He held her tighter, and ran his fingers over her ass. "Stay home today."
She closed her eyes and breathed in his scent. "I can't." A sliver of guilt slid down her chest. Calling in sick wasn't a luxury she could afford. For the first time she actually wished it was.
"Don't you want to stay with me?" He gripped her ass, rocked her hips against him.
Her eyes snapped open. A heavy sensation hit low in her belly and her heart jumped, beating a little stronger. The familiarity of the words made her skin prickle. She'd heard these lines before. Knew what the hell they meant and what they led to. How many times had she heard "if you loved me you'd put me first"?
Those statements started with guilt but ended with control.
She pushed out of his arms and rolled to sit on the edge of the bed.
"Charlie?"
She glanced over her shoulder at him. He spread out on her bed, huge body exposed. Why'd he really want her to stay home today?
He wasn't the needy child Simon had been.
Her heart beat faster. A board meeting was scheduled for today. One Frank would very much love her to miss …
She stood and went to her dresser and pulled out fresh underwear. "Get up, Connor. I've got work to do."
The bed creaked but she didn't turn around, just strode to the bathroom and shut the door behind her, locking it for good measure. He spoke but she turned on the water and drowned out the sound.
What the hell had she been thinking? Falling for Connor could cost her everything.
***
Connor stood in front of Frank's desk, hands clasped behind his back.
"Anything else I should know about, Mr. Crowe?"
He knew the question was coming. When he'd been watching her from a distance, these Monday reports hadn't provided much conflict of interest-Frank employed him, but Charlie was his to protect.
Reporting on her safety hadn't compromised on one or the other.
Until now.
He couldn't lie-he'd always known part of the reason he was hired was so that Frank could ask questions he wanted answers to.
He'd never divulged anything that'd hurt her, but there'd always been something different about Charlie-something that compromised him. The moment he'd seen her picture he'd wanted her. He'd wanted to be the one, the only one, watching her. He'd compromised himself the instant he'd put his hand up. Frank knew it.
It gave him leverage.
"The incident in the parking lot appears to be an isolated event." He held his tongue on the other things.
Things like someone was spreading rumors about Charlie.
Things like someone was leaking information that put her at risk.
Things like the abusive emails, and letters were only coming thicker and faster.
Someone here, was the cause. Someone wanted Charlie to look bad. Someone wanted her gone.
This whole place stunk. It took zero training to see that much.
"Good." Frank lowered himself into his chair. "That's good. But as you know Charlie is my niece, and her safety is my utmost priority."
Connors teeth gnashed. He just couldn't work this guy out. Yes, Frank was her uncle. Yes, their relationship seemed, at best, strained.
Yet, he'd believed Frank when he'd hired him to protect her. He'd believed that Frank didn't want anything happening to her. Even though Frank's question's had been intrusive, the man had made sure Connor was competent, that he was the best person to protect Charlie before he'd been given the position.
None of this added up.
"So I hope the activity log is detailed this time. We wouldn't want to miss something that ended up being crucial … "
"My report is complete." Connor took a step back. As complete as it was going to get. "I'm still working on that other matter."
Frank nodded. "Let me know if you come up with anything."
"I will." And that was the other reason he was inclined to give Frank a little credit. He'd given permission to investigate other possible security breaches at Halifax-breaches that could lead to information on the leak.
He already had a few ideas.
None of which he was prepared to share with anyone just yet.
THIRTEEN
Charlie glanced across her office and out the doors. She saw him in the reception area, talking on his phone. Running his business while protecting hers. He brushed the short hair on the back of his head with his palm. He'd been quiet since they'd arrived.
She'd made herself unavailable.
So had he-probably by hiding out in the security room.
Something didn't sit right.
As much as she wanted to trust him, there was something about the way he'd been acting the last few days …
But distance proved impossible to keep. Every time he reappeared in her peripheral vision, she just wanted to inch closer-get next to him. Pour out all her fears and have him be all, like, "don't worry, baby, I have your back." He made her that needy, that desperate to believe in fantasies.
She tore her attention away from him and opened her email. Oddly, despite tension thick enough to butter bread, she was on her game today. None of the quietly bubbling nervousness she usually suppressed. More importantly for the first time in weeks she could take a full breath and it filled her to the bottom of her belly. The air didn't catch in her chest as if it had just packed down a wad of tension. Her muscles were loose, her head clear.
Clear enough to snap back into work mode when she saw the email in her inbox. Finally, after some digging, the IT manager, Pete, had managed to retrieve copies of manufacturing tender proposals that had been buried in the system.
She clicked on the message and frowned as she read the words, then went back to the start of the email and read it again. The files were gone? How the hell did that even happen?
She'd seen them with her own eyes that morning in Pete's office. All he had to do was forward them to her. Charlie forwarded the email to Bob with a row of question marks.
Within two minutes Bob circled Connor in the reception area and walked into her office to sit in the chair opposite her.
"What is going on in this place, Bob? You've got to know something. This stinks."
He sat silently for a moment. If anyone could give her answers, Bob could, and if he'd been withholding information, she'd find out now.
"You're right," he said and his lined forehead scrunched. "I can't deny something isn't right. There are too many coincidences, too many brick walls."
Charlie watched his Adam's apple bob in the loose skin at his neck. He'd always been mild mannered, she'd never seen him nervous.
"You've been here longer than anyone. Level with me. Is someone stealing from us?" She breathed slowly and held Bob's clear gaze. "Is it Frank? It is, isn't it?"
"I honestly can't say."
Bob looked down but not before she caught a shimmer in his eyes.
"Ever since your father left I've been pushed out. I'm hardly more than your uncle's errand boy. I've let your father down, I've let you down."
Charlie chewed her lip. Her father, who, like her uncle, had given every minute of his life to working here.
Had these things been happening when her dad was in charge?
She leaned forward. "You haven't let him down and you haven't let me down. Not unless there's anything you haven't told me?"
Bob shook his head and raised his gaze. "No, there's nothing I can tell you. But if you want my opinion?" He glanced over his shoulder then back at her and scooted forward.
She leaned closer, focusing on Bob's lowered tone.
"You should be careful. If someone is up to something, they're not going to want to be found out. And that bodyguard of yours … "
She glanced at the doorway and back to Bob. A sensation like crawling insects trickled down her back. "What about him?"
"He's been sneaking around. I saw him in Frank's office and then in records. Saw him asking question around the place."
Her lungs froze-froze with an icy sharpness that shot pain deep in her ribs. "Frank hired him … "
Bob blinked repeatedly. "It might not be anything, but keep your guard up, Charlie."
She sank back in her chair. He'd been a cop once-a detective. He was well educated, a little more so than a regular cop, he'd mentioned that himself. Maybe his business included more than protection?
"Thanks, Bob. I will."
Bob left but she hardly noticed. A haze formed over her eyes. Her fingers shook and she squeezed them in her lap. She picked up the cup of cold coffee from her desk and drained the contents.
She fished for her handbag and found the card buried in the zippered pocket then picked up the phone and dialed the number.
"Andrew Montgomery speaking."
"Andy, it's Charlie Halifax."
A throat cleared at the other end. "What can I do for you Charlie?"
She breathed through her nose and watched the door. "I was wondering if you've found anything yet?"
"Not yet, but that certainly doesn't mean there's nothing to find. Hang in there, I'll let you know as soon as I have something."
She swallowed. "Thanks. There was one other thing I thought you might be able to help me with."