Chapter 8

Is It Love

A couple weeks had passed since the bomb incident. Viv felt confused and wasn't sure what to do. She had to admit that she had been impressed by how Carler handled things. It reminded her of how Doug often jumped in and did what needed to be done to save innocents. He would risk his life without a single thought. Even though Carler was very different from her Doug, she saw some things that she loved about him that Carler also seemed to have.

In the two weeks since the bomb incident, they had eaten most of their meals together, and with the peace that had come, they had made plans for how to capture old Joe or at least help someone else capture him. All she wanted was for him to pay for what he had done, and she didn't care who took him down. She had grown close to Carler and was feeling attached to him. Every night, when he walked her to her room, he would kiss her and press his body up against her.

Viv was a normal woman, and there was no way she could help but feel a sense of need when he did that. It was clear to her that he knew how she felt and wanted much more from her. What would she do if he pressed her for more? Would she run away like she had been doing before, or would she give in the next time? Even though she wanted to wait to develop a relationship until Joe was dealt with, she was beginning to think that it would be a long time before that happened.

Since Old Joe had backed off, finding him would take even longer. Even the mob who knew him the best couldn't seem to find him. She was sure that was true because they had contacted Ranger hoping he could give them some information. Of course, they had no information to give. Carler had admitted that the white-haired man was a hunter and a tracker. He had taken on the job of tracking down Old Joe and left to go to Las Vegas, hoping to find him there. Carler had explained that the man was much like a bounty hunter.

He would do his best to bring him back alive so their government could deal with him. Viv wasn't really sure what that meant. Maybe she had been spending far too much time worrying about Joe. Maybe this bounty hunter would have an easier time finding him since he was not personally involved in the hunt. To him, it would just be another job. She might have been too close to the case, and she hadn't been able to see the forest for the trees. With Doran on the job, they would see if someone with a colder, more distant approach could bring him in.

There was plenty of work here to do, even without attacks from Old Joe. Viv was training an assistant. Xena was doing well but still had much to learn. There was a lot of paperwork, and Xena worked on that half the day and spent two hours in the security video room and two hours with her. Carler was also training someone to be his assistant. Joff did most of the training, but he thought it was a good idea if the young man worked with Carler a little bit every day so that he would get used to him.

The extra help was needed since they had fired most of their security team. Their security had been terribly compromised, and maybe that was part of the reason that Joe hadn't been getting anything done here lately. She watched Carler as he worked, and she found that her eyes were often drawn to him. Viv tried not to look at him so much, but she found it impossible to stop. She wasn't sure if he realized that she was watching him, and she hoped he didn't.

"What's the matter?" Carler asked.

"Nothing. Why would you think something was wrong?" She wondered.

"You're staring off into space like you're thinking about some major decisions."

"I'm just trying to think about what we should do next. A little planning can go a long way."

"That's true. So, what did you come up with?" Carler questioned.

"About what?"

"Whatever you were thinking so heavily about?"

"I wondered why Old Joe hasn't moved in two weeks. Is he planning some major problem, or did we get lucky, and the mob took him out? How would we ever know for sure?" Viv asked.

"We might never be sure, but rumors make the rounds because no one could keep something that big a complete secret. All we can do for now is get on with things and hope he stays gone."

Wasn't that the truth. It would be hard to continue, never knowing if Joe was gone. Somehow, she suspected that he would be back with a vengeance. There was no way, if he was alive, that he would let this go. Revenge was all that he lived for now."

She tried to get back to her paperwork, which was easy to finish with all the help she was getting. Shouldn't that make her happy? Not if it gave her so much time to think, and she always thought about Carler.

"It's time for lunch." He reminded her.

Two peaceful weeks were almost like a gift, except she was nervous and always waiting for the other shoe to drop. It made sense when dealing with someone as persistent as Joe. He was like an evil terminator, always ready to be back. Maybe the fault was with her because she couldn't believe he would be gone. Carler escorted her to the cafeteria, where they ate most of the time because it was easy to get in and out quickly.

Things were beginning to happen, and they were getting a lot done. The parks were fully functional, and tourists were coming in droves. Their casino and the hotel were packed all the time. They were in the process of putting in a theme park, and the theme, of course, was dragons. Why not? Joe's rambling accusations had made the country famous for dragons. They even had a completely closed area where people could see the Komodo dragons. A zoo with a section of lizards of every type imaginable was a very popular place for parents to bring their children.

