Chapter 2
Chapter Two
NICO
Do I work too much?
I wouldn’t normally give it a second thought.
But on my way out of the office, Jamie, one of the building security guards, scolded me for always being the first into the building and the last to leave.
“You work too much,” he said with a rueful shake of his head. “When I work the morning shift, you’re here at six-thirty AM without fail. And I’ve never seen you leave earlier than seven, seven-thirty at night. When do you have time to do anything for yourself?”
“I run the company,” I reminded him dryly. “That’s the most important thing. Making sure it stays in business so everyone keeps their jobs.”
“Sure,” he allowed. “Staying in business is good. But you need to make time for other things, too. A personal life. Dating. Maybe even a family, one day.”
If it had been anyone else, I might have been annoyed. But Jamie means well. It’s just that he’s older, in his mid-fifties, with a wife and adult children and a grandkid on the way. He likes his job, but it’s not his main priority.
Not like me.
When I started Fox my body instinctively shifting into battle mode. One hand slides into my pocket, finding the K-bar switchblade I never go anywhere without. My other clenches into a fist.
It’s probably nothing. Well. Not nothing. Someone could be sick, hurt—but I’m sure it’s nothing that would involve a threat to the public.
Am I sure, though? Can I ever be?
I’m tempted to go down there to investigate myself, just to be sure. To be close by in case there’s actual danger, ready to jump in if need be.
I’m not Delta anymore, I remind myself. It’s not my job to race to the rescue.
Easier said than done. Because after eight years in the Army, four of them as a Delta Force operator, the urge to protect is deeply embedded in me.
But it’s not my business. So I drag my attention away from the spectacle up ahead and refocus on the building entrance, quickening my step as I approach. I force my grip on the switchblade to loosen. I release my fist, flexing my fingers to relax them.
After my shower, I’ll order some Chinese, I decide. See if I can find something decent to watch. Maybe look into reservations for a rental upstate for our annual guys’ weekend every summer.
Ha. Another example of how my life isn’t all work.
Although a weekend with my Army buddies spent drinking beer and reminiscing probably isn’t the kind of personal life Jamie had in mind.