She was a force of nature. Not one to waste time, which he’d always appreciated. “I could say the same about you, Senator.”
“Since when do you call me anything but Sheila?” She gestured for him to take the seat on the opposite side of the desk.
“When I sense I’m about to get a lecture.” Which almost made him want to stay on his feet. He sat anyway. Picked up the mug but didn’t take a drink. Not yet. Not until he knew which one of them would take the lead in the conversation.
She leaned forward with her elbows balanced on her desk. “How long have we known each other?”
Her, then. “I have to tell you, Sheila. No good conversation ever started with those words.”
“Very true.”
Interesting. “Just how bad is this lecture going to be?”
She folded her hands together. Looked every inch of the tough mother of promising lacrosse players. “You freaked out Emery Finn on your first meeting.”
So that was it. “I said hello.”
“Apparently you had a threatening tone.”
He’d heard that his entire adult life. If talking tough scared people, so be it. “I really only have one tone.”
“Then you repeated the mistake by going to her house and scaring her again.”
Oh, come on. “That woman is not afraid of me.”
Sheila frowned. “That was reckless and it’s not like you to be reckless.”
“I haven’t been reckless in years.” And that was the truth. When he was younger his entire personality consisted of impulse and bad judgment. Not any longer.
“Yet you told her to back off.”
“Maybe she misunderstood my intent.”
“We both know you can be . . .” Sheila closed one eye and looked as if she were weighing her words. “A bit dark.”
He’d been called far worse. “That’s not exactly a secret.”
“Intense.”
He picked up the mug and cradled it in one hand. “Again, I’m not denying the description.”
He’d wanted Emery to get the point. Sounded as if maybe she had. Now she could move on . . . though he had to admit the idea of her giving up and running away hit him wrong.
He’d enjoyed sparring with her, which likely made him an even bigger dick than people assumed. Still, she hadn’t backed down or panicked like the few people who met him face-to-face tended to do. On more than one occasion he’d sent grown men—fierce and powerful businesspeople—scurrying. She’d fought back and he’d found that more than a little hot.
Sheila tapped her fingertips on the side of her mug. “She said your name was Brian. I’m surprised you gave her that much.”
“I can explain that.”
“Uh-huh.”
“She knows that first name only.” He gave in and took a long sip of the strong black coffee. “But how exactly did you know it was me she met with and who went to her street? I clearly didn’t tell her who I really am.”
“She described you, but really the whole ‘listen to me and obey’ speech you gave her is classic you.”
“I thought I was . . .” He debated saying “friendly” and immediately abandoned the idea. “Clear.”
“Of course you did.” Sheila sighed as she leaned against the back of her chair. “You led her to believe awful things would happen if she didn’t stop looking for you.”
He had to admit that might have happened. “Too much?”
“Definitely.” Sheila smiled. “I got the sense you acted just this side of unhinged.”
Again, probably fair. “That seems like a strong way of saying it.”
Her eyebrow lifted. “But accurate?”
“Garrett didn’t seem impressed with my choice to confront her either.” Wren brushed a stray string off his pants. “Everyone’s a critic these days.”
“Garrett was with you when you met Emery?”
Wren knew where this was going and refused to balk. He wasn’t the type. He held the eye contact, silently daring Sheila to go too far. “No.”
“Ah, there’s your other mistake.” The senator nodded. “Always take him with you.”
“That sounds tedious.” Not wrong, just exhausting. On the rare occasion he strayed from his usual pattern he should be able to do it without four armed guards and his second-in-command in tow. Should but probably couldn’t.
“Since when do you venture out of the office during the day to tell people to leave you alone, or stalk a woman to her home?”
There was that word again. “Stalk, really? That’s the word we’re using?”
She nodded. “Yes, it is.”
Wren took another sip, this time almost draining the small mug. “Granted, in hindsight my choices as to Emery seem like a miscalculation.”
“You are the king of understatement today.”
He actually thought of himself as straightforward, but why argue? “Which is one of the reasons you like me.”