He briefly closes his eyes, clenching his jaw, and goes silent for a moment. He then taps his forefinger against his lips, coming to a conclusion. “I’ll tell you what; I won’t even come around until her surprise birthday party this Saturday.”
“What the fuck?!” I blurt out. Has he lost his mind? “Again, when were you going to tell me? I got to know this shit. Am I her fucking trainer or not, Nick?” I bellow incredulously. “I don’t give a shit who trains her, but if it’s me, you make damn sure I not only know about all your shit, but you’ve got to stop intervening.” I pause for effect as renewed rage courses through me. In anger, I slam my hand down on his desk with a loud bang, almost making his coffee cup spill over. “Don’t fuck with my reputation, Nick.”
At my final words, a deafening silence ensues. He has a decision to make, and I can see the wheels turning in his head. We’re in a stare down, and the first one to speak is the one who blinked.
Nick gnaws on the inside of his cheek and nods his head slowly in thought. “I need you to train her,” he admits with resolve. “I have every confidence in your abilities. I know your track record for keeping these women submissive to their masters, even years later. They stay faithful, even when it’s a piece-of-shit master who controls them. I need that,” Nick emphasis by pounding his forefinger on his desk, “because this girl is my forever, and I need it done right.”
It’s evident I’m still pissed, but I give him a curt nod. “All right, Nick, but if you want this done right, you can’t get personal. It will make for a more difficult time, not only for me, but for everyone involved. Every time you step in the wrong direction with her, the longer the transition period will be. You get me?”
He nods his head in acknowledgment and grabs his coffee to take a sip. He doesn’t like eating crow. Well, tough shit. I relax a little knowing he wants me to train her. It will buy me some time to figure out what the hell is going on with this new obsession of his.
Our conversation is interrupted by a subtle knock on Nick’s office door. I turn and see Jared, who’s standing in the open doorway with his knuckles still resting on the door. He appears to be reluctant to step in, which means he most likely heard the arguing. “Is everything okay, guys?” he asks warily.
Nick pipes in, wanting our discussion to be closed. “Yeah, we’re done. We were just talking about room seven’s needs.”
“Yeah? How’s she doing?”
I chuckle as I speak to Jared while staring Nick down. “Well, she’s quite the little hellcat.”
“That’s for damn sure,” Nick mumbles and moves some papers around on his desk.
Jared must feel it’s safe to come into the room now, since the dissension in the air has calmed down. He’s walked in on Nick and me in a heated argument before and wound up in the crossfire. He’s not cut out for conflict of any kind. He can’t handle all the guts and glory on our side of the business. He’s a science geek, and he’s damn brilliant. Jared heads straight for the refreshment cart, and I shake my head. I don’t know how he stays so damn skinny; he eats doughnuts and other junk foods constantly.
I move to the credenza on the far side of the wall and grab a mug. I begin making myself a cup of coffee because I have a feeling it’s going to be a long day.
“On a different note, we’ve acquired a new client, Craig Reynolds,” Nick says. Mr. Reynolds already put down his deposit for us to begin extrapolating his newly purchased pet from the real world. I figure after you’ve set things up, it will take about three weeks before our men have her captured, brought back here to the facility, and be ready for training.”
“What about the victim?” I ask, slipping into an overstuffed chair in front of Nick’s desk. “Any complications I need to handle—boyfriend, fiancé…?” I ask, exaggerating the last word before trailing off and giving Nick the stink eye.
Nick ignores the jibe. “No, she’s been too focused on finishing her master’s and getting her foot in the door with a prestigious firm. She hasn’t had time for one.” He takes a sip of coffee and then eyes me down for a moment in silence. “I will need you to take a trip in about two weeks to begin tracking this girl’s movements, setting the stage for our men to follow her, and then go meet with Mr. Reynolds afterwards.”
“Isn’t that when the monthly formal dinner takes place?”