Page 31 of My Forbidden Crush
“What if somebody sees you?” Mom mutters.
“Is it really a big deal? I’ll head in, get the drive, and leave. You told me Kelly’s son came in last week to collect some work stuff for her, didn’t you?”
I remember because she mentioned him as a way of hinting at my dating life. She’s always probing, convinced I must havesomeinterest insomebody. She’d freak if she learned I only have an interest in one man.
“Only if you’re sure…”
“It’ll be fine,” I tell her.
She gives me her keycard and explains where her desk is. It’s on the top floor outside the main conference room in the “pen” as she and the other assistants call it.
“I won’t be long,” I say after I’ve pulled on my sneakers and my jacket. “Get some sleep, please. You deserve it.”
“Okay, but if you talk to anybody, say I forgot my phone or something. Don’t mention the memory drive.”
I wasn’t lying about driving. Following the GPS, I savor the short journey to Mom’s office.
The lobby of the building is dark, but the marble floor gleams under the softly lit lamps. At the desk, the security guard is listening to music. He lifts one earphone as I approach.
“Hi, my mom forgot her phone. Her name’s Veronica Lewis. She works on the top floor as one of Mr. Jennings’s assistants.”
The man is older, with lines on his face deepening as he frowns.
“I’ll be in and out in five minutes,” I tell him.
“If this is a trick, Miss Lewis will lose her job.”
“I’m her daughter,” I tell him. “That’s the last thing I want.”
He sighs. “The security footage has captured you, so let me see your ID.”
I take out my driver’s license with a flare of pride, the same one I feel every time I need to show it. “I promise. Five minutes.”
He writes down my details, then gestures for the turnstile doors.
I hurry through the building, to the elevators, imagining myself working for a large company like this. When the doors open, I rush across the open-plan room to Mom’s desk, the one closest to the door. The memory drive is still plugged into her computer. It’s an easy mistake to make. I take it out and pocket it quickly.
Then footsteps pound down the hall so loud and confident they seem to shake the walls. I turn and walk fast, but then a door off to the side opens violently.
It’s Jacob, ducking his head as he walks beneath the doorframe. He’s wearing a T-shirt and casual jeans, his silver hair messy as if somebody has run their hands through it. Okay, I’m imagining it’smewho did just that.
“What are you doing here?” he says.
I realize what Mom means. His voice iscold. He sounds pissed. I have to play this right. I can’t risk Mom’s job.
>One click Falling for My Mom’s Boss<
INKING THE SOLDIER
CHAPTER ONE
Kayden
There’s always howling in my dreams. My service animals, Gunner and Sergeant, would never howl like that in real life.
When I was overseas, doing what had to be done with my best friends—one, then the other, since life is cruel—they were like assassins. Stalking, silent, acting only when I needed them to, but in my dreams, they howl, scratch, and sniff frantically so that I wake up to the sound of it. Sometimes, Ijoltawake. I don’t let myself think about that for long.
My alarm clock screeches, and I sit up, glancing at the time as I always do. It’s five a.m. Some people think discipline comes easy to us ex-service folks, but that’s never been the case in my experience. Some of us become less disciplined once we’re out of the system.