Chapter 15
”What do you mean someone tried to kill my uncle?”Vic challenged.
”That”s all I know,”Joyce sniffed.”You would know more if you had bothered to show up to work on time.”
Vic”sface ached from how hard she was clenching her jaw.”Being five minutes earlier wouldn”t have changed anything. He”sbeen lockedin his office since seven a.m.”
Tracy had sent her a text first thing this morning. She”d come in a bit early to work on whatever the super-secret project was and heard whispers about an attempt on her uncle”s life. Of course, nowshefelt intense guilt about not going to her uncle”s yesterday and tried to rush inbutshe”d had to take public transportation, and, of course, there was a traffic issue. She”d gotten off blocks before her stop and practically ran to be here on time. She sure didn”t need her uncle”s guard dog giving her a hard time.
”If you want to know more, you”ll have to ask your uncle,”Joyce statedin a firm voice.
”Fine,”Vic turned towards the closed door.
”But you can”t go in now.He”sin there with Floyd and does not want to be disturbed.”
Vic fought the urge to smackthesmirk right offJoyce”sface. Hitting people was not her norm but honestly, she”d hit her limit with Joyce”s pettiness.She stalked back to her desk and sat down.
”Dragon lady looks smug. What did she say to you?”Tracy asked as she leaned over the top of the cubicle andtook a sip ofher iced coffee.
”Just what you said. Someone made another attempt on my uncle”s life, only she added that if I had been hereearlierI might have gotten more details about it all from him.”
”Don”t believe her.Hearrived and went straight intohisoffice with Floyd. Neither hasbeen seensince.Though, he did yell at Joyce when she opened the office door. You missed it. It was priceless. She opened it, not knowing he was in there, and we could hear his bellow from here.”She dropped her voice to mimic Vic”s uncle,”Get the hell out! I”ll call you if I need you.”
Vic didn”t mind the sense of comeuppance that came with knowing Joyce had gotten taken down a peg.
”She came out in a hurry, looking mortified. She glanced around to see if anyone noticed.It was only me and Peter,”Tracy gestured over her shoulder toward one of the guyswho wasworking on the project with her,”but she knewthatwe”d heard it.Ikind offelt bad for her to tell the truth.”
Vic blew out a breath, now feeling a tad of remorse.”Yeah, I get that. My uncle isn”t the nicest of souls sometimes.”
”True,”Tracy agreed.
”How do you know someone tried to…”She didn”t want to say the word kill, so she said,”harm my uncle?”
”Melvin. I rode the elevator up with him. He told me it happened overnight, although he was light on details.Apparently,your man took care of everything.”
”My man?”Vic asked.
”Ryker.”
Heat flew into Vic”s cheeks.”He”s not my man,”sheblurted.
Not with the speed he left her place yesterday. It had beentotallymortifyingandshe was experiencing second-degree guilt and regret about the whole…She let out another sigh. She wasn”t all that different from Joyce. They”d both been handed their asses by a man in the last twenty-four hours. Men sucked.
”Where is he, by the way,”Tracy asked.”You”d think he wouldn”t let your uncle out of his sight after what happened.”
”Iwouldn”t know,”Vic commented. She stood.”I”m going downstairs to get a real cup of tea from the shop in the lobby. Do you want anything?”
Tracy lifted her mug.”I”m good.”
Vic nodded, grabbed her purse, and walked to the elevator. She hit the button and then turned toward Joyce.Shereallyshould be nicer to the woman, orat leastmore tolerant.”Would you like anything from the coffee shop downstairs?”
Joyce looked up from her computer with a suspicious glare.”No,”she snapped and went back to her screen.
So much for being nice.Theelevator doors opened, andshestepped into the car. The ride to the lobby was short and blissfully quiet. She entered the coffee shop only to find a line. She cursed silently and took her spot.
”Morning,”a voice said.
