the daily grind. He ordered a coffee with some cream and sugar, saluted those he’d been talking to with it, and left.
I texted Sebastian that the target had left the shop, and he wasted no time calling me. “Yes, sir?”
“I could get used to that. Can you come back to the hotel now? I’ve been doing my part, and I have some interesting data for you. I’d like to hear your observations.”
“Of course, sir.” I closed my laptop, stuffed it into the elegant leather bag Sebastian insisted was appropriate for a secretary of my level, and gathered the rest of my things while staying on the phone. “I’m headed back to the hotel now.”
“Good. Stay on the phone, because I don’t trust that asshole as far as I can throw him.”
I bit my lip so I wouldn’t inform Sebastian he could probably toss Loureni fairly far. “Sir.”
“We are so going to have an evening where you seriously play my secretary, because that’s some serious flirtation, Wells.”
I rolled my eyes. “Sir.”
“You’re using your customer service voice on me, and this is definitely attractive. Consider me seduced.”
I left the shop, spotting Loureni talking with someone in the lobby of the building. He stared at me when I left the shop, and he frowned when he spotted me on the phone. “Are there any other meetings you will need to have rescheduled, sir? I am on my way to the hotel, and I will handle the required rescheduling when there so you can give your opinions on the alternatives.”
“He’s watching you, isn’t he?”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’m headed for the lobby of the hotel, and I’ll keep an eye out for you.”
Arguing with the lion wouldn’t do any good, so I headed for the hotel down the street, moving with a purpose but being careful not to check over my shoulder. I went to the nearest crosswalk, pressed the button to cross the street, and checked all ways, spotting Loureni observing me from the steps of his office building. “He is definitely checking me out. I’m crossing the street, but he came out of the building to see where I’m going from the looks of it.”
“Exactly what we want. Good. That matches what we know of him so far. What was his behavior like in the coffee shop?”
“He was definitely making sure everybody there liked him. He’s charismatic. He’s almost as handsome as you are, too. There is zero reason for him to have trouble meeting women.”
That earned me a growl. “Wells.”
“Sir,” I purred at him.
“You’re an evil lynx, and I’m going to love rewarding you for that later.”
I would have an epic tombstone, as I’d goad the lion into killing me through his private displays of affection. The light changed, and I crossed the street, using a shield of Chicagoans to make sure I didn’t end up smacked by a vehicle. Once on the safety of the street, I adopted a brisk stride, a match for the locals who had somewhere to be in a hurry. In some ways, it reminded me of the one time I’d gone to New York City.
Everybody had somewhere to be, and they took shit from nobody.
So far, I liked Chicago, although it amazed me anybody survived its traffic and maze of underground streets.
Several more street crossings, and I reached the hotel, striding inside and hanging up on Sebastian when I caught sight of him. “I demand a purification ritual,” I announced.
“Our first spa treatment is in two hours, and I may have called in room service for us before leaving to meet you here.”
“You are a most useful lion. I ate cookies, muffins, and coffee all day today.”
“You might wilt away on me if I don’t properly feed you.”
I grinned at that. “What do you have for me?”
“Additional suspects, which means trouble in some ways.” Sebastian linked his arm with mine and dragged me towards the elevator. “He didn’t follow you?”
“No, and nobody who was with him in the lobby followed me. I would have warned you if someone had. I did use some Chicagoans as body shields crossing the street, though. People are crazy here. This is almost as bad as New York. Almost. Maybe worse? They don’t have underground roads in New York.”
“Chicago is a strange and mysterious place, defying the natural course of the seasons. It doesn’t have seasons. It has winter, and every other season is dedicated to the rearranging of the city and its streets in new, creative, and unusual ways.”