The Paris Assignment

by Addison Fox

  After a quick confirmation that cocktails and hors d’oeuvres would be served at seven with dinner at nine, Abby gave the instruction to call her if anything was needed but that she trusted them implicitly to put the meal together.

  And then she fled to the study and resumed her preparations for the evening, willing Campbell Steele from her thoughts.

  Tonight would kick off a highly productive week in which she’d continue to prove to her board how she was leading McBane Communications into the twenty-first century and beyond.

  She had spent months planning and preparing, crafting her annual business plan and five- and ten-year forecasts.

  She had developed a week of presentations that would inspire and motivate her team.

  She was going to kick ass.

  And she’d ignore Campbell—Stubborn Idiot—Steele and his judge and jury attitude and focus on the job at hand.

  Her gaze drifted to the small device that was at the root of their disagreement.

  Had she crossed a line?

  The self-righteous anger that had carried her back to the house and up to her study faltered a bit as she turned his concerns over in her mind.

  The development of the server device hadn’t been simply to spy on other technologies. It had several practical reasons for being the biggest of which was enabling some key communications between their existing pool of satellites.

  She wasn’t a thief and she hadn’t built her business to steal from others or create tools that effectively did the same.

  But she wasn’t silly enough not to realize that even tools created for one purpose could be abused for another.

  “Hey.” The single word, along with the knock at her door, pulled Abby from her thoughts.

  “I’m surprised to see you.”

  “Yeah, I guess you probably are.”

  Campbell leaned against the door and Abby fought the immediate leap of her hormones as she took in his long rangy form. Jeans covered his slim hips and his T-shirt bulged slightly over his biceps as he crossed his arms.

  Not for the first time she wondered how she could possibly have such a completely inconvenient attraction to someone.

  Especially someone she was so mad at she could spit.

  She knew it was petty, but she refused to initiate the conversation. He’d come to see her for a reason and she’d leave it up to him to tell her why.

  If he’d expressed his disapproval with her business choice she’d have been more than willing to discuss his objections. What she couldn’t accept was the way he’d judged her actions, leaving her no room to make her case.

  He pushed off the door and crossed to her desk, taking the chair opposite her. “Can I have a few minutes?”

  “Of course.”

  “You caught me off guard earlier.”

  “It wasn’t a picnic for me, Campbell. The fact this device—” she grabbed the remote piece for emphasis “—was tacked up next door in my neighbors’ home means a hell of a lot of things. None of which required me to stand beneath your oh-so-judicious stare as you treated me like a common criminal.”

  “No, it didn’t.”

  His ready acquiescence took some of the wind from her sails and she dropped the server device back on the desk. “It was never designed to be a technological bug.”

  “What was it designed for?”

  “It has several uses, but its eventual ability to allow us to communicate between satellites will be invaluable.”

  “I see.”

  “And yes, I fully realize if it were accessible to less upstanding individuals, it could be programmed to do some damage. But it’s not easy. Especially not as we continue to engineer it. I never designed, nor did I take on the development of a project that would effectively steal data.”

  Campbell’s contrite gaze drifted to the device, his visage turning thoughtful as he stared at it. “So this had to be programmed in order to read your systems?”

  “Of course. You don’t just plug it in and like magic see into another server. The devices need to be programmed to each other. Deliberately.”

  “Which means for the device to be of any use, our ghost needed to find a way to program it to monitor your systems.”

  “Sure, but—”

  “And since there’s no way it’s just been sitting at your neighbors’, it might have more details on our ghost and the devices he used to program it?”

  “Well, yeah. I mean...yes.”

  The simplicity of the solution—a trap to catch the one who set it—was almost too delicious. Even with the knowledge they were a step closer to catching their ghost, she also knew they were more than a few steps closer to catching Stef.

  “I’ve turned this over and over in my mind and I can’t help but believe Stef is involved.”

  “Have you contacted her?”

  “I haven’t heard from her yet today which is odd, but not completely unexpected. She works so hard I often tell her to come in a bit later when I’m out of town.”

  “The security team can still send someone to her home.”

  Abby knew it was the best choice and conceded. “I’ll authorize the team to make the visit to her home. I’ll also alert the security team at McBane to snag her when she gets in.”

  Campbell picked up the device and turned it over in his hands. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s not your fault.”

  “No, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’m sorry this has happened. You’ve trusted Stef and it appears as if that trust was misplaced.”

  Abby heard the remorse and empathy in his tone and couldn’t hold back the thoughts that had dogged her since speculation had first turned toward Stef. “I just keep asking myself if there’s something I could have done differently. Some way I’ve acted that made her feel as if she could or should do this to me.”

  “We never know people’s true motives, no matter how well we know them.”

  “Do you really believe that?”

  “I’d prefer to believe we can be better than we are, but how often does that happen? If you really look at it, how often do people make choices in reaction to the actions of someone they love?”

