She stood toe to toe with Ian, and Colt felt a swell of pride in his chest. She was magnificently fiery and beautiful. He wanted to kiss her. Wanted to slip his tongue into her mouth and taste her anger before sliding her clothing from her body and turning that fire into passion.
Ian studied her for a long moment. Colt felt a growl start to form deep in his gut. Hands off, he wanted to say. She’s mine.
But Ian never touched her, and he never let his study of her cross the line into male appreciation of female beauty. No, he sized her up like he was sizing up her potential.
“You don’t want to go home and forget all about this? Get your life back to normal?”
Her color was high. “Of course I do—but I’m realistic enough to know that isn’t going to happen because you say so. You don’t know who tried to break into my house—or you aren’t saying—but I doubt you intend to let me walk out of here and return home. I have to stay with Colt, right?”
Ian laughed suddenly. “It would be best, yes. Okay, Miss Turner, I’ll make a deal with you. You stay with Colt for now, let him protect you. There are some things I can’t tell you because it’s sensitive information and you aren’t cleared. But if those numbers lead to an account in the Cayman Islands, I will tell you that. I will tell you everything I can that isn’t sensitive information.”
“Which means you can decide it all is and tell me nothing.”
Ian looked at Colt. Colt didn’t say a word. “I like her,” he said. “I think we could use her around here.”
“I’m here right now,” Angie growled. “And I’ll make my own decisions, thanks.”
“Redheads,” Ian said, oblivious to the danger. Or maybe he wanted to provoke her. Colt wasn’t sure.
Angie drew herself up like a queen. “If you want to offer me a job, we can discuss it. But you’d better discuss it with me, not Colt or Jace or—or the Easter Bunny.” Angie turned on her heel and headed for the door, flicking her fingers behind her like she was shaking off dust. “I’m done here.”
Jace, Tyler, Dax, Jared, and Colt watched her go with variously dropped jaws. Ian didn’t seem surprised at all. Colt looked at the others. They looked at him. Jace started to laugh, but he knew Angie better than they did.
Colt was beginning to know her.
What he knew, he damn sure admired. Had he really thought she wasn’t strong enough? Where the fuck had he gotten that idea?
“Whoa damn, Colt, I wouldn’t want to be in the car with you on the way home,” Jace said.
Colt shook his head. “Dude, I wouldn’t be so smug. You know she’s gonna call Maddy. Your ass is in a sling as much as mine is.”
Jace’s laughter died. “Well, shit.”
Ian had his fists on his hips. “I could order her not to talk about it. But I somehow think that wouldn’t work.”
“Only if you want to die a fiery death,” Dax said. “I, for one, would rather live to tell the tale.”
Angie fumed. She’d stormed out of the conference room with those smug as hell men staring at her, but her grand exit was marred when Colt chased after her and told her he had to go to the fifth floor. She would have to wait for him.
A lovely black woman with long wavy hair and a beautifully tailored suit seemed to appear out of nowhere. She introduced herself as Melanie and then showed Angie to a waiting area with a Keurig, an espresso machine, and a fridge with water, sodas, and snacks.
Angie took out her phone to look at email. She had no signal so she stuffed it in her bag again. She picked up a magazine and flipped through the pages angrily.
It was half an hour before Colt reappeared. She took a moment to appreciate how gorgeous he was as he stalked down the hall toward her, but she reminded herself she was more than a little annoyed at every male who’d been inside that room.
“You ready to go?” he asked when he reached her.
She scowled. “What do you think?”
He stood back while she got to her feet. She marched beside him through the building and back to the freight elevator. It wasn’t until they’d emerged from the parking garage into the rain—oh great, it had started raining now—that Colt said something.
“I’m sorry about that, Ang.”
She folded her arms over her chest and looked out the window. “I’m not an idiot, Colt,” she finally said.
“I know you aren’t. Ian knows it too.”
She turned to look at him. “I know you think I’m fragile. I know you think I’m one freakout away from a nervous breakdown. But I’m not. I don’t ever want to be abducted and threatened again, but I don’t spend all my waking hours worrying about it. And Tom Walls? Yes, I was shocked. I didn’t feel safe and I didn’t feel normal for a while, but if it happened today? Right now? I’d kick that motherfucker in the balls. And if I couldn’t kick him? If he overpowered me and ground his body against me now, I’d spit on him. I’d scream bloody murder and I’d threaten to sue. I won’t ever take that shit lying down again.”
She’d had a lot of time to think in the past few months. Yes, she’d been stunned by everything that’d happened in so short a time. She’d needed to process it.
She’d been scared for a long time afterward. Afraid to live. But then she got mad.
