Carla jumped out of her thoughts like a thief who’d been caught in the blinding glare of a police flashlight. And just like the thief, she was guilty.
“Well, sure,” she answered in a rush. “I like him just fine. He’s smart and seems nice and I appreciate his willingness to help me on this assignment and—”
“That’s not what I meant.” Lisa leaned forward in her chair, hands resting on her knees. “Look, Carla. I happened to be walking past The Snake Pit last night and saw you and Jackson getting out of his car. Where you went, what you were doing, that’s none of my business. But I don’t want secrets between us, so I thought you should know.”
“Oh. Ah, okay. Thanks for telling me.” Though Lisa hadn’t asked, she felt oddly compelled to fill in the details. “We went, um, he took me to dinner. At Les’s Place.”
“That’s nice. Les’s is fun.”
A wall of silence sprung up between them. Carla looked away, trying to decide what to do, what more to say, when at last she simply shrugged and threw in the towel. “It doesn’t make any sense, I just got here, but there’s—”
Lisa’s eyes filled with understanding. “I know.
There’s just something about him.”
“Are you and he…I mean…” Her cheeks burned.
“Are we seeing each other?” Lisa let out a small laugh, but without jest. “No, I’m not screwing the boss, don’t worry.”
“I’m not worried, I just—”
“Look, Carla, you don’t have to explain anything to me. Whatever’s going on between you and Jackson — if there’s anything going on between you and Jackson — is none of my business and frankly, not something I care about. I’m here for my career, that’s all. And besides, as far as the home front’s concerned, I’ve got it covered. My boyfriend, Brad, and I got engaged three months ago, so I’m in the middle of planning a wedding.”
“Oh, that’s great!” Carla’s eye automatically dropped to Lisa’s left hand, but it was bare. Lisa quickly noticed.
“I don’t ever wear my ring to work. Jewelry of any kind can be a hazard around here. It can get stuck in equipment, have chemicals spilled on it, or just plain get in the way when we’re conducting research. So I leave it at home.”
“Sounds smart.”
Lisa rose from her chair. “Listen, I’m going to get myself another cup of coffee and then we’d better get to work. If you want some, come with me. There’s a little pantry room back here where we keep a pot going pretty much all day long.”
“Coffee would be good.”
They walked toward a hallway off the main room leading to the pantry. While they were fixing their coffee, Lisa stopped and looked at Carla. “Like I said, this is none of my business and I really don’t care what’s between you and Jackson. But could I give you a piece of advice?”
Carla halted her stirring and looked up. Lisa sounded serious. “Of course.”
Lisa nodded and then paused, as if not sure where to begin. “Jackson’s parents died in a bad car accident a couple of years ago.”
“Yeah, he told me. Last night, in fact.”
“It’s good you know because it really affected him. Kinda messed with his head, actually. For a long time after it happened he didn’t talk to anyone about anything, and certainly not about the accident.”
Her heart twisted as she imagined Jackson’s pain. “I’m sure he was grieving.”
“Of course.” Lisa nodded. “We all understood and gave him space. But about six months after it happened, we found out Jackson blamed himself for it. And no matter what anyone says to him, no one’s ever been able to convince him otherwise.”
“But that’s crazy. His father lost control of the car on a rainy night. Jackson told me so himself. He couldn’t have caused that to happen.”
They picked up their cups and walked back toward the main room. Her mind spun as she digested what Lisa had told her. She felt as if she’d been shown a window to Jackson’s heart only to have it slammed shut in her face, leaving behind more questions than answers. How could he possibly blame himself for a car accident that happened an ocean away? Was the hurt he still carried what kept him so guarded? She shook her head, wondering if she’d ever know the answer.
“There’s more to the story than that, but I’ll leave it for Jackson to tell you. I just thought you should know because…well…” She shrugged. “It sounds silly, but I guess I wanted you to know he’s been through a lot and what he doesn’t need, on top of everything, is getting his heart broken.”
