Page 48 of Surrender (Angels Halo MC Next Gen)

“All of your toys are here. Daddy even brought your office cat tree home Friday night because you love it so much. I’ll be back at lunchtime to check on you. If you’re a good girl, I’ll give you some tuna.” With that promise, I grabbed my things and locked up before running down to my car. If I’d stayed even a second longer, I knew I would have said to hell with it and taken my fur baby with me.

It wasn’t like Ben would arrest me anyway. And on the very, very slim chance he did, Lexa would tell him to let me go, which would mean I wouldn’t have to call the family lawyer.

I was seconds away from running back upstairs to scoop Daisy into her cat sling when my phone rang. Seeing it was my brother, I sent him to voice mail. “Not today, Satan.”

Talking to Ryan was the last thing I wanted to do. It was rare I answered his or my mother’s calls. All of Mom’s texts were cryptic, telling me to be careful and watch my back or stay focused. Like I wasn’t hyperaware of my surroundings every minute of the day to begin with.

If she was so worried, she would have told me why she felt the need to caution me. Her lack of information further proved it was nothing more than a ploy to either attempt to scare me into coming home or make me answer my phone when she called.

Ryan didn’t give up easily. His name popped up on my car’s touchscreen three more times before I made it to work. He didn’t leave a voice mail. Why would he? He couldn’t make me cry in a fucking voice mail.

I didn’t stop for my usual cup of coffee, knowing I would give in to temptation and drive back to my apartment to snatch up Daisy if I did.

Walking into the lobby, I went straight for the coffeepot. At least with Miss Sexy Voice, she’d kept us supplied with fresh caffeine throughout the entire day. Gina didn’t seem to be able to talk and walk at the same time. If she tried to make coffee and answer the phones, she would probably burn the building down.

Having the relentless ringing phones quiet was enough for me. Decades before, Jos had had to fight to win bids for any project the company could get. Now, clients were happy to get on a waiting list to have Barker & Reid fulfill their construction needs.

While I brewed a pot, Gina nervously took care of business, and I checked emails on my phone. Ryan’s name was at the top of the list. Instead of texting me, he’d sent a freaking email. Which was fair since I didn’t even look at his messages ninety percent of the time.

Maybe if he’d bothered to leave me a voice mail, I would have clicked the email. Instead, I left it unopened and poured myself a cup of coffee.

Behind me, I heard the door open and Gina’s hesitant greeting. “Good morning. Welcome to Barker & Reid. How can I help you?”

“Hi. I have an appointment with Elias.”

I was glad I had taken my time to turn around because the sound of that voice hit me in all the wrong ways. My vision turned red around the edges, and my mind was already coming up with ways to “accidentally” spill coffee in the newcomer’s face.

Blinking back the jealous, murderous haze, I slowly turned to find Lynn Berkeley standing in front of the receptionist with her sexy, confident smile, dressed in a skirt that might as well have been painted on her perfect ass. Her top was designer, but not appropriate for work, given the amount of cleavage she was showcasing.

She’d definitely done that for Elias’s benefit, knowing all too well that he was a tits man.

I waited for Berkeley to give her name before I stepped forward to greet her myself, pretending I didn’t already know every last detail of Elias’s kink buddy.

In the weeks since our first date, when he’d gotten that text from Berkeley, I hadn’t allowed myself to think about her. It wasn’t safe to go down that road. My crazy got too close to the surface when my jealousy was forced into the equation. Thankfully, she hadn’t texted him again. And I was able to live in my little fantasy world where kink buddies didn’t exist.

Now she stood in front of me, her gaze full of longing as she glanced around, hoping to catch sight of Elias. I wanted to pull out her blond extensions so bad my fingers itched.

Putting on my most professional smile, I stepped around the desk and offered my hand. “Miss Berkeley, hello. I’m Samara, Elias’s intern. I apologize, but we didn’t have you on our schedule today. Elias is still off-site meeting with a client.”

Her eyes raked over me, lingering on my chest and then my waist. Her chin lifted and her nose twitched, but she still shook my hand. I made sure to keep my grip light to hold my temptation for violence to a minimum.

I’d withstood burning Crystal’s home and car to ash for over an entire month. I could keep my need to taste Berkeley’s blood in check for a little while.

“I made the appointment last week,” Berkeley said, dropping her hand back to her side. “Elias spoke to me personally about coming in, but I believe your receptionist made the appointment.”

He’d spoken to her.

Personally.

I brightened my smile to keep from gritting my teeth. There was no way she’d called or texted his personal phone without my knowing about it. Which meant she had actually called the office.

“I apologize for any confusion. We’ve been having a few technical issues with our system.” All appointments made were sent straight to my task calendar, so I knew exactly who Elias and I were meeting with throughout each day. It helped me prepare for any potential surprises.

This one was not only unexpected, but so unwelcome I wasn’t sure how I was going to keep my crazy from spilling over. My regret over not bringing Daisy evaporated. I was thankful she wouldn’t be there to see her mommy lose her mind. Or be in the vicinity of potential danger.

“Let me show you to the conference room, and then I’ll call Elias to let him know you are here,” I offered. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

Luckily for her, she declined because I had no faith in myself not to poison her beverage.

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