by Lea Hart
She was still of counsel with Sullivan and Cromwell and she expected to be on a case by the middle of November. Which meant she needed to get in and out of Syria in one piece and get a good chunk of writing done before she got embroiled in the litigation.
Looking at her phone, she saw that Kelly had messaged her and decided to respond after her meeting with Carrick. For all she knew, he had no interest in escorting her on the trip and she needed to know either way before she updated her friend and agent.
Hearing the door swoosh open, she turned and saw Carrick approach and noted the frown that seemed to be his default expression. “I thought I’d stop by before I headed to the airport and give you my decision in person; I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”
“Locke and I have a training session this afternoon, so this works.” He gave her a nod and then held the door open. “Come on back.”
Tipping her head in acknowledgment, she walked past him and noticed again how he towered over her. At 5’10’’ she wasn’t used to the sensation and decided it was probably a good thing, considering she was putting her safety in his hands. And what big hands they were. Taking a surreptitious glance, she noticed he had scars bisecting the top of his left one and his right was nicked up as well. Definitely the hands of a warrior.
But he was more than that, as she had discovered when she researched him last night. Not that his family and upbringing were of any importance, but coming from where he did, it was surprising he’d chosen the Navy.
Following him into a room that was filled with workstations, she took a chair where he indicated. She set down her bag and folded her hands. “I had a great meeting with SAI and enjoyed getting to know Chris and Derrick. They say hi, by the way, and asked me to remind you that you owe them fifty bucks from the Navy at Tulsa game.”
He bit back a laugh and nodded. “Funny how they remember when I owe them money and not the other way around.” Pulling a tablet off the workstation, he powered it on. “What did you decide?”
“I would like Titan to handle the security for my trip to Syria. The men at SAI said your company would be the best option because you have assets in the area.”
“I served with most of the men who work at SAI and that includes the founder and president, Max Bishop. I have a ton of respect for them and truthfully almost went there after I left the Teams. The fact that they considered your safety above everything else tells me they’re still the best teammates a man could ask for.”
“They also advised strongly against the trip and told me in no uncertain terms that I was crazy for even thinking about it.”
“Sounds like Chris and Derrick. They’re absolutely no-bullshit guys and like to cut to the chase in just about everything.”
Tilting her head, Audrey studied Carrick and decided he was handsome after all. She hadn’t noticed it at first because he’d been scowling at her almost constantly, but seeing him talk about his friends opened up something in his face that made her see beneath the stern façade. And thinking about his looks wasn’t a road she needed to travel, so she cleared her throat and pulled a bottle of water out of her bag. “They may be no-bullshit guys but they sure like to talk about their wives and kids. They both showed me a bunch of pictures and had nothing but wonderful things to say about families.”
“They’ve both drunk the Kool-Aid and are fully indoctrinated into the cult of family,” he replied caustically.
Audrey smiled faintly as she lifted the bottle of water to her mouth and took a sip. He certainly had some strong feelings about kids and wives, and she decided it wasn’t necessary to know more. It wasn’t her business and all that mattered was that they survived the trip and one another. “I’ll send you the contact information for myself as well as the publisher for the company’s proposal for the trip. Once they receive it, they should have a response for us within a couple of days. I’m not sure how that works with your company’s schedule, so perhaps once we have an answer from the publisher, we can speak and see if everything lines up.”
“All right, I should be able to send it out by end of business tomorrow.”
“Great, if I can have your card, I’ll send you the info right now.” She watched him lean over and open a drawer and noticed how his shirt stretched across his chest and arms. He may be retired from the Teams, but it was clear that if he had to go back tomorrow, he could. Taking the card from him, she quickly sent the contact info and then slid her phone back into her bag. “I think that’s it.” She stood and gave him a small smile. “Thank you for taking the time to speak with me.”
Carrick stood as well and shoved his hands into his pockets. “I want to try to talk you out of this trip, but I feel like it would be a waste of time.”
“It absolutely would and since you seem like a man who doesn’t like to, let’s just skip it.” Lifting her bag higher on her shoulder, she gave him a shrug. “I know these women’s stories are worth being told and I’m lucky enough to have a publisher willing to get behind the project. If I don’t take advantage of the opportunity, then it may be lost, and I think the world needs to know what’s happening in Syria.”
“Is it the women warrior thing that interests you?”
“Women have been warriors since the beginning of time, so if that’s all this book was going to be about, no one would be interested. What’s fascinating is, there’s a group of women in a remote part of Syria that comes from a culture that gives them zero options for employment or self-expression. Being a Kurd woman pretty much means you get to marry someone your family has chosen for you and you have little say about it. So, for these women to take up the fight to secure their ancestral land is nothing short of amazing. It’s changing the future for the culture and generations to come.”
