“That and to make sure she doesn’t destroy Grant Enterprises,” Kyler said.
“Destroy Grant Enterprises?” Josh sat down in the chair next to Kyler.
“I’ll explain it later.” Kyler patted him on the shoulder, then turned back to me. “Regardless of your motives, it doesn’t change the fact that a former FBI analyst would be a good fit for what we are aiming to do. She also has the skills to guard Tinley and Rayna.”
“Or she may burst into tears at the first sign of conflict.” I didn’t believe it, but it had to be said. Kylie seemed confused. It seemed obvious to the true nature of her little side. All littles start out like that, a deep-seated desire to recapture moments in their past where they had no worries, no bills, no responsibilityand wish for an opportunity to shed their adult side and just be. And, for a lot of littles, I imagined that all it was, an opportunity to let go and be free for a moment, but others like Rayna’s little side had always been a part of her personality and Tinley whose adult side and little side worked as a team to survive and get her to where she was today.
Me pursuing her, getting to know her and her little, could make it more difficult for her to compartmentalize her little like she had in the past.
“If you believe that can or will happen, then I trust you wouldn’t let her anywhere near our littles.” Kyler’s eyes narrowed but then softened. “Listen, I know you care about Rayna and Tinley like family, and while the situation is delicate, we trust you. Trust yourself.”
I looked at Josh. He gave a slight, affirming dip of his chin.
“You know this is a terrible idea, right?” I said.
“Well, if it doesn’t go as smoothly as you want, you can just kidnap her and lock her into your place until she falls in love with you.”
Josh laughed.
“After all, it’s what she’s accusing us of, so it wouldn’t be that big of a surprise for her,” said Kyler.
“Wait,” Josh clutched his chest. “What?”
Josh and Kylerwent back to their littles and left me with my thoughts. Not long after, Collin returned from showing Kylie around.
“Collin, come on in, please.”
“Coming.”
Damn, I could let the guy have a minute to himself. I wasn’t typically this demanding of a boss.
“What’s up?” After running around all day, his eyelids drooped and he collapsed into the seat. I should give him some time off or a raise. Probably both.
“Nothing, just wanted to hear how Kylie was settling in.”
“Fine,” he nodded. “I like her. She’s nice and smart. She asksa lotof questions.”
My eyes narrowed.
“No, not like that, all relevant questions.” He seemed to want to paint her in a good light. “She talks a lot and I can talk a lot, so, yeah, I notice things like that.”
“Did she mention if she’ll need to go back to New York to get her stuff?” Her offer came with relocation benefits; if she needed to ship her stuff here, we’d take care of it.
“Yeah, she said she had already put most of her stuff in storage and she could buy stuff here.” Collin waved his hand. “She seems excited to get started. I got on IT to have her computer and phone all set up by the morning.”
“Oh, good. That’s good.” I had forgotten about that.
“I ordered her some uniforms and asked her to provide me with a list of supplies she might need.” He tapped through his phone and then looked up. “Which office do you want to give her, or is she working from her apartment?”
“Can we put her next door?”
“In Matt’s office?”
Oh, yeah, I forgot about Matt. He was head of accounting for Quadrangle Hotels. A nice man, he kept to himself and spent half his time in New York, anyway.
“I mean, check with him first, but yeah, if we can swing it.”Did my voice sound weird?“If not, then put her upstairs, but in an office, not in a cubicle. The stuff she’s working on is sensitive.”
“Sure,” Collin nodded.
