Facade

by Lexy Timms

  Just like he was trying to run me out of my own company.

  “Griggs? What the fuck happened?” I glared ahead of me.

  The stoic man sitting at the other end of the limo finally turned his head toward me. There was a laptop on his lap as his chubby fingers flew across the keyboard. I waited for him to answer me, growing more agitated by the second as we approached the security gate. I groaned as we passed through it, leaving the only place I had ever truly called home as we all fled for my safety.

  What a fucking way to wake up.

  “Not gonna lie, sir. This is bad,” Griggs said.

  “Why?” I barked. “What the fuck happened? The south side of the compound is the part that’s heavily guarded because of the damn highway.”

  “They didn’t come through the south side,” Griggs said.

  “But Hulk here said the south side was triggered,” I said as I tapped my security guard’s chest.

  “It was triggered, but that wasn’t the entry point. Take a look at this.”

  Griggs turned the laptop around, and I watched the screen. There was a man coming out from a hole underneath the damn gate. Like some kind of dog that had carved his way into the neighbor’s yard. The cameras followed him all the way to my damn doorstep where he laid the note down and ran, scaling the side of the house and ducking into a blind spot the cameras couldn’t reach.

  Then, I watched as he ran back across the property, slammed himself into the hole he’d dug, and closed it back up with the original dirt.

  “What the fuck?” I said.

  “The south side was triggered one minute and forty-two seconds after that man filled the hole. It wasn’t triggered, Mr. Steele. They ran a program that triggered it for them. After that guy escaped.”

  “What the hell is going on? I hired you to protect this place.”

  “Sir, if I may be bold,” the security guard asked.

  “I don’t give a damn what you are right now. All I want is answers!”

  “Well, sir. It’s not an answer.” He paused and cleared his throat. But it is a suggestion.”

  “Listen to the man,” Griggs said. “He’s good.”

  “Apparently, not good enough,” I glared, arms crossed. I was pissed.

  “It wasn’t his job to catch this guy. It was mine. You wanna be mad at someone? Be mad at me. His job was to get you into this limo, and that’s what he did. Now, I suggest you listen to him since your life is literally hanging in the balance,” Griggs said.

  I turned to the security guard and raised my eyebrows.

  “I suggest some personal supplemental protection. I know a security firm that contracts personal security guards out to high-risk and high-value targets. At the moment, you’re both. I think you should hire them for one-on-one protection until we can get this all sorted out. You can put all the shit on your lawn you want, but nothing’s gonna help you if that asshole gets inside your home.”

  I nodded as I sighed, leaning into the seat of my limo. “I appreciate your candor, Mr. ...?”

  “Deacon. Call me Deacon, sir.”

  “Mr. Deacon. I appreciate the suggestion. And while I think it is a bit of an overkill, some might argue that electronic gates infused with electric charges are a bit overkill as well,” I said.

  “Some would say that, sir. Yes.”

  “Do you happen to have their number on you?” I watched Deacon pull a card from his pocket before he handed it over to me.

  “Tell them Deac referred you. They’ll give you their best,” he said.

  “I thought you said I was right up their alley? Would they not give me their best to begin with?”

  “They would. But there’s a particular contractor they employ who’s miles above the rest. Tell them Deac sent you, and they’ll be sure to put them on your detail. Immediately.”

  “Then, I’ll tell them just that,” I said. “Thank you for your suggestion.”

  “Anything to help, sir. Anything to help.”

  Chapter 1

  Derek

  One Week Later

  SITTING AT MY DESK, I started in on another mound of electronic paperwork. The well-placed phone call with Deacon’s reference had me on the line with someone who struck me as the type of person who didn’t do much customer service interaction with their security company. Instead of informing the man on the other end of the line what was going on, he explained to me that his most efficient bodyguard would be put on my case within the next week. There was no need to brief him over the phone, for security reasons, and that was that.

  The phone call was short, sweet, and to the point.