She turned to find Ryker standing behind her.Heat filled her cheeks once againalthough,she wasn”t sure if it was more from embarrassment or anger.Shewas pissedat how he”d left things yesterday. Howhe”d left. It didn”t matter how much she tried to be the bigger person andjustaccept it; the whole thing sucked.She had been humiliated by his abrupt departure. She was determined to keep him at a distance from here on out.
”Morning,”she said and then turned back around.
”You left without waiting for a ride.”
She glanced back at him.”It”s fine. I took the bus.”
”I thought we agreed you weren”t going to take public transportation until further notice.”His eyes glitteredandshe suddenly realized he was pissed. Like…wellandtrulypissed at her. Welcome to the club.
She shrugged.”No one was downstairs when I came out, so I caught the bus.”
He lowered his mouth near her ear.”What if those other men had been there? What then?”
His voice and the heat of his breath sent minuscule electrical shockwaves across her skin. Her nipples hardened. She gritted her teeth and gave him a fake smile.”They were there. They waved. I waved back and got on the bus.”
A pulse jumped under Ryker”s jaw. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared at her. She held her ground, but it was damn hard. Her body reacted to him without her consent. His glower was sexy as hell when he aimed it at her. Get over it, she scolded herself. He was the one who took off yesterday. That officially let her off the hook for listening to anything he had to say. She turned back around and moved up in the line. Then she remembered her uncle and turned to face him.”What happened to my uncle last night?”
Ryker cocked an eyebrow.”Last night?”A pulse was still jumping in his jaw, and his eyes glittered.
She rolled her eyes.”Don”t bother playing coy. It”s all over the office that someone broke in and made another attempt on my uncle”s life.”
”Where did you hear that?”he rasped.
Suddenly, butterflies took flight in her stomach. She didn”t want to get anyone in trouble. Shehad a feeling he wouldn”t be so forgiving if he found out Melvin had spoken about it.”I have my sources,”she said much more firmly than she felt.”What happened?”
Ryker dipped his chin, indicating the line had moved ahead.
She huffed out a breath and moved forward but then turned back to face him.”Seriously, Ryker, what happened?”she fumed.
”I”m not at liberty to say.”She opened her mouth to complain, but he held up a hand.”I wouldn”t discuss it here no matterwhatthe situation,”he commented.
She glanced around.Hehad a point.Probablynot the best place to discuss someone trying to kill her uncle.
”But,”he continued,”I can”t speak about it anyway. It”s part of an ongoing investigationandI can”t comment on your uncle”s security.”
She narrowed her eyes at him.”But I brought you on. Surelyyoucan trust me with the details.”
”Sorry. I would need express permission from your uncle to tell you anything.”
”What about the police and the FBI? Will they be in this morning to talk to everyone?”
The pulse along Ryker”s jaw quickened.”I”m sorry, but I can”treallytalk about it.”
Ryker didn”t look sorry. He looked…annoyed. Like yesterday didn”t happen. Like they hadn”t had the best sex of her life. Hewas shutting her out. She”d brought him on board, and he was shutting her out. Fucking fine.
She turned back around, determined to ignore him.
She approached the counter and ordered a chai tea latte.
”Anything else?”the barista asked.
”Yes, a black coffee,”Ryker directed from behind her.
She turned to glare at himbuthe whipped out his credit card and paid before she could argue. She didn”t want him to pay. She didn”t want anything from him. Not anymore. Never again. She gave him a harsh smile and then moved to the other end of the counter to wait for her tea.
Eighteen more days, but who was counting? She heaved a long sigh. By rights, she should be looking into the family business, already preparing for this giant leap in her life.
But she was terrified. Her father had run an agricultural supply store before giving it up to live on the commune and start the solar farm. She had no idea what shape it would all be in. He had hated running the store, so she couldn”t imagine he”d been any good at running the solar farm.
Either way, it didn”t matter.She had some savings and she could live on the commune, if needed, until she could get the place up and running again properly. Not that she had any experience at that kind of thing, but she”d read a ton of books about the subject in the past few months, and she finally felt like she had a good knowledge baseor at least she hada place to start.And she excelled at research. That was key.
