her so badly made him feel like a bastard.
“You’re one of the lucky few, Addi.”
“I count my blessings,” she said drily. “Anyway, I’m heading off early. Got to make a head start down to the cottage before this traffic gets insane.”
“You sure you don’t want a weekend guest?”
“Absolutely positively one hundred percent sure.” A smile twitched on her lips, and his heartbeat kicked up a notch. “I’m going to sit in the hot tub until my hands turn to prunes. I’m going to drink wine and do yoga and be totally peaceful. No one is going to ruin that for me, especially not you.”
“Message received.”
Despite his best effort to keep his mind on the business retreat, a thought skittered through his brain like a pebble skipping over a pond. Was she the bikini type, or would she wear something more sophisticated in the hot tub? Black or white? Or something colorful?
Would it have one of those string tie-ups that could be easily loosened with a single—
“I said is there anything else you need before I go?” She hoisted her bag over one shoulder and picked up a box of supplies with retreat neatly printed on the side in black marker.
“Nope, I just came in here to wind you up.”
She shook her head. “Now that’s the first honest thing you’ve said to me all day.”
“I said you had great pins,” he corrected as he held the door for her. “I stand by that.”
She muttered something under her breath as she walked past him, but he caught a rueful smile on her lips.
They had an odd relationship. But he’d take their strange mix of teasing and power struggles over not having her around any day. Addison was one of the few people who meant something to him.
Just remember that next time you get tempted to take a closer look at those pins, Dane. She’s off-limits. One slip does not make it okay to go back for seconds.
Her tinkling laughter carried through the open-plan office as she stopped to say goodbye to her team. One of the young guys in accounts took the box from her hands and could barely keep his tongue in his mouth as he escorted her to the elevators. Logan’s fists clenched instinctively.
Sure, he knew she was off-limits, but that didn’t mean he could stand the thought of someone else touching her. Having her. He was all too familiar with how good she felt, how her body reacted to the barest touch. She was sensitive in the best way possible, and he’d given in to her all too easily once.
“Never again,” he muttered under his breath, turning away from the sight of her and the young staff member before he said something he would regret. “She’s not yours.”
A few minutes later, Logan was knee-deep in work. Running Cobalt & Dane kept him busy, and Friday afternoons were no exception. Besides, Addison would have the team on a tight leash during the retreat next week, which meant he needed to be on top of things before finishing up for the weekend. He’d never quite understood the necessity of taking time off to discuss boring stuff like financials and recruiting strategy—surely that was a job for all those bean counters he’d hired at Addison’s request.
A knock at his office door pulled him out of his thoughts.
“Logan?” Rhys leaned in, a wary expression on his face. “You got a second?”
“Sure.” Logan motioned for him to enter. “What’s going on?”
“I’m concerned about an email we received. I took it to Addison and she asked me not to bother you because of the retreat next week, but...”
Logan frowned. “But?”
“Here.” Rhys slid a piece of paper across the table. “I think we need to be worried about this.”
Logan scanned the email, his fingers gripping the paper tighter and tighter as he read until it crumpled under the pressure. His instinct was to lash out, to curse Addison and Rhys for not bringing this to him right away. But this was his fault. He knew why Addison didn’t want him involved—and it wasn’t because of the retreat. It was because he’d put distance between them and now she was teaching him a lesson.
“Have there been any other emails like this?” he asked, smoothing the paper down flat on his desk.
“Not that we’ve seen. I’ve put a flag on this email address so I’ll know if he tries to contact anyone in the company from this point on.” Rhys bobbed his head. “Addison isn’t worried about this guy, but I don’t think we can ignore him.”
“You should have come to me first.” Logan raked a hand through his hair.
The vile words glared up at him from the paper, the threats waving at him like giant red flags. How could Addison have thought this was nothing?
Because she’d rather prove herself to be independent than come to you for help.
“It’s addressed to her, Logan. What would she have done if I took it you first?” He threw his hands up in the air. “I get that you two have this weird tug-of-war thing going on, but I’m sick of walking on eggshells around you two instead of doing my job.”
“If you see anything else like this come in, you come to me. Got it?” He banged his fist down on the desk. “I don’t care if the email says ‘top fucking secret, for Addison’s eyes only’ in big bold letters.”
Rhys sighed. “Fine. But you’ll have to back me up when she flips out.”
“If she’s alive and well enough to be shouting, then I’m happy.”
He’d promised Addison’s father—the man who’d been his boss and his mentor—that he would always look out for her. That he would keep her safe from this crazy, screwed-up world they lived in. Only once had he broken that vow. One night two years ago, when his willpower had failed him and he’d given in to the desire he’d managed to keep at bay for almost a decade.
“I’ve got my team looking into the sender’s details,” Rhys said. “But I’m not sure how much we’ll be able to turn up from a webmail account. People don’t usually use their real details, especially if they’re planning to send emails like this.”
“Just find out whatever you can.”
Rhys nodded. “You know she’s going to be all by herself this weekend, right?”
“No, she’s not.” Logan folded the printed email up small enough to fit in his pocket. “Addison is going to have a guest at the cottage, whether she likes it or not.”
ADDISON ROLLED HER shoulders as she settled in for the last leg of her journey. After driving for more than three hours, her muscles were desperate for a stretch, and she wanted something to eat that wasn’t birdseed masquerading as an energy bar. Thankfully, it wouldn’t be long until she reached her father’s cottage on Cayuga Lake. Then