They even had a water park with free access for anyone staying at the hotel, which was almost everyone in the country. It was the only hotel they had right now, but they were building three more in various locations, some near certain parks. Only a little while without Joe, and they had moved forward at an incredible pace. Why wouldn't they? Money didn't seem to be a problem, and large amounts came in from the parks and the casino and went right back into tourist attractions. She knew a little was skimmed off the top to pay back their original investors. That made sense.

"I think you're working too hard," Carler mentioned.

"There is so much to do. Once things are settled, I can take a break or maybe even a vacation." They sat at the table they often sat at and set their trays down.

"Just be careful not to get burned out from working too hard and too long."

"Look who's giving me advice, Mr. Workaholic," Viv teased.

"You've got me there. But I do know when to take a break. I'm usually the one that reminds you when it's mealtime or time to quit for the day."

She couldn't deny that he was right, so the statement needed no response. She began to dig into her food and enjoy it. It was simple food at the cafeteria, but it was good. It was the kind of food she had eaten every day in her old life. They had salads, hamburgers, hot dogs, and even pizza once a week. While the cafeteria was open to anyone, mostly employees ate there. That might change because they had been discussing an economic plan so that people could bring their children, who normally might not be able to afford to come here.

"I was hoping we could have a special meal tonight," Carler explained.

This was what she had been waiting for. She could see the look in his eye, and it told her that he would make his move tonight. He had shown great patience because she knew he hadn't been seeing anyone else. A male like him had needs and he'd gone without seeing them since he'd met her. Not that she had been making an effort to track his time. But he spent too much time with her, and everyone knew it.

"All right. What do I need to wear?"

"Whatever you want to. I'll come get you about an hour after we're through with work. Just dress comfortably. Sometimes women wear things that make them uncomfortable, and nothing is fun when you feel like that," Carler observed.

She had to agree that many of the things that women wore were uncomfortable. Viv rarely wore high heels because they were uncomfortable if you wore them long and could also be dangerous. Some of the tight underwear women wore to get those sleek looks could also be uncomfortable, so she didn't have any. That didn't mean she didn't have any sexy underwear because she did. Deciding what she wanted to wear would probably be hard for her. Was she going to encourage him and allow them to have a relationship? And if she didn't, what was she going to do?

Now that he had mentioned what they would be doing after work, she could only think about it. Her mind was going through everything in her closet, and nothing seemed good enough. She'd not bought much since Doug had died. She did have some sexy underwear that she had bought before Doug had died and had never worn. They'd planned a small trip, and she wanted to wow him. They would have probably spent the whole time in the hotel room, so she hadn't worried about buying any new clothing to go with it. Now, she wished she had.

Viv did have a few nice dresses and pantsuits for work, like the one she was wearing. But none of them were the kind of thing she would wear for a sexy date that might end with her getting lucky. Those clothing items might be sexy, but they were businesslike. She might wear them to court or some other kind of interview. Her clothing for her usual day of work was not anything special. It was her fault because she had seen their relationship working up to this point, and she'd not taken any action to prepare for it.

They were through eating, and they went back to work. Sometimes, after a nice meal with good company, it was hard to get back to work and concentrate. That was the case now because all Viv could think about was what might or might not happen after work. She was working on automatic, and her mind was not on our work as it should be. Viv hoped she didn't mess anything up, but at least she had assistance to check over all her work and ensure she didn't.

"It's time to quit. We worked late, but you were getting a lot done," Carler said.

If only he knew. Viv couldn't even remember half of what she did, and she hoped it didn't show. She knew that her work was important, but she was only human, and sometimes she got distracted. She finished up what she was working on and powered down her computer. He seemed to be done at about the same time that she was. Carler escorted her to the elevator and dropped her off at her room with the same kiss he had been giving her for quite some time now. That male sure knew how to kiss. Viv knew that this was just a hint of what was to come.

Once she was in her room, she began to prepare. Not usually taking the time, she decided to take a bath and soak for a while today. She knew she needed to relax, and this was the best way, too. When she was done, she got in the shower, rinsed off, and washed her hair. It was long and would take some time to dry. Wrapped in a towel, it would stay out of the way while she began to work on her makeup. Viv could not deny that she felt excitement, unlike anything she had felt since Doug had died.

There was also guilt, but she would have to learn to deal with that. Doug would not want her to live a half-life because he was not there. She would not expect him to do that and not want him to do that. It was time to move on; even though Joe Senior hadn't been dealt with yet, she knew he would eventually be. If half of what she heard was true, he'd lost his position and his family. For now, that would have to be enough.

Her makeup was done, and now she had picked out a purple and black teddy. If they moved forward with their relationship, she felt that Carler would find this very distracting. Viv