Jodi sauntered over to Mark, conscious of the hungry look in his eyes as he tracked her. She bent to kiss him but stopped an inch away from his lips, murmuring, “Oh, and by the way, if you think I’m going to invite another woman to our bed as a quid pro quo for tonight, I should warn you. It ain’t gonna happen.”
“I don’t want anyone else.” Mark pulled her onto his lap and nuzzled her neck.
“Man, if you two are going to get all mushy on me, I’m leavin’,” Sam drawled then drained the remainder of his drink.
Jodi pulled away. “Don’t leave, Sam. I want to thank you for what you did tonight.” Color rose up her neck. “I mean, about tying Mark up-that was to make him jealous, wasn’t it?”
He glanced away, as if unwilling to meet her gaze. “Yeah, well…”
“I appreciate what you did-especially since it could have backfired on you.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek, then cocked her head and looked at him. “You know, I’ve got a friend I think you might like…”
He held up both his hands in mock surrender. “No thank you. I’m not desperate enough for a blind date.” He grew serious as he glanced between them. “Look, if later on, down the road, you two decide you want a third in bed again, you call me, all right? And, Jodi, don’t let Mark here ever force you to do something you don’t want to do. He does, you call me and I’ll pound some sense into his head.”
“Thanks.” She laughed and patted his hand. “You’re a good friend, Sam.”
“Man, how’d that sonuvabitch get so lucky in snatching you up?” He hung his head and shook it. When he lifted it, a sly smile crept over his broad face, lighting a twinkle in his eyes. “You sure you wouldn’t consider coming to work for me back east? I’m always on the lookout for a good security consultant.”
Jodi laughed and looped her arms around Mark’s neck. “Nah, not a chance.” She sobered. Sam’s request reminded her of something that had been bugging her all night. “You know, Sam, I’ve been wondering…”
“Why am I thinkin’ I should be worried?” Sam quirked an eyebrow.
“I’ve been wondering why you left the combination to the safe where I could find it. You did that deliberately, didn’t you? Were you testing my competence? Do you think I’m not good enough for your company?”
Mark swore under his breath. “No wonder you took that bet that you could crack it in under two minutes. You had the combination the whole time, you cheater.”
“You know I never bet unless I’m absolutely sure I can win.” She turned back to Sam. “I could have cracked the safe without the combination, you know.”
Sam shrugged one shoulder. “Yeah, I know.”
“So why make it easy on me? Why leave the combination where anyone could find it?”
The shoulder hitched up again. He crushed the can and tossed it in the trash. “You might not have found it.”
She paused, watched him deliberately avoid her gaze. “There’s something more here, isn’t there?”
When he didn’t answer, Mark straightened. “Sam? What are you hiding?”
Sam turned the chair sideways, eyed the door. “It’s no biggie. Just forget about it, okay?” He opened the door to a small fridge built into the credenza. “Y’all want a drink? I’ve got ginger ale, beer, you name it.”
“Sam?” Mark persisted.
“Oh, all right.” Sam picked up another beer can then exchanged it for a bottle of Pellegrini. “It was part of a bet. Satisfied?”
Jodi turned to Mark and raised one brow in query. “Don’t look at me, babe.”
When both sets of eyes turned on him, Sam continued, “I told my assistant to let you in without the usual security check so you’d buy into Mark’s story about the place needing an upgrade in its security. But that woman was like a starving dog with a T-bone and wouldn’t let it go until I explained exactly why I wanted to let you in.”
Heat crept up Jodi’s neck as she thought of the straitlaced assistant and what she might think if she knew what had really gone on that evening. She pressed her fingers to her mouth. “Please tell me you didn’t tell her what you really had planned for tonight.”
Sam scowled. “I do have some discretion, you know. I told her I was checking out the efficiency of Mark’s employees as part of the merger agreement. Told her I’d challenged him to have you break into the safe.”
“But that doesn’t explain why you left the combination for me to find.”
