by K. F. Breene
Tory, trying to maintain calm, walked back to his chair and sat down. “Now, what is to be done with Krista?”
“I can make room for her,” Ron said smoothly. “I have no doubt that I can quell any out-speak on her being female.”
“She won’t move,” Sean said quietly. “All her friends are in L.A. or Seattle. She won’t make another move across the country. L.A. sat well with her only until lately.”
Tory was analyzing Sean. “And you haven’t talked to her about leaving?”
“I’ve been keeping my distance for the most part—taking my lead off of Marcus. They are close.”
“As her boss, you should be able to have that conversation,” Ron said disapprovingly. He didn’t think Sean was experienced enough for the position he held and it showed.
“They have a rather…difficult personal past,” Tory replied, giving Ron a look that said his input was not wanted on this subject. Ron took the hint.
“You haven’t been able to turn your team around.” Tory wasn’t asking Sean a question.
“I haven’t, no. I have gotten more out of them, for the most part, but until this conference, it has been a struggle. They haven’t been challenged all that much for the last few years.”
“Yes, that is my fault,” Tory said thoughtfully. “That was part of the reason for the structural change. It worked well in New York, so we adopted it.”
“You mentioned this conference?” Tory said, rounding back.
Sean smirked and rested his right ankle on his left knee. “Krista has been working with me on my goals, but she hasn’t meshed with the team—for obvious reasons. It wasn’t until the conference that she apparently decided—again, this is coming from Marcus—that she would shove our collective opinions up our collective…”
“Orifices, yes,” Tory finished, trying to hide a smile.
“She then took over the motivating side of the managers. She has a way of bringing people around that I don’t. That not many do, I would say. She sees a goal and bends everyone around her to accomplish that goal. It is instinctual, I think—for the most part, anyway. If I was…a different sort of manager, I might think of it as stepping on my toes.” Sean paused briefly. Tory’s eyes flicked to Ron.
Ron shifted in his seat. “So she has taken it upon herself to get your team working to their maximum capacity?” Ron asked levelly. If the words were an action, he would be looking down his nose at Sean.
It was Tory who answered, “Sean has wisely allowed one of his subordinates to exhibit her skills, and for that, it sounds like his team will thrive. I have seen her apply these ministrations. I, too, allowed her full-reign, and, for what I would call my insightfulness, she exerted greatly to get my panel of analysts working cohesively and efficiently, freeing me up to do other important tasks. It was that panel that beat out yours in effectiveness, as you’ll recall. She took the number one spot in four short months, I believe. Impressive, I would say.”
Tory turned back to Sean. “But she is still learning. She still needs guidance in business matters, which is what Sean is supplying, if I am not mistaken.”
“She doesn’t have a business degree, so she is learning most things first hand. Learning quickly, though.”
“So you think she can turn them?” Tory asked.
“I think she is turning them. I think at the other end of this conference the playing field will be leveled. Her friends don’t want to see her go, so that will help. I am making steps, which Marcus says is helping—but no one has to reach very high to entice her monetarily. I can’t give her a raise, because I am too new. It would be unfair to the others, which would undermine what she is doing here.”
“You are too new,” Tory said, checking his watch. “I am not. Keep an eye on her—or should I say, have Marcus keep an eye on her. Or Kate, who I assume was the one giving you your information?” Sean nodded. “If Krista can make a home for herself in the L.A. branch, then I will see what I can do monetarily.”
Tory turned to Ron. “If you will excuse us, Ron, I have a couple things to talk to Sean about, then we all best head down to paintballing.”
Ron got up laboriously and slowly made his way out of the suite. Tory watched him go, grabbing a bottle of water from the bar as he did so. As soon as the door was closed, Tory turned back to a nervous Sean.
“Nothing gets Ron Powers motivated like an intrigue.” Tory’s eyes sparkled. “On a personal level, how it is going with Krista?”
Sean’s eyes widened. Then he sighed. “Very slowly. She is having a really hard time here this weekend. She isn’t letting me help, but I am hopeful she is slowly coming around.”
“You two work exceptionally well together. I was right.”
“You are the second one to point that out. And yes, we do.”
“I’ve seen your preliminary numbers. They are impressive.”
Sean puffed up slightly, trying not to smile. “It’s a work in progress.”
“Once she gets your team working cohesively, I think you will do great things.”
Sean laughed. “I thought I was a better motivator. It was a hard pill to swallow realizing I need her as much as I do.”
Tory chuckled, too. “Follies of the youth. I had that same realization. My next step was to marry Emily.”
“You probably had an easier time getting her to say yes.”
Tory’s eyes were twinkling again. “Not at all. It is a hard thing, eating crow, but women are a forgiving breed. If you are patient enough, you would be surprised what they will talk themselves into.”
“Let’s hope.” Sean said, getting up.
“I don’t need hope, I have Emily. Okay, keep up the good work, but remember what I said about sexual harassment. We need to update the company view and you and Ron Powers will be the leaders in that. He is also a powerful motivator, and he would also benefit from a ‘Krista’ to do all his work.”
“Why does no one think I work?” Sean laughed. Tory laughed with him.
Sean left shaking his head. He had to get his sweats on for paintballing.
