The director was moving now, picking up his paperwork. He glanced from one to the other. “Maybe three months in a hot climate will help you two sort out your differences.”
The realization of what was about to happen hit him like a boulder on the head. “We’re going together? To Nigeria? I’m going to be Dr. Connelly’s team leader?”
He couldn’t possibly mean that. From the little Evan knew about the polio program it worked across a number of countries. Surely, the director didn’t plan on sending them together on the same field assignment?
“Of course. This is perfect. Hard work in an area uncluttered by other distractions. The two of you are there to represent the clinical expertise of the DPA, so I expect you to iron out any personal issues. Both of you report to Dr. Sanday tomorrow morning. He’ll give you all the background information and travel arrangements that you need.”
“But what about here? What about infectious diseases?”
The director gave him a wry smile. “Donovan’s served his time well. I think he’s ready to take the next step—a more strategic direction. It will stretch him, do him good—just like it will you.”
And then he was gone.
Violet sat in the chair, unmoving. Evan could almost sense she didn’t want to meet his gaze.
There was so much going on in his head right now. And most of it concerned her. She was shifting constantly in his mind. Violet, Sawyer’s sister. Violet, his colleague who’d ignored his instructions. Violet, the woman he’d kissed a few months ago. Violet, the woman who’d asked for a transfer without talking to him first.
Violet, the woman he was going to spend the next three months with—in close proximity.
Was that better or worse than her leaving? Right now he didn’t know.
It didn’t help matters that he was being replaced by a guy he considered a cocky upstart.
“Are you going to say something?” She’d rested her elbow on the desk and was leaning her head on her hand. She looked exhausted.
Then again, she’d barely slept in the past few days. None of them had, thanks to the crisis.
Her eyes were closed. For the first time he noticed she had little dark circles under them. They marred her usually perfect complexion. Her blond hair was swept back with a clip but little strands had escaped around her face. Even in a state of exhaustion Violet Connelly was a thing of beauty.
But her beauty couldn’t distract him from the thoughts rattling around in his brain.
“Why didn’t you tell me about Sawyer? No. Why didn’t you tell anyone that he’s your brother? Are you ashamed of him?”
Her eyes shot open, sparks of fury shooting in his direction. She opened her mouth to speak then pressed her lips together firmly for a few seconds, obviously having second thoughts. Maybe she’d been outspoken enough for one day. She bent forward, putting her head on the desk in exasperation.
“You do that to me,” she mumbled.
He was thrown. “What?”
She lifted her head, so he could only see one pale green eye. “You make me mad at the drop of a hat. It irritates me. And I’m just too exhausted to fight with you.”
He nodded slowly. This wasn’t exactly where he thought this conversation would go.
“Of course I’m not ashamed of my brother. I love him dearly. But he’s had issues. He needed time. He needed space. Ever heard of the expression ‘If you love someone let them go’? That’s Sawyer. The past six years have been hard.” Her pale green eyes looked off to the side and she nodded slowly. “But I think he’s on his way back.”
Wow. Nothing like getting to the heart of the matter. But he didn’t have time to think about what she’d said because she wasn’t finished.
“But I don’t know where you fit into this picture.”
“What do you mean?” Her conversation seemed to jump all over the place. What was going on in her mind? Was this lack of sleep?
She folded her arms across her chest and straightened herself in the chair.
“I know you had issues with my brother but I don’t know what they were. Sawyer never told me. Will you?”
Now, there was a question. The words hung in the air. Could he really put into words the complexity of what had happened between him and Sawyer and how he felt? He almost didn’t know where to start. And did he really want to have this conversation with a woman he would spend the next three months with? The answer was easy.
“Probably not.”
She sucked in a deep breath. “Well, where does that leave us?”
“What do you mean?”
“Does your irrational hatred of my brother extend to me too?”
He swallowed, not really sure how to answer. The truth of the matter was that it did change how he perceived her. His bias against Sawyer was already affecting how he felt about her. Would she exhibit the same traits as her brother? Would she walk out on a mission when it was at its most vital stage?
He set his lips in a firm line but he couldn’t look at her and his voice was low. “You know I don’t hate you, Violet.” His brain was painting pictures. Pictures of Violet in that red dress she’d been wearing a few days ago with a thick black belt cinching her waist. He was sure she’d worn it to distract him from the fact she hadn’t produced the report. And she had been right to, because it had worked.
Her eyes drifted off to one side. “I thought I was going to get fired.”
He nodded slowly. “Me too.”
Her green eyes met his. “I don’t want to get fired,” she said steadily. “I love my job.”
“I don’t want to get fired either. My job’s the best thing in my life right now.”
Why had he said that?
That was far too personal. And Evan tried not to mix his personal life and with his working life. Or, at least, not usually.
“So I guess we both have to make the best of the situation.”
She didn’t acknowledge his words. Instead, she pulled out a flower-covered notebook and started scribbling.
“What are you doing?”
“I need to make plans. I need to make arrangements for my apartment. The electricity, the rent, the mail...” Her voice tailed off.
The enormity of the upheaval started to hit him too. He’d need to make similar plans—all in the space of a week. To say nothing of the handover he’d have to give to Donovan about running the team here. The next week would be a nightmare.
Violet was scribbling again. It was almost as if he wasn’t there. He watched her as her hand flew over the page. Her hair was falling over her face. His fingers itched to reach out and tuck it behind her ear. Why on earth did he think like this around her?
“Any chance of a copy of your list? It will save me doing mine.”
She raised her head and the sides of her mouth turned up. “Not a hope.” She stood up and walked toward the door. “I’m going to start going over my files, see what work I need to hand over to someone else.”
“Violet?”
She stopped, her hand on the doorhandle. “What?”
He couldn’t help it. He had to ask. Did she have the same kind of traits that he’d seen in her brother? He needed to know. The next three months were going to be a strain. Ever since that kiss he’d spent the past few months avoiding being in close proximity to her.
They’d never spoken about it. Never mentioned it. A drunken fumble on a work night out that no one knew about.
He had no idea how she felt about it.
More importantly, he’d no idea how he felt about it.
He’d woken up the next morning with the strangest feeling in his stomach. Part dread, part excitement. He was her boss. He should never have gone near her. It compromised their working relationship.
And now it seemed as if she was prepared to h
old it over his head. That made Violet dangerous. That made Violet a threat.
“When the director interrupted us you were saying something about me being unprofessional. You were implying that because of the kiss. You thought you were about to be fired. Were you going to try and get me fired too? Would you do that, Violet?”
Her eyes met his and he saw a little flash of fire. She didn’t hesitate for a second. “In a heartbeat.”
She pushed open the door and walked out, leaving Evan wondering what he’d got himself into.
CHAPTER TWO
THE HEAT HIT her as soon as they stepped off the plane. It was like stepping into a fan-heated oven.