The Mogul and the Muscle - Claire Kingsley Page 0,66

edge of her seat, poised to intercept Noelle if she tried to walk in on her boss unannounced.

“Is there anything I can help you with, Noelle?” Brandy asked.

Noelle gave Brandy an annoyed glance. “I’ll come back.”

I watched her walk down the hall toward her office. Her dislike of Cameron was well-known. Everyone from accounting to the engineers to the receptionists knew the COO had wanted Cameron’s job. The apparently random nature of the threats against Cameron could be Noelle’s way of keeping suspicion at bay. Who would assume a high-level executive would leave a fish in her rival’s bed?

It was tempting to follow Noelle to her office and ask a few well-placed questions. But my instincts told me it was better if I stayed Cameron’s invisible bodyguard—just the muscle—for now.

“Bobby, you can’t just go back there.”

The front receptionist followed Bobby through the small hallway behind the reception desk. He wore dark sunglasses—the Dolce & Gabanna logo on full display—a polo that said Versace across the front, and a belt with a large gold Gucci logo for a buckle. The only thing that didn’t declare its designer—and therefore its expense—were his shoes, a pair of black leather sneakers.

I glanced again. I was wrong. They were embossed with a Fendi logo on the toe. It was surprisingly subtle, considering the rest of his clothes looked like a commercial for lifestyles of the gaudy and pretentious.

“Sorry,” the receptionist said.

“It’s okay,” Brandy said, and scowled at Bobby when he casually leaned against her desk.

“What’s the boss lady up to?” he asked. Like the douche he was, he didn’t take off his sunglasses.

“She’s busy,” Brandy said.

I couldn’t see his eyes behind his sunglasses, but I could tell when he glanced at me. He swallowed and rubbed his palms against his thighs. I made him nervous. Good.

“No big deal. Just be a doll and put dinner with me on her schedule for tonight.”

“Her schedule’s full,” I said.

I could see Bobby at war with himself. He was used to feeling like the alpha here. Not that it was true, but most people in his father’s company tried to stay out of his way rather than stand up to him. I challenged his perceived dominance.

But unlike a true alpha male, he was weak—protected by wealth and his last name, with nothing to back up his unearned swagger.

Would he argue with me in an attempt to reestablish his dominance, or back down?

My money was on back down, but you never knew with a guy like him.

Cameron came out of her office and crossed her arms. Her legs looked fantastic in her sleek skirt and her snakeskin heels made her look like the badass she was.

“Cami,” he said, swiping off his sunglasses. “You’re looking especially hot today.”

“Bobby, I have a company to run. If you’re here to invite me to party with you, the answer is no. And if you just came up here to brag about last night’s ten-thousand-dollar bottle service, save it for your Instagram followers.”

“My fans do love my club pics,” he said. “But that’s not why I’m here. I heard somebody broke into your house.”

A hint of alarm flashed across Cameron’s face, replaced quickly by her calm and cool CEO expression. “Where did you hear that?”

He pulled out his phone. “It’s on a couple of blogs. You’d think it would have had better coverage by now. That’s a bold move, getting into Bluewater and breaking into your house like that. Guy must have some balls.”

Brandy was already typing and by the way her eyes widened, I could tell she’d found something. She met Cameron’s gaze and nodded.

“Is this an issue?” Cameron asked.

“The spin isn’t great,” Brandy said.

“If you need help with this, Cami, say the word. Or if you need a distraction, I can do that too.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

This guy was such a joke, I didn’t even bother growling at him.

“Get Derek Price on the phone.” Cameron turned and went back into her office.

Bobby cast a nervous glance at me, then put on his sunglasses. “I’ll just text her later.”

Through narrowed eyes, I watched him go.

Brandy was already in Cameron’s office. I googled, wincing at the headlines. The media could be a fucking circus. There wasn’t much I could to do protect Cameron from this kind of problem. She had a good PR team and Derek Price was the best at what he did. He’d help her sort this out.

I didn’t like feeling helpless, especially when it came to her. But maybe