Chapter Seventeen
“What are you guys doing?” Krista asked Janice, putting on her running shoes. She was showered, changed and rested. Her head was buzzing, but no longer whirling. It was at least a step in the right direction.
“We’re paintballing, too.”
“Oh. That’s good. At least there’ll be more women.”
“It will be nice with a mix of people. I have had my fill of gossip.”
“I bet Marcus is having the time of his life.”
Janice smiled, heading toward the door. Krista followed. “He was sent here to make friends, and he is doing just that. By the end of this weekend, Sean will know more about the other regions than their VPs do.”
“That’s what he was going for. How are you guys doing in your competitions?”
“Well, Marcus isn’t an admin, of course, so…”
That was about when Krista stopped listening. She couldn’t help it—there were more pressing matters in her head than typing contests and note taking. Like that kiss earlier. Like how good it felt. Like how her body revved up and remembered how right it was once.
The problem was there was still a piece of her in a dark corner that was broken. She didn’t trust that Sean wanted her bad enough. What if something else happened and they had to separate? Would he push her away again?
Krista thought he probably would. He just never seemed to put himself out there when it really mattered. If he was going the same way, then she was his gal. If not, well then…
They went outside and around the hotel to the tree line. A small huddle of ref’s were there, with yellow shirts, and the normal huddle of cliques. A couple of the New York guys already had guns, masks, and other protective gear.
Krista and Janice joined their team, who were all there. Sean, who was wearing form fitting sweats, looked up as the two women joined the group. He then couldn’t help but scan her body. He was still on over
drive. Krista stopped herself from scanning his.
“Hey guys,” Krista said. Everyone but Bob-the-Turd gave her a glance and looked back at Sean.
“Geegee, Janice, great,” Sean said. “I was just going over some strategy. I first need to figure out who is the team handicap.” Everyone looked at she and Janice.
“Well, if you mean ‘who might not be great at this?’, I’ll raise my hand.” Janice followed by actually raising her hand. Sean and Dean nodded like they knew as much. Eyes shifted to Krista.
“Don’t look at me, fellas. I’ve been shooting since I was twelve. Plus, I’m in great shape. No dunk tank for me this time!”
“You’ve been shooting since you were twelve?” Bob asked in disbelief.
“My mom took my sister and I once a month from twelve to twenty. She said when we got our own place, we needed a gun. If someone got in, we’d need to know how to shoot. Rape and murder proofing, she called it.”
“Yikes.” Georgie smirked. “Watch out for the Fields family women.”
He didn’t know she’d changed her name.
Sean looked over Krista’s shoulder and smirked with that boyish mischievousness that made his face all kinds of hot. Krista did scan his body then—she couldn’t help herself. His suit showed off his broad shoulders fantastically. And his pants were tight enough to see those shapely, defined legs, which were nothing compared to that rock star quality ass! The guy needed to wear tighter pants more often, style faux-pas or no! Krista could just barely make out his pecks, so she focused instead on his biceps. He could pick her up and throw her on the bed without breaking a sweat.
Had, in fact.
When she looked up to look at his gorgeous face, he was looking back. It was her turn to flush. To hide it, she looked behind her to see what the others were looking at. It was Marcus. He was dressed all in black. He had a form fitting suit like Sean—he probably bought two and made Sean where one of them—with a similar well-defined body. Krista had to remember to comment on it. Unlike Sean, Marcus liked a little appreciation. To complete his outfit, he had some green smudges on his face.
He walked over to Krista, all ease and friendliness. “Howdy boys. Geegee, my goodness, I do believe some of their testosterone has rubbed off on you.”
Krista smiled and let his relaxation wash over her. It was so good to see a friendly face—one that didn’t take everything so dang seriously.
“Marcus, good to see you,” She sighed.
“Okay, focus everyone,” Sean said, clapping his hands. “Marcus, can you shoot, run, or do anything useful?”
“I can run if a burglar is chasing me. I can’t shoot all that well. But I am excellent at sitting very still.” Marcus replied.
Janice laughed and raised her hand again, indicating that was her speed, too.
“Okay,” Sean said, “We have Annie Oakley and a bunch of sharp shooters. We’ll have to make due.”
He then went on to explain how big the perimeter was and how they should form a couple clusters to guard people’s backs. From the looks in everyone’s eyes, no one had a clue what they were supposed to do. Finally, Sean sighed and gave up. “We’ll just have to do our best.”
Sounded good. Everyone got their guns and protective gear. Goggles were mandatory and everything else was optional. Krista reached only for the goggles. So did the other men. Janice took everything she could get, including a helmet.
When they were ready, they were led past the tree line, given a map, and told they would start in fifteen minutes.
“Okay, gang. Janice, Bob, Marcus, and Donald, get to this area,” Sean pointed at the four corners of the perimeter. “Find a bush or a tree, hide yourself well, and sit there until you can pick off people that come through.” They all nodded. “Dean and Georgie, you’ll be a team. Geegee and I will be another team. Give ‘em hell.”
Krista looked over her paintball gun. It had the paintballs in the top in a mini bin, leading down into the gun. It was light weight and had no sights. Point and shoot. All day long.
