Page 82 of Implode

“Yeah, I guess that is true. I haven’t heard any rumors, and you know how my ears perk up for drama.”

I laugh. “I hope our show renews for the summer. I miss our Monday night rituals.”

“Same, girl, same.”

“The girl walking with Dan is Nic’s assistant, Brenna. Maybe a little office romance is what we need to spice up the drama around here.”

Angie laughs. “Yeah, because we don’t have anything else to focus our minds on.”

I take a sip of my latte. “We both know a little drama never hurt anybody.”

But then I think about Brenna being Nic’s personal assistant and Dan King being Nic’s second-in-command. They keep popping up in the building around me, and it is starting to make sense to me as to how Nic is getting so much of his information about me. He is probably using one or both of them as spies.

I am not Nic’s pet project to worry about, and I sure as hell am not having a shadow. This craziness stops today.

22

NIC

“You have proven to me that you are ready for the next level,” I tell Dan, who arrived right on time to my office for an in-person meeting. He shared with me last night that Kevin was showing signs of retaliation, but more importantly, he had enough evidence that will help with my investigation into whether or not Tyler is helping.

“Thank you, sir. I will do my best.”

With my uncertainness with Tyler, I need to have full confidence in the decisions I make and the people I trust. Right now, I have less than a handful of men I’d consider in that category. Unfortunately, Asher is in California and working remotely to help me figure out my hang-ups with Tyler. Something just seems very off.

“I’ll be gone on Thursday and Friday of this week. I will be heading out of town for a family wedding.”

“Mr. Hoffman and Miss McFee’s, correct?” Dan asks.

“That’s correct.” I lean back into my leather chair and tap my finger along my jawline. “I need you to keep this place running smoothly without us here. You have already shown great potential and leadership skills. I trust that you will conduct business as professionally as you can, while being the interim boss to all of the security staff until I am available again on Monday.”

“You can count on me.”

“If there are any issues, contact me—not Graham,” I explain.

“Understood,” Dan says with a nod of his head.

“If you can handle this with us gone, then there may be more opportunities and a bigger bump in your salary.”

“I’m up for the challenge.”

As soon as Dan exits my office, I pull up all of the video footage from the various cameras I have around the building, just hoping to get a glimpse of Claire. She frequented my dreams last night, and as much as I am frustrated with the whole situation, I still need to see her. Not being able to adequately track her has caused me some anxiety, especially now that I know she is pregnant with what could be my child.

I haven’t had a lot of time to process all of the information she dropped on me all at once, but my feelings for her have not gone away. Sure, things are less than ideal, but I still care about her and want what is best for her—even if what is best may not be me. I’m just protective of my own heart and not sure I want to go down the road of imagining every worst-case scenario prior to knowing all of the facts.

I’m about to leave my office for a trip to the break room when my phone buzzes with an incoming text. I glance down at the screen and see that it is from Collins.

Collins: Can I meet with you to discuss the wedding logistics?

Nic: Yes. My office?

Collins: I can be there in ten minutes.

Nic: Sounds good

I fill up my ceramic mug with the fresh coffee that Brenna has brewed and touch base with her at her desk.

“Everything seem up to par here?” I ask her, while she stops typing at her computer to give me her full attention.

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