  Did he mean Sarah and her misguided teenage actions at the dissolution of her parents’ marriage? Or was there something else?

  “Not everyone does that.”

  “No, sometimes they just avoid any hints of love and commitment so there’s no chance of getting hurt.”

  Whatever she’d expected when Campbell had arrived in her office, a conversation about love and loss and the lack of emotional growth wasn’t it. Yet now that she was confronted with the matter, she had to wonder if she’d behaved that way.

  If the real reason she was alone was to avoid the pain of some imagined future betrayal by a loved one.

  “I’ll let you get back to your prep. I would like to do a briefing at five in the dining room. One last session with the security team before your guests arrive.”

  “Of course.”

  Abby waited until he reached the door before calling out to him. “Campbell?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I’m still mad at you.”

  “You’ve got a right to be.”

  * * *

  Campbell gritted his teeth as David’s right-hand man, Simon, ran his lascivious gaze over Abby’s bare shoulders.

  Again.

  The urge to reach up and slam the man face-first into the dining room table was strong, but Campbell kept quiet. This was Abby’s meeting and he’d already behaved like a raging ass once today. It would do him no good to get caught behaving that way a second time.

  She wore a peach gown that made her look like some Greek goddess. Her hair was caught up in a sweep of ringlets which had the incredible effect of leaving her neck exposed. The dress then gathered at the base of her neck, leaving her shoulders bare. Of course, the view that all of them were begging to see just once more was the low-cut back that bared the subtle arch of her spine before her skin disappeared
below the cut of the gown.

  She was breathtaking.

  And obviously still not over their earlier argument based on the fact that she’d barely spared him a glance since the beginning of the meeting.

  Oh, she was cordial and professional, as she’d been to the rest of the team, but that was the extent of their contact.

  “Again, I must stress how imperative it is that our guests don’t know you all are here. You need to be unobtrusive and avoid contact with the crowd. If the person responsible is here, and we believe he likely is, we can’t risk him fleeing into the wind.”

  “We’re going to keep you safe.”

  Abby shot Simon a dull smile and Campbell had the momentary satisfaction to see her stare down her nose at the pompous ass. “Let me repeat my point. You’ve been hired by me. And I’m telling you I don’t want my guests to know you’re here. So either stay out of sight or leave now.”

  The reprimand had its desired effect and Simon backed down, especially after a particularly firm glance from David.

  Campbell had to hand it to Abby. The woman knew what she wanted and she didn’t tolerate those who didn’t agree.

  Which only reinforced his poor move over the hidden server device.

  He should have given her the benefit of the doubt. Should have allowed her to explain.

  “That’ll be all. You may set up in the third-floor parlor or stick to the surveillance vans you’ve got parked down the street. I’ve also made sure there is more than enough food so feel free to head down to the kitchen and help yourselves.”

  Campbell remained in his seat despite Simon’s pointed glare and waited until he and Abby were alone.

  “That went well.”

  “Oh, bite me. It went horribly and you know it.”

  “They’re programmed for the hunt and you’ve effectively tied their paws.”

  “Simon’s a jerk of the first water.”

  “Simon’s a jock with too much testosterone who’s trying to impress you. He’ll get over it.”

  She shot him a sideways glance at the testosterone comment before focusing on the underlying issue. “We simply can’t risk whomever’s responsible finding out they’re here. We’ve done everything possible to keep their presence undetectable. I won’t have all that effort wasted.”

  “You look beautiful.”

  The words were out before he could stop them and after they were out, Campbell found he didn’t want to.

  She was beautiful.

  And he’d be damned if he’d hold the thought back any longer.

  “Thank you.”

  Campbell got up and walked around the long table to where she sat on the other side. Anticipation quivered off her skin when he reached out to run a finger over the smooth skin of her exposed shoulder. “Promise me you’ll be careful.”

  “I promise.”

  “I mean it, Abby.” The urgent words rose up from his chest as a wash of fear coated his throat. “You can’t take any chances.”

  She reached up and laid a hand over his. With tender motions, she rubbed the pad of her thumb over his knuckles. Need ratcheted through him with the force of cannon fire as desire flooded his system with an ardent fury.

  Bending down he pressed his lips against her ear. “I want you.”

  He felt her light shiver underneath his fingers before she tightened her hand over his. “Now’s not the time.”

  “Later.”

  “Yes.” She nodded, the move nearly imperceptible. “Later.”

  Campbell stepped back and allowed her to stand, helping her from the ornate dining room chair.

  They didn’t touch again, but he felt the heat of her skin long after she’d departed from the room.

  * * *

  Lucas tied his bow tie into a faultless knot, each side a perfect mirror of the other. The tie conveyed a muted elegance that said he was a member of a rarified circle.

  That he belonged.

  That he mattered.

  He shot one final glance in the mirror, satisfied he looked as he should, then resumed a place in front of his computer in the sitting room of his suite.