“His heart broken?” Carla tried to toss off the idea as crazy, but even to her own ears, the effort sounded hollow. She could only imagine what Lisa thought. “C’mon. It was only dinner.”
“Yeah, well.” Lisa resumed her seat in front of the monitor. After clicking around a few times, she turned back toward Carla. “You wouldn’t guess it from the outside, but Jackson’s heart is more fragile than most.”
Brusque, brooding, no-nonsense Mr. Grunter has a fragile heart? It made no sense. Yet the sincerity and seriousness in Lisa’s voice forced Carla to take note.
“Thanks for letting me know.”
“No problem.” Lisa grabbed her coffee and stood up. “Now, why don’t we get started? Come over this way. I’ll show you the data room where you’ll be working.”
The rest of the day passed by in a flash. Once Lisa had shown Carla what she wanted her to do, she spent the rest of the day archiving records and synching them with the central databases she’d already created. The information she came across was fascinating. She found data related to the snakes themselves, such as their care and feeding, extraction analyses, and reams and reams of test results. Rivard Research was a very busy lab and the scientists wasted no time in testing the venom once they’d extracted it.
As she entered the information, Carla was surprised to feel a sense of pride surging through her, even though her association with the lab was superficial and short-term. Nonetheless, what happened here was meaningful. It mattered. No one in this lab discussed “pushing the envelope” or creating a “value-added proposition.” No, what they did here was try to improve lives, simple as that. It wasn’t a matter of going after the “low hanging fruit.” It was a matter of making sick people better. And you could help them.
She scolded her rash inner voice and ordered it to pipe down, even while knowing the thought was true. She definitely could help them. Operational efficiency, cash flow generation, optimal staff management.
Jackson hated all of that, but she knew she could convince him he needed her. You mean he needs Bartlett Silver. Geez, Carla. Are you forgetting the point of the assignment?
Of course she wasn’t. She’d just…well, kind of thought of her and Bartlett Silver as one and the same.
That was all.
She glanced up at the clock, amazed to see the time well after six. She got up and walked into the main room. Lisa was gone; sitting in her place was the young Indian biology student whom she’d met in the cafeteria. She gave him a friendly wave as she left the building, noticing he studied on his monitor the same gestating cobra Lisa had been looking at this morning. Carla found herself wondering if there was a problem, and then actually chuckled aloud as she walked down the stairs. Never in a million years would she have guessed she’d ever be concerned about a snake.
She heard the crunch of gravel behind her as she walked but didn’t need to turn around to identify the source of the sound. Jackson’s presence was easily felt, like the inexplicable sense of knowing when someone is staring at you from behind. With him, however, it was more than just sensation; he emitted an aura as strong as a touch…and just as powerful. He said something to her, though he was still far enough away she couldn’t make out the words. She knew the voice, though. Low. Soft. Intense. She turned and saw him walking toward her.
“I didn’t catch what you said,” she replied when he came close enough.
“I wanted to know if you’d survived the cobras.”
His smooth low voice contained no trace of tension from the night before. He stopped only steps away from her and hitched his thumbs in the pocket of his jeans. The movement drew her gaze down his legs and over to territory it had no business visiting.
Immediate heat rushed to her cheeks as memories of last night surfaced, his hot kisses on her skin, her breasts. She mentally kicked herself, willing those thoughts aside, even as she felt her panties dampen.
Determined to focus, she smiled up at him. “I more than survived. In fact, I found it interesting.”
“Not terrifying?”
They headed toward the cafeteria. “Well, since I didn’t actually see any real snakes, just those on the monitors, it kept the terror at bay.”
He chuckled. “That’s good.”
“It’s really impressive,” she added. They approached the cafeteria building, but rather than walking up the steps to the entrance, Jackson stopped and turned to look at her.
“What is?”
“Everything.” She spread her hands, palms up, as if