"Fine. Miss Winslow. I really am sorry. I was out of line upstairs. You didn't deserve that. I hope you can find it in your heart to give me another chance sometime. I promise I won't bite."
Again, he had me speechless. I took a halting step backward, and he didn't stop me. He just stood there staring at me with that infuriatingly sexy smirk. I wanted to say something to wipe it off. I meant something else, but my temper flared and it came out all wrong. Except that I did succeed in wiping the grin off his face.
As the automatic doors slid open behind me, I stepped on the other side of them. Just before they closed, I turned back to face him and said, "Maybe not. But I might."
Sebastian Lanier's deep laughter sent a shiver up my spine as I turned and left him there.
Chapter Five
I blew past Grace on my way to Thorp's office. I tore the strap of my bag over my shoulder and barged in. She raised a finger and looked ready to tell me something, but I didn't give her the chance. I had every intention of walking straight in and confronting Dale about whatever misguided ideas he had about my job description. But, Dale wasn't there. The door to the congressman's office stood slightly ajar and I heard both his and Dale's hushed voices coming from inside.
I meant to turn away. It was probably better for me to cool down a little before saying anything to Dale anyway. I would have turned away, except I heard a name that made me freeze.
"You let me worry about Lanier," Dale said.
For once, I was happy about the cubicles in the outer office. No one could see me. I let out a quiet breath and moved closer to Foster's office. I'm not proud of myself. I shouldn't have eavesdropped. But, after what Bas said to me, I had to know for sure whether Dale really was trying to use me as some sort of bait.
"You've said that before," Foster said. "And yet he still sees fit to barge in here half threatening me. He's not afraid of you, Dale. You're not who you said you were, are you?"
Dale let out a nervous laugh. "Congressman, pack rules are complicated. You're just going to have to trust my advice as far as that goes. You don't really have a choice there."
"Be careful, Dale. That almost sounds like an ultimatum. What I'm interested in is your ability to deliver on your promises when I brought you on the team. You know, there were a lot of people who advised me against it. You want to know what they said about you? They said you didn't have the right pedigree for the job. Now, I thought that was either a bad pun or a borderline racist comment. Would you take it like one?"
Dale let out a noise. Something similar to what Bas had done. Part human, part animal. All threat. It vibrated up my spine and I held my breath so I could hear what he said next.
"Congressman, be very careful. I may not be an official member of a Wild Lake pack, but I can assure you, the pack connections I do have are far more powerful than any of theirs. You're shortsighted if you think Wild Lake has any real influence outside this county. They lack the vision that you need. They're content to just run, hunt, and live their lives. They're not where the real power is."
"So far, those connections haven't done a single thing for me, Dale. I think it's time I start talking to somebody with more status than you have. Someone higher bred, maybe. Someone who can do more than talk at me about how to handle Bas Lanier and the rest of the Wild Lake packs when the day comes I take their land away."
The air went out of my lungs and I pressed my forehead against the wall. Take their land away? Is that what had Bas so upset about the language of Foster's proposed bill? As soon as I had a chance, I needed to read through it myself. What the hell was he trying to do?
"Tread lightly, Congressman," Dale said. I dared to move a little closer. Through the crack in the door, I could see Dale lean on Foster's desk, his palms flat and his neck stretched out. "Nothing happens if you don't have the support of the southern packs. Nobody wants to drive Lanier and the rest of them north where they belong more than I do. But if you try to rush it, everything might just backfire on you."
Foster waved a dismissive hand at Dale. I got the distinct impression this conversation was one they'd had more than once. If Dale was trying to scare him, he had failed miserably. Foster rose and leaned across the desk, going nose to nose with Dale. My heart thudded. Dale was a shit. That was becoming clear. But, he was also were. One swift movement and I imagined he could have torn Foster's throat open.
"Your job for now is Lanier," he said through gritted teeth. "That's it. You let me worry about the rest of it. I want him out of my hair."
Dale seemed to flinch first. He straightened, backing away from Foster's desk. Though I couldn't see his face, I imagined he fixed a smirk in place as he took a step back and addressed Foster again.
"And I told you. I've got something worked out where that's concerned."
"Is it something I need details on, or can I for once trust that one of your schemes won't come back to bite me in the ass like the poachers are starting to do?"
Fuck. So Foster had as much as admitted the wolf poachers on Wild Lake lands were his or Dale's doing. But how? Dale was a werewolf too. Could he be slimy enough to pose a threat to some of his own people?
"Just leave it to me," Dale said. He started to turn, and I had nowhere to go but his office.
Shit. I slid inside his office door, sweat beaded at my temples, and it got hard to breathe. I'd been stupid. I couldn't be sure Dale hadn't seen me out of the corner of his eye or with some extrasensory werewolf perception. I couldn't be careless like that again.
The rest of Foster's and Dale's words were muffled behind the door, but Dale finally emerged and I watched him through the glass wall. He ran a hand through his scruffy head of brown hair and his jaw twitched. He was unsettled, angry. But, he didn't seem to have sensed me listening in. That was the good news. The bad news was he looked up and saw me now, waiting for him in his office. His grimace became a leer, and he headed straight for me.
He leaned casually in the doorframe, playing with the end of his tie. No. He had no idea that I'd just listened in on his conversation with Foster. Dale's mind was occupied by whatever he thought he knew about me.
"How was your meeting with Mr. Lanier?" He pushed off from his shoulder and came toward me. I stiffened when he paused, getting a little close as he moved around me to get to his desk chair. It happened quickly. If I didn't know what he was, or hadn't been on my guard, I might not have noticed. But, as Dale passed me, he tilted his head almost imperceptibly toward me and flared his nostrils. He straight up sniffed me. The spark of light that flashed in his eyes at what he sensed made my blood run cold. He didn't say it, but I knew what it was.
He could smell Bas on me.
When he turned and eased himself into his chair, Dale's smirk was fixed firmly in place. God, I wanted to hurl my messenger bag at him and break his nose. He knew nothing, but assumed everything.
Clenching my jaw hard enough to make the blood throb behind my eye, I pulled open my bag and took the thick file folder out. I lobbed it on Dale's desk hard enough to get a raised eyebrow from him.
"Mr. Lanier didn't seem particularly pleased with whatever language changes the congressman wants. I'm afraid if you've given him the impression Lanier is handled, he very much isn't."
God. Why the hell had I said that? Because I wanted to do something to wipe that simpering smile off his face. It worked. Dale's eyes flashed dark and his lips became a colorless line. He snatched the folder and spread the papers out on his desk. Bas had made a few notes in the margins and crossed out great swaths of text. Dale pushed the paperwork aside and leaned back in his chair. I'd unsettled him for a moment, but no more.
"But, he liked you I take it? Why don't you have a seat? I'm anxious to hear your impressions of the man. He's prickly; that's for sure. But, I have a hunch he might be willing to listen with new ears if the message is coming from you."
I chose to stand. I gripped the back of the leather chair in front of the desk and plastered on a neutral expression. I had to be careful. Was I willing to throw over this internship because of Dale? If I confronted him head on, I wouldn't be able to walk it back. But, I couldn't just let him walk all over me and think he could use me to distract Bas Lanier. The reality was, it was Bas Lanier distracting the hell out of me.
"I think you're wrong," I said. "I think my talents will better serve the congressman from the research end of things. Although I welcome the opportunity to network, I don't think I'm the best person to act as any kind of go-between for you and Mr. Lanier. Whatever reservations he has about this bill, I'm guessing there's a long history behind it. Far be it from me to do or say something that might get in the way of that history and your relationship with him."