Page 5 of Married to My Master

“Thank you,” Dane said, grinning so wide his cheeks were starting to hurt.

He hadn't realized how stressful this would all be, especially after having confined himself to his apartment for the last few weeks. Of course, this was all spur of the moment, too. He was used to having plans—some sort of operational guideline when it came to life.

This was all off the cuff, and he was playing fast and loose with what he could get away with.

He just hoped he wasn't going to have to move to Plan B.

“Mr. Bishop,” Emily said, as he opened her door and stepped inside her giant corner office. She was busy packing up her leather briefcase behind her desk, probably getting ready for her out-of-state conference, “I've heard a lot about you already. Honestly, didn't expect to see you here today.”

Dane was stunned by her looks. The TV screen hadn't done justice to just what kind of presence she'd have in real life. Her eyes were large and striking, even from across the large office. As she glanced his way, he just felt his own eyes drawn to them. And, damn, that business dress hugged every curve on her petite body. Sure, she was small, but he could tell that she had a spirit ten times her size and a kind of strength you didn't find in every woman on the street.

“Yes,” Dane said, holding his folder down in front of him. She'd heard about him? Already? What was that supposed to mean? “Um, I was wondering if-”

“Mr. Bishop,” Emily said as she came around from behind her desk and brushed past him as she went for the office door. “I can't wait to hear what you have to say, but I'm on a timetable here. As a vet, I'm sure you understand. If you want to talk, we'll have to move at the same time.”

“Oh,” Dane said, nodding. “Yes, absolutely, Ms. West.”

“Emily, please,” she said offhandedly as her eyes gave him a once over. “Now, come on. Walk and talk, Mr. Bishop.”

“Dane,” he said as they walked out to her assistant's office, “Please.”

Emily smiled and flicked her hair behind her ear as she turned to her assistant. “Jas, I'll be gone for the rest of the day. Everyone knows you'll be gone, too, while I'm out of town, so don't worry.”

Jasmine, or Jas, stood, and the two women hugged. “Thanks again, Em,” she whispered.

“Don't mention it,” the CEO whispered back as they parted, “To anyone. They need to think I'm the Ice Queen, remember?”

Her assistant laughed. “It's just between you, me, and Mr. Bishop, here.”

Emily turned back to Dane, and he smiled again.

Her interaction with her assistant told him one thing, at least. She might have seemed tough as nails on the surface, but she still had a heart. He understood that. Part of being an officer was having to act like an officer, even if you didn't feel like one. She was a new CEO, and female to boot, so she had to project that persona as much as she could.

He'd had to do the same thing for the first couple years in the military. There were expectations from your commanding officers, your fellow officers, and from the men below you, that you had to meet and exceed. The moment you stopped being the best at your job and let your guard down in public, was the moment you stopped going anywhere.

“All right, Mr. Bishop, are you ready?” Emily asked as she started to move through the office at a quickened pace. “I walk fast,” she said as she glanced back over her shoulder, “So you've got to keep up.”

And keep up, he did.

Chapter Three

Dane

The words formed and flowed from his mouth as quickly as Dane could manage. “Benton and I are twin brothers. I went Air Force as a fighter pilot, and he went Army as infantry. Between the two of us, he faced a lot more combat.”

They stopped in front of the elevator. As they waited, Emily nodded attentively to his words. “Keep going,” she said.

“When I came back a few years ago, after my discharge, Benton seemed off. My contract had been a little longer than his, by about a year. By the time I'd come home, he was already settling back into life with his wife, Marianne, and trying to make a go of it.”

The elevator bell rang, and the two of them entered. Emily shot a look at the two employees who tried to slip on as well , giving them a quick shake of her head. Clearly, she wanted to keep this discussion private.

Dane, for his part, didn't seem to notice. He was too wrapped up in having to tell Benton's story in such a short amount of time. He knew this was important, and that it could be the missing piece in all the efforts he'd already made. If he could convince her between now and the time she got in her car to leave, maybe he could do something to help Benton.

“He had all the symptoms of PTSD, though,” Dane continued, after the elevator door closed behind them, sealing them in. “I could see it, his wife could see it, and even he could see it. He couldn't get to sleep and had night terrors when he could. He was removing himself from life, and he had anxiety in crowds and around loud noises. He still couldn't get the proper treatment through the VA system. Everyone was trying to get appointments back then, and he had to wait nearly a year. So, he went into a private care practitioner, under his wife's insurance, and managed to see someone in order to get a diagnosis.”

The elevator stopped again, just a few floors down, and Dane stumbled to a stop. When the doors opened, Emily shook her head at her employees and hit the “close doors” button again. “Continue, Mr. Bishop. Please,” she said, as the elevator hummed along on its downward trajectory.

Dane searched for the words that would affect her the most. He needed her, after all, to publicly admit the harm her company had caused.

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