“When were you going to make a bunch of reservations? I kind of think you need to spend every second you have trying to make sure you look like a functional D/s couple,” Kyle replied. “You know I have done this before.”
Kyle was an enigma. Technically he was a bodyguard. Technically he’d been Special Forces in the Army. He called himself nothing but a grunt, but the word around the office was Kyle had worked for the Agency, and not the way Deke had. Kyle had been on the path to become a full-on operative, but he wouldn’t admit it. Not even to his family. If he could take someone else, he would, but Kyle was Ian’s brother’s stepson, and he tended to get his way when it came to assignments. “All right. Does Maddie know you have her floor plan?”
“Where did she expect us to stay?” Kyle asked. “Because I don’t think we’re going to be much help if we’re holed up at the Holiday Inn Express on the freeway. We should warn her about Boomer’s appetite.”
“I’ll take care of it.” Boomer wasn’t so bad. He wasn’t picky. He just needed vast quantities of food.
“Relax, man. I was joking. MaeBe and I have a plan. We’re going to hole up on Madeline’s second floor. She’s got two bedrooms and a big loft up there. Boomer and I will share, and Mae will have her own room. We’ll use the loft as our office space, and Mae and I have a list of hearty casseroles we can easily make to feed the Boom man. You are in the downstairs guest room, and we’re going to stay as quiet as possible. Unless she’s bugged, and then we’ll have to figure out where to go from there. How do we explain me, MaeBe, and Boomer if the big boss man shows up at her place?”
He’d already thought through that particular scenario. It was important they all had the basics of their stories straight. “You and Mae are a D/s couple we’re friendly with. Kayla is putting your name on the books at The Reef. When we get to LA, I want you to familiarize yourself with the place. You’ll take MaeBe out there and let Kay show you around. Boomer’s my brother. From what I understand, Maddie doesn’t have a lot of friends who come over. She works a lot.”
“Then why the four-bedroom house?” Kyle asked. “You know it’s in a nice neighborhood, right? That house is worth three million dollars. It’s not a particularly big house, but it’s in LA.”
“I’m sure she sees it as an investment.” He was probably right about that, but the number shocked him a bit. She was in her thirties, and she could afford three million for a house. He thought he’d saved well and he couldn’t even think about buying anything more than his condo.
It was intimidating, but then he’d always known what she could do if given the chance.
You let me go when you thought it was time. I learned that lesson from you.
The words had haunted him all day. She still thought he’d planned to break up with her, still thought he’d gotten something out of it. The accusation had hurt then and it hurt now.
“Well, it’s probably a really good one.” Kyle sat back, obviously getting comfortable. “I think we’ll be okay using it as our base. Any idea how long this job is going to take?”
He kind of hoped it would take a couple of months. It could take that long to crack her shell. It could take forever to really convince her to explore a relationship with him.
Of course, why would she explore a relationship with a blue-collar guy? She moves the world forward and you make sure employees don’t embezzle. She doesn’t need you for anything.
He forced himself to focus. “Well, that depends on how fast we get into Byrne’s personal system and get the information we need. I’m not going to rush it. If we push him, we put Maddie in danger, and as I’ve already had to listen to you lecture me on how to not place a woman who actually works in security in danger, I’m sure you’ll understand that I don’t want to put a woman with zero skills in a bad position.”
“Yeah, you’re not the first person to point out how irrational I am. Mae might have all the training in the world, but she’s never been tested, and I’m okay with that. I’m okay if she spends all of her life not going through that particular fire.” Kyle’s gaze drifted over to where MaeBe sat. The IT specialist wore all black, from her PVC leggings to the corset with gold piping. Her hair was in vibrant contrast to the dark fet wear, and her smile was even more incongruous. She was laughing at something Kori said.