“Who are you?”
The sharp feminine voice jerked Alicia’s thoughts from her weekend plans. She looked up to see a tall, slender woman standing on the other side of the desk. Her dark brown hair hung in a sleek bob to her shoulders. The woman’s brows were drawn tight together over light gray eyes, her lips pursed.
Alicia stood up and held out her hand. “I’m Alicia Leighton. Mr. Black’s assistant.”
The woman’s frown deepened, and she ignored Alicia’s hand. “He didn’t tell me he’d hired someone new. What happened to the last girl?”
Alicia clasped her hands at her waist. “I’m afraid I don’t know.”
The woman glanced toward Marcus’s door. “Is he in? He told me to meet him here.”
“Yes. He’s in his office.”
After one last glance that ran from the top of Alicia’s head to where the desk blocked further view, the woman turned on a heel. Alicia stared at the woman as she walked on sky-high heels into Marcus’s office. The door closed, and for a minute, Alicia stared at that, too. For some reason, she hadn’t considered that Marcus was involved with someone. Especially not someone like that.
Not that it mattered.
With a sigh, she sat back down at her desk and began to shut down her computer. It didn’t take her long to have everything packed away. Every night so far that week she’d done the same thing, so it was quick work now. When a glance at her phone revealed it was five o’clock, Alicia stood up. She looked toward Marcus’s closed door. She’d planned to say goodbye to him as she did each day he was in the office, but there was no way she’d interrupt anything between him and that woman.
Kelsey was just stepping away from her desk when Alicia reached the foyer area. “Are you as glad as I am that it’s the weekend?”
“Definitely. My brain is pretty much fried after everything I’ve learned this week.” Alicia reached out to press the button to call for the elevator.
“Do you have any big plans?” Kelsey asked as they stepped into the elevator when the doors whooshed open.
“Not a single one.” Alicia leaned back against the smooth wall behind her. “I’m going to read, maybe watch a movie and sleep. How about you?”
“I think Jeff and I are going to go out for dinner and maybe a movie. He hasn’t been available as much to go out lately, so I’m hoping he makes up for it this weekend.”
Over the course of the past week, Alicia had learned more about the bubbly receptionist including the fact that she had a boyfriend who she hoped would soon become a fiancé. Thankfully, the woman loved to talk which meant Alicia didn’t have to share too much about her own life. She still hadn’t gotten to the point where she felt she could trust anyone in the circle of people around her.
“Who was the woman that came to Marcus’s office?” Alicia asked as the doors opened to reveal the garage level.
“That was Celine Dupree. From what I understand, BlackThorpe did some bodyguard work for her a couple of years back. She pops in every once in a while to see Marcus.”
“Are they dating?”
Kelsey gave a snort. “She wishes. I’ve heard some of the guys talking about how she keeps angling for something more with Marcus, but he’s not biting.
The woman had definitely acted like a jealous girlfriend. “She didn’t seem to like me very much.”
“I’m not sure what her story is, but she’s never really warmed up to me either. So it’s not just you.”
“That’s good to know,” Alicia said as they reached Kelsey’s car.
Kelsey gave her a quick hug. “Have a good weekend, sweetie. See you Monday.”
“You, too.”
Though she was still relieved the week was over, Alicia found the drive to her place a little depressing. No doubt everyone else had plans for their weekend. At her previous job, she hadn’t made any real friends. She had worked most closely with the owners of the business who were both in their fifties. But this week she had—through no real choice of her own—become very aware of the lives of some of the people she worked with. She guessed that it was because Eric worked there that they welcomed her so readily.
As she pulled up in front of her apartment building, Alicia decided that she was going to see if she could dredge up some kind of plans for herself, too. Sitting alone in her room held no appeal right then. She grabbed her purse and laptop bag and got out of the car.
Once inside the room, she set her stuff down on the table and locked the door. She dug her personal cell phone from her purse and, before allowing herself to think too much about it, tapped the screen to call Victoria.
