Page 39 of One Wild Ride

“Oh, hi, Ms. Bechmann.” She walked back to the corner of the elevator as we walked in.

“Don’t you have to get out of the elevator?” Evaleen asked the woman.

“I just realized I forgot something at my desk,” she said with a ghost of a smile before her eyes snapped up to Alex.

“You’re Grace, right?” Alex said pointing to her.

Her tan cheeks turned pink as she nodded.

“I remember you from when I was here a few weeks ago. I’m Alex.” He pushed his hand to her as she stared at him.

She reached for his hand to shake. “Hi, Alex. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

The elevator stopped and once the doors opened, Grace dashed out.

“That woman is weird. She’s like that with every guy she meets. She seemed especially odd with you, Mr. Hawthorne. I’m sorry,” Evaleen said as we left the elevator and moved down the hall.

Alex shrugged as we entered a large, empty office. It was bare bones with only a desk, a few chairs, and a black leather couch against the wall.

“I don’t think so. She’s just shy. There’s nothing wrong with being shy,” he said.

I don’t know why, but my heart jumped at his words. I figured I would be a little jealous of Grace. It’s obvious she was enamored of Alex, but she appeared to have a delicate nature. I think Alex’s heart goes out to fragile creatures.

“Well, you don’t need to worry about her. She has a boyfriend now. Hopefully, she’ll gain some confidence with that. I’ll leave you two alone. I have a meeting with Edgar Mimir so it might be a while,” Evaleen said as she moved to leave and shut the office door behind her.

I turned to Alex. He sank into one of the black leather office chairs.

“Are you ready to tell me why you braved your fear of daylight to hide behind a plant in a sausage shack? I asked.

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