“That way you don’t have to rush.” He sat down and unwrapped his own sandwich. “There are uniforms in your closet, too, and there’s a locker in our training area assigned to you. We meet and go over any special training once a week. I was going to give you a week to get settled, but withThe Sphereadded to the mix, you might as well jump right in.” He gestured toward the sandwich. “Eat.”
I unwrapped my sandwich–and it was the one I loved, cut the way I liked. I shook my shoulders but stopped, remembering I wasn’t alone.
Not that anyone here would bat an eye at a little’s tendencies. It was challenging to act like a mature professional when these dominant, caring figures were so kind to me.
Stop it, Kylie.
“You okay?” Patrick asked.
“Oh, yeah.” I sipped my smoothie.
“You were a million miles away.” He took a bite of his sandwich. I watched his cheeks turn pink. He had an obvious tell when he was enjoying something.
“Good sandwich?”
He nodded and took another bite.
“What kind did you get?”
“Same as you.” He took another bite. A piece of salami stuck to his lip. His tongue swiped at it. My heart skipped a beat.
He coughed, pulled a soda out of the bag, and downed it. “It’s spicy.”
“You haven’t had it before.”
“No, thought I’d try it. You have had it a few times since you’ve been here.” He shrugged.
I dropped my sandwich on the desk.
“You guys are monitoring my food intake.” I wiped my mouth and looked out the window.
“No.” He blinked. “God, no. I just like knowing what you like.”
“Oh.” I turned back toward him. My mouth suddenly dry. I grabbed my smoothie.
“It’s my job to make sure everyone on my team is in the best condition possible to do their job.” He picked a pickle out of his sandwich and popped it in his mouth. “That includes making sure they are eating and drinking properly.”
“Of course.” I went back to my sandwich. I’m sure he monitors Mr. Martin’s hydration, too. But I kept that bit of snark to myself.
“How are you settling in?”
“Fine.” I picked up another section of my sandwich. “There’s a lot to learn. The FBI assigned you one task, which youthen completed before receiving another. Here there’s a lot of different balls in the air.” I giggled.
Patrick did not. “Well, if it gets overwhelming, you are required to let me know.”
“Is that one of the so-called rules I keep hearing about?” It was fun snarking back and forth with Patrick.
His expression softened, and he studied the sandwich in his hand as if he wanted to say more.
Maybe I’d said too much. We continued to eat in silence.
My phone beeped at fifteen minutes to two. Patrick stood up. “You know your way to the security offices.”
“Yep.” I stood. “See you there.”
Turnsout I didnotknow where I was going.
I changed into the less formal security clothes and headed down to the lobby and over to Quad IV, but every door I tried to enter was restricted. Employees’ access to certain sections was restricted by their positions, so I anticipated this. Collin hadn’t answered my text. I followed two guys in my same uniform into Quad I, but they were going to lunch and not training. I barely staved off a panic when my phone rang.
