Page 19 of Deadly Peril

“You’re so weird sometimes. He’s gorgeous. You should invite him over.”

Jana put up her hand. “No…don’t even think about it.” She glared at Coley. “He’s not available.”

“Not for me. I wouldn’t steal your guy.”

“You don’t get it. He’s not mine. I don’t want him to be mine. He’s…”

“He’s what?”

Jana took a swig of her drink. “He’s driving me crazy, that’s what.”

Coley laughed. “I have a hunch that’s his purpose in life, to drive women crazy.”

“Not if you listen to him,” Jana said. “He’s a bodyguard, a professional. And he’s not interested in anything else.”

“How do you know?”

Jana glared across the table. “Don’t confuse me. Things might be different if my grandmother hadn’t hired him to protect me.”

“But if she hadn’t, you wouldn’t even know him.”

Jana rolled her eyes. “Don’t get clever. Anyway, how would you feel having a guy follow you wherever you went?”

Coley licked her lips. “Mmm, well, if he was the guy in question…”

“Forget I asked,” Jana said. “I need food. If I keep drinking without eating, I’ll get silly.”

The waitress came by and took their order for wings and garlic bread. “That ought to fill in the holes,” Coley said.

“I had a very productive day,” Jana said, then proceeded to share the highlights of her new device.

“You’ve told me a bit of that before, but I think I’m going to have to try it out to really understand it.”

“I want you to,” Jana said. “The patent is pending, but I need evidence that the tool works as expected.”

“So, if I understand correctly, I can wear this microchip you’ve developed, inside my ski hat. It will give me feedback, so I can regulate my heartbeat.”

“Precisely,” Jana said. “Think of it like a sonic wave, such as dogs can hear. Only this is for you. It allows you to tune in to your heart rate and gives you a way to calm it down quickly.”

“I’m pretty impressed that you could create something like that.”

“Don’t be impressed until you try it.” Jana munched on a chunk of bread. “It can look great in preliminary trials, but what matters is how it works out on the slopes.”

“Okay, I’m your girl. I can’t wait.”

“And how are things with you? Is Michael back yet?”

“Another day, he says.” Coley smiled. “I can’t wait.”

Jana helped finish off the wings then cleaned her fingers on the wet wipe. She wanted to stay longer but had an early morning workout scheduled. Her trainer expected her to show up energetic and ready for a challenge, not sluggish or hungover.

“It’s been real,” Coley said. “I’m going to have a quick espresso then head out. Call when you want to set up that test run.”

“It will be soon.” Jana gave her friend a quick hug, then walked through the restaurant. She didn’t need to look to know that Thaddeus wasn’t far behind her.

*****

Thaddeus had imbibed club sodas and kept an eye on Jana and her friend while they ate and drank. He didn’t care that he hadn’t been introduced. That could wait. The woman was a close friend Jana had spoken of, so she’d likely see her again soon. Maybe he’d be back in her good graces and get to meet Coley next time.

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