  That was a week ago, and now I sat waiting for the new guy—the best of the best—to show up. I was sent over a brief file of the man that would be guarding me until I no longer needed it. Sam Williams was his name, and he was more than qualified for this position. An Army veteran with an expertise in firearms, close quarters combat, and psychological warfare, he’d left the military to work with a private military contractor and did very impressive things with that firm. Hostage rescue, terrorist takedowns, and employed privately to help the finest FBI teams hunt down psychopaths. This man was a beast, and the more I read about his file, the more intrigued I became. The guy was good at what he did.

  After a brief stint with taking down a child sex trafficking ring in Columbia, Sam Williams moved to the security business. And his record was still impressive. Sam had never lost track of a client, never been fired. But the most important thing was that Sam had a perfect record.

  None of Sam’s clients had ever been killed.

  Deacon wasn’t kidding when he said the best of the best would be protecting me, and it made me curious as to the two’s connection. Was this a military buddy of Deacon’s? Or did they meet in the security business? Had they worked together on the same case, protecting the same person and forging some sort of bond? I never made it a point to get into the personal lives of those I employed. It kept things less messy that way if someone fucked up and needed to be fired.

  But this connection, I was curious about.

  The phone rang at my desk as I set the folder down. I picked it up and braced myself, ready for whatever company bullshit sat on the other end of the line. Even though my life was being threatened and people were somehow remotely breeching my compound, shit went on at work. Everything from office drama to a rise in stock price to clients who were unhappy with whatever product it was they thought they had purchased, it all stirred up something that needed my firm, demanding touch.

  But instead, I found Griggs’ voice on the other end of the phone.

  “Mr. Steele.”

  “Griggs. How can I help you?”

  “The bodyguard’s coming today. Have you read the file?” he asked.

  “Yes. And I have to say, I’m very intrigued as to how Deacon knows someone like this. Any theories? Postulations? Hypothesis?”

  “Probably from his Army days. That’s how Deac knows everyone.”

  I chuckled. Most likely true. “Good to know. Now, I want you to make sure you can work with this new company. The last thing I need is the old crashing with the new while my life hangs in the balance.”

  “Are you calling me old, sir?” he asked.

  I could never tell when Griggs was being serious or joking. Then again, I wasn’t entirely sure the guy had ever made a joke in his life. “Fine. How about we call it, the antique and the modern. Sound fair?”

  “Makes me sound like an ancient teapot. Either way, point taken. I’ve already been communicating with the company in order to coordinate the arrival of the new bodyguard. You know, maximum safety issues and all of that.”

  “You do your job the best I’ve ever seen, Griggs. I trust you.”

  “You shouldn’t. With an issue like this, you shouldn't trust anyone.”

  “That mean you’re the one threatening me?” I asked. Again couldn’t tell if he was serious or joking.

  “No, sir. It means you need to stay on yo
ur guard. Keep your body alert. Even a personal bodyguard can’t watch you every second of the day.”

  “So, no burly men showering with me. Got it. You know this man’s only coming for an interview, right? I have the last say in all of this. And it’s not happening here. It’s happening at the office.”

  “Yes, sir. But Deac keeps reassuring me you’ll sign off on it. So, I’m preparing for you to, and if you don’t, then it’s no sweat off my back,” he said.

  “Whatever it takes to get the job done. Can you send for my limo? I need to get to the office and get this interview over with.”

  “I’m your security guard. Not your personal assistant,” he said.

  “Right.”

  “But yes, I’ll send your driver up there for you.”

  That time, maybe he was teasing me. I chuckled and smiled into the phone. “Thanks a bunch, Griggs.”

  I headed downstairs and slipped into the limo, making my way over to the office. If someone was going to be with me every second of every day, then it meant my ass could get back to work. I couldn't be the effective owner and CEO I needed to be if I was trying to do everything remotely. Sometimes, people in this place needed a good staring down in order to pick their feet up and get shit done.

  And I was damn good at giving that stare.

