"Sure it is," Kevin refuted, completely oblivious to Ben's inner turmoil. "All you have to do is ask Christine. I'm betting she'll say yes."
"Ask me what?" Christine asked as she walked into the reception area. Instead of heading toward the front desk to collect the recent mail delivery that had arrived right before Kevin, she veered toward the two of them, curiosity brightening her blue eyes.
Ben groaned beneath his breath, knowing just how persistent she could be. Before he could respond to her question, Kevin stood up and extended his hand toward Christine in greeting.
"Hi there. I'm Kevin," he said, introducing himself. Being the consummate playboy. Kevin's appreciative gaze took in Christine's blond hair, her black sweater, the red pleated skirt that showed way too much leg, and yet another pair of those head-turning high heels of hers. "I work with Ben at ESS."
Christine shook his hand, seemingly unaffected by Kevin's not-so-subtle interest that had Ben clenching his teeth in annoyance. "It's nice to meet one of the guys Ben works with." she replied with a smile, then returned her attention back to Ben. "What did you want to ask me?"
"Nothing," he replied gruffly, and cast a quick keep-your-mouth-shut glare at Kevin-a warning that his friend didn't bother to heed.
"Actually, he wanted to know if you'd accompany him to a wedding this Saturday," Kevin said with a persuasive grin as he sat back down in his chair. "Our good friend, Joel Wilde, is getting married-"
"Jesus, Kevin," Ben said, cutting him off midstream. "I already told you that I'm on assignment, and I'm sure Joel will understand why I'm not there."
Christine placed her hands on her hips, looking very determined-and sexy as hell. "You shouldn't have to miss a friend's wedding because of me. I don't have any plans for this weekend, so there's no reason why the two of us can't go together."
Ben crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his gaze in a stern attempt to get her to back down. "We already talked about keeping your public appearances to a minimum."
She wasn't the least bit intimidated by his authoritative tone or demeanor. "Where is the wedding and reception being held?" she asked.
"That doesn't matter."
"It's a backyard ceremony at Joel's parents' place," Kevin said, providing the details that Ben was so reluctant to share. "Very small and low-key. Mostly family, a few good friends, and a slew of security agents to keep an eye on you and keep you safe." He winked at Christine, letting her know that she could count on him to watch over her, too.
Christine grinned broadly. "Perfect. We'll be there," she said to Kevin, then turned that sassy, confident attitude Ben's way and pointed her finger at him. "And no arguments from you about it."
And that was the end of that, Ben realized as he watched Christine walk away with a seductive sashay of her hips and her cute little pleated skirt flirting around those smooth thighs of hers. She collected the small box and the rest of the packages and letters that mail delivery had dropped off a while ago, then disappeared into one of the back offices.
Once she was gone, Kevin glanced back at Ben, and didn't bother to contain his amusement. "That one has a lot of spunk. I like her. And obviously, so do you," he added much too perceptively.
"She's a client," Ben replied, his tone brusque and to the point.
Kevin shrugged. "Doesn't change the fact that you have a thing for her."
This time, Ben scowled at his friend-as if that would make a difference to someone he'd fought side by side with in the Iraq War. He knew it would take a helluva lot more than just a glare to make Kevin back off.
"Just leave it alone, okay?" The last thing Ben wanted was to discuss his relationship with Christine with Kevin, or anyone else for that matter-mainly, because there was nothing to talk about. Another week, and this assignment, and his affair with her, would be a thing of the past. End of story.
A shrill, hair-raising shriek, straight out of some horror flick, erupted from one of the back rooms. Even before the bloodcurdling scream had a chance to ebb, Ben was on his feet and racing toward the sound with his weapon drawn, and Kevin right on his heels as backup. He turned the corner to the office, prepared to fire a shot at the person attacking Christine… except as his gaze scanned the entire room, he realized that there was no one in there but her. At least that he could see.
Oddly enough, she was kneeling on top of a nearby desk, with her arms wrapped around her stomach. Her whole body shook with fear, her face was drained of color, and she was muttering, "Oh God, oh God, oh God," over and over again.
Still unsure of the situation, he kept his gun firmly in hand. "What happened?" Ben barked out, hating the way his own stomach twisted with that awful sense of foreboding. Something was wrong, and he had no idea what had put that look of terror in her eyes.
"Ssssnakes," she said, her panic a tangible thing as she pointed a trembling finger at the floor behind the desk. "Get them out of here, please!"
Ben rounded the desk, and sure enough there were three decentsized snakes slithering across the carpet-all of them black with a yellow stripe and red markings. "What the hell?" he muttered in confusion as he holstered his weapon. Then he caught sight of the open box on the floor. "Did someone send them to you?"
She nodded jerkily. "Why would someone do that?" she asked, her voice breaking on a sob.
Obviously, to scare the crap out of her, Ben thought.
And the ploy had worked. He could only assume that this was yet another threat toward Christine to make Nathan drop out of the upcoming election.
But the more important question was, who had sent the box of snakes? Someone who knew she was deathly afraid of them, and as soon as he was able to calm her down, he'd find out that information.
Kevin stepped around him, then crouched down in front of one of the long snakes. "Honey, they're just common garter snakes," he said in an attempt to soothe her fears. "I used to play with these snakes all the time when I was a boy. They're completely harmless and won't hurt you. In fact, they look just as frightened as you are."
"I… don't… care!" Her voice rose hysterically, pushing her to the verge of hyperventilating. "Get rid of them!"
Realizing just how real Christine's phobia was, Kevin's gaze softened with compassion. "Take her out of here and I'll round up these guys and put them back into the box," he told Ben.
"Thanks." Ben moved out of the way of a snake heading toward his shoe. The last thing he needed was to have the damn thing slither its way up his pant leg. "If you could take them with you when you leave and see if you can trace the return address on the box, I'd appreciate it."
"You got it," Kevin said as he reached for one of the snake's tails, gently lifted it off the ground, then guided the reptile toward the box it had arrived in.
Ben held a hand toward Christine to help her step down from the desk. "Come on, let's go sit in the reception area while Kevin does his thing."
She glanced at the floor skeptically, then shook her head, her loose hair flying wildly around her face. "I… can't."
Her fright was so genuine, and he felt something in his chest tighten with the kind of tenderness he hadn't experienced in a very long time. Understanding that she wasn't quite ready to place her feet on the ground, not when a few of the snakes were still on the loose, he scooped her into his arms and carried her out of the room and to the reception area. He placed her on the couch, and she immediately curled her legs beneath her on the cushion.
She ran still-shaking fingers through her hair. "I can't believe that someone sent me a box of snakes. I must have really pissed someone off." she said in an attempt to make light of the situation.
Ben didn't laugh, because he knew just how serious this newest threat was. "I'm pretty sure that it's all tied into your father's race for governor."