“You must have read my mind!” Victoria said when she answered.
“Why is that?” Alicia slipped off her shoes and set them in the closet. She curled her toes into the worn carpet beneath her feet. It felt divine to be free of the high heels.
“Mom just called and said Dad is barbecuing, and they want us all to come.”
By this point, Alicia was used to being included in family gatherings at the McKinleys. It wasn’t something she’d ever imagined actually happening when she’d first met them, but it had, and she welcomed it now.
“Sure. That sounds great.” And it did because it meant she’d get to eat something besides whatever was in her small fridge.
“Head over whenever you want. And maybe we could go catch a movie or something afterward?”
That sounded perfect to Alicia, and she told Victoria so. Once she got off the phone, she quickly removed her suit and blouse and hung them in the closet. She would need to take the suit to the dry cleaners the next day. It was going to take some creativity in order to make it look like she had more clothes than she really did. Changing her handful of blouses every day wasn’t likely going to be enough.
For now, Alicia was happy to pull on a pair of jean capris and a simple T-shirt. She ran a brush through her hair and slipped on a pair of flat sandals before grabbing her purse—with both cell phones inside of it—and, after a brief hesitation, her laptop bag. The security of the room was sketchy at best, and the last thing she wanted to have to do was explain to Marcus how she’d lost a BlackThorpe laptop.
With Friday rush hour traffic well underway, it took her a bit longer than usual to get to the McKinley family home. It didn’t appear she was the last to arrive, though, if the number of cars in the driveway was any indication. As far as she could see, only Victoria and Staci were there.
She walked up the driveway of the home with her laptop bag in hand. Forgoing the front door, Alicia let herself in through the side gate that led to the back yard.
“Auntie Licia!”
Alicia grinned at the little girl who came flying across the yard to greet her. After thinking she was an only child for most her life, it had been a wonderful surprise to discover that in addition to siblings, she also had a niece and nephew. Both Danny and Sarah had welcomed her with open arms.
Danny’s mother, however, was a different story. Over the past year or so, their relationship had changed, but Alicia still felt Brooke’s reservation whenever dealing with her. It had undergone the most positive changes in the last several months since Brooke had come to grips with her own past and her relationship with her dad had improved.
“Hi, Alicia,” Victoria said as she followed Sarah over.
Alicia bent to give the children hugs. “Good to see you guys.”
When they joined the others, Victoria asked, “So how was your first week as a BlackThorpe employee?”
“Hectic. A bit stressful.” Alicia was surprised to see Brooke seated with her mother and Staci. Her car hadn’t been out front. “Hello, ladies.”
“Have a seat, sweetheart,” Caroline McKinley said as she stood to give her a hug. “Glad you could make it.”
“Surprisingly, my social schedule had an opening,” Alicia said with a smile as she sat down in the lawn chair next to Victoria. She looked over to the back porch of the house and saw Doug McKinley at the barbecue with Danny. Some days
she still had a hard time believing he was her father. “Thank you for the invite.”
“So Eric says you’re fitting in quite well at BlackThorpe,” Staci said with a broad smile. Her blond hair was pulled back in a high ponytail and even though she was dressed in a pair of capris and a maternity T-shirt, she still managed to look refined and elegant.
“Really? I still feel a bit like I’m trying to find my footing.”
“Marcus hasn’t taken a bite out of you yet?” Brooke asked with a lift of one eyebrow. She sat with her legs crossed, her long hair draped in a braid over her shoulder. Unlike Alicia and Staci, she wore a skirt and a loose blouse. “Rumor has it he can be a tough man to work for.”
“That’s what I’ve heard, but so far he hasn't dished out anything I can’t handle.” And as far as Alicia was concerned, he never would. She could handle it all. No matter how tough he was on her, she would handle it.
“Daddy!” Sarah’s shriek drew their attention to the side gate in time to see Eric walk through it.
