Chapter 10

Chapter

Ten

C hris followed Lindy into the office Monday morning, scanning the lobby of the building.

People milled around waiting for the elevators. The café situated in one corner had a line of people waiting for their morning pick me up.

Everything looked normal, nothing out of the ordinary, but that didn't mean one of them hadn't arranged for the attack on Lindy.

"This is ridiculous," she grumbled, loud enough for him to hear, as he was right beside her.

A group joined them in the cart and Lindy smiled politely, all the while sending dirty looks in his direction .

He raised his eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest.

They'd been through this the night he announced he was going to shadow her. She'd argued and any hope that they might pick-up where they left off with more kisses and caresses died on the spot.

Lindy had told him that he needed to leave and as much as he hadn't wanted to, he also hadn't wanted to push the issue and so Chris had capitulated, after making sure the doors were locked and he heard the beep of the security system being turned on.

Which was probably just as well. He needed his focus to be on the danger lurking around Lindy and not on the desire to possess her which consumed him.

The rest of the weekend, he'd spent watching her house. He'd phoned her about it and had hoped she'd invite him in, the invitation hadn't been forthcoming though.

Chris gave her that space. It took some time to get used to the idea of being under threat and him announcing he was going to be guarding her.

Lindy hadn't gone out over the weekend, and he imagined she'd holed herself up in her home office and tried to get some work done. What he really hoped she did was lose herself in some binge-worthy show.

He'd arrived at her doorstep promptly at half past six that morning, ready to escort her to work. The drive in the rental he'd arranged was stony. She'd wanted to drive herself, but for this first day where he was watching her, he'd insisted.

Tomorrow, Lindy could get back to her normal routine and he'd make sure he was waiting for her in the foyer of her building to escort her up to her office.

Unless…

Chris squashed where his thoughts were heading. The likelihood of Lindy being open to taking the next step with him, wasn't high—not now. He wasn't giving up, though.

He was in no rush to go back home and had sent emails to the various agencies he'd consulted with that he was taking some time off and he wouldn't be available for any assignments.

A few days ago, the very idea that he was okay with not rushing to another mission wasn't even on his radar. Now that he'd met Lindy, he was re-evaluating his options.

Was Chris putting the cart before the horse—perhaps, but she'd been thrust into his life for a reason, and he was going to see that reason through.

The ride up to her floor was stop and start, but eventually they arrived on her floor.

Lindy marched out of the elevator and he couldn't hide the smile stretching his lips. She was gorgeous when she was all fired up. The skirt she wore was tight around her ass and skimmed the top of her knee. Her stilettos were black and lethal. If used to stomp on someone's toes the right way, they could cause some severe damage.

Lindy breezed through the double doors leaving behind a cloud of her enticing musky scent.

He breathed in deep as he followed.

"Morning, Mina, this is Chris Swanson, he'll be working with me for the next couple of days. Can you arrange for a security pass for him, please?" She was all business and he found take-charge-Lindy very sexy.

"Hey, Mina," he paused, even though he wanted to keep following Lindy, he acknowledged that she would need a few minutes to herself. "How long will it take to get the pass Ms. Jones was talking about, and do you need some identification from me?"

Mina smiled, the blue eyes behind the glasses she wore, assessing. Her dark hair caught in a bun at the nape of her neck. "Morning Mr. Swanson. I'll need your driver's license. It'll take me about an hour to get everything organized, if you want to come back then we can head down to building security to get you fixed up."

"Perfect, thanks." He headed in the direction he'd seen Lindy go. Chris had scoped the area as he'd chatted with the receptionist. Noting the open plan set up and the corridor in which Lindy had disappeared down.

Quite a few of the desks remained unoccupied, dark screens sitting on the tabletops—the workday for some hadn't started. Did they work in shifts? Or did everyone arrive at the last minute.

He'd need to observe the comings and goings of the staff, discreetly, of course. The last thing he wanted was to give himself away to the staff. Which reminded him, he and Lindy needed to come up with a plausible reason for him to be around her constantly.

The faint trace of Lindy's perfume led him to her, but Chris would've found her anyway. He had a second sense when it came to her. Always knew instinctively where she was.

Lindy was behind her desk in her office, with her laptop open. Her eyes were closed and it appeared as if she was meditating.

An air of peace surrounded her and Chris wished that he could give her that type of peace all the time.

The pressures of expectation from those around her must be a lot for her to handle, but handle it she did, and he admired her even more for what she was doing .