“I guess that means I need to get you in and out in one piece.”
“That would definitely be preferable.” Holding his card up, she gave him a smile. “If we end up working together, can I pass on your info to my family?” The visible shudder that went through his body was funny as was the grim smile.
“If you feel it’s absolutely necessary.”
“It probably won’t be, but I thought it would be good to check with you first.”
“Where are you from, Audrey?”
“Portland, Maine. Mom’s a high school math teacher and Dad’s a buyer for LL Bean. Our family has been there for generations and most of them have stayed.”
“You being the exception.”
“I loved my childhood and there’s no prettier place in the world than Portland in the fall and spring. But I had bigger dreams than the city would allow, so when I left for college, I never planned on returning permanently.”
“New York City is where you plan on staying?”
“Not sure. If this writing thing becomes a permanent thing, then I may move to southern California. I was in Laguna Beach last week and decided it wouldn’t be a bad place to live.” Hearing her phone buzz, she pulled it out and saw Kelly calling. “I shouldn’t take up any more of your time.”
“Call me if you have any questions after you’ve read the proposal.”
Putting out her hand, she noticed that he was a lot more relaxed and decided if she ended up in the middle of Syria with him, it wouldn’t be utterly horrible. “Will do.” He took her hand and shook it gently and she realized that the hot dry heat emanating from him was nicer than she imagined.
Not that she’d been thinking about what his touch would feel like.
How ridiculous.
CHAPTER FIVE
Thursday, October 12th
New York City
Audrey walked along Beekman St. and wondered what had happened to fall. It had been in the seventies all week and she hoped that she’d get to see some of the leaves change before she left for Syria. Turning on Nassau St., she saw the beautiful Beekman Hotel where Carrick was staying and took a moment to admire the towers that were sparkling in the sky as the last of the sun faded.
It was one of her fav
orite buildings in the city and she was looking forward to spending a little time inside and being able to gawk at the nine-story atrium. Checking her watch, she saw that she’d given herself enough time to take in the pyramidal skylight before her meeting.
If she could get through the meeting quickly enough, she might even run up to the higher levels and look at the balustrades that were ornamented with flowers, dragons, and sunbursts.
Avoiding a crowd of tourists, she veered right and was inside the hotel before she knew it. Taking a moment to breathe in the scent of the old building, she let her lungs fill with the smell of books, furniture polish, and the beautiful fragrance coming from the enormous flower arrangement. Whoever had redone the hotel had succeeded fabulously because it felt like a glammed up version of the past.
Crossing the mosaic marble threshold, she felt like she’d been dropped back into the golden age of travel, as the vintage Persian rugs and antique glass lamps beckoned her to take one of the crushed velvet chairs and stay a while.
And wouldn’t she love that.
Might be nice to move right into the Beekman Hotel and have them take care of her like some old eccentric bird with more money than sense.
Sighing, she walked toward the atrium, let go of the fantasy, and knew the best she could hope for was to grind toward a future that would allow her to live in more than eight hundred square feet.
She looked up and saw the last of the evening light fill the nine-story atrium and lost her breath for a moment. It was breathtakingly beautiful, and she wanted nothing to disturb the feeling of peace that had washed over her shoulders.
Hearing her name, she tried not to be irritated and turned to see Carrick standing with his arms crossed over his enormous chest. Good Lord, was he was smiling…at her?
How odd.
Also, did he get more attractive in the last week?
Narrowing her eyes, she tried to determine if it was possible and then realized it didn’t matter because he was, after all, entirely off limits. She waved and moved toward him, hoping he’d be pleasant. “How was the flight in?”
When they stood in front of one another and he didn’t respond, she decided to get rid of the awkwardness and opened her arms. “Welcome to New York, appreciate you making the trip in for the dog and pony show. Didn’t think it was going to be necessary, but I was wrong.” He enfolded her in his arms and she was surprised that he was such a good hugger.
“No problem,” he replied gruffly. Letting her go, he stepped back and ran his hand over his neck. “I saw you admiring the atrium; have you ever been here before?”
“I have, but it’s always to meet with clients, so I’ve never had a chance to geek out and simply take in the beautiful architecture.”
“Are you a fan of old landmarks?”
“Absolutely, especially when they find new life. Did you know that Edgar Allen Poe was once a resident?”
Carrick shook his head. “Had no idea.”
“I love history, so I have a tendency to remember obscure facts that are of little value.” Shrugging, she looked up at the atrium again and let out a sigh. “Enough about this old beauty, would you like to grab a drink and go over the details of the meeting? It shouldn’t take long, so you should be able to get on with your evening plans quickly.”
“Audrey, you are my plans for the evening.”
