~~~~
“You did that on purpose.” Sera crossed her arms over her chest, stopping short of tapping her foot at her boss.
Ronwald sat at his desk and picked up a file. “Yes I did.”
Her eyes bugged out. “Why?”
“He’s interested in you.”
“What? No, he’s not. I knew his aunt and he happened to see me at her viewing a few weeks ago.”
Ronwald sat back in his chair and steepled his hands in front of him, regarding her. After what seemed like forever, he stood and walked around to the front of his desk and sat on the corner.
“Sarah, I may not ‘read people’ the way you do, but I know when a guy wants a girl. And he wants you. Trust me.”
She swallowed. This conversation was making her nervous. And not because Ron thought Detective Stone had a crush on her.
“I want you to… shall we say… encourage him. Make sure a missing snitch is the only thing he’s after.”
“Are you crazy? I can’t do that. He’s a cop.”
“Yes, you can.”
Flame shook her head. “It’s one thing to use my intuition to help you keep lowlifes out of the club—”
“Which you’re paid handsomely for.”
She sighed. She’d known this day would come. The day when her boss would become greedy and want more. “I’m sorry, Ron. I just can’t do it. I won’t be party to interfering in a police investigation.” Flame prayed Gregor would respect her wishes.
Ronwald gave a quick jerk of his head. “I understand.” He swiveled the chair around and spun the dial on the safe. The metallic click of the wheel rotating grated on Sera’s already shredded nerves. After what seemed like an eternity, the door popped open and Ron reached in. He turned back around and tossed a bundle of twenties on the desk.
“Here you go. It's three months’ pay plus a bonus.”
Sera’s eyes bugged out and her mouth fell open. It took several seconds for her to recover from the shock of what Gregor was saying without putting it into words. “You're firing me?”
“I'm sorry, but you just became a liability I can't afford.” His words held a finality he didn’t have to voice out loud. If she wouldn’t do as he said, he was cutting his losses.
A liability? “Why? Because I knew some guy’s aunt?”
“No, because you knew a cop’s aunt, and said detective isn't going to go away now that he's found you. Had he come in here and learned nothing about his missing informant, he’d have walked out the door without looking back. But you… you changed that. Now his focus is on you and what you’re doing here, not on some two-bit snitch.”
Flame couldn’t believe what she was hearing. It’s not like she’d encouraged the detective. And Ron was the one who’d invited the man back to view surveillance tapes. She stiffened her spine, stood as tall as she could, and narrowed her eyes at Gregor. “And if I refuse?”
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Kay Springsteen makes her home in Virginia near the Blue Ridge Mountains. In addition to having written five full-length contemporary romance novels and one Regency romance, she works as an editor. When she's not editing or writing, Kay is busy with her hobbies of reading, photography, gardening, hiking in the mountains with one of her rescue dogs, spending time with her terrific family. She is a firm believer in happily ever after endings and knows one is out there for everyone; it just may not be exactly what was expected. Find Kay on Facebook and at her Blog.
If you ask bestselling author Kim Bowman's husband, he'd say she spends her days emailing her cyber best friend and writing partner, Kay Springsteen, drinking soda, and eating white chocolate. While that might be true, she also chases their five-year-old son Cage around, thinks about the housework she should be doing, and brainstorms her next favorite book. She's had the writing bug since she was a teenager and is happy to now live her dream of being a full-time author. You can find Kim on Facebook, Twitter, and her Blog.
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