed up my filing system?” His deep voice nearly sent her into a panic.

  “I…uhm, well, I thought it made more sense to file it alphabetically, sir.”

  “It doesn’t make sense to me. I liked it the other way. Put it back.”

  She took a deep breath and was about to nod when she remembered what Wade had told her. If she didn’t start standing up for herself, she would always be this person—good and kind and marginalized. It wasn’t fair that the world was a fight, but it was true, and she had to deal with it. She could be strong or she could let asshole men walk all over her.

  “No.”

  A brow rose over his eyes. “Excuse me?”

  She stood up, going toe to toe with the man. Sure he had a foot and a half on her, but she wasn’t going to let that stop her. It was time. She could make her stand and she would either get the relationship with her boss she wanted or she would find another job. No more compromise. No more getting through the day simply to survive. She wanted more out of life and she would never get it if she didn’t take it for herself. “I said no. Do you know why I redid your client files? Because the way you have them is ridiculous.”

  His eyes went steely. “I had them in the order in which I worked them. They were timeline proper.”

  “I don’t know your timeline. No one who is going to need those files knows your timeline. And some of them overlap. Some clients have hired you more than once.”

  He glared at her like she’d made his point for him. “That’s why they have two files.”

  “Which is redundant and silly because what happens if the person who retrieves the file doesn’t know you’re an OCD crazy person who’s a slave to the timeline? Alphabetic is the only way to go. And in the meantime, I’m going to rename every file so it corresponds to the actual name of the client or person of interest. Crazy Doctor Lady Erin Murdered is not a proper file name. Neither is Douchebag Collective Agent My Wife Blew Up.” She was going now, gaining some real steam. “And while we’re at it, you know for a dude who plays the badass, you have a lot of women saving people in here.”

  Taggart’s eyes never left hers. “Did you not see the file marked Asshole Russian Mobster I Knifed? And for your information, I’m planning several future murders. Those files are coded in pink. Because they haven’t gone to red yet.”

  He was insane. “I think all future murders should be in a different place. Maybe all files with future murder plans should be kept in a more secure location so you don’t tip off the people you’re planning to murder. Have you thought of that? No. You were too busy trying to figure out how to get rid of the new girl. Well, guess what? I need this job. You will get rid of me in a body bag, and I promise I won’t go down as easy as that asshole Russian mob guy. I will bleed all over your precious carpet and when I’m gone, I’m coming back as a ghost and I will make your life miserable. I will wake you up from every nap. You know how you spend like an hour in the bathroom every morning? Yeah, I already know all about that. My ghost is going to make bathroom time unbearable. You’ll crap as fast as you can so you can get away from me. Do I make myself clear?”

  His eyes narrowed, and she was sure she was going to get kicked out. Wade would be upset with her. She would have to find another job. It would be totally worth it because she wasn’t putting up with assholes anymore.

  And then he smiled, a glorious expression that lit up his face and made him seem younger. “You’re totally mean. I like you. You know it’s wrong to threaten to disrupt a man’s bathroom time. I’ve got three kids and a dog. None of them respect my privacy. This office is the only place where I get to be alone.”

  Then there was room for negotiation. “Good, then I promise to be a Valkyrie guarding the bathroom door when you need me to. That is sacred time and space and I will defend it from children, wives, and encroaching CIA special ops teams, and in exchange, I get to make these files something a sane person can understand.”

  He seemed to think about it for a moment. “Okay. I’m starting to see the pros of having an assistant.”

  There was more she wanted. “And I get to read them. Not because I’m CIA but because I’m bored and I honestly want to know how your wife blew up that dude.”

  He nodded. “It was cool. His parts went all over the Arabian Sea. I like to think about him in the bowels of some shark. Deal. And if I ever find out you’re a CIA plant, I get to kill you and you don’t come back as a ghost.”

  She held her hand out. “I think I can safely make that bargain.”

  He shook her hand. “Welcome to the team, Harris.”

  “Are you serious? We get to keep her?” Charlotte Taggart was standing a few feet away, an expectant look in her eyes. “Sorry to interrupt. Hutch came and told me you were about to get rid of another one.”

  So that’s where Hutch had gone.

  Taggart let go of her hand and held one out to his wife. “This one claims she’ll come back as a ghost if I murder her. She’s rude and called me a moron. She’s perfect. I also think she’s a little bloodthirsty. She’s going to fit in. Now, Harris, I’m going to need you to do that Valkyrie thing we were talking about.”

  “You’re going to enjoy some afternoon bathroom time?” It was weird, but she was going with it.

  He tugged on his wife’s hand. “There’s probably going to be anal involved, so I think it should count.”

  “Ian,” Charlotte said, but she was laughing.

  He handed Genny the file in his hand. “You can file this one, too. Seriously, no one gets in this office.”

  She took the folder. “I’ll make sure of it.”

  He disappeared with his wife. She watched as the blinds closed and heard the lock click into place.

  Hutch popped up over the cubicle wall. “Dude, you handled him perfectly. So, what were we talking about?” He winked. “I think it was kisses.”