Sam eyed the door again, reminding her of how she’d felt trapped earlier that evening.
“Well, you see, I figured being a former cop and everything, you weren’t a real girly girl.” He slid down in his chair, his chin on his chest, then grasped the handles of his chair, until it groaned in protest. His next words came out in a rush. “I figured you wouldn’t really clean things the way a maid would. Figured that you’d sort of dust around things, you know. But Sandy…Ms. Janssen, she said if you were as good as Mark claimed, you’d be…” He shifted his weight again.
“That I’d be what?” Jodi asked, trying to hide the laughter caused by seeing the big man squirm in discomfort.
“That you’d be…you know…snoopy.” The words left him in a rush.
“Snoopy?” Jodi laughed aloud. “Sam, I was reconnoitering for security flaws. Of course, I’d be snoopy!”
Obviously relieved that she wasn’t offended, Sam let his shoulders drop and leaned back in his chair. “Sandy bet me that if she wrote the combination on the blotter-”
“-I’d find it.” Jodi finished for him. “Which I wouldn’t have unless I actually cleared the desk when I dusted.”
“How much d’you lose?” Mark asked. Jodi could feel his muscles rippling as he tried not to laugh aloud.
Sam’s cheeks turned bright red as he mumbled, “I have to enter myself in the annual bachelor auction to raise money for the homeless women’s shelter.”
Mark’s laughter exploded, nearly unseating Jodi. “Oh, that’s fucking perfect! Jodi, we have to go to that auction. I want to watch him squirm while all those women ogle his ass.”
Sam looked up, a look of hope flickering in his eyes. “Hey, Jodi, maybe you could bid on me. You know, save a poor helpless bachelor from those biddies?”
Mark shook his head. “Not a chance! You made the bet, you suffer the consequences.”
“I don’t…” Jodi started, then hesitated as a thought struck her. But would her plan work, especially with the two huge egos these men had? “Maybe we could come to some arrangement.”
“Jodi,” Mark groaned. “Don’t you dare buy into his ‘poor bachelor’ crap. I want to watch him strut his sorry ass down a runway like a frickin’ supermodel-it’s the perfect payback, babe.”
Jodi bit her bottom lip. “I’ll make the highest bid on you if you promise me something.”
“What’s that?” Sam eyed her as if she were a python ready to strike.
She pushed herself off Mark’s lap, paced as she figured out exactly how to word her request so as not to offend either man. Finally she stopped and took a deep breath. “It’s about the merger. Mark loves Celada Security. He’s worked real hard to get it where it is, and I’m afraid that when you take over-”
“Jodi,” Mark said quietly. “Sam and I are good. You don’t need to worry-”
Sam held up a hand, stopping Mark. “Let her have her say, Mark. She’s just looking out for your interests. And I respect the hell out of her for that.”
“If things don’t work out,” she continued, not wanting to meet Mark’s eyes, “the two companies revert back to the way things are now. And you’ll guarantee Hauberk won’t compete for any contracts against Celada in Texas.”
Sam opened a drawer and pulled out a thick folder, tossed it on the desk. “If it sets your mind at ease, sweet pea, Mark and I already had something similar written into the contract. Here’s my copy-you can see for yourself.”
Mark rested his hand over hers, his thumb gently stroking her wrist. “Considering he’s the buying company, Sam didn’t have to have that written in, babe. But he’s the one who suggested it even before we put anything on paper.”
Sam shrugged and glanced away as if uncomfortable with Mark’s admission. “I treat my friends right.”
“Thank you, Sam,” Jodi said.
“Glad to see you lookin’ out for him, sweet pea. I’d expect nothin’ less from you.” The chair creaked as Sam stood and stretched. “Oh, and, sweet pea, just in case you need to keep that old hound dog in line, the code to the safe room is seven-two-six-one-nine. Maybe you could give Mark a turn being tied to the posts some day. Remind him who’s in charge.”