Another smile. What the hell was going on? His vibe was completely different than it was when they met in San Diego and she wondered if perhaps he was suffering from some sort of…She didn’t even know what could cause such a change. “Uh…I guess that would be fine.”
“I thought we’d grab some dinner and go over the latest developments in Syria and see how they’re going to affect our travel plans.”
“Sure, that makes sense.” Moving her hair off her shoulder, she studied him and tried to figure out what had changed and why his smile appeared so warm and inviting. “I figured you’d have something exciting planned and I didn’t know if it would make sense to discuss details until we got approval from the publisher.”
“We can do it in the morning if you’ve got a date or something.”
The way he frowned when he said the word date made her think he was suggesting she was about to go and get a voluntary disease. Which some of her dates had been like, but he didn’t know that. “The only plan I have is to slip up to the higher floors so I can see the dragons.”
Carrick looked up and shook his head. “Haven’t seen any dragons since I’ve been here.”
“They’re up on the ceiling. Along with flowers and sunbursts.”
“Guess I know what we’re doing after dinner.” He moved forward and put his hand on her lower back and steered them in the direction of the bar. “Let’s get that drink before we take on any deadly beasts.”
“You don’t have to go with me. Your tour of duty doesn’t begin until we land in Turkey, so there’s no need to subject yourself to my company before it becomes necessary.” When he frowned, she realized she was being snippy. “I mean…”
“Audrey, you have no idea what I might be interested in, so don’t make assumptions.”
They stood on the threshold of the Bar Room and Audrey felt like she’d been chastised. Not enjoying the feeling, she squared her shoulders and decided to keep future conversations focused on the upcoming trip. Carrick Young was going to be her bodyguard and nothing more and, as such, they didn’t need to discover what the other was interested in or anything else of a personal nature.
The moment her professional cloak was firmly in place, she felt herself relax. She knew how to behave when it came to business associates and that’s precisely what Carrick was. No more.
And no less.
Smiling to herself, she moved toward the bar and congratulated herself on the quick attitude adjustment. She could handle the Carrick Youngs of this world with her eyes closed as long as she never thought of him as more than a professional acquaintance.
Which clearly, wasn’t going to be a problem.
***
Carrick pulled out a green leather chair at the bar and saw Audrey’s long legs swing around as she sat down. Racehorse legs was the phrase that came to mind. She was tall and lithe and he was doing his damnedest not to notice.
So far, he was failing miserably.
He took his own seat and faced the green marble bar and decided to focus on what he wanted to drink. Since he always had the same thing, it took less than five seconds. Glancing over, he saw Audrey studying the menu and wondered what her favorite libation was. If he had to guess, he’d say she was a frou-frou cocktail sort of woman.
When the bartender approached, he waited to see if the assumptions he’d made about the woman were correct.
“I’d like the Love, Gratitude, Bourbon, Tolerance please.”
Looking over, he wondered what in the hell she’d gotten herself. Deciding he was going to have to wait for an answer, he ordered his Vliet Pilsner and watched the bartender walk away. Before he could ask, he heard her speak.
“The drink benefits the God’s Love We Deliver charity, so in case you had any questions about whether I was a bleeding-heart liberal, they’ve been answered.”
“I had no preconceived notions about you.”
“You do realize that my IQ far surpasses my bra size and the chances of me believing a lie like that are just about zilch.”
Turning in his seat, he faced her and looped his arm over the back of her chair. “Okay, Barnes. Cards on the table—let’s just get it out of the way. I do have certain assumptions about you because that’s what people do when they first meet someone. But none it matters if we end up working together. You could be a purple dragon with a tendency to sing show tunes and it wouldn’t make a damn bit of difference to me. I will keep you safe no matter who you vote for, what music you listen to, and who you decide your god is.”
“I appreciate your frankness and want you to breathe a little easier because I sing Motown when given the choice, not
show tunes.”
“I can live with that.”
She looked around the room and then returned her focus to him. “Unlike you, it matters to me, so I did my research. I know you come from an extremely wealthy family. Surprisingly, you went to USC instead of your dad’s alma mater, Xavier, which makes me think that you’re a bit of a rebel. The two years you spent at home after graduating, I’m assuming was your way of fulfilling your familial obligations before you went off and did what you really wanted to do and that was join the Navy. Your career, of course, is top-secret so I’m only guessing you fulfilled all your dreams about adventure and honor. You’ve been with Titan for a year and by all accounts, it’s going well.”
Their drinks were delivered and Audrey took a sip. “And I’m guessing you think I’m an uptight ball-busting lawyer who’s a pain in the ass. I’d also bet you think my neo-liberal bleeding-heart politics might get us killed when we head over to Syria, but since you miss the thrill of battle, you’re willing to allow me the indulgence.”