Smiley(75)

“Yes?” A woman with unruly curly hair—the mass was barely contained in a ponytail on top of her head—stepped forward.

“What the hell were you thinking? Her shirt barely fits. Give her yours.”

“I disagree. She looks fantastic. Craig did her shopping though, not me. I stand by his choice. It’s a good look for her.” The woman lifted her chin, openly regarding Miles with contempt.

“The shirt is too damn tight. You’ve got massive boobs but take yours off and give it to the girl.” Miles waved his hand. “Now.”

“Vanni looks perfect.” Smiley glowered at Miles. “Don’t ask your female to disrobe in the company of males.”

“As if I’d do it,” Cindy muttered. She raised her voice. “This isn’t 1950, sir. Women are comfortable and flaunt their femininity. She is a pretty woman with a gorgeous figure. Let it go.”

“Who pays you?” Miles pointed at his own chest. “I’m the boss.”

“You’re a chauvinistic ass,” Cindy muttered.

“What did you say?” Miles advanced.

Her voice rose. “I said I know you’ve got an eye for class.” She paused. “But with all due respect, you’re wrong on this one. That’s why you hired me, remember? I’m the voice of the younger generation.”

Justice chuckled. “Enough, Miles. Vanni looks fine. They need to leave.”

Smiley tugged on her arm and led her out of the building. Vanni looked back and caught Cindy waving goodbye. She felt sympathy for her as she returned the gesture.

“Wow. Is that Miles always such a jerk? I couldn’t work for him.” She looked to Smiley for an answer.

“He can be abrasive but he’s good at what he does. You look perfect. That female was correct. He’s an ass.”

“And apparently a little hard of hearing.” She grinned. “That was kind of funny.”

Smiley laughed. “Cindy does it often when we have meetings. We crack up because he has no idea what she said or why we’re amused.”

A little jealousy rose in Vanni. “You know her well then?”

“Cindy is a nice female. She accompanies Miles to a lot of our joint meetings when media issues arise. They mainly work at Reservation but came here last night to help us handle the situation.”

“Great. I’m a situation.” She didn’t like the sound of that.

Smiley helped her into the SUV. He kept touching her. “You didn’t cause this problem. Place the blame where it belongs. The Woods Church has had it in for the NSO for a long time.”

Jericho took the seat next to her. The big primate flashed a half-smile, making him look less menacing. She wanted to ask Smiley if he’d ever dated Cindy but didn’t want to do it with four other New Species in the SUV with them. Flame and Slash sat up front. Wager took the third row seat. She glanced back at him but he was staring out the rear window.

She leaned against Smiley. “What’s he doing?” She jerked a thumb toward Wager.

“He’ll make sure we aren’t followed and he has a weapon at ready in case it’s needed.”

Vanni regretted asking the question. “Weapon?”

Smiley took her hand and clasped it. “It’s standard procedure.”

“I have a weapon too.” Jericho unfastened the strap on his Kevlar vest and reached inside, pulling out a handgun. He showed it to her and then returned it, replacing the strap. “The safety is on. We’re well trained.”

“We sometimes hide them in public when we leave NSO lands.” Smiley squeezed her hand.

“You’re not on duty?” She’d noticed everyone in both SUVs, except Smiley, wore NSO uniforms.

“No. This is our outing and it’s their job to protect us.”

She was glad Smiley wasn’t carrying a gun. They scared her. “Do you think it’s really necessary for them to be armed? I mean, we’re just going to a clothing store, right?”

“Standard operating procedure.” Slash spoke from the front. “We need to be prepared to defend our lives at all times when we’re not at Homeland or Reservation. A lot of the officers carry weapons at Reservation though, even when they are off duty. The walls are vast and always expanding. It’s possible an intruder could breach one but Homeland is smaller and more secure.”

It saddened Vanni that they had go to those extremes. She couldn’t imagine living in a world where the majority of society had to keep guns strapped to their bodies. Smiley lifted her hand and brushed a kiss across her knuckles. She stared up at him, a little awed. He did the sweetest things when she least expected.