He looked like he’d come straight from the office although he wasn’t wearing the jacket he’d had on earlier when she’d seen him. With a grin, he scooped Sarah into his arms and lifted her into the air. She squealed with delight then planted a kiss on his cheek when he settled her on his arm.
“Hello, ladies,” he said as he joined them. After setting Sarah down, he bent to press a lingering kiss to his wife’s lips. His fingers touched her chin, and when the kiss ended, Eric ran his thumb across her cheek as he smiled down at her. “Hello, beautiful.”
“Get a room, you two,” Brooke said with a groan.
Eric grinned at Brooke. “And here I thought you’d be a bit more understanding now that you have a man of your own.” His gaze went past Brooke. “Speaking of…”
Brooke quickly twisted around only to snap back around, glaring at her brother. “Not nice.”
Alicia joined the others as they laughed at Brooke’s reaction. Clearly, she was as eager for Lucas to arrive as Eric had been to see his wife.
Grinning, Eric took Sarah by the hand and walked across the yard to where his dad and Danny were. Alicia enjoyed seeing the interactions between her half-siblings. Every once in a while, that teasing included her, and when it did, joy filled her heart. That they accepted her at all was something she’d never expected, and it meant everything to her.
5
Trent’s arrival a short time later brought a smile to Victoria’s face. Tori had confided in Alicia once that she hadn’t been sure she’d ever find the kind of love Eric and Staci or Lucas and Brooke shared. She definitely hadn’t expected to find it with Trent who had been a friend of Eric’s for a few years by the time anything serious developed between the two.
“Hey, everyone!” Trent called out with a lift of his hand as he headed in Tori’s direction.
He greeted Tori in much the same way Eric had Staci, and, not for the first time, Alicia understood what it was that Tori had wanted.
“Well, I’m going to get the rest of the supper together,” Caroline said as she stood up. “I imagine Lucas will be along shortly.”
“I’ll come help you,” Alicia said, suddenly anxious to escape the lovefest.
“Thanks, darling. The rest of you just hang out here. I don’t need a crowd in the kitchen.”
Alicia was hardly in the house for five minutes before Caroline sent her back out with the first of the food.
“Oh, look. It’s Lucas,” Victoria said with a grin as Alicia set the bowl of salad and several dressings onto the table.
“Haha. I’m not falling for that twice,” Brooke said without even looking behind her.
Alicia laughed. “She’s actually telling the truth.”
This time Brooke did turn around just as Lucas approached the group. She got to her feet in time for him to pull her into his arms. The kiss they shared was even longer than the one between Eric and Staci, but Alicia figured she’d keep that little bit of trivia to herself. It was hard not to be a bit jealous of her half-siblings. All of them happily married while she’d never even had one boyfriend because she’d had no desire to try to explain her mother and their strained relationship.
As Alicia headed back into the house, she sighed. She’d eagerly accepted the invitation to the get-together so as not to be alone and thinking about Marcus and his date for the evening, but now she was surrounded by happy couples who just reminded her of what she didn’t—and most likely never would—have. How could she ever have a relationship when that would require revealing everything she’d kept hidden?
“How has your week been, sweetie?” Caroline asked as she pushed a small bowl and a plastic container of dip toward her. “Has working with Marcus been difficult?”
Alicia peeled open the lid of the dip and used a spoon to move some into the bowl. “I don’t think it’s been too difficult. I mean, yes, it’s been a challenging week, but I think it would have been like that even with a different boss. Just the difficulty of learning a new job, you know?”
“I do know. We’ve been praying for you and will continue to pray that you and Marcus work well together.”
“Thank you,” Alicia said, and she truly meant it. Hearing that someone was praying for her was something she’d never experienced before meeting the McKinleys. At one point, early on in their relationship, Caroline had mentioned that they were praying for her, and Alicia had asked her why since she hadn’t really mentioned anything needing prayer. Caroline’s simple response had blown her away.
We pray for all our children.
