Except for the small problem of her boyfriend.
Instead, she’d caught me unaware, so all I could do was turn slowly at the sound of her voice. When our gazes locked, I found her standing, one hand on her hip, one wrapped around a laptop. Her hair that had been straightened and sleek for the fundraiser was now pinned neatly back into a bun. She wore simple studs in her ears, minimal makeup, a charcoal gray pencil skirt paired with a prim silk top, and the look was totally buttoned-down. The vamp of the other night was tucked neatly away.
I almost liked this version of her better. I could make this version dirty.
There was something about her direct stare that hit me straight in the sternum, and it took longer than I liked to force my brain to work.
Nope. Focus. Get the drive.
I took several steps toward her and watched with respect and a little pride as she held her ground and even lifted her chin a little. “Just the woman I was hoping to find. You know, your scent has been lingering in my mind.”
That’s it, pour on the charm.
Her dark eyes went wide at that. But she quickly schooled her response into one of indifferent composure. The only thing that hinted to any fun in her personality were the buttons on her blouse. Looking closely, I noticed each one was a different emoji. But you would have to be super close to notice. I probably should’ve taken a step back, but I didn’t budge.
“You still haven’t told me what you’re doing in my office?”
I lifted a brow. “Oh, this is how you’re playing it. I have to say I’m surprised. You’re going to pretend you don’t recognize me. And I thought I’d made a memorable impression.” I leaned forward to make my point. Rookie mistake, because once I was that close, I needed to be closer. Still though, I doubled down. “I was the one with my hand on your arse. My lips and your skin are very well acquainted.”
Her little sharp intake of breath gave her away at the moment of recognition. Then she squinted and slid her glasses on. Once they were settled on the bridge of her nose, her eyes flared wide. “Oh, I remember. I’ve been trying to forget.”
Then she swallowed hard and blinked several times before directly meeting my gaze.
Holy shit. That penetrative stare stirred something deep inside me. Something I’d buried long ago. I quickly pushed down the unknown yet somehow familiar emotion.
“You sure? Because the way your pupils have dilated, I’m fairly certain you’ve been remembering… a lot.” I gave her a sly grin. “Does remembering make your knickers wet?”
Her lips parted like maybe she might tell me they were indeed wet right now. Oh, fuck me, even better if she didn’t have any on. But instead, she pursed her lips and lifted her chin. “I’m sure you would love to know, but I, it seems, unlike you, have work to do. So can you get the hell out?”
I lifted a brow. So she was going to make me work for it. Fine by me. I liked a good challenge. “I suppose you thought you’d never see me again.”
“Well, I had thought that you would be in jail. And I didn’t know why I would need to see you again. At least not at first.”
So she has it. “At least you’re aware of why I’m here then?”
She frowned, a light crease forming between her brows, and her lips pursed. “I had originally wanted to see if you were okay. Security didn’t look too gentle. But then I realized you’d used me to smuggle something out of the estate, so my feelings turned less charitable and I’d hoped not to see you again.”
The spark of fire in her eyes had me grinning. “There you are. The mouthy little imp from Saturday night. I will admit to liking you being concerned about me.”
“Don’t get too excited. What do you want?”
Charm, be charming. “I’d like back what you have of mine.”
She laughed then. “So you tracked me down. And how did you do that anyway? Was there a tracking chip in that drive?”
No, but that was a hell of an idea. “I need the flash drive, and I’m prepared to give you something in exchange.”
“Let me get this straight, you used me, and yet I’m supposed to be thrilled you found me? What’s on the drive?”
“Nothing you need to worry about. You hand it over and we’re done.”
“Or what?”
I frowned. “What do you mean ‘or what’?”
“I hand it over, or what?”
“Why wouldn’t you hand it over?”
“Because I don’t know what’s on it. And I don’t know why you were stealing it. I mean, what kind of thief are you that you would hand off something valuable, unless you thought I could be manipulated after the fact?”
What? No. “I’m not a thief, and it’s complicated. And I’m certainly not telling you what’s on it. But thanks for telling me you haven’t already tried to look at it.”
Her brow furrowed, and I wanted to smooth the worry from her expression. What the fuck is wrong with you mate? Head in the game.
“I don’t think I can help you. The kind of help you probably want is not something that I can provide. I’m not the kind of woman that sneaks into off-limits, top-secret locations and hides in the closet with a stranger. Saturday night was an anomaly. I don’t know how you found me, but you can be on your merry way. I’m handing that drive off to the police.”
I gritted my teeth but forced my lips into a semblance of a smile. “Well, you’re pretty easy to find. Your face was all over CCTV of the event.”
She swallowed hard. “Am I in trouble? How much was that statue worth? Oh God, tell me. I need to know so I can figure out how I’m going to pay it back.”
“The statue? What are you talking about?”
She blinked at me. “This isn’t about the statue?”
I folded my arms. “No, but now I feel like I need the whole story.”
“Oh, you’re not going to get it. You can go.” She tried to sidestep me, but I blocked her. “I’m sorry, you need something from me and yet you still haven’t told me exactly who you are.”
I lifted a brow. “Sorry, I’m Ben. You’re Olivia. Now, about that flash drive, love…”
“You slipped it to me on purpose. You didn’t want anyone to find it. So, until you tell me who you are, what you want with it, or what’s on it, I’m not giving it back.”
“Right.” It was probably time to pull out the big guns. “Okay, I said my name is Ben. Maybe I should finish that for you. Ben Covington.”
She frowned. “Why do I know that name?”
I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, you should know it because I own the building we’re standing in.”
If there was a picture of a cartoon character with eyes going wide in total shock and disbelief, mouth going agape, that would be Olivia. “You’re that Ben? Ben Covington.”
I nodded slowly. “Yup, that’s me.”
“But what were you doing at the fundraiser? And why were you hiding? What is on that flash drive?”
The questions came out in rapid-fire, staccato sentences. “Jesus, you talk a lot. Look, all that doesn’t matter right now. What does matter is that I need it back. I’m even willing to give you something for the drive. I took a look at your resume. I don’t know why you’re hiding out here as Kennedy’s executive assistant, but you need to be in operations. Your resume warrants it. You’re good at what you do, and I’ve looked at your employee evaluations. Kennedy has nothing but amazing things to say about you, so how would you like a job working for me? I need a new operations director, a right hand. Not to worry, there will be no hint of impropriety. You’ll report directly to Jessa Ainsley, so you don’t have to worry about all your fantasies about where you would have let me touch you.”