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“Do you think she would like more?” He was honestly surprised Apollo hadn’t pushed for more. He was an Alpha, but then again, so was Perdy.
Jennifer grimaced, “They always seem to say the wrong thing to one another. Misunderstandings. The two are too busy thinking that the other insulted them to solve their problems.”
A door clicked open, and his head lifted. He saw Mallen come out of the office, his big arms flexing, his head shaking. Jennifer grinned and ducked her head.
“It was you,” Mallen accused, pointing a finger at her.
Jennifer bit her lip and looked away. There was humour dancing in her eyes. She was about to say she had no idea what he was talking about. “I didn’t do anything,” she said with a small smile, her eyes twinkling.
Mallen stroked the side of his jaw with his hand as he stared at her with a raised eyebrow. He might as well have been a statue for all the attention they were paying him. Their gaze carried an erotically charged weight, and he almost backed away just as Jennifer looked away with a blush and a curse.
Mallen chuckled dangerously with lust in his eyes, and she muttered, “Damn it.”
“You set that female onto me,” Mallen accused.
“I couldn’t help myself. Her employment was approved by Victor. After he slept with her and left, she has been hounding me ever since. He’s doing his usual rakish heartthrob bit.”
“Rakish heartthrob bit?” Nick choked out a laugh. He felt like he had missed something and was equally sure he didn’t want to know.
She shrugged sweetly. “Victor can smile and get away with murder, but this one won’t let him. At different times throughout the day, she calls me constantly, hounding me to call him. She’s all crazy.”
“And you put her through to me?” Mallen pointed out.
Jennifer patted his chest as she stepped over to him. Almost instinctively, he bent. This allowed her to kiss his side of the jaw and straighten his shirt, despite the fact that it was not crooked.
A casual play like this could easily be part of his future with Harper, he thought.
“Hmm,” she murmured softly, melting Mallen’s rough edges.
At that moment, he felt like a voyeur and wanted to burn his eyes out. He didn’t want to see them make eyes at each other like lovesick fools.
He was still able to hear despite looking away. “I’ll make up for it later,” Jennifer whispered. “Besides, I knew she would be scared of you and wouldn’t bother calling.” She paused, then wryly added, “For a while. Now you’re embarrassing Nick, and he wants to speak to you.”
“Me?” growled Mallen, lunging toward her as she laughed and skirted around them. She ducked down the stairs, shouting, “I’ll bring you something back from the restaurant.”
“You’ll pay for this later,” he called to her. “Minx!” Mallen laughed under his breath.
Jennifer was clearly visible at the bottom of the first set of stairs. With a devilish light in her eyes, she said, “I can’t wait.” Mallen laughed.
Upon turning, Mallen spotted Nick’s braid in his hair. “Congratulations Nick. I’m glad Harper has found someone to love; she deserves a male like you.”
Nick was relieved he wasn’t upset. After everything that had happened, Nick thought they might not be supportive anymore. He would have been broken if they had lost trust in him to the point that it affected his relationship with Harper. He would have been devastated and completely ruined.
“Thanks very much. I really appreciate it. We’re planning to get married as well, hopefully in a small ceremony,” he said. “You’re all invited.”
“Interesting and different, something I think quite a few Numbers would be interested in attending.” Mallen clapped him on the shoulder and gave him a pitying look. “No matter how small you wish to keep it.”
A grimace spread across his face. “Yeah, I see what you mean.” He always had a careful way of phrasing things, something that in the past would have served him well; however, right now, he was having difficulty expressing everything in a coherent manner. “My people, I hope you know…”
Mallen interrupted him by raising his hand. “None of us blame you.” Mallen, one of the group’s most vocal and least approachable, extended his hand. “We are solid. There is no doubt in our minds that you will never betray us. There is pain in our hearts for you, and we stand with you.”
Mallen shook his hand as he felt some guilt lift off him. “I appreciate it. I would appreciate it if you could subtly convey the same assurance to my team. It is understandable that they feel unsteady and not nearly as secure as they did before this.”
Mallen cut his hand through the air. “We would never take their jobs, nor would we make them feel as if they were on the outside.”
“I know that,” he said. “I am about to speak with them. So I want to make that as clear as possible.”
Mallen’s telephone rang. Mallen raised his lip and murmured, “It better not be that persistent female.” Mallen glanced back at him. “Tell them whatever you need to make it crystal clear that we are aware this male was an anomaly.”
