Page 4 of Silver Fire

“So are we going to beat around this dead bush?” Beth asked. “You need a man. By the way, Parker told me that the MDI boys are dropping by later.”

“Why would Stephen even mention our meeting? To you of all people. You know, you better not print any of that. The contract has not been signed yet.”

“Well you know how Parker is crushing on Lockwood and McCord. If I were straight, I would do them.”

Sophie couldn’t help giggling. “You’re hopeless. And I understand McCord is happily married.”

That reminded her of her meeting with Maia Pierce later this afternoon. She was shocked to find out that Jack McCord’s wife was not a marketing executive but a Guardian. Sophie had to sign a non-disclosure agreement necessary to protect Maia’s identity, which must be difficult to conceal considering that she had married a high-profile power player in Washington DC.

“Hey, where did you go?” Beth broke through her thoughts.

“What?”

“I was saying Derek Lockwood is quite a catch.”

“You mean I might catch something from him.”

Her friend burst out laughing. “Oh, Sophie. You need to live a little. If any of the rumors are true, he might just make you forget Adam.”

“Great, you just planted a disturbing picture of a naked Derek Lockwood in my head,” Sophie quipped. “Hey, I gotta go. I see Parker gesturing outside my office, I think they’re here.”

Sophie shook her head as she gathered her binder and stood up. Her steps faltered at the door, and she cursed Beth for suddenly making her self-conscious. She dropped her things back on her table, grabbed her vanity bag, and headed into the bathroom in her office. Her hair was already up, so no point in fixing that. She took out her compact and began to powder her face just enough to remove the shine from her nose and forehead. She dabbed some lipstick on and finished off with a spray of jasmine and sandalwood.

She looked at herself in the mirror. Wide silver-gray eyes stared back at her. They looked haunted. Haunted by the memory of a man who was dead. Who, according to everyone, had taken advantage of an innocent girl. She fingered the scars on her wrist. People didn’t know the real Adam, and no one ever would. He had been murdered while serving his prison sentence, and he was never coming back.

* * *

Derek was squirmingin his chair, trying very hard not to stare at Dr. Leroux and failing miserably to concentrate on what Stephen Parker was saying about the latest results from an enrichment experiment. She had been a few minutes late to the meeting and as she swept through the room, her scent made his nostrils flare with some kind of primitive longing. She had the fantasy librarian look down pat; her hair, which was swept up in a messy knot, was the color of pale corn silk and her amazing gray eyes were seductively framed behind cat-eye shaped reading glasses. He could not help himself from picturing her on a desk, her long lean legs crossed while stretching the limits of a tight pencil skirt. He imagined himself walking up to her, ruthlessly uncrossing her legs, shoving her skirt up, spreading her thighs and—

Laurie kicked him under the table, and he glanced briefly at her scowling face. She was clearly telling him to pay attention; after all, he was the main liaison with their design engineers.

“—so based on MDI’s required application, we are very confident that you would be quite satisfied with our process for enriching zefinium,” Stephen Parker finished.

“Yes, the emission levels are more than sufficient to amplify and generate spurts of concentrated beams that can penetrate a half-foot depth of lead,” Jack replied. “I’m a bit concerned about the triggering device, how small can we make it?”

“I have tweaked my design considerably,” Sophie spoke up for the first time. “I’ve sent out my schematic to be cut-out by my manufacturer. I should have it in a few days. It should fit a typical rifle trigger housing.”

“Excellent,” Jack said as he shot Derek a pleased look.

Derek chanced a glance at Sophie and saw her openly observing him.Interesting. Could she be aware of him after all? She quickly averted her eyes as a blush stole up her cheeks.

Very interesting indeed.

“I must say, you are quite brilliant, Dr. Leroux.” Derek tested his theory while flashing her his most charming smile when she returned her gaze to him. “A rare find. Beauty and brains. Your boyfriend is a lucky man.”

Sophie turned from pink to red.

Stephen Parker almost swooned but caught himself before he behaved unprofessionally. Instead he spoke rapidly: “Shedoesn’thaveaboyfriend.” And coughed behind a folder.

Jack leaned into his friend and whispered, “What the hell are you up to?”

Derek did not answer. Fortunately, Laurie, being the perfect assistant she was, distracted everyone by handing out copies of the contract. “Mr. Parker, Dr. Leroux, I believe you all have read the contract. There were no additions or deletions, but you are welcome to peruse it again.”

“We’re satisfied with the agreement,” Sophie replied and flipped through the pages of the original contract that bore the signature sticker and quickly signed and dated the documents. She stood up and looked at her watch. “Gentlemen, Ms. Stone. On behalf of Silver Fire Research, we welcome the opportunity to work with your company.” Sophie bowed her head courteously and walked out the door.

Stephen Parker was smiling as he leveled his stare at Derek. “You flustered poor Sophie.” He signed his part of the document before handing it back to Laurie who passed it over to Derek.

“That wasn’t my intention,” Derek replied with a frown. He felt a tad guilty when it appeared that Sophie couldn’t get out of the room fast enough. Either he affected her the same way he was by her, or she was just socially awkward in handling non-business-related interactions. And he couldn’t reconcile the glorious blonde hair, beautiful face, and willowy body with a mind that could calculate half-lives and radioactive decay.

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