by Vivian Arend
“Parker knows shit-all about this level of computer work,” Pepper replied, trying to keep her voice as calm as possible. “I, on the other hand, have not one, but two backups of the project at my apartment.”
Charlene blinked. “You do?”
“Yes, and you would’ve known that already if you had let me finish.” Pepper clenched her teeth. “So right now, I’m going to pretend you didn’t say all those nasty things, and I’m going to fix this error. Which, by the way, was not a result of anything I did. Files get corrupted sometimes. It happens. I’ll go home and grab the extra drives, and we’ll be good to go.”
The other woman still didn’t look happy, but her cheeks lost some of their crimson red flush. “Fine,” she snapped. “Go get them. I’ll be done at the salon in an hour.”
“Fine,” Pepper mimicked. “I’ll meet you back here and we’ll get everything taken care of.”
Without another word, Charlene marched out the door, leaving Pepper to gather her equipment in stony silence. God. This was the last thing she needed. She’d stayed up half the night adding the newly found pictures to the stupid project in an attempt to impress Charlene, and instead of receiving a thank-you for all her hard work, she’d gotten a scathing verbal assault instead.
But she refused to let her mind linger on the hurtful words Charlene had hurled her way. She wasn’t a child. She was smart and mature and fully capable of handling this gig without running to Parker or Jack for assistance. In fact, she had no intention of telling them about the corrupted file. They had enough on their plates at the moment.
Slinging her bag over her shoulder, Pepper reached for her cell phone and quickly pulled up Kendra’s number as she hurried to the hotel lobby. “Hey,” she blurted when her friend answered. “I really, really need your help right now!”
Kendra’s voice was laced with concern. “What’s wrong?”
“Did you end up going to that shoe store on 23rd? The one down the road from the Grande Hotel?”
“Yeah, I’m there now. Why—?”
“Can you come pick me up from the hotel? I desperately need a ride back to our place. Like right now.”
“Sure, but what’s going on—?”
“I’ll tell you everything when you get here,” Pepper interrupted. “Just hurry.”
A beat. Then Kendra spoke briskly. “I’m on my way.”
Like a true friend, Kendra not only burned rubber into the parking lot, she burned rubber out, after Pepper leapt into the moving vehicle. She strapped herself in while pressed against the door.
“I am so glad you were in the area. I’m having the most incredibly shitty morning ever, but you’re a lifesaver.”
“You sound frazzled. Take a couple deep breaths, and we’ll get you home as soon as possible,” Kendra soothed. “But what the heck happened?”
“Technology sucks.” Pepper leaned her head back and took the advice, breathing slowly and trying to calm her rapidly beating heart. “I had a file failure, and to make it worse, Princess Charlene had to be there to witness my faux pas, so now I’m playing catch-up. I’ve got maybe fifty minutes left before I have to prove myself.”
“You have what you need at the apartment?”
Pepper nodded. “I was smart enough to make backups. Of course, I could have been even smarter and stuck the damn things in my pocket instead of leaving them on my desk.”
“Don’t beat yourself up over it,” Kendra said as they closed in on the apartment. “Only, you should probably double-check your files before you leave.”
“Definitely. I’m so paranoid it will totally be worth the extra two minutes to make sure everything is in order.” She glanced over at her friend, who was concentrating on pulling into one of the few parking stalls along the road. “Wait here for me?”
Kendra shook her head. “I have to run upstairs, too. I forgot a couple of things I need for later tonight.”
The two of them raced through the security at the front door and into the elevator, the slow ride leaving Pepper feeling as if there weren’t enough air in the teeny box. Gears above them clicked like a countdown timer.
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
But even when they burst into the apartment, she wasn’t going to be a fool and simply accept the other drives were ready. Maybe the set she’d bought were damaged to begin with.
She dropped behind her computer and hurriedly checked her work.
Behind her, Kendra was moving around in the kitchen. “I know we’re in a rush, but when you’ve got what you need, you might want to touch up your makeup. You look like you’ve seen a ghost. A little bit of armor when you face Charlene might be a good thing.”
Dammit. Pepper jammed the media sticks into her pocket and rushed into her bedroom, slipping into the bathroom to examine her face carefully for a moment.
She didn’t think she looked pale. If anything, all the rushing around had brought a flush to her cheeks, and her eyes were bright. The only thing she could think of was dragging a brush through her hair and grabbing a colored lip balm so when she told Charlene to kiss her ass, she’d do it in style.
She had both hands raised in the air when out of the corner of her eye she noticed the bathroom door swinging closed. She jerked around and grabbed for the doorknob, but it was too late. An ominous click rang through the miniscule room. “Fuck. No. Not now.”
Even with two hands on the knob and twisting as hard as she could, the door refused to budge. Frantically, Pepper placed her palms on the door and banged. “Kendra. Help, I’m trapped in this damn room again.”
Her friend’s anxious reply came a couple moments later. “Pepper? What are you doing?”
“The portal to hell closed on me. Get me out.” God. Why now?
The scrambling noises from the other side of the door weren’t very reassuring. Since they’d moved into the apartment, Pepper had gotten stuck in the bathroom two more times after that initial adventure. She’d taken to leaving the door propped open for a reason.
