Page 4 of Exposed

"You look beautiful as well. This place is gorgeous. I can already see some ideas forming in my brain to post," I replied, following behind her.

"Thanks, follow me back here so I can give you a tour. We have a conference call with Zoe and Elijah after lunch, and then you have a photoshoot," Danielle said, opening the door to an office.

"This will be your office space when you come in for shoots or interviews. I told them to decorate it based on your style from your social pages. Hopefully, it's okay."

The place was gorgeous with a modern, classic feel, open spaces, and ergonomic furniture. It was done in cream and pink colors, had a glass desk, a couch, and a small fridge in the corner. Paintings on the wall of Raven Cosmetics products were a nice touch and complemented the room beautifully.

"I love the style, and I look forward to really making my mark with this opportunity, Danielle."

"I believe you. We can go to the lab and see what they're cooking up.”

"That will be perfect. Is it possible for me to get a few shots of me in the lab? Of course, I'll cover up any major details. I think giving my fans an inside look and what I do will draw interest."

"I trust you," Danielle answered.

As we continued walking down the hall, I saw the same guy I ran into talking with Elijah in his office. It looked pretty intense, and I wanted to be nosy and ask what he was doing here, but I remembered he was coming inside the building that day, so he might have worked here or something.

Danielle swiped her badge to open the door and said, "This is our lab where we test our products. You will find yourself meeting with them more than anyone else in the building besides myself. I want you to get familiar." Two girls and a guy in lab coats came over and shook my hand.

"Hi, I'm Carol, the team leader, this is Ben and Josslyn," Carol said, motioning between the three of them.

"Nice to meet you guys."

"Okay so the first order of business is getting you familiar with our new spring collection. Ready to work?" Danielle asked, and I gave a thumbs up when Ben passed me a pair of clear goggles and a lab coat.

Chapter Three

Dominic

“Why am I just now hearing about this? Does Jackson know?” I questioned, turning the next document over. Mark called me a few weeks back about doing some private security for the company after it was sold to Elijah. We had a conference call with Danielle when she brought up her concerns to Mark. As a CEO of the company, Danielle requested I step in and assist with everything that’s happening at the moment. Much to my surprise, the girl I ran into on the elevator was the new ambassador for the company. It made sense why she was so obnoxious when we first met. She had her nose stuck up in the air. I worked as a freelance private contractor for Cole Security. My business partner Emmanuel and I are looking into eventually starting our own Security and Intelligence Agency firm full-time, since we left the Navy years ago. That’s how I knew Mark and Jackson. I was there the day he got shot, seeing his body fall to the ground is a day I never want to witness again. Going to war and watching your brothers get picked off one by one was no easy thing to see. We all have marks on our bodies, reminding us of the fallen. Emmanuel was single like me and running from his demons of our past time from war. He was better at managing his emotions than me at times or at least he pretended to be. At thirty-four years old, he’s like a little brother to me and I’d give my life for his, hell, for Mark or Jackson as well.

“Shooter, you know I wanted to get in touch with you sooner. Danielle thought it was a mistake on their end and didn’t think anything was really wrong,” Mark said, calling me by my SEAL name that I earned because every time I drew my weapon, I hit the enemy right between the eyes the first time. All of us had a nickname – Mark was called Twilight, Jackson got the name Muffin, shortened to Muff, Emmanuel was Stinger. That day Jackson got the call to go back to get Aaron’s body was the day everyone met back up and the old crew was back in sync. Meeting Catherine and Danielle through Mark and Jackson was a blessing, I felt like they were not only my friends, but little sisters to me. Jackson had told us about Neil acting like a bitch that one time and making it seem like they were still together. He told us about the confrontation and kicking his ass in front of her apartment.

Now at thirty-six, I was focused on building a life for myself without any drama. Women were the least of my worries right now. I did have people that I could call if I need to relieve some stress, but my overall agenda wasn’t to fall in love. Oftentimes they did, and then I had to move on. Jacinda made the mistake of betraying my trust and caused me to look at every woman the same. They will only want you for what you can give them, and I refused to fall in love with another one.

“Let me think about it, Twilight, this could be a big job, and I need more time to screen everyone in the company all the way to the mail carriers that the company uses,” I stated, treading to the bar and pouring a glass of whiskey.

“Pretty early for that, don’t you think?” Mark asked. I shrugged, not caring what he thought. Mark was always checking in on us as the big brother of the group. He got on my nerves most times. I appreciated him for keeping me in check, but when I need a drink, I’m having a drink.

“Don’t start.”

“That’s my job.”

“Jackson says the same thing,” I said, pouring another shot.

“Jackson is fine, I’m fine. Stop worrying about things you can’t control. We all look back on those days and second-guess ourselves. Listen, Charlie wants to set you up on a date. Maybe getting a woman will help you calm down.” Mark chuckled. His wife was always trying to find me a woman. She thinks I’m wasting my time with all the women I juggle. I flipped him off, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw the same girl that I ran into walking in behind Danielle.

“Glad you are still here, Dominic,” Danielle said. I could tell right off the bat this was going to be a conversation I didn’t want to have. She stood a few inches shorter than my six-one height, but still tall enough that I could bend her over and spank her ass if she got out of line. What the hell am I saying? She glared at me, and I chuckled, putting the shot glass down and sliding my hands into my pockets. The tension was high in the room, and I didn’t want to start off the day pissing off one of my best friend’s clients.

“Dominic Combs, meet our new ambassador, Lauren Armstrong. You two will be working closely together over the next few months to a year,” Danielle stated. I guess she was thinking like me and didn’t want to be in the same room as she started shaking her head no.

“Danielle, I don’t need a bodyguard. I can take care of myself.” Lauren started folding her arms across her chest. Narrowing her eyes, she was generally resentful of the situation. My brow drew downward in a frown.

“You heard the princess. She doesn’t need my help,” I remarked, picking up the file folder off Elijah’s desk, preparing to leave the office when Danielle stopped me.

“Wait for Dominic, when you leave Lauren, you will need some form of protection. I know you feel like your fans are a family, but going into the amount of publicity we plan for this launch, you need security, and Dominic is the best. I trust him, and Jackson wouldn’t have sent him if he didn’t think he could protect you on the road,” Danielle replied. I sighed in annoyance. I had plans to meet up with my brother for a game of basketball, and I was running late.

“Read over the rest of the file, Shooter, and let us know if you need anything. She officially starts whatever it is she does this week,” Mark announced.

---