Krista followed Sean, who was looking at this watch. “Okay…”
“GO!” said a voice over a loud speaker.
Sean looked at Krista with a grin. “Like I was saying, it’s time to go.”
Sean checked his troops, made sure everyone was off, and they headed out at a fast walk. Being that it was Colorado, there were lots of trees and foliage to hide behind. Instead of hiding, though, they crouched behind shrubbery and looked for fat professionals they could shoot at.
Krista was never any good at the slow approach to physical things. She was more a run in and shoot ‘em up type of girl. Like with debating, her brain worked better with the increased adrenaline of danger.
Come to think of it, it was probably why she liked dangerous men.
They walked around a while, paused and looked, then walked around some more. Krista was starting to get bored. She wanted to shoot at someone already. That was, until the world exploded into loud popping noises, blasting the foliage around them.
Sean shoved Krista behind a tree and jumped the other way. She fell and rolled, her blood starting to pump. Her excitement starting to bubble. She felt a smile creep up her face. Show time.
Sean was up, trying to shield her like a fool. She crept around the other side of the tree, away from him. It sounded like three shooters, all in front.
Without hesitation, she took off running. Popping filled the air. She dove into a bush, waiting. Breathing heavily. The popping stopped. She could hear shifting. They were probably looking for Sean.
Up she bounded, bush-hopping faster than they could turn. Always too fast for their body shifts. She worked her away around, Sean still quiet and in front. The world stilling somewhat, everyone waiting.
POP, POP, POP!
Sean was active. So was the return fire.
Krista launched her body forward, gun pointed, trigger finger squeezing. A guy from Chicago, seeing nothing but a black hole at the end of a barrel in the hands of a madwoman, started screaming. Yellow spattered across his chest.
Krista ducked back down and held her position just in case someone else heard the fire. Sean did likewise from wherever he was. They’d taken out the cluster of men in no time flat. Time to move on and get their next “kill.”
The three guys—two from Chicago and one from Utah—were laughing and clapping each other on the backs. They packed it in and slowly headed back to base. Krista had no doubt they would head to the bar immediately. This was the last thing for the day.
Light footsteps approached her hiding bush as Sean made his way over, cautiously. His eyes were shining and his face was flushed in excitement. His gun was low and his head high as he saw her. A radiant smile lit up his face before his eyes started scanning again.
She crawled over to him.
“Best to constantly stay on the move,” she said quietly. “These guys are chubby and slow. Those that know guns are probably hunters, right? They are used to things running away. I think if we keep moving toward them, fast, they might get confused. Or something.”
Sean looked at her, crouching next to her. “You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. I’ve thought that since I first saw you walk into that copy room three years ago. I’m not sure if I ever told you that.”
Krista’s mind stuttered as her body flushed. “Huh? Sean, we aren’t really going to die out here, you know. These aren’t real bullets.”
He smiled jubilantly, and then grabbed her around the waist and kissed her. Before she could react, she was released again. “I know, but this is fun. Let’s go!”
“Uh…” Krista staggered a couple steps after Sean before her mind shifted from his kiss to his running away. She blinked a couple times hoping that would help restart her brain. It didn’t. But the next batch of pop-pop-pops did!
Sean dove to the side a second before she did, narrowly missed. His eyes peering at her out of the green foliage, the colors nearly matching, the light standing out like g
old dust in his eyes. He gave a quick head nod, and then started moving. Krista figured he wanted to run around the shooters this time. Only fair—it was the fun part.
She inched up and immediately heard the blasts. Her drop back down to the ground was as fast as a boulder through water. With any luck, they hadn’t seen her.
She waited quietly, giving Sean time. When he was in position, and drawing their attention, she could surprise them with paintball death.
She waited until she heard Sean shoot, then answering shots in his direction. She took that as “Go.”
She was up in a flash. She started sprinting at the huddled managers as fast as she could, staying to the bushes and behind trees whenever possible. When she was close enough to see the guys sitting together, focused on Sean, she placed her shot clusters of three and slid behind a tree. She did an army roll behind a bush as Sean’s, or someone else’s, shots rang out behind the group of guys. Krista was up again, sprinting, bursting through the bushes like a nightmare with her gun pointed at their wide eyes and hasty shield of white flags.
“Oh, hey, Perry,” Krista said, relaxing. Looked like Sean finished ‘em off.
Perry just stared with his mouth open and sweat blossoming on his brow.
Sean showed up a second later. The guys thought Sean came to talk to them, or save them, and looked at him expectantly.
Perry was just about to say something when she whispered, “No, no. Don’t talk to me. Do your thing.”
She got an askew look.
Sean flashed the other guys a smile before he turned to Krista. “I say we go East at a fast jog. I think I saw another group that way. By the time they know we’re there, they’ll be toast.”
“Okay, but they’ll be hiding. It’ll be like a rattlesnake—we won’t know until they start shooting, and there are bound to be some damn good shots with these guys.”
“They are generally too fat to move fast. No offense Perry.”
“Alright, fine. Do Navy Seal hand signs, though. Let’s stay on the same page.”
“I am now glad you made me learn those,” Sean said with a smile.