  The car service dropped me in front of the office, and I made my way inside. I told the security firm to have Mr. Williams report to the main office of the building so I could go over details and give the guy a tour of the building. If Deacon was so insistent this interview would go well, then I had no reason to doubt him. He’d been nothing but loyal to me for the past two years I’d employed him, so his suggestions deserved some faith. Griggs approved as well, so that was the closing feature on the deal.

  I walked into the main office and noticed a pretty girl sitting in the corner. She was gazing out the window, her stare hard and brooding. Probably here to interview for one of the assistant positions we’d opened up a few weeks back. Some of our interns got a little crazy with the office romances, and a couple of them got caught under the senior partner’s desk. While the college kid in me wanted to high-five him, I knew better. This was a place of business. It was wrong. That was not what this company was about. I then had to remove him from his position to make a statement about what this company would tolerate in terms of women in the workplace, and then had to fire the two assistants who had been half-naked at his feet.

  I straightened by tie and focused on the business at hand. I was finally back in the office—hopefully for good. I blink as the pretty woman turned her eyes from the window to me, and her stare locked me in my tracks. She really more than pretty. Stunningly gorgeous. Long legs. Long brown hair braided down her back. Perfect for tugging on if the time felt right. Scratch that last thought. Completely inappropriate. I smiled politely at her, and she smiled back, her brooding brown eyes lighting up as her white teeth glistened in the rays of the sun.

  I found myself gravitating toward her, my legs carrying me slowly as I slipped my hands into my pockets.

  “Beautiful day,” I said. I was allowed to make small talk with clients or possible employees. There was nothing wrong with that.

  “Sure is,” she said.

  “How long have you been sitting here?”

  “Long enough for you to notice me. Which means too long.”

  “Does that mean you didn’t want to be noticed, or that you wanted to sit long enough to be noticed by me?”

  “Why can’t it be both?” she asked.

  She was spunky with a smooth voice and a sharp tongue. I grinned at her as I sat down, crossing my leg over my knee. Her body followed me, hooked to mine as our shoulders touched. She was warm like the redness her tan skin boasted as we sat there in the emptiness of the main office of my company.

  “I enjoy moments like this,” I said.

  “Moments like what?”

  “Silent moments with a beautiful woman.”

  “Funny. You struck me as a man who enjoyed a bit of noise.”

  A grin tugged at my cheeks as I turned my eyes toward her. I found her studying me, her eyes raking up and down my body. I hated that she was interviewing for one of these assistant positions.

  I could have ruined her knees underneath my desk. “Well, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to get to,” I said. “It was nice meeting you ...?”

  “Samantha,” she said.

  “Samantha. What a beautiful name, and it suits you well.”

  “My parents thought so,” she said.

  I bid her farewell and drew in a deep breath. The last thing I needed was to walk into this interview with an erection pressing against my pants. I braced myself for whatever burly man Mr. Williams was going to be. Whichever ex-military asshole with monkey hair was going to be cramping my style for the next few months.

  But when I walked into the room where I figured we would be meeting, there was no one there. I was here on time for the interview, yet no one was to be found. I sat my ass on the edge of the table in the middle of the room as I pulled out my cell phone. I dialed the company, ready to fire them at a moment’s notice. The last thing I was going to allow anyone to do was waste my fucking time. If this was how they treated their high-end clientele, then I was going to slaughter their reputation so none of my friends ever fell into their lazy trap.

  I called the company and heard the phone ring, but then the call disconnected. I held my phone out to figure out what the hell was going on, groaning as I saw the issue. No fucking service. Great. I was in my own office building, and I had no fucking cell service. Who the hell decided to put cell phone jammers in all the damn meeting rooms?

  Wait. That had been my idea. Shit.

  I strode through the room and made my way to my office. I rode the elevator up to the main floor and barreled down the hallway, nodding at my assistant who was opening her mouth to say something but I waved a hand to hold her off. I’d apologize after I called the security company. Pushing the office door open harder than necessary, I slammed it closed, prepared to redial and deal a real blow to this joke of a company.