“It’s not moving,” Kendra moaned. “I’ll get the supe. Be back right away.”
“Wait,” Pepper called, but this time there was no answer.
She stared at the solid barrier between her and freedom for all of two seconds before twirling toward the window. Screw this. The last time it had taken nearly an hour to track down the maintenance dude, and Pepper didn’t have anywhere near that amount of time. She jerked open the window and stuck her head out, examining the fire escape.
There had to be laws against this, but she didn’t give a damn. Pepper made her way onto the rickety metal platform outside her bathroom, clutching the railing tightly as she stayed as close to the wall as possible.
She reached for her phone to tell Kendra to meet her down at the car, but the check came up empty. Her phone—
Of course. She could picture it, lying beside her computer where she’d dropped it in her frantic rush to check the flash drives.
One cautious step after the other, Pepper made her way down the fire escape, metal creaking around her. Bits of paint flaked off and left her hands covered with a light dusting of black metallic flecks.
Lowering the final section of ladder caused a loud screeching noise like a dragon calling out its dismay at intruders invading its territory. Pepper was far more worried about the final drop from the bottom of the ladder to the ground in the back alley. She took a deep breath and worked her way down until she was clinging to the bottom rung.
Why did she have to be so short?
She let go, timing it the best she could and using her knees to absorb the shock of the final five or six feet as she free fell. Momentum sent her all the way to her ass, but as she gingerly brought herself back to her feet it was to find she’d made it in one piece.
“Holy crap, maybe I should join the guys when they do recon.” She gave a fist pump then raced to the front of the building. She could use the intercom to get ahold of Kendra. Or maybe the phone at the—
Kendra’s car was gone.
Moving slowly toward the mysteriously empty space didn’t give her any more clues as to why it was empty. “Where the hell…?”
“Penny?”
Could this day get any weirder? She whirled toward the voice.
“Adam?”
Her former classmate stood to the side of the front entrance, clutching his hands awkwardly. He wore jeans and a faded green T-shirt, and his black hair had grown out since she’d last seen him, curling under his ears. He was a handsome guy, but the sight of him only made her angry.
“I need to talk to you,” Adam said, sounding distressed. “I want to explain—”
“I really don’t have time for this right now.” The panic she’d felt earlier was back, and a whole lot stronger. “I have work to do, and there isn’t anything that I want to talk to you about, you shit.”
“I didn’t post about you,” he burst out. “I swear I didn’t. My Facebook page was hacked, and the next thing I know someone posted stuff that I never would’ve dreamed of sharing, and I had no way of getting rid of it or changing it.”
There were way too many questions she needed answered, but at least he had her attention. “You know, that’s fascinating, but this is not a good time. I need to be somewhere else five minutes ago.”
“I can drive you,” he offered eagerly before cringing. “I know, I’m probably one of the last people you would trust, but I swear, anything you need and I promise I’ll do what I can to help you. I feel so awful about—”
“Give me your driver’s license,” she demanded. Along with the mystery of Kendra’s missing car, the media sticks were burning a hole in her pocket. She needed to get back to the gala this instant.
Adam fumbled in his wallet then handed the card to her.
She pointed at him, backing toward the coffee shop to the side of the apartment doors. “I’m leaving your info with my friend. If anything happens to me, they will know exactly who to track down.”
He nodded. “I’ll grab the Jeep.”
She was walking a fool’s path, but Pepper had no choice. After doing what she needed to be safe by leaving Adam’s information with Timothy the barista, Adam could take her back to the hotel, and maybe during the drive he could explain what the heck he was talking about.
A sea of happy faces surrounded Jack, the grand foyer of the hotel filled with people greeting each other enthusiastically. A festive mood hovered in the air along with the hum of voices.
“I’ve checked the perimeter, sir. Other than the actual guests of honor, most of the gala attendees are trickling in at a steady pace.” Gillian stood at ease beside him, her dark brown eyes taking in every inch of the room as she reported in. “Looks like another successful mission completed.”
Jack fought the urge to snap off a salute. “You do know this is a party we set up, not a military coup.”
Gillian looked sheepish for a moment, before letting out a sigh. “You guys think I’m a total stick-in-the-mud, huh?”
“That’s not true,” he protested.
“I’m not, you know,” she said as if he hadn’t spoken. “I can be a lot of fun.”
He’d seen enough humor twinkling in her eyes to know she wasn’t lying, but he couldn’t help but make a cautious remark. “You could stand to lighten up sometimes.”
“I know.” Something indecipherable crossed her expression. “I’m just trying to be professional. The last time I let my guard down…” She didn’t finish the sentence, just shrugged instead. “I appreciate this job, Jack. I really do.”
He smiled, realizing it was the first time she’d used his name instead of sir. “Good. We’re glad to have you on board.”
They turned together to face the hallway leading to the grand ballroom where the festivities would start in just a few hours’ time. “I’m going to go check on Pepper. You need anything?”
Gillian shook her head. “Dean and I leave at seventeen hundred hours for that last-minute recon assignment. Everything else is in order, and with Colby as backup, you should be fine.”