Her eyes popped open and she exhaled before looking at his direction. "I'm sorry. I haven't been very nice to you and all you've done is look out for me when you didn't have to."

He was at her side in seconds. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Linds. I know this is difficult for you to deal with, on top of everything you're already coping with. But I promise you I won't get in your way. I won't interfere with your workday." Chris took hold of her hands and tugged, pulling her up.

Once she was standing, he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tight.

Her body relaxed against his.

As peace had surrounded her while meditating, a peace now surrounded him with having her in his arms.

"It's going to be okay. We're going to find out what's going on and you'll be able to live your life without the worry of someone trying to harm you." He said the words as much as reassurance for him as it was for her.

"And then you'll go." Sadness tinged her words, cutting him to the core. Was this Lindy's way of saying she didn't want him to leave?

That she wanted to explore what was building between them ?

Chris hooked a finger under her chin and lifted it so she was looking at him. He wanted to see her reaction when he asked his next question. "Do you want me to stay?"

Her eyes widened and flashed with…hope…before she blinked and it disappeared. "Is that possible or something you'd even want?"

The conversation they were having was heavy for first thing in the morning, but like everything with them, it fit the journey they were embarking on.

"A week ago, I was looking forward to heading back home." He smoothed a lock of hair that'd fallen over her face. "Now, though, the thought of going back doesn't sit well with me at all."

A small cry erupted from Lindy, before her hands were behind his head and pulling him down so their lips could meet.

Life had thrown so many things his way.

Dangerous, life ending situations.

This moment right here felt like everything he'd gone through had been leading up to Lindy.

His lips coaxed hers open and their tongues dueled as her fingers dug into his back, he welcomed the sharp pain from her nails.

He trailed his mouth down her jaw until he found that sensitive spot on her neck again, the one that had her knees weakening.

Chris bit and soothed the bite with a sweep of his tongue. Her groan of pleasure filled his ears. He cock was rock hard against his zipper.

"Why do we always start something we can't finish?" Lindy moaned, as he palmed her breast through her blouse.

"I don't know. Our timing sucks?"

"It really does." She chuckled and pushed his chest.

Reluctantly, he stepped away, aware that her hair was mussed and her breathing ragged.

Probably not the best look for a CEO should anyone walk through the door. Especially one who was trying to get the respect of their staff.

"Is there are place where I can work?" he asked once she'd straightened her clothes.

"What are you going to do?"

"I've got a laptop and I'm going to access the footage again. Not to mention, I want to be able to see if we can determine if anyone has tried to access your files."

"How are you going to do that without alerting my IT people that there is a possible breach? That information isn't going to stay quiet." Lindy paced over to the window. Her shoulders hunched. One of her hands rested on the glass as she gazed out as if she alone would take on the world.

She painted a lonely picture and his heart ached to be the one to fill it for her.

He liked to think they were making progress in that direction, but their conversations were half-hearted at best, and never seemed to stick to one subject.

"I was going to try and see if I can get Wilt at Power Security to access my computer while I'm here so while it will look like I'm doing surface stuff, they'll be able to get in and dig a little deeper while covering their tracks at the same time. You know we haven't worked out how we're going to handle my being here. What my position is?"

Lindy returned to her desk and sat down. "I've been thinking about that. We could say you're a consultant from the US. I've brought you in because you have extensive background in researching the oil and gas industry and how we are moving to more eco-friendly systems. That way it won't raise eyebrows when you open some of the documents on projects we're working on. I think it might be best if you look at our current projects today, before tomorrow you start looking at the projects I've halted."

"That's wasting a day, though. They could be making their move and we don't know it."

Everything Lindy had said, right up until the moment she mentioned him not investigating the halted projects, he'd agreed with. As he'd stated, delaying granting him access, even by one day could prove to be dangerous.

"I know that, and if you think I don't want this over and done with quickly, you're wrong. But I can't have this complete stranger come in and access files that only a few have permission to do so. Use today to familiarize yourself with the staff. Check those around me who may want to cause harm. Look through all the board members, too."

Again, her ideas were sound and he conceded she did have a point, if he did go in guns blazing it would only increase the target on her head. Not to mention, he'd already decided he was going to investigate the board members. Today would be a good time to do that.

"Fine, we'll do it your way."

"Thank you. That means a lot." Lindy smiled, her eyes sparkling and he had to control the urge to pull her close again and lose himself in her .

Tonight, he vowed.

Tonight, he'd talk about what he wanted from her and the future he imagined they could have together.