Page 3 of Daddy, Sir

Standing up, Tatiana hoped she maintained a pleasant look on her face. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Tatiana.”

“I know who you are. I’m the admin who was supposed to get your job.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. What’s your name?”

“So you can go report me to HR for being confrontational?”

That was an interesting word to use. Why did the thought zing into Tatiana’s brain that others had already discussed her antagonistic approach with HR? “No. Simply so I could say goodnight.”

Reaching down at her feet for her purse, Tatiana hoped to avoid any additional unpleasantness. A speedy exit sounded like an excellent idea.

“You’re going to fail, you know. There’s no way to make Captain Murphy happy. He’s a total dick.”

“Thank you, Mercedes,” Captain Murphy said from just outside the office. “If you’ll excuse me.”

Mercedes bolted a few feet forward into the room to allow him to pass.

Tatiana’s eyes widened as she watched Captain Murphy walk into his inner office sanctum. He didn’t seem bothered in the least by the rude woman’s evaluation. She watched him pause at the last moment as he turned to look at Mercedes.

“Of course, I’ll document this unpleasantness, Mercedes. I will urge them to make this your final misstep. I will not allow you to harass my staff. From now on, I’m banning you from this office. Please leave.”

Mercedes turned to glare at her as if all that was Tatiana’s fault, and the sour-faced brunette flounced from the room with a dramatic toss of her cascading hair.

You’ve got an enemy now,Tatiana thought to herself then realized nothing she could have done would have changed that woman’s mind for the positive.

Captain Murphy turned to Tatiana standing frozen behind her desk and complimented her. “Tatiana, you’ve done a great job today. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Sir. Is there anything else you’d like me to do before leaving?”

“I’m headed for dinner at The Harbor. It’s a bar and grill right off base. Would you like to join me?”

“Go to dinner with you?” Tatiana said as her mind whirled inside her skull. Was he asking her out on a date?

“Yes, little girl. No pressure. I’d like to get to know you better. If you’re busy, I understand,” the captain reassured her.

“I… I don’t have any plans. My fridge is empty, so I need to pick something up,” Tatiana confessed.

“Did you have lunch today?” His dark eyes narrowed in on her face.

Are they black like his hair or dark blue?

“Tatiana? Did you eat?”

“Oh, no. I don’t usually have lunch. Give me some coffee for breakfast and I’m good,” she lied. Her stomach growled to tattle on her.

“That’s not healthy. Let me set down my computer and we’ll go.”

In seconds, Captain Murphy ushered her out of the room and down the hall. When they got outside, he asked, “Do you have a car here?”

“I do.” Tatiana didn’t glance toward her beaten-up sedan. It had been the best thing on the used-car lot.

“Then I’m sure you’d rather follow me.” He grabbed his phone from his pocket. “What’s your number? I’ll ring you and then you’ll have mine if we get separated.”

“I’m sorry. I’m out of minutes,” she confessed, feeling her face heat. No one didn’t have a phone these days. She’d used a virtual number from her computer as her home phone number on her application. “If we get separated, I’ll just head home.”

“That won’t happen. This is my gray car here.” He pointed to a front parking space with his name on the sign in front of it. “Captain Jack Murphy.”

Jack.That was the first time she’d heard his name. It suited him.

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