Reckless (Benson Security 1)

She shrugged like it was nothing. Like it had no impact at all. Like they hadn’t just rocked their worlds. “Sometimes you have to try these things. See what they’re like. Now we know.”

What the hell? “Know what?”

“That it wouldn’t work between us.” She sighed. “It’s okay, Dimitri. You can’t help it.”

He bristled. He was about ten seconds away from shaking the infuriating woman.

“Help what? What the hell are you talking about?”

“The lack of passion, of course. It’s not your fault that the kiss was just okay. There’s nothing wrong with your technique. We just don’t have any chemistry.” She gave him a sunny smile. “I’m sure your past lovers thought you were perfectly adequate.”

With that she turned on her heel and stalked away, leaving him gaping after her.

Chapter Four

Julia knew there were people who were introverted but weren’t shy. Steve Martin was one of them. The actor liked to be alone, but he had no problem talking to people when he had to. Unfortunately, Julia was nothing like Steve Martin. Nope, she was introverted, terminally shy and ever since her last job where her boss had been a bully, she’d become even more terrified of interacting with people than ever before. She was well aware of her issues and grateful that Lake Benson had employed her in spite of them. She was working hard to get past her fears and be the type of employee Lake would be proud of. And her current meeting was proof of how far she’d come—she was alone, in her office, going over the renovation plans with two men.

So what if both men were in their seventies and looked like garden gnomes. It still counted.

“Julia, love.” Bill Granger was Ryan’s grandfather and a complete darling. His relationship to one of the team was the reason Julia had hired him and his brother to do the carpentry work in the building. That and the fact they were just too adorable to say no to. “You need a panic room.”

“It isn’t on my list, Bill.” She pointed at the two huge whiteboards that filled the walls behind her desk. One had a detailed plan of the renovations. The other had a list of jobs the security team were doing and which member was responsible for which part of it. Seeing as the business wasn’t officially open yet, there was only one job on the board—finding Katrina Raast.

“The wives made us watch that Jodie Foster film last night.” Bob was the younger brother of the pair, by two whole years. A fact he delighted in.

“Date night.” Bill shuddered. “I don’t understand why we need a date night, but it’s their new thing.”

“What I don’t understand,” Bob said, “is how date night is any different to every other night. Normally we watch TV and have dinner. What did we do last night? Watch TV and ate dinner. You’re a woman. Do you understand the difference?”

“Uh…” Julia was at a loss.

“See?” Bob pointed at his brother. “This isn’t normal. The wives are winding us up.”

Bill nodded. “At least the movie was useful. It made us think about this place. You take risks here. You need somewhere safe. You need a panic room.”

The two men nodded. In their matching beige overalls they looked like older versions of the cabbage patch dolls Julia had as a kid.

“I know you want to build a panic room,” Julia said. “But it isn’t on the schedule. Right now, we need to get the office kitchen finished. That’s more important.”

“It is to Ryan,” Bill said with a grin. “That boy thinks with his stomach.”

She couldn’t argue with that. After she’d seen the amount of food Ryan could put away in one sitting she’d doubled the office budget for snacks.

“He’s a growing lad, your grandson.” Bob returned the grin. “And a greedy bugger.”

“Which is one of the reasons the kitchen is next on my list.” She rearranged the paperwork on her desk, even though it didn’t need rearranging. Everything was precisely where it should be. “But I will put your idea for a panic room on the agenda for my next meeting with Callum. Will that make you happy?”

“Absolutely. Thanks Julia,” the men chorused, making her smile.

“Now, did you two sign the confidentiality agreements I gave you?”

They rooted around in the many pockets of their overalls until Bob exclaimed he had them. He handed over a folded mess of crumpled papers. “There might be jam on there,” he warned.

Julia took them using her thumb and forefinger, then looked around for somewhere to open them that wouldn’t cause a mess. “I’ll look them over later.” She put them on top of a plastic folder. The kitchen was the best place to check the forms. And to wipe off any jam she found.

The men told her they were going back to work and left. Bill winked at her and Bob blew her a kiss, leaving Julia staring at the empty doorway with a bewildered smile on her face. She was just about to get up and close the door after them, when she heard Bob say, “You looking for Julia, Joe? She’s in her office.”

For a split second, Julia was paralysed by blind panic. Then she ducked under her desk. It was an instinctive reaction. A really stupid one. Because as soon as she was under the desk she knew two things—one, that Joe knew she was in her office and would therefore know she was under the desk, and two, now she was there she couldn’t come out.