The One Who Got Away (Wilde Ways #12) - Cynthia Eden Page 0,42

call with HR because I want to make sure you’re given the attention you so obviously need.”

Ross gulped.

“This is about Ella. This is about you staying the hell away from her.”

“Like I said to her,” Ross rushed to explain, “I didn’t know you were dating when I asked her out. You two keep that part secret, kept it locked down, I’ll give you that. I wouldn’t have ever asked her if I’d—”

“Ella left Shark before we became involved. She didn’t cross any lines. She’s too professional for that.”

Ross was sweating.

“Every time you see her, you will treat her with respect. If you don’t…” He let his mask drop. The tech guy. The fucking computer. And he let his rage crack through. “If you don’t,” Antony warned as he leaned closer and locked his jaw, “then I will kick your ass.”

Ross’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head. “Wh-what? You can’t—”

“Oh, I promise you, I can, and I’ll enjoy the hell out it.”

Chapter Eleven

There were holes in the building’s security. Basic, amateur holes that should not exist, and they infuriated Ella. Yes, she got that the building was a new acquisition. Yes, she understood there were only a few employees in place so far. But…

If this had been her show, if she’d still been in charge of Shark’s security, none of these issues would have ever happened. Unacceptable.

She had a clipboard in her hands and her reading glasses were once again perched on her nose as she muttered to herself and shoved open the door to the stairwell. The stairwell. Huge issue. Why were security cameras not already in place here? The stairwell was an access point for too many people. Anyone on the ground floor could head right up to the main offices. A keypad needed to be installed for entry. Cameras should be perched with motion activation.

When billions of dollars were on the line, you didn’t screw around.

When Antony’s life was on the line, you did not screw around.

Her heels clattered over the stairs as she made note of the locations where she would install the cameras. Those cameras needed to be installed ASAP and—

The lights went out.

Ella froze as she was suddenly plunged into darkness.

Could be a temporary situation. A blown fuse or some such thing. But her heart still drummed faster and her breath huffed in and out of her lungs.

She counted in her head. One, two, three, four, five. The lights didn’t come back on.

But she heard the faintest tap…

A tap that came from the stairs above her. Like a tap that might come when a foot shifted position. She lowered the clipboard to the floor even as she pulled out her phone. That tap sent a warning shrieking through her body. She swiped her hand over the phone, intending to bring up the flashlight app so she could shine it on the stairs above her—

Too late.

Someone barreled into her. A hard, angry shove. Ella’s heels slid off the edge of the step, and she found herself tumbling back into the dark.

***

“Where’s Ella?” Antony demanded as he glared at the security screens in front of him. He was in the temporary security hub for the new building. One of the security guards was hunched in the chair before him, but there was no sign of Ella.

“She said she wanted to do a walk-through of the building,” the guard told him. Hayden Goyer. His voice shook a little when he answered. Hayden had worked at the Asheville office and accepted the transfer to the new location, so he was familiar with Ella.

Antony’s gaze swept over the screens once more. “I don’t see her.”

“We…we don’t have all the cameras installed yet. That’s why she did her walk-through. Said we had to get the holes fixed, ASAP.”

That sounded like Ella.

Antony took out his phone. Dialed Ella’s number. It rang once. Twice.

Behind him, he heard the door squeak open. Automatically, Antony glanced over his shoulder at the sound.

“Boss?” Carson McDonald frowned at him. “What are you doing in here? What’s going on?” He held a bakery bag in his hand. “Um, you interested in some bagels?”

“Ella,” he snapped.

“She quit, remember?” Carson frowned at him. “Are you okay? And, hey, I wasn’t dodging my duties. Don’t go thinking that I am. I’ve been working on things for most of the morning, and I just ran to the bakery across the street to pick up some bagels for the team. Ella used to always do stuff like that, and folks really appreciated