A discreet cough from their waitress caught Abby’s attention and she watched as the woman set down a glass of cabernet. Abstractly, she wondered if the wine matched the flush trying to work its way across her face.
Why was she so upside down over this man? She’d attended meetings with the President of the United States, damn it. She could do this.
Even more important, she had to do this.
This strange attraction might have thrown her for a loop, but she’d be damned if she were going to behave like she was a slave to her body. This was a business arrangement and it was time to start treating it like one. She waited until their waitress left them before pushing their conversation back onto safer ground. “I’m on the committee for the opera charity. I can probably get a list of attendees tonight if you think you could do something with that.”
He took a sip of his drink before setting it down. “Good. That’ll save time and I’ll run it against a few of the databases I’m pulling from your systems. I set a few other things up to run overnight and I can look at the data in the morning.”
“You were busy this afternoon.”
He shrugged. “A few simple programs to begin organizing your staff lists. I’ll take it up a few notches after we get to Paris and get set up at your offices there.”
“I can get you access to the Paris office but I won’t be able to join you. I’m holding the meetings at my home.”
Her words hit a mark she wasn’t even aiming for as he put down his glass without even taking a sip. “You can’t be serious.”
“Of course I am. I use this week of meetings to entertain and I always do it from my home. It’s more personal that way.”
“Abby. You’re dealing with a security breach that may have originated with your staff. You can’t put yourself at risk like that.” All hint of teasing and innuendo was gone as he stared at her with that stark blue gaze.
“Nothing’s going to happen in my home. And no one stays there. They’re brought in from a nearby hotel.”
“Doesn’t change the fact they’re there for hours on end. Do you have any idea how easy it will be for someone to slip away for a few minutes and get a sense of the house?”
Abby had been diligent about tamping down her own sense of paranoia, unwilling to allow the out-of-control feelings to invade her annual meeting plans and in a few brief moments, Campbell had managed to bring them welling right back up to the surface. Forcing a sense of bravado into her tone she didn’t really feel she pushed back. “It can’t be that bad. I’ll add some additional security detail.”
“So you have some? At the house now?”
“I have a state-of-the-art alarm system, installed a year ago, and maintained with monthly software upgrades.”
He was already reaching for his phone when she stilled his arm. “What are you doing?”
“Getting someone in there now. You can’t just rely on the technology, especially if the person we’re dealing with has the skills we suspect.”
“There’s nothing to be done for it tonight, Campbell.”
“It’s five in the morning in Paris and the best don’t sleep anyway. I want a team in there immediately and I want the house swept for devices and bugs before you arrive tomorrow.”
“It’s a good system. Custom designed.” She couldn’t resist adding that last bit, more than a little embarrassed to have her ability to protect herself found lacking.
His eyebrows rose at that as he reached for his whiskey once more. After a hearty sip, he turned toward her. “I’m not trying to scare you, Abby. Believe me, that’s the last thing I want to do, but I don’t understand why you aren’t taking this seriously. You were concerned enough to call my sister to secure our help. Add on you can’t account for a significant problem in your security protocols.”
“I am taking this seriously.” She snapped out the words. “I’ve been through this before and it was nothing. I’m not going to look like I’m crying wolf and running around like a helpless little woman. I won’t do that again.”
His already sharp gaze grew even more pointed. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. It was a long time ago.”
“Then why’d you say it?”
She took a deep breath, willing her raging emotions to cool. Why had she even mentioned it? She wasn’t helpless. She was a strong, resourceful woman and she knew how to take care of herself.
So why the hell couldn’t she find her balance?
“I don’t want to live in fear. That’s not a way to live.”
“No, it’s not. But ignoring the problem isn’t going to make it go away. And ignoring the true root of your feelings isn’t helping, either.” When she remained silent, he pressed on. “So what happened?”
“I had an incident about a year after college—almost seven years ago, I guess. I was assigned to our London office and one of my coworkers took an inappropriate shine to me.”
Campbell nodded, the hard set of his jaw tight as he listened to her story.
“It was little things at first. A few emails. Mutual trips in the elevator as I was leaving. Then it got worse with a visit to my flat.”
“What did you do about it?”
“Gently rebuked his interest at first. Then more forcefully when he wouldn’t take the hint.”
Although time had faded the memories, Abby was surprised by how quickly she could pull it all back. “I escalated it up when it became evident he wouldn’t stop and Human Resources took care of him. European employment laws are different than the U.S. but the owners’ daughter gets a bit of extra special attention. It was all a moot point in the end.”
“Why’s that?”
“He was found dead about two weeks after the human resources department arranged for his departure.”
“Did you investigate it?”
“Of course. Nothing turned up and the cause of death was ruled a heart attack.”
“How old was the guy?”
“About thirty.”
“And you didn’t find a heart attack suspicious?”
“It was ruled a condition from birth. One of those strange circumstances of nature.”
Campbell’s intense focus—complemented by a heavy dose of skepticism at the story of the man’s death—had her rethinking the incident in light of her current situation.
Was it possible there was a connection, even a distant one?
“And you’ve never dealt with anything else?”
“You mean other than the routine, vitriolic letters that come into the McBane press office, suggesting I’m the spawn of Satan for running a company that sends satellites up into orbit?”
“Something like that.”
“Then no. Nothing has happened since London.” She hesitated, the need for reassurance warring with the concern that she was just being silly. “Do you think there’s a chance they could be connected?”
“I think I’m glad you told me about it so we can rule out any connection.” Campbell reached for her hand, his voice thick with the shades of his whiskey. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, Abby. You do believe me?”
“Yes.”