Gray reached out and grabbed her arm, stopping her. “What? He didn’t really say that.”
She ran her hand over the back of her head. “No, not exactly. Oh, he said it would be a job on the team, but there’s no way either of you would want me working for you. You know nothing about me. I have no references, no qualifications.” That wasn’t entirely true, but she had no intention of giving them her real name. “So when he pinned me against the wall and kissed me I knew exactly what job he really had in mind.”
“He offered you a job? And he kissed you?” Gray looked thoughtful.
“I have things to do. You want to let me go?” She glared down at his arm.
Gray shook his head. “It’s lunchtime. Let me take you to eat and we’ll talk about this.”
“I don’t think there’s much to say.” She sighed as Gray just stood there, staring down at her. “You’re just as stubborn as he is, aren’t you? Only you have better manners.”
“Glad you noticed. Come on, I’m starving and I hate eating alone.” He made puppy dog eyes at her and she had a feeling he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Gray was a powerhouse in his own right, he just hid it well. So she walked beside him as he moved silently through the hallway to the foyer.
Ahh, there was her friend the security guard.
“Were you waiting on me?” she asked sweetly as he turned to stare at her. She held her arms out from her body. “See, I didn’t take any of your ugly crap. Of course I could have something hidden down my pants, do you want to pat me down to check?”
The security guard took a few steps forward, clearly looking forward to doing just that when Gray growled and grabbed her arm, pulled her behind him. She gaped at his back in shock.
“I suggest you stop right where you are,” he commanded.
Cady took a step to the side, determined not to look like she was hiding. Gray sent her a brief look which clearly demanded she stay right where she was.
“But, sir, you don’t understand, she…” the guard trailed off, clearly intimidated as Gray stared at him.
Cady couldn’t help but grin. It was a bit petty of her, taking pleasure out of the guard’s discomfort.
“She what? Do you have something to accuse my guest of?” Gray asked quietly.
“Mr. Mathers is there a problem here?” An older man walked over. He looked at from the security guard to Gray before dropping his stare to her. His lip curled up slightly, but his face remained polite.
“Yes, your employee is harassing my guest.”
The other man, whose name tag identified him as the manager, stared over at the security guard then at her. His lips tightened, but when he looked at Gray his face was apologetic.
“I apologize, Mr. Mathers. There has obviously been some misunderstanding.”
“Yes, I believe there has been. I expect it won’t happen in the future or I’ll have to take my business elsewhere.”
He held out his arm to Cady. When they were past the guard and manager, she turned around. The guard was facing her. Unable to help herself, she stuck her tongue out at him, laughing quietly at his look of outrage.
Gray squeezed her hand. “That wasn’t very mature.”
“No, but it sure felt good.”
“You should have told me you’d had problems with them.”
She shrugged. “I’m used to it. I don’t exactly fit in.” She pulled at her clothes.
Gray shook his head. “I detest others who judge on appearances. One of the richest people I’ve ever met used to shop at the Gap and lived in a small, two-bed apartment.”
“Yeah?” If she had money, she’d buy herself a big house and a flashy car, she’d dress in the nicest clothes…yeah, maybe not. She wouldn’t have a clue what to do if she had money.
Cady followed Gray into a small diner. He should have looked out of place in the small, slightly run-down diner, but somehow he managed to look right at home as he led her to a booth, smiling at the older waitress as she dropped two menus on the table.
Gray perused the menu for a moment. “What would you like?” he asked as he set the menu down.
“I’m not hungry.”