Grady smiled at the three blonde advertising representatives who had insisted on walking him back to the lobby. They were all interested in anything he could (or would) offer – which meant, of course, he wanted to offer a whole lot of nothing. He preferred it when women put up at least a token fight.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Grady replied, never letting his smile retreat. “My brother should be back next week.”
“That’s too bad,” one of the women said.
Grady smiled, sent a small wave in Marge’s direction, and then pointed himself toward the external doors. He was starting to feel smothered by all of the overt sexual attention.
“Have a nice day,” Marge called to his back. “Tell your brother I said hi … and that I hope his girlfriend doesn’t die or anything.”
Grady didn’t slow his pace until he was outside again – and then he was faced with a whole other problem. Her name was Sophie – and she was arguing with a squat man in rumpled khaki pants on the front sidewalk.
“I don’t know what you want me to say,” Sophie said, backing away from the man slightly. “I don’t know who told you I was looking into that – or anything like that – but it’s simply untrue.”
“You should learn to mind your own business,” the man warned. “Stay out of mine.”
“I don’t even know who you are,” Sophie argued. “I can pretty much guarantee I’m not looking around for anything on you, or anything that involves you.”
The man extended a stubby finger, pointing it at Sophie. “I don’t believe you.”
“I really don’t care what you believe,” Sophie said, shifting so she could move around the man. “Like I said, though, I have no idea who you are. I think you have me confused with someone else.”
“Don’t play dumb with me!” He reached his hands out to touch Sophie, pulling them back at the last second.
Grady’s shoulders stiffened. He didn’t like the man’s tone, or body language. One look at Sophie’s defensive stance told him she didn’t like it either. He swallowed uncertainly. Should I help? She didn’t seem like the kind of woman who needed help. In fact, she seemed like the type of women who steadfastly maintained that she didn’t need help. Still … .
“I’m not playing dumb, sir,” Sophie said. “I honestly don’t know who you are, or what your … complaint stems from. If you would like to clarify your position, I would be willing to listen.”
“Clarify my position? Clarify my position?” The man shook his head. “What I want is for you to leave me alone.”
Grady took a step forward, clearing his throat. The man glanced in his direction, visibly shrinking in the face of Grady’s six-foot-tall, heavily built frame. “Can I help you with something?”
“Who are you?” The man narrowed his eyes, taking a defensive posture with his hands on his hips.
“No one of consequence,” Grady replied. “I just want to make sure everything here is okay.”
“No one asked for your help,” the man sneered.
Grady ignored him, focusing on Sophie. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine.”
Grady kept his gaze trained on her for a second, ultimately shrugging and then moving away. “If you say so.”
“She does,” the man said.
Grady stepped toward his truck, keeping his ears peeled for sounds of distress. His pace was slow, plodding. There was something about this whole situation he didn’t like.
“I really need to be going, sir,” Sophie said, keeping her tone respectful. “My work day is over. If you want to make an appointment, you can schedule one sometime later in the week with the receptionist inside.”
The man didn’t look thrilled with the suggestion. “What do you have in those files?”
Sophie clutched the paperwork to her chest. “It’s just some work stuff.”
“Then let me see.”
“No.”
“Let me see!” The man reached for the files, causing Sophie to take a jerky step back and lose her balance when the heel of her boot got caught in the adjacent mulch.
Grady was moving before he even realized what was happening. He caught Sophie while she was still teetering, bumping the other man out of the way with his body as he stabilized her balance. Her hand landed on his chest, warm and firm, and she settled in next to him briefly before pulling away.
Grady fixed the man with a hard and pointed glare. “I think you should go.”
“I think you should mind your own business,” he shot back.