Page 10 of The Lynx and the Llama
Why did she agree to such a stupid thing? Oh, right—his cute smile made her turn into mush. Plus? All she agreed to was for him to persuade her to go out on a date. That didn’t mean she had to say yes at the end of their partnership! That was a win-win as far as she was concerned.
He smiled again at her as she led him into the palace office. More heat rushed her back as he followed her. God, his gaze was like lava searing against her back. It wasn’t long before they entered her office area, which really wasn’t anything grand.
“Here we are.” Erika waved her arm around the area. Her desk was situated right in front of the elevators leading to Rayan’s office, completely out in the open.
No walls separated her from the people coming and going, which meant she couldn’t hang any art. Behind her desk was one door that led to Rayan’s office and a row of filing cabinets. She didn’t have any windows to glance out of, so potted plants were out of the question, too. Her only scenic view was the elevators.
She’d never taken the time to spruce up her little area. Why bother when there really isn’t any space to hang things? She had no personal pictures or even a fake plant on her desk. Of course, to have a photo would mean she had someone in her life. Putting up a picture of herself seemed rather conceited and sad, all rolled into one. Just her computer, mouse, and keyboard were on the dark cherry-wood desk. Even her mouse pad lacked her personality. It was a drab shade of grey.
“Looks like they have your desk all set up for you, right on time,” she said, showing Quinn to his station. The tech guys had listened to her, and while she was gone, they’d moved her desk to the right and placed an additional desk on the left for Quinn. They equipped the desk with his own laptop, mouse, keyboard, and the same basic drab mouse pad. The tech guys had finished everything before Quinn arrived, and Erika sighed in relief. Not that she’d had doubts, but there was always room for something chaotic to happen. Erika hated messy drama, especially after her ex.
“So this is your home away from home,” Quinn murmured.
“And yours for the time being,” she replied. “Let me knock on King Rayan’s door and see if he’s available to meet with you now.”
His smile didn’t quite reach his face, but she turned on her heel and knocked. Rayan’s voice boomed from the other end.
“Come in.”
She entered, shutting the door behind her.
“Mr. Taylor has arrived. Do you have time to meet with him now?”
“Yes. Send him in, please, Erika.”
Erika opened the door and motioned for Quinn to come in.
“King Rayan Michel, this is Quinn Taylor, our new BS recruit from Furry United Coalition Newbie Academy.”
Quinn bowed his head before greeting the now-coronated king. During the past year, King Rayan had his now-retired father by his side. But it was time for the former King Serge to spend some much-needed time with his friend Stan in British Columbia.
“Stan is really looking forward to King Serge’s visit. I’ve hinted to become part of your father’s permanent detail once I’m officially trained and back in Canada.”
King Rayan raised a brow.
“Oh? That’s interesting.”
Quinn furrowed his brows.
“What do you mean?”
“I didn’t think they had an assignment lined up for you just yet. Perhaps that is my mistake.”
“Well, I only hinted to Stan that I’m interested.” It was one of the few ideas he’d brought up to Stan—the other being assigned to a FUC office as a field agent. Anything other than returning to working with Richard.
“Huh. I see.”
Erika had only heard King Rayan speak this way once before. His eyes seemed determined and with a slight heat behind them. She knew the look well. King Rayan was sure about something in his mind and determined to convince the world he was right. It was how he could become engaged to his mate, Carol. Once the man got an idea in his head, he’d stop at nothing to make it happen. But what was he thinking about now? Quinn wasn’t anything to him, after all.
“The entire BS team will all meet tomorrow, and I’ll have the car pick you both up between seven and seven-thirty a.m. I wish to debrief you both before meeting with the rest of our Scooby Gang at eight-thirty a.m. Dress in plain clothes because we will go on a sightseeing tour of Santorini after the debrief on Skyros. I have already planned for the chopper to take us from Marathi to Santorini. Carol and Harriet are the only BS accompanying us to Santorini. That’s why it’s important for you to be with us, Quinn. Yes, finding out about Zagan or Atlantis shifters on that island was supposed to be just Lear’s bag, but I am also curious.”
Quinn nodded.
“Excellent, King Rayan,” Erika said, filling the silence. “I will make preparations tomorrow morning for your lunch and dinner reservations. I assume we will eat at King Lear and Queen Harriet’s palace for breakfast?”
“No, you won’t be making the reservations. I took care of all of that. All I need from you tomorrow is to accompany Quinn while we take in the sights.”
Erika’s eyes widened.