  She rolled her eyes and laughed as she sank down to her chair. She glanced at the folder in her hand and suddenly kind of loved her new boss.

  Dick Who Hurt Wade’s Chick And Is Going To Die

  It was coded pink.

  She sniffled a little because she might have finally found a place where she belonged.

  * * * *

  Wade stepped out into the parking garage. He wished he could do what he wanted to do and hold the door open for her, but he had to start adjusting her to the protocols they would use whenever they went out. “Sorry. I should go first.”

  She had a grin on her face. It had been there since the moment he’d stopped at her cubicle and found her flirting with Hutch. “It’s cool. I suspect it’s some kind of protection thing.”

  “Protocol,” he corrected. He wasn’t grinning. He was kind of sick to his stomach because she’d seemed incredibly happy talking to the younger man. Hutch was goofy, but he supposed he could see the appeal. Hutch was open and funny, and he’d never left her behind to be tortured because he was too self-involved to see his girlfriend was trying to save him.

  He might be jealous. Heinously jealous.

  “Protocol.” She seemed to consider the word. “I like it. It sounds very professional.”

  “I am professional. I’ve been doing this for years now. I can protect you. You know Hutch is really only good with computers.” And Hutch was a pilot, but he wasn’t going to mention that. Nor would he mention that Hutch had been key to one of McKay-Taggart’s most dangerous and celebrated operations. When he thought about it, the kid was kind of a badass.

  She stopped in the middle of the parking garage. It was later than he usually left, but she’d wanted to stay behind and finish her first round of files. Apparently Tag had some meeting that kept her out of his office most of the afternoon. Wade didn’t see w
hy that meant Genny had to stay late, but she was so enthusiastic about it, he hadn’t complained.

  Nope. He’d sat and stewed about Hutch.

  “Hutch?” She was standing there staring at him.

  He jogged back to her, glancing around to make sure they were alone. “Hey, another part of protocol is staying with me at all times. It’s okay when you’re inside the office. Consider it a safe zone, but if we’re walking out in the open, I need you to be fully aware of your surroundings. We’ve still got a few weeks, but I’ve got to get you ready for when Brock gets out. Now come on. We’ve got a lot to talk about.”

  He took her hand, happy when her fingers curled around his. At least she was following his lead. He strode to his big truck and opened the passenger side door. He could be a gentleman in this case. He helped her up.

  “There’s no reason for you to be jealous of Hutch. He gave me a few kisses, that’s all.”

  He dropped her hand, turned, and started back toward the office. Hutch’s truck was still here. He would kill the little fucker and that would teach him. He would torture him first. Hutch liked computers. Wade would see how much he liked them when they were shoved hard up his ass.

  “Wade.” Genny ran after him, her laughter a musical sound he didn’t want to hear right now. “Wade, come on. I was joking. He let me raid his desk for chocolate. Those kind of kisses. Please don’t murder him.”

  He stopped, completely embarrassed. He hadn’t been thinking. She was used to being around a man who took out his temper on her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  She grinned up at him, her hand on his arm. “You didn’t scare me. Why would you… Wade, I know you’re not Brock. I’ve always known that. I’m not terrified of all men. Hell, I’m not afraid of Big Tag. He’s kind of funny once you let him know where the boundaries are.”

  “You gave Tag boundaries?” He’d been afraid to leave her alone with Ian. Not because he thought Ian would hurt her, but because he could be intimidating at times. Now that he thought about it, Big Tag was actually perfect for Genny to start practicing her newfound sass on because he would like her more if she gave him hell.

  “Very firm ones, but I also offered him something in exchange. We’re going to get along fine, Tag and I. And Hutch and I are only ever going to be friends. He talks way too much about Game of Thrones, but he does have a lot of candy so it evens out to a nice friendship.” She moved her hand up to his shoulder. “I’m not interested in Hutch, but there is this guy who works in the office I am interested in.”

  His whole body went on full alert. He had things to tell her, things that were important, but was here really the place to do that? Here was the place to talk about work things and who she was interested in. Interested in seeing? Interested in spending more time with? “Who might that be?”

  Her eyes met his, heating up. “He’s in the bodyguard unit and he told me once that if I ever want a real kiss, I should ask him.”

  He could feel the erection coming on like a runaway locomotive. He’d spent the last few months going without. The scene at Sanctum had gotten boring for him. At first it had been filled with excitement, but watching all his friends settle down had made him look at his life in a different way. Having Genny back in it made him absolutely sure he didn’t want casual sex. He wanted a woman who belonged to him, who he belonged to. He wanted disgusting, nasty, utterly committed sex. “Then you should definitely ask.”

  “Wade, will you kiss me?”

  She looked sweet with her head tilted up and that look of expectation in her eyes. It struck him suddenly that he’d kissed a lot of women since the last time he’d kissed her and she’d only kissed one man, and that hadn’t been of her own free will. He’d been the first boy she’d kissed. She’d been shy and hadn’t dated much in high school. Her father had insisted she study and kept her on a tight curfew. He’d been wild while she’d studied hard.

  He’d cost her everything.

  “I don’t know that I have a right to.” It physically hurt to step back, but he didn’t feel worthy of her. “Come on. I should get you home. Ash will be waiting.”

