“I’m sorry, I have to go. Things are happening here.”
“Okay.”
“You’re safe with Smith. I promise.” And he’s gone.
The screen blanks before returning to a close-up picture of a Persian cat. Smith turns the cell over, expression set in stone. I would not have picked him as a cat lover.
But the important thing here is that Beck is going through a tough time and wants me with him. That’s the clincher. He also asked me if I wanted an adventure and the truth is I do. I really do. I’d even go so far as to say I’m due one.
Not sure there’s actually any argument for the con side.
“One moment, please,” I tell Smith before heading toward the bar. I slap my apron, pen, and order pad on the counter. “I quit, Rob. You’re such an utter cock-splash. I don’t want to work for you anymore. Haven’t for a while now.”
A red flush emerges beneath his white skin and Rob stammers something unintelligible before working his way up to shouting abusive words at me. He’s not even original. You could read any of these insults on a bathroom door. Meanwhile, Phil the dickhead sits at a table with an odious smile on his face when he sees me coming his way. The man looks directly at my tits and licks his lips. He’s so gross. Seriously.
“Excuse me. I just need to borrow this for a minute,” I tell a dude at a table nearby as I pick up his glass of beer. With a polite smile, I pour the cold liquid into Phil’s lap. It feels good. Really good. Then he’s yelling too. Other people, however, are laughing and clapping. Maybe they think it’s a show or something. Whatever. I’m done.
“Thanks, buddy,” I say to the guy whose beer I liberated and slap down one of Smith’s fifties on his table. “Next round’s on me.”
“Ready, miss?” Smith asks.
“Let’s go.”
CHAPTER THREE
“Nice Taser,” says Beck, standing outside the hangar, hands in the pockets of his black suit trousers. His dark shoes are shiny, his button-down is white, and his black tie has been pulled askew. His hair is still a bit long, but artfully styled. In fancy clothes with the tattoo covered, the overall effect of him is quite different. A little intimidating, even. “Used it on anyone yet?”
“Not yet.”
“No?” he asks. “Well, the day is still young and you haven’t met my family.”
Carefully, I finish descending the stairs of the very shiny private jet with Taser in hand. Smith insisted I have one so I’d feel secure. I may have briefly had second thoughts after he still refused to give me Beck’s last name since he didn’t have permission to disclose same. And why the hell is his identity such a mystery? Anyway, in my black jeans with a matching T-shirt and cardigan, I feel decidedly underdressed. But then being in Beck’s general vicinity I feel like I’m a nonentity. His face is made for billboards and the silver screen. I should be asking for his autograph, not contemplating whether or not flying halfway across the country officially makes me his girlfriend. And yet here we are.
“How are you?” I ask.
“I’m okay.”
“Are you really? Because it’s okay not to be.”
He does a one-shoulder shrug and stares at me. With his pale face and subdued gaze, he looks as if something or someone has been sucking the life out of him. About what you’d expect from a person dealing with a death in the family. I want to take up sword and shield to protect him. Ride in on a white stallion like a kick-ass princess, et cetera. But I can’t guard him from this pain.
“I’m better now you’re here,” he says softly.
And I’m beyond happy to see him. I am. Though a lot has happened since my resignation yesterday and today’s arrival in Colorado.
Smith had been keen to leave last night, or early this morning, but there’d been a couple of things I needed to do. Given I had no idea how long this adventure would last, or quite where it would take me, I needed stuff. Clothes, cosmetics, the usual. Along with the chance to wrap my head around what was happening. My potted plant, Gretchen, needed to be placed under the care of Mrs. Flores and then I had to call my parents and do some explaining. Their reactions to me leaving my job (permanently) and California (temporarily) were not encouraging. But I’m a