“Okay.” I was hesitant about even speaking to Liam again, but what option did I have?
“So you’ll do it?” James asked.
“I… yeah, I guess so.”
A fourth tray of cocktails arrived. James nodded at the waiter and pushed one across the table to me.
“Okay,” said Kelly. “So we have a plan.”
“A solid one.” James leaned back in his chair. “If we do this correctly, you’ll have the safest job in the company if this restructure happens.”
I hoped he was right. I didn’t have a plan B.
Chapter 11
Liam
“For the loveof God, can we please put the top up?” Bonnie’s face was screwed into a knot, her eyes tightly shut.
I shifted into second as we curved past Wellington Arch. There were faster routes from my apartment in Mayfair to the Novexia offices in London Bridge, but none as scenic. And at least this way we avoided most of the Wednesday morning traffic.
“You know, they only made one hundred and twenty-three of these.” I raised my voice over the wind. “In fact, the DB5 appeared in eight—”
“Yes, I know,” Bonnie said. “Eight Bond movies. Blah, blah, blah. It doesn’t even have a cup holder.”
“I’m afraid they didn’t design it with Bonnie Marchand’s iced caramel macchiato in mind.” I rested one hand on the leather steering wheel, enjoying the feel of the rim under my fingertips.
“Can’t you at least get over your tragic little spy fantasy and get a car with a proper roof?” Bonnie’s hair whipped around her face in wild, stinging strands, sticking to her redlipstick. “Even Bond wasn’t stupid enough to get the convertible model.”
“Sorry, Bonnie. I’ll pack my motorcycle helmet for you next time.”
“Fuck you, Liam.”
I handed her a black woolen beanie from the glove compartment, doing my best not to laugh. She pulled the hat down low, scowling like a disgruntled bank robber. “I hate your stupid car.”
“That’s a good look for you. You about to hold up Waitrose?”
If she could have stabbed me with her eyes without us crashing, she would have.
Bonnie looked out to her right toward Buckingham Palace. “Liam, we need to talk about that girl again. From the lift. Very sweet of you, jumping to her defense in front of Gerald.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
She looked at me crossly, her wind-watery eyes making her anger less intimidating than usual. Poor thing. I’d have to remember to put the top up in the future.
“Liam. I don’t care what you get up to in your free time.” She breathed out heavily. “But I do care when it puts the project at risk. This isn’t some random girl. She’s an employee.”
My neck stiffened. I didn’t think of Andrea like that at all—an employee. And certainly not a “random girl.” I still couldn’t get her out of my mind. But I knew what Bonnie was referring to. I felt my hackles rise.
“You’re not telling me the whole story,” she said. “Something else happened in that lift. The energy between you two was palpable. You’d better spit it out before we get hit with a harassment claim or something shows up in theDailyMail.”
Bonnie never left a stone unturned—part of the reasonI needed her around. My sanity was a small price to pay, I suppose.
“I already told you. I didn’t tell her my full name because I didn’t know she worked there.”
Bonnie scoffed. “Whatever. You wanted to see if you could pick up a woman without relying on your name and wealth.”
Sometimes I really hated my strategic adviser. I took a deep breath.