  His boots rang along the concrete in the otherwise silent garage. He walked toward the truck again. He stopped when he didn’t hear her heels echoing. When he looked back, she was standing there again, staring at him.

  Damn it. She was probably going to cry. He’d hurt her when he was trying hard not to. How did he explain this to her?

  He stood there like an idiot, his hand on her door waiting for her. “Genny, come on. Let’s talk.”

  She was still for a moment and then her heels made an angry staccato sound along the concrete. “I think we’ve talked long enough. Do you remember when I mentioned you owed me? I was talking about more than protection. Do you have any idea how long it’s been since I had an orgasm? Well, if you’re not supplying them, buddy, we should stop at a toy shop on the way home. I’m going to need a vibrator.”

  She ignored his hand and hauled herself up into the truck.

  Damn it. “I’m sorry.”

  She looked straight ahead. “It’s okay. I’m sorry I said anything. I thought you were still attracted to me. I would like to know something, though. Is it because I’ve aged or because you don’t want to touch anything Brock touched?”

  His stomach took a deep dive. “God, no, Genny. Nothing like that. I want you so bad but when you looked up at me all I could think of was the fact that I’m the only man you’ve ever really kissed, and I didn’t deserve it then. I don’t know that I deserve you now. I want to go back. I want to be yours and to have only ever been yours. When you looked up at me, I had a flash of where we should be. Ash would have been our first kid but not our last. We would have raised our kids on Army bases and then come back here. We would be an old married couple, but I would still want to hold your hand because I would have forgotten what it felt like to be without you. I wouldn’t be a thirty-three-year-old man who never had a real relationship because he let the only woman he ever loved go. I wouldn’t ache every day with this hole inside because we didn’t get that life.”

  She turned to him, her eyes softening. She twisted around so she was sideways in the seat, her legs hanging out of the cab, but she was able to look him in the eyes. “You have to let that go. I did a long time ago. Maybe it was easier because I had a reason to.”

  He knew what that reason was. “You had Ash.”

  “He wouldn’t have been ours. He’s unique and only comes from one moment in time, from one random second that produced him. I hate Brock, but you should know that I would do it all again because I would never want a world without Ash in it.” Tears filled her eyes. “Wade, you can pull away from me because you think it won’t work. You can do it because you don’t feel that way about me. I can accept both of those reasons, but not because you feel guilty, not because you think I’m expecting the boy you were. And don’t rewrite history. That boy was good to me. He showed me how good lovemaking could be. He’s the reason I’m not afraid today. He’s the reason I knew none of what I went through was normal. He was one of the reasons I survived. I will honor the kids we were, but I don’t need to be them again. You should kiss me if you’re interested in the woman I am today, because damn, I want the man you are.”

  Something deep inside welled up. He wasn’t sure what to call it—passion, love, hope. They were all in there, but it was more. It was the desperate need to connect with her again. It pushed him past guilt, past sorrow. He cupped her face, looking at her without that terrible debt between them. What if they could move forward without the past weighing them down? He stared at her for a moment, taking in the years that had passed. They showed in the gentle lines of her face, the slight creases around her mouth. They also showed in the strength in her gaze. He’d loved the girl she’d been, gentle and smart and kind. He didn’t even have words for what the woman made him feel. “You are more beautiful than anything I’ve ever seen. Anything.”

  She was mo
re beautiful than she’d been before. She’d survived and she was going to thrive.

  He lowered his mouth to hers, connecting them for the first time in years.

  Their first kiss had been awkward. He’d leaned over as they’d sat on the porch swing and brushed his lips over her mouth. Well, that’s what he’d intended to do, but she’d moved and he’d ended up kind of licking her chin. They’d laughed and tried again.

  They needed no second try this time. His mouth came down on hers and a flash fire started in his system. He kissed her and his brain damn near shut down. All that mattered was the feel of her. How soft her lips were. The feel of her arms going around his neck. The slow drag of her tongue across his bottom lip. God, when was the last time he’d wanted a woman the way he did this one?

  He knew the answer. Fifteen years ago. But this was here and now and they were in a parking garage, and fuck it all, he didn’t care.

  He deepened the kiss, letting his tongue play with hers. There was nothing tentative about her kiss. She was all in, her body brushing his as she twisted in the seat.

  He let his hands roam, learning her curves again.

  “God, I missed this. I dreamed about this,” she whispered when he let her breathe.

  He didn’t need to breathe. She was his oxygen. He let his hands find her hips and shifted her, bringing them chest to chest. She tried to get her legs around him, but the skirt was too tight.

  He’d thought about that damn skirt all day. It hugged her, showed off her hips and that luscious ass of hers. He kissed her again and again and it wasn’t enough.

  “Baby, let me get you home.”

  She shook her head as her hands found the bottom of his shirt and pulled it free of his jeans. “No. Ash is home and he would know what we’re doing. I would never hear the end of it.”

  God, he had an impressionable teen in his home now. He had to start thinking. “All right. I’ll find us a motel.”

  He could do that. Lots of dudes with massive erections walked up to the front desk and begged for rooms.