  But my eyes locked onto the person sitting in the chair behind my desk. My chair.

  That beautiful brown-eyed woman from downstairs. In my office. Sitting in my chair. With her feet on my fucking desk.

  “And we meet again,” I said flatly.

  “For someone trying to save their own ass, you sure have shitty security at your company,” she said.

  “And why would you say that?”

  “Most of your men take after you.”

  She rose her penetrating eyes to me, and I looked up. She was seductive and strong. Toned and athletic. She removed her feet from my desk with grace, standing tall and proud as my chair swiveled around behind her. She slid from behind the desk and swayed her hips, my eyes locking onto the curves of her form as she approached me.

  “You really should hire men who aren’t as swayed by women as you are,” she said.

  “I believe you should leave,” I said. “You’ve made your point.”

  “Funny. I thought my purpose was to stay. Maybe interview for one of your lower positions. Provide a bit of ... fun for you.” The sarcasm dripping clearing from her tone. She picked up a paperweight off my desk and began to twirl it in her dexterous fingers.

  I narrowed my eyes at her as I backed toward my office door, ready to run the moment she made a move toward me. I had no idea who the fuck she was, but I had no intention of finding out by myself. Someone wanted me dead. Maybe they were using this women as bait.

  “I thought you were expecting someone,” she said.

  “I am. Another reason why you should vacate before I call security.”

  Her eyes rose back toward mine, and I felt my cock jump to attention. I groaned internally, trying to keep in control of my body. Her eyes darted down to my cock as a grin ticked the side of her cheek. I was annoyed by this woman’s presence and pissed off at her flagrant ability to
flirt with me. It was like she was forcibly drawing it out of me. Like my body was responding to something I had no control over.

  I didn’t fucking like it, and I wanted her gone.

  “What do you want?” I asked.

  “You,” she said.

  “As appetizing as that sounds, I try to keep my sexual escapades far removed from my office life.”

  “It’s interesting that you peg me as a sexual escapade instead of an employee, Mr. Steele. I mean, You were given my name.” She paused and tilted her head slightly. “Didn’t you read my file?”

  My mind stopped. Crashed into a brick wall after swirling at a million miles a second.

  Holy shit, this was Sam Williams?

  “You’re Mr. Williams?”

  “Clearly, your intel is wrong.” She glanced down. “I’m a woman.”

  “You’re the bodyguard I’m supposed to be interviewing,” I said.

  “At your service,” she said with a cocky grin. “And don’t be so concerned. I’m not worried about the fact that you’re worried by the fact that I’m a woman.”

  “Run that by me again,” I said.

  Her eyes fluttered up to mine once again and that lurch in my pelvis took place. This was not good. I needed to abort this. All of this.

  This was not going to turn out well.

  “You’ve read my file. You know I’m more than qualified for this position. I not only know how to protect you in your own home, but I also know how to manage your office security better. You know, now that I’ve gotten to experience it firsthand. Or experience the lack of it if we’re being honest. It doesn’t shock me that threatening mail is getting through those guys. A quick bat of the eyelashes and a little chest action and they’re no longer paying attention to anything else.”

  “Wait a second. I haven’t briefed anyone on why I was hiring you,” I said.

  “I know. But a little bit of research and a great deal of time to analyze you in your normal surroundings gives me all I need.”

  “We talked for five minutes,” I said.

  “Mr. Steele, if there’s anything you need to know about me, it is this. If you give me one minute, I’m okay. If you give me two, I’m good. If you give me three, I’m great, and if you give me four, I’m wonderful. But if you give me five?” She placed the paperweight her hands were playing with back onto my desk as she smiled. “I’m perfect,” she said. “And I believe my record speaks to that testament. The first thing you need to do is change the security procedures of your staff at work. I can help you do that. The second would be to change who’s handling the mail coming into the office. I can also help you with that. Then, there’s the security within your home. Anything electronic can be hacked, whether it’s hooked up to the internet or not. I can help you secure it as well as choose other measures for your home that’ll help you sleep better at night.”