When she stepped out onto the deck, she was greeted with an unexpected blast of warm air. Perched on each side of the seating area were tall gas torch heaters, and a third flame roared from a massive stone fireplace. It continued on into an outdoor kitchen that wrapped around the deck and down into the yard.
Beyond them was a swimming pool. It shimmered a deep turquoise-blue in the darkness, the steam from the heated water rising up in the cool night. There were massive trees and bushes flanking the yard, some adorned with tiny fairy lights. To the left was a glass enclosure that glowed with a golden light. The heat inside had fogged up the windows, but she could see the dark green foliage and pops of bright colors inside. A greenhouse. Perhaps where he’d grown her rose?
It was all so beautiful. The perfect yard for throwing parties, oddly enough, although it could also be considered the perfect private retreat from the world.
Brody was standing beside the fireplace holding their dessert. “Do you like it? Is it warm enough?”
“It’s beautiful. And quite toasty, thank you.”
Sam sat down in the outdoor love seat directly across from the fireplace and accepted her dessert. Brody sat beside her. She expected him to start pressing her for answers regarding her abrupt about-face, but he appeared content to eat his cobbler and enjoy her company. Even Chris curled up in front of the fireplace with a rawhide bone and started happily munching on it.
It wasn’t until her spoon scraped the bottom of the empty bowl that Brody spoke again. “So, talk to me, Sam. Did I do something?”
“What makes you think you did something wrong?”
Brody settled his bowl on the table and turned so he was facing toward her as he spoke. “This is uncharted territory for me here. I’m not so arrogant as to think I might not misstep.”
“You mean you’ve never seduced one of your employees?” It was a fairly direct and prying question, but she needed to know if this was something he did often. If she’d asked Luke that question, it might’ve saved her a lot of heartache and time at the unemployment office. If he’d answered honestly.
It was a serious question, but Brody started laughing. And continued to laugh. It went on for so long that Sam began to get irritated.
“Hey!” she said, snapping his attention back to her. “I’m serious.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. But you do realize the only two employees I’ve seen in person since I started this company are Charlie, the head of security, and Agnes, right?”
At that, even Sam had to smother a giggle. Charlie was sixty with a bristly, mostly gray beard and a rapidly expanding beer belly. Civilian life had been a rough adjustment for the former Army intelligence officer. And then, of course, her godmother, Agnes. She was in her fifties, married since near birth and looked more like a stern Sunday school teacher than a romantic outlet for Brody.
“Fair enough,” she admitted. It did make her feel better to know he didn’t make a habit of this, even if only for a lack of opportunity. But it didn’t change things between the two of them.
“Have you ever slept with your supervisor?”
Brody turned the question around on her, and the time for laughing was over. “Yes,” Sam said, struggling to swallow the knot in her throat. “And it ruined my career and damn near my whole life.”
Brody sighed and leaned back against the cushions of the love seat. She could tell he hadn’t expected that serious of an answer from her. At least that hadn’t shown up in her background check. Everyone at her office knew the truth, but the HR records were squeaky-clean, probably to protect Luke. “Tell me what happened,” he said.
Sam didn’t want to rehash all of this tonight, but she could see the determination etched into Brody’s face. He had a solid dose of “fix-it” in him, too. “I was new to the company, and I was hired as the administrative support to the head of marketing. His name was Luke. I was immediately taken under his spell. He was movie-star handsome. He dressed well and smelled amazing. He was so nice to me, too. When he asked me to accompany him on a business trip, I was thrilled. I didn’t expect something to happen between us, but when it did, I was powerless to fight it. Away from the office, he was such a romantic. We spent each day working and each night making love in his suite.”
She felt stupid admitting to this out loud. “I would’ve believed almost anything that man said. And that was a mistake. He was married. To the woman that headed up the finance department, of all people.”