  He’d monitored Abby’s movements on and off throughout the day, watching when she logged on and what files she opened and changed, the others that she opened and discarded. Although he’d spent months coding and recoding the small device until it was ready for his use, he’d still not figured a way to make it work on cell phones, but he was hell-bent to try to figure it out.

  Stef had secured four prototypes for him and he had two left.

  Had he been too hasty in getting rid of her?

  Although he rarely second-guessed himself, she had been an incredible asset to him. Add on her blind devotion and Lucas had to wonder if perhaps he’d been a bit quick to jump the gun on her execution.

  That said...he raked his gaze over the small billfold that held the remaining two devices and knew they’d put him closer than ever to his goal. Stef Nichols was baggage and he ran the very real risk she’d flee once she discovered what he’d actually had planned for her boss.

  No.

  It was better this way.

  Satisfied after reconsidering his decision—a sign of his agile mind and ability to fully assess his actions—he picked up the server devices and locked them in the small safe in his room.

  While they surely held very little interest to anyone who might happen upon them, there was no reason to leave them lying about. When the maid came in for turn-down service, all she’d see was the obsessively neat room of a man who traveled for a living.

  His personal things sat in perfect order in the bathroom and his clothing hung in neat rows in his closet as his mother had taught him.

  Just like your father.

  Like a man who knew how to care properly for the things he’d earned.

  Like a man who commanded respect from all who dealt with him, from the fiercest business adversary to the man who shined his shoes.

  Like a man who owned the world.

  Chapter 12

  Campbell read the brief text on his phone—NEED TO SEE YOU—and went into action. He worked his way across the ballroom, his sights on Abby. As he walked the periphery, he mentally catalogued his evaluations.

  For the past hour, he’d mingled with her guests and subtly dropped clues he and Abby were an item.

  To a person, everyone was friendly. And to a person, everyone’s gaze had turned speculative when he mentioned the fact they were dating.

  Campbell filed it all away, cataloguing responses into one of three categories.

  Gossipy interest. Disappointment she was off the market. Or opportunistic calculation at what her new relationship—especially one she was comfortable enough with to bring to the event—meant relative to her position at McBane.

  One guy had even gone so far as to ask Campbell when the two of them were planning on having kids.

  His gaze roamed over Abby, deep in conversation with one of her guests—Martin, Campbell remembered—and the comment about a baby took hold deep in his mind. The image of her long slender form transformed in his mind as he imagined her heavy with pregnancy and the image stopped him in his tracks.

  Where had that come from?

  “Darling.” She waved him over and he pasted on a smile, relegating the image in his mind to some deeply buried place where he wouldn’t see it again.

  She linked his hand with hers before turning in and pressing a hand against his chest. His heart leaped at the contact and he saw the briefest question glow in the chocolate-brown of her eyes before she composed herself, totally focused on the moment at hand.

  “I’d like to introduce you to Martin.”

  They chatted in that politely inane way that fueled dinner parties the world over and it took Campbell longer than he’d have preferred to get her alone, especially when two new people drifted into their conversation circle even before Martin left.

  “I’m terribly sorry to do this.” Campbell finally cut through the polite c
hitchat, especially after Carina from the New York office made a production about how she was convinced they’d met before. Campbell would have sworn they hadn’t, but he wasn’t all that interested to stick around and swap stories to find out if he had it wrong. “I need to make a quick call for work.”

  Abby’s gaze stayed bright on his but he felt the subtle tightening of her hand on his forearm. “I hope everything’s all right, sweetheart. I was looking forward to introducing you to everyone this evening.”

  “I’ll only be gone a few minutes.” He kept his tone upbeat and his smile broad. “Let me just make a quick call and I’ll be back in a bit.”

  “Don’t be long.”

  His body tightened on the subtle breathy notes of her voice and he had the fleeting thought that he wished she wasn’t quite so good at the charade. Even as his mind knew they were putting on an act, his body was more than willing to play an active role.

  Campbell met the wry glance of the third man in their circle. He didn’t know the guy’s name, but recognized the quick smile of supportive brotherhood that spoke volumes.

  Women.

  He couldn’t say what it was in the guy’s stare that put him on edge, but he let it go in the buzzing of what was no doubt a second text from David asking him where the hell he was.

  “I’ll be back shortly.” Campbell pressed a quick kiss to her forehead, then took off for the door. He turned at the last minute before vanishing down the hall and couldn’t shake the inconvenient attraction that threatened to scramble every last one of his brain cells.

  He stopped for the briefest of moments, willing her to turn and look at him, but she’d resumed her conversation with her guests.

  When had he become so damned fanciful?

  Shaking it off, Campbell took the stairs two at a time and knocked at the door before slipping inside. David and his team waited for him, each and every one at rigid attention.

  “Quite the party.”

  “She does know how to entertain.” Campbell launched into a quick briefing of what he’d assessed so far before David waved a hand to shut him down. “What’s going on?”