“Whatever way our stories end. However you choose.” He closed his hands around hers and squeezed gently. “You’ve changed me for the better and I can actually say I am building toward being a good man. Someone my nephew can be proud to live with. Because I knew you.”
Her fingers had tightened in his grip, returning his hold with her own strength. Encouraged, he continued, “Here. Now. I am grateful to have met you. And I can’t imagine life moving forward without you. So please. Lizzy. Isabelle. Let me be a part of yours.”
A small noise escaped her and tears welled up in her eyes.
Shocked, his mouth fell open. “I’m sorry, I—”
She kissed him.
There were several long minutes he lost in her lips and he didn’t care at all.
“Are you certain about testing the opacity of the conference room?” When she pulled back and swatted him across the shoulder he gave her his best rakish grin.
“Let’s go find you an office before more people try gawking.”
Startled, he looked out into the office space. “There’s nobody there.”
She glared at him. “There’s half a dozen people in cubes trying not to be obvious about peeking over the top. And Diaz is probably watching on video feed.”
“Oh.” He turned to the camera and gave it a jaunty salute.
She cursed and grabbed his sleeve, dragging him out of the pod. “Let’s get you an office.”
“Is it private?”
“No. All of them have glass walls.”
“With opacity adjustment, I saw the control panels.”
“You aren’t allowed to use them.”
He planted his feet and halted.
She turned. “What?”
“I’ve got a few things for the office.” He’d actually discussed the job with Diaz the night before, so he’d made a stop in the morning at his flat and also at the hotel for a few special items.
“Seriously?”
He ducked into the pod to retrieve a box and then followed her down to the end of the office floor. It took a minute to pick an office at the end, then he set the box down on the desk.
“What did you...?” She peered into the box and fell silent.
Carefully, Kyle lifted out the fishbowl and peeled away the plastic wrap spread across the top temporarily to keep water from spilling out. “I couldn’t leave Frederick behind.”
Epilogue
Three months later
Lizzy strode across the darkened office floor as indirect lighting came up at intervals to provide her with just enough to see by.
It was late and while she and Kyle were both guilty of working long hours, they usually made sure to leave the office together. Managing this thing called work-life balance was a tough concept. It hadn’t been much of a consideration for either of them until they’d met each other. So far though, it’d been an adjustment they’d both taken to. Easy enough when their time off was spent exploring fine dining hot spots around downtown Seattle and taking active day trips around the Puget Sound. They had fun together. A lot of fun.
Tonight was the third time this week he’d managed to work late enough for her to come seek him out at the Safeguard offices rather than in bed at his condo. But to be fair, her hours were odd too. The important part for both of them was the flexibility to make their days off count.
This was Monday night, essentially her equivalent of the start of a weekend since she generally had assignments from Friday through Sunday. Kyle usually arranged his office hours to match and they made a point of spending their two days off together, away from the office.
Their most recent success had been an overnight kayak expedition around the San Juan Islands. The sights around the islands and the wildlife had been incredible, highlighted by cooked-to-order gourmet meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It’d been a foodie adventure and she was eager to see what they could come up with next.
They’d been talking about an extended vacation but they’d also both taken up their new responsibilities at Safeguard with enthusiasm. Plus, he’d been making sure his sister and nephew were settled in an apartment near his nephew’s university. The past few months had swept by in a blur.
Which made the time they spent together something they both made the most of, whenever they could.
The glass walls of his office were dialed to opacity, tweaking her temper up a notch. He wasn’t supposed to limit his line of sight when he was working alone. It made him vulnerable to oncoming danger.
Like her.
She covered the last few steps to his office door and stopped in her tracks.
On the desk was a dinner spread set between two pillar candles in hurricane glasses. Savory scents teased her and her mouth started watering just a little, but not just because of the amazing meal.
Kyle sat behind his desk with his feet up, his suit jacket open and his tie undone to hang down on either side of his collar. His perfectly tailored dress shirt was unbuttoned and left open to expose his chest and deliciously sculpted abs. His dark gaze found hers over the candlelight and he gave her a slow, sexy smile.