The woman was right. There really wasn’t that much for DreamMakers to do at this point anymore. Most of their work was over once they’d dealt with the timing and coordination of getting people to the event.
Except for Pepper. She had a job to complete, and he was primed to cheer her on as she showed off her stuff.
He found himself grinning as he took the stairs two at a time up to the room where she’d organized her computer equipment. After the incredible evening they’d shared, there hadn’t been a chance yet for him to do the next thing. He wasn’t about to simply blurt out in front of everyone exactly how he felt. But once they were finished with this gala, Jack had plans to steal her away. Head up the coast and rock her socks off at some classy resort.
Tell her he was crazy about her. Crazier than she might even have guessed, smart woman that she was.
He cautiously stuck his head through the doorway, not wanting to interrupt her if she was busy.
There was no one behind the computer desk.
“That little bitch. I bet she did this on purpose.”
Jack spun around at the outraged feminine cry. Charlene stood in the doorway, her hair artfully arranged in an elegant updo, her blue eyes bright with anger. “What?”
The anger turned on him. “If she’s not back in time, I’m holding you responsible. What were you thinking, giving your girlfriend a pity job like that? Don’t you realize how important this is to me?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said evenly. “Where’s Pepper?”
“Gallivanting around the countryside—how the hell should I know? She said she had a backup dick or something she would go and get, but she was probably lying.” Charlene planted her fists on her hips and hit him with a quivering lip on top of the anger and frustration. “My parents are scheduled to arrive in less than thirty minutes. I don’t have time to track down your fuck buddy and get her to do her damn job.”
It was easy to deduce there’d been some sort of snag with the media display, though Jack tensed at Charlene’s words—backup dick. The nasty insinuation only pissed him off, but he swallowed his irritation as he pulled out his cell phone and quickly brought up Pepper’s number. “Let me see where she is,” he told Charlene in the most polite tone he could muster.
But all he got was ring after ring, before Pepper’s phone switched over to voicemail. Worry tugged his insides. “She’s not answering.”
“Of course she’s not answering. She’s probably off somewhere laughing her ass off that she’s pulled a fast one on me. Immature little brat.”
His hand shot up in warning. “Stop. Whatever your opinion on my relationship with Pepper, she’s still a professional, and if she said she’s coming back, then she’s coming back.” He stepped to the door. “I’ll go check the parking lot. Maybe she’s just pulling in.”
Charlene followed hard on his heels. “I want to know what you’re going to do if she doesn’t show up. Surely you didn’t trust this entire portion of the program to some wet-behind-the-ears unproven employee.”
Jack didn’t answer. Truth was, they didn’t have a Plan B, and he didn’t think they’d need one. Pepper was a lot of things, but she took her work seriously. If she wasn’t here, then that meant something was wrong.
With concern squeezing his chest, he hurried to the stairwell and dashed down to the lobby, moving slightly slower to avoid attracting attention as he crossed the floor to the front door. Incredibly, even in her spiky high heels, Charlene hit the exit on his heels, rushing outside in a flurry of frilly green satin and lace. She stomped her way toward the parking lot, head dipping from side to side like a bobblehead toy.
She whirled, brow raised, complete disgust in her expression. “Well?”
Jack’s heart plummeted to his stomach like a brick. Pepper was nowhere in sight. Shit.
He glanced at his phone to check if she’d called back, but no luck. �
��Let me try calling her again.”
Her phone sent him to voice mail just as he spotted Parker marching up. Charlene noticed as well, squaring her shoulders as if preparing for battle.
“Jack, do you need help?” Parker’s wary green eyes shifted from Jack to Charlene. “Gillian said there seemed to be some commotion. Is something wrong?”
“Damn right there is!” Charlene fumed. “Your sister—” she said the word as if it carried a deadly virus, “—just screwed up everything!”
Parker’s body language was all too easy to read. He stiffened like a board, his total annoyance screaming out, and Jack wondered if he was going to have to defend Pepper all over again. Instead his friend turned on Charlene. “I’m sorry you’re upset. Give me a moment, and I’m sure we can straighten this out.”
“We don’t have any time. Your precious Pepper ran off to get some supposed backup file, and if she’s not here in the next—”
As if a higher power had heard her, the sound of a car engine roared through the parking lot. Jack swiveled his head, relief soaring through him when he glimpsed Kendra’s junker speed through the parking lot gates. The little sedan squealed to a stop in a nearby space, and then the driver’s door swung open.
Jack’s relief drained from his chest. It wasn’t Pepper. Just Kendra.
With tracks of tears rolling down her cheeks.
Chapter Sixteen
Of all the unbelievable situations Pepper could have pictured for that day, she was living the most impossible. Technological disasters, being abandoned by her best friend—which was the only freaking explanation she could think of for Kendra’s car being gone—and now add in Adam?
She wasn’t that much of a drinker, but at the end of this day, she was going to tie one on so hard she’d be incoherent for the next week.
Pepper took a deep breath and braced herself. “So. First up, how did you find me? No—first, what the hell were you thinking storming in on me and the guys and swinging your fucking—”
