but he’d been nice enough not to push her. He knew how busy she was with work and all the Crimson Lady madness. He was giving her the time and space she needed to get her life sorted before she delved into something with him. That should have meant something, right?
So why didn’t her stomach flutter and her core clench when she thought about Neil like it did with Evan?
Evan called in sick that morning after a night of tossing and turning. Images of Paige kept running through his mind, interspersed with Peggy standing behind her with a knife, ready to stab her in the back, Terry trying to kiss him, or Neil feeding Paige stuff off tiny swords. His brain was revolting against the idea of sleep, so he grabbed both his personal and PSL laptop and went into the Pierce Securities offices.
In the front office, he found Miriam, huffing and puffing while sorting the massive stacks of papers on her desk.
“Good to see you back, lady,” he greeted her. He hadn’t been in the office much, but her presence had definitely been missed.
“Good to be back, Evan. How’s the job going?” She sounded genuinely glad to be back, as if she’d been out for something like teeth-pulling.
He sighed. “Not great. How was your break?” he prodded.
She shrugged. “Just needed some time. That’s all.” She was hedging.
“It’s not anything with the ex again, is it? You know all you have to do is say the word and I can rock his world, don’t you? I can make his retirement disappear, fuck with his work history, you name it, I can make it happen.” He smirked at her and put on a gangster’s voice, “You want I should break his knee-caps?”
Miriam giggled and swatted his chest. “Go on and hide in your office. It’s not Vince. I’m fine.”
Reluctantly, Evan left her, knowing in his gut it was something major. Miriam had been a driving force behind the success of their company. Her upbeat attitude and mothering ways kept himself, Ryan, and the Pierce brothers going when times were tough. And they’d been tough, for sure. It wasn’t until after the last case, Ryan’s protection detail, that they’d started getting business. Granted, that was mostly because they’d done a shitty job at catching bad guys and Krista resorted to the media’s involvement. But it had catapulted them to a level of fame, and jobs had been rolling in ever since.
Miriam’s ex-husband, Vince, had done a number on her, though. And none of them really knew what it was. Only that she’d come into work on more than one occasion with swollen eyes from sleepless nights and too many tears, especially when they’d first started out. They were all very protective of her, but she hadn’t let them do anything for her, with the possible exception of Quinten. With his law degree, she’d allowed him to draw up divorce papers for her, which he wouldn’t talk about. Everyone in the office knew he was a fucking vault. Anything told to him in confidence would stay there.
In the office, Evan laid down his laptops and sank into his chair, trying to focus on something besides Paige. His current obsession with Neil drew his attention and he decided to focus on him. Koen was probably just a boyfriend, nothing else, but Paige had said they were strictly platonic, and Evan didn’t see things that way. Koen definitely wanted in her panties. Plus, significant others were nearly always the primary suspect.
His office at Pierce Securities was cluttered but tidy. Evan had several computer towers, because this was where he did the bulk of his coding and hacking, and each tower had different performance focuses. Several monitors crowded his workbench and a spaghetti mish mash of wires connected everything. He had printers, scanners, modems, as well as a ‘graveyard’ of old equipment that he scalped for parts. While the other offices in the suite had comfortable chairs, a large desk, and steam releasers, like dart boards and such, Evan’s office was full of computer
So why didn’t her stomach flutter and her core clench when she thought about Neil like it did with Evan?
Evan called in sick that morning after a night of tossing and turning. Images of Paige kept running through his mind, interspersed with Peggy standing behind her with a knife, ready to stab her in the back, Terry trying to kiss him, or Neil feeding Paige stuff off tiny swords. His brain was revolting against the idea of sleep, so he grabbed both his personal and PSL laptop and went into the Pierce Securities offices.
In the front office, he found Miriam, huffing and puffing while sorting the massive stacks of papers on her desk.
“Good to see you back, lady,” he greeted her. He hadn’t been in the office much, but her presence had definitely been missed.
“Good to be back, Evan. How’s the job going?” She sounded genuinely glad to be back, as if she’d been out for something like teeth-pulling.
He sighed. “Not great. How was your break?” he prodded.
She shrugged. “Just needed some time. That’s all.” She was hedging.
“It’s not anything with the ex again, is it? You know all you have to do is say the word and I can rock his world, don’t you? I can make his retirement disappear, fuck with his work history, you name it, I can make it happen.” He smirked at her and put on a gangster’s voice, “You want I should break his knee-caps?”
Miriam giggled and swatted his chest. “Go on and hide in your office. It’s not Vince. I’m fine.”
Reluctantly, Evan left her, knowing in his gut it was something major. Miriam had been a driving force behind the success of their company. Her upbeat attitude and mothering ways kept himself, Ryan, and the Pierce brothers going when times were tough. And they’d been tough, for sure. It wasn’t until after the last case, Ryan’s protection detail, that they’d started getting business. Granted, that was mostly because they’d done a shitty job at catching bad guys and Krista resorted to the media’s involvement. But it had catapulted them to a level of fame, and jobs had been rolling in ever since.
Miriam’s ex-husband, Vince, had done a number on her, though. And none of them really knew what it was. Only that she’d come into work on more than one occasion with swollen eyes from sleepless nights and too many tears, especially when they’d first started out. They were all very protective of her, but she hadn’t let them do anything for her, with the possible exception of Quinten. With his law degree, she’d allowed him to draw up divorce papers for her, which he wouldn’t talk about. Everyone in the office knew he was a fucking vault. Anything told to him in confidence would stay there.
In the office, Evan laid down his laptops and sank into his chair, trying to focus on something besides Paige. His current obsession with Neil drew his attention and he decided to focus on him. Koen was probably just a boyfriend, nothing else, but Paige had said they were strictly platonic, and Evan didn’t see things that way. Koen definitely wanted in her panties. Plus, significant others were nearly always the primary suspect.
His office at Pierce Securities was cluttered but tidy. Evan had several computer towers, because this was where he did the bulk of his coding and hacking, and each tower had different performance focuses. Several monitors crowded his workbench and a spaghetti mish mash of wires connected everything. He had printers, scanners, modems, as well as a ‘graveyard’ of old equipment that he scalped for parts. While the other offices in the suite had comfortable chairs, a large desk, and steam releasers, like dart boards and such, Evan’s office was full of computer
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