The barista called her name, and she grabbed her tea. She headed for the elevator, then hit the button to call it. Score! She caught an empty one right away. As the doors began to close, Ryker slid inside. She stared at him.”What are you doing here? I thought you had your coffee and left.”
”Had to make a phone call,”he said as he leaned against the rear wall of the elevator.
Ofcoursehe did.Sheclampedherjaws together. His scent filled the air around her.Lemon with somekind ofmint added.Her lady parts tingled. She tried not to breathe deeply. It just wasn”t fair.
”You seem better today.”
”What?”She frowned at him.
”You seem better. More relaxed.”He studied her with barely banked heat in his gazeandher nipples hardened.
”Right. Sure.”
She turned back to the front of the elevator and watched the numbers crawl by. Why couldn”t this old thing move faster? Why was it that the one time she wanted it tobe filledwith strangers, she was alone withRyker.The universe was not playing fair.
The elevator stopped on their floor. Before the doors opened, Ryker leaned over her shoulder and saidin a quiet voice,”For what it”s worth, I enjoyed yesterday very much.”Then the elevator doors openedandhe strolled out without a backward glance.
Vic was left standing there with her mouth open. Fucking unbelievable. What was it with this man leaving her behind?
”Vic?”Peter asked as hecame over tothe elevator.”Are you getting off?”He looked at her quizzically.
”Um, yeah,”she mumbled.
”Are you okay?”Peter asked. He was staring at her.”Your cheeks are flushed. Are you feeling ill?”
”Er, yeah. I mean…no.”She shook her head.”I”mfine,”she said again, then hustled to her desk.
She dropped her purse in her bottom drawer and sat down. What the hell did he mean, heenjoyed it. He couldn”t get out of her place fast enough. No way. Asshole.Did he think he couldjustscrew my brains out and leaveandthat was okay?
She gulped her tea and burned her mouth.”Shit,”she mumbled.
She closed her eyes and took a few deep, steadying breaths. She was being infantile.Hewas right. Yesterdayhadbeenfun.Amazing, in fact. And she would jump at the chance for a repeat performance. But it had just been sex.No big deal.That”s what any of her friends would say if she told them about it.
The thing was, to heritwas a big deal. She”d had a few lovers, but she wasn”t one for casual sex.Neverhad been.Not that there was anythingwrong with it, but it just wasn”t for her.
But how would Ryker know that? Why would he think she was different from most women her age?Hewouldn”t. He didn”t know her. To him, the intimacy they”d shared was casual.
Only, to her, the thought of sleeping with Ryker again was so appealing yet so humiliating. She needed more than just sex, and Ryker was not the kind of guy who was looking for anything long-term. She was better off forgetting the whole encounter.
She squared her shoulders and turned on her laptop. As she reached for her tea, she resolved she could do this. She could be as cold and detached about sex as Ryker was. If the opportunity ever presented itself again.
A loud explosion of voices made her jerk her handandshe spilled her tea.”Shit,”she muttered again as she set down her tea and looked toward the source of the commotion.
Congressman Philip Harris from Pennsylvania was at Joyce”s desk yelling.”I want to see him now!”The normally well-coifed congressman was in serious disarray. His light brown hairwas standingup like he”d run his hands through it multiple times. His blazer was caught on his belt in the back and his face was an interesting shade of puce.
Vic”s heart thundered in her chest.She”dnever been very goodat dealing with yelling.She bit her lip. Her uncle was going to have a cow about this. He hated scenes.
Joyce struggled to keep her composure, but her face had turneda shade of bright red that nearly matchedher lipstick and earrings.”I”m sorry, sirbuthe”s in a meeting.”
Vic debated going over to help the other woman out, but she wasn”t sure what she could do, and chances were good Joyce would hate her more for interfering.
Harris wasn”t accepting any excuses. He pivoted toward the door and was reaching for the knob when it opened. Ryker blocked the entrance.”Congressman Harris,”he acknowledged in a clear, authoritative tone.”The Senator cannot see you now. But he will be able to see you later today if you care to make an appointment.”