Her mother had always had an intense dislike of religion and anything related to it. Whether it was church or prayer or the Bible, her mother had apparently turned her back on it all. Being introduced to it had been an eye-opening experience for Alicia. Her perception of religion had shifted when she’d seen how faith had played out in the lives of Doug and Caroline McKinley and their children.
Her relationship with Caroline was a mixed blessing. Since her mother wasn’t able to play that role any longer, Alicia welcomed what she had with Caroline. Unfortunately, seeing how Caroline was with her own children was difficult because Alicia’s mother hadn’t been anything like that, and it clearly showed what she had missed out on.
Alicia often wondered how different her life would have been if she hadn’t had a mother so filled with bitterness and, in some cases, hatred. Her attitude toward Alicia had ranged from barely tolerating her to outright despising her presence in her life.
Though there had been horrible events that had led her to the McKinleys’, Alicia couldn’t help but be grateful for the change in her life. Now if she could only keep it all.
~*~
“I need the Timberlane file, Alicia,” Marcus said as he walked past her desk.
Alicia stared at his back until he disappeared into his office. The name he’d just given her wasn’t familiar at all. She knew for certain it hadn’t crossed her desk. For the first time since taking the job, she felt a little frisson of anxiety. She quickly logged onto the file tracking software the company used, hoping that Marcus wouldn’t come back right away asking where the file was. She typed in the name to see if the file was in the tracking software, and if it was, who had it.
“Alicia?”
She got to her feet, still staring at the screen, trying to figure out where the file was. It said that Marcus had it, but the date on that tracking input was prior to her starting. She didn’t want to have to tell Marcus she had no idea what was going on, but she didn’t have much choice.
“Alicia!” Marcus’s voice was tinged with irritation, and Alicia knew it was likely to only get worse if she didn’t at least try to explain to him what she knew.
Taking a deep breath, she headed into Marcus’s office. Empty-handed. It had been a relatively smooth three weeks with only a few little bumps since she’d started, but it looked like that was going to change.
Marcus’s gaze went to her empty hands. “Where’s the file? I need
to review it before I leave next week.”
Alicia came to a stop next to the chair she’d sat in for her interview. “I don’t have that file.”
“Then who does?” Marcus scowled as he got to his feet, as if preparing to go physically track down the file himself.
“According to the file tracker, you do,” Alicia said.
“Well, if it says I have it, that means you have it.” Marcus put his hands on his hips. “So, where is it?”
“I don’t know. The last entry on the tracker is that you had it, but the date is before I started here. I haven’t seen that file at all as I’ve gone through everything that was in my desk.” Alicia pressed her damp palms against her skirt. “Is there any chance it might be in here somewhere?”
Marcus stared at her for a moment then looked around at his desk. “I haven’t seen it here. Call around to Eric and the others to see if any of them have it. I need that file.”
Alicia nodded even though she wished that Marcus would let her go through his desk to see if the file was there. Instead, she went back to her desk and picked up the phone to call Eric. It didn’t take her long to work her way through the list, and as she suspected, no one had the file.
She took a few minutes to once again look through all the files she had at her desk, just to make sure she hadn’t missed anything. Not surprisingly, it wasn’t there. One of the things she’d done since taking over had been to go through the entire desk to organize it the way she’d wanted it.
Marcus appeared beside her desk. “The file?”
Alicia felt a band tighten around her chest. “No one has it, and neither do I.”
The irritation was clear on Marcus’s face. “A file doesn’t just disappear.”
They were at an impasse. There was only one thing left, and Alicia was a little nervous to suggest it. “Can I go through your office and look for it?”
The scowl didn’t move from Marcus’s face. “You want to go through my office?”
“Well, did you?” Alicia knew she had to be firm about this. It was the only place the file could be. If she didn’t have it and none of the admin team did, it only stood to reason that the file tracker was correct and that somewhere in Marcus’s office was the file.
A Sense of Security: A Christian Romance (BlackThorpe Security Book 6) Page 6