Lori Foster - Caught! - Taken! / Say Yes

Dillon bent to press his forehead to hers. “I’ll take a look at it. You…might have had some damage to the brake lines.”

Virginia shook her head. “Dillon, looking after my car isn’t part of your job and not at all a necessary part of our relationship. Besides, I already called the tow truck. I can take care of myself, you know.”

He looked as if he wanted to argue, but held his tongue. In this instance, Virginia appreciated his restraint. She liked her independence and wanted no infringements on it. She smiled her approval. “You know, it’s too bad I have to check in here Friday morning.” She smoothed her open palm over his wide chest and sighed. “I think I’d like a lot more time with you, truth be told.”

His slight frown and the darkening of his eyes were confusing. He reached around her and opened the door, suddenly in a hurry to leave. On his way out, he muttered gruffly, “Save your wishes for something important, honey. You never know when you might need them.”

She wondered what he meant, or if he’d meant anything at all. Dillon was an elusive man and most times she wasn’t at all sure how to take him. But she did feel certain about one thing. She would definitely enjoy her fling with him.

“DON’T EVER SPEAK to me like a lackey again.”

Cliff whirled around and stared. Dillon closed the door quietly behind him and stalked forward. He knew he wasn’t precisely angry at Cliff, at least not over anything new. But he made a fine target. And right now, Dillon needed an outlet.

He hadn’t reached Virginia’s car before it was taken away, but he’d still had his suspicions confirmed. Someone had cut her brake lines. Reddish brake fluid made a large puddle where her car had been parked. This was no mere leak.

Cliff backed up two steps before he caught himself. “What are you talking about?”

Dillon flattened his palms on the highly polished table and leaned toward Cliff. “Don’t give me orders. If you want to meet with me, say so, but don’t get pissed off at your sister and then bark at me.”

Cliff tried a show of umbrage. “Now, see here…”

“I’m a damn good employee, Cliff. I’ve upgraded your entire security system and saved you a bundle in the process. I’ve found glitches most men would never have noticed. That’s my job and I do it well. But I don’t need this job and I don’t need to be talked down to. Understand?”

Dillon was pushing it, but Cliff seemed to gain more respect for him every time he asserted himself. Unlike Virginia. It made sense to Dillon. He’d be damned if he’d want some marshmallow in charge of protecting the interests of his company. Not only was Dillon in charge of securing the actual property against theft, both at the offices where Cliff and Virginia worked and at the retail outlets, but he evaluated the security potential and estimated costs of future retail sites. He also oversaw the personal security for employees, including the boss. Johnson’s Sporting Goods wasn’t a nickle and dime operation.

Dillon recognized his value to the Johnsons. He’d learned his trade from the best. His father had taught him how to secure, and how to breach, the legal and the illegal, which made him unique, and one of the best in the business.

Cliff needed him, especially with Virginia constantly breathing down his neck.

Besides, now that he believed Virginia was being threatened, he wasn’t quite up to maintaining his pretense with Cliff. Virginia had finally agreed to some intimate time alone with him, and it was entirely possible he’d be able to settle things just by getting a few good leads from her. Surely Virginia would know what trumped-up evidence Cliff had manufactured. If she would talk.

God, he hoped it would work out that simply. He hated playing the dutiful employee. He preferred working for himself, hiring himself out on short-term jobs, spending his free time in Mexico with his father and his horses and his land.

Dillon figured that once he established a relationship with Virginia, he could quit the company. Virginia would undoubtedly find him more appealing as a free agent; there would be no reason for her to think she was being used.

Dillon shook his head. He didn’t like the warmth that swelled over him when he considered pleasing her. It didn’t matter what Virginia thought or would think. If her bright golden eyes were angry or aroused. None of it mattered. None of it could matter.

A heartfelt sigh from Cliff broke into Dillon’s thoughts.

“You’re right,” Cliff said. “I do value you as an employee. It’s just that Virginia can be so damn arrogant, and I’ve got enough on my mind right now without her harassment.”

Very slowly, Dillon straightened. “Oh? Anything I can help with?” Little by little, Cliff opened up to him, making him a confidant, wanting him for a cohort in his grievances against his sister.

Cliff waved dismissively. “It’s a matter that came up before you were hired. I have people already on the problem.”

“What exactly is the problem?”

“A little matter of internal embezzlement. A former employee used his position to siphon funds from the company. The theft occurred mostly in insubstantial amounts, so it was hard to notice. I knew it was him, and I fired him on the spot, but of course I can’t accuse him officially without solid evidence. Finding proof is taking some doing. You know how difficult it can be to trace numbers. However, I believe we finally have him nailed. We should be able to wrap things up any day now.”

“What kind of evidence do you have?” Keeping his tone so mild, so bland, was more than difficult when he wanted to grab Cliff and slam his fist in his mouth. He wanted to force him to admit it was all a scam. Wade couldn’t be guilty.

Except…Cliff didn’t look as though he was scamming. He looked smugly confident. It shook Dillon.

“My lawyers have advised me not to discuss the case.

Suffice it to say, when we go to court, we won’t lose.” He pushed a button on the intercom, then requested that Laura bring in coffee. Cliff stacked some files and turned to face Dillon. “The others will be joining me soon, but I wanted to talk with you for a minute or two first. Virginia interrupted us downstairs. But now is as good a time as any.”

This was curious. Dillon considered telling Cliff why Virginia had interrupted, about the cut brake lines, but decided against it. Cliff could be the very one who had tampered with Virginia’s car. At the moment, he wasn’t willing to put family loyalty to the test, especially not in Cliff’s case.

Dillon hid his thoughts well as he gave Cliff his attention. “I didn’t realize we were having a meeting. Is your sister invited to this one?”

“Hell no.” Cliff chuckled. “I try to keep her as much out of the way as possible. You’ve seen firsthand how offensive she can be. No, the meeting is about expanding the downtown operation.”

Not again, Dillon thought, tired of that tune and trying to explain to an idiot that opening an outlet downtown was a waste of funds. Unless the entire area was revamped, Cliff would be better off withdrawing and investing his money on renovations elsewhere. Though Virginia had told Cliff that countless times, it didn’t take someone with her business sense to see it. Dillon had backed up her reasoning, on a security level. Cliff wasn’t listening.

“You know how I feel about that, Cliff. I can upgrade all the systems there, hire good people to work in shifts, but it won’t do you any good. Even without the petty theft, which is rampant and you know it, that store is a money hog. There’s not enough business to warrant the effort.”

Cliff gestured with his hand, looking distracted and annoyed. “That’s not what I want to speak to you about. No, I want to talk to you about my sister.”