”Not good enough.”Spittle flew from Harris”s mouthandhe tried to push past Ryker.
Rykeractuallyput his hands on Harris”s shouldersandfirmlymoved the congressman back a step and then closed the door behind him.”I”m sorry, sir, but itwill have tobe.”
Vic”s stomach knotted, and her breath shortened. Touching the congressman was a bad idea. Harris was known for having lots of friends in law enforcement. She”d brought Ryker into this.Ifhe got arrested and it damaged his career, it would be her fault.Archer Gray would kill her for sure.
Harris was livid. His face turned a darker shade of red, which Vic hadn”t thought possible. He poked a finger into Ryker”s chest.”You laid your hands on me. I will sue you for assault! I will have your job for this! I demand to see Davis now!”
Ryker stepped forward until he was inches from the congressman and then spoke.He spokein a voicesolow,noone on Vic”s side of the office could hear him.She glanced at Tracy, who shrugged and shook her head. Everyone in the office leaned toward the exchange as if to betterhearwhat wasbeing said, but it was impossible from this distance. Even Joyce leaned slightly, but by thewayshe had her face screwed up in concentration, she couldn”t hear the conversation either.
Harris”s face had gone from red to pale to an ashy color. The tremors shaking his body were visible from Vic”s seat. He clamped his lips shut and stormed to theelevatorwhere Tony was holding the doors open as if waiting for the congressman”s exit.
Arms crossed, Ryker watched until the elevator doors shut, and thenwithouta glance at the rest of the staff, he turned and went back into Austin”s office.
Vic leaned back in her chair and let out a pent-up breath.
”What the hell was that about?”Tracy asked.
”No idea.”Vic shook her head. The phone on the side of her desk buzzedandshe jumped. It was her uncle”s line. Her hand trembled as she reached for the receiver.”Y-yes?”she answered.
Floyd”s voice filled her ear.”Please come into the senator”s office.”
”Of course,”she said as she got to her feet.
It sounded like Floyd slammed down the phone, but maybe her nerves were just so on edge.
As gently as she could, she dropped the receiver back to thecradle,and hurried to the restroom off to the right. She leaned against the counter and took a moment to calm her nerves. It wouldn”t do to go in there with shaking hands. Her uncle would noticeandthen he”d lecture her on composure. She did some quick breathing exercises and then thrust back her shoulders. Exiting the bathroom, she went toward her uncle”s office. When she reached Joyce”s desk, the other woman snarled,”What do you think you”re doing?”
”Going to speak to my—Austin.”
Joyce stood up.”He does not want to be disturbed,”she said in her haughtiest voice. It was like she was making up for the fact she”d been unable to block Harris, so now she was stopping Vic.
Vic felt the weight of the staff”s stares. She knew if she turned to look, they”d all be watching.Joycewasn”t wrongin what she was doing.Her job duties included being a literal gatekeeper.Normally, it was Joyce who beckoned Vic for her uncle. It was odd that Floyd had bypassed her, but it didn”t change the situationany.
Vic barely held back a scream.Not because she was in the wrong but because hernextwords would humiliate the other womanandshereallydidn”t want that.She kept her voice low.”Floyd called my phone and said Austin wanted to see me.”
A dull pink hue filledJoyce”s cheeks, but she nodded.”Fine,”she said in an equally quiet voice.
Vic went toward the door when it flew openwithFloyd standing in the doorway.”Oh, there you are. What took you so long? Austin wants to see you. There”s work to do.”He glanced over her shoulder and barked at Joyce.”Bring us muffins.”Then he ushered Vic into the office, closing the door behind her.
Vic”s chest got tight. Floyd had deliberately humiliated the other woman. And Vic would be Joyce”s target as the one to bear the brunt of it. God, please let this day get better. At thisrateshewasn”tgoing tomake it until her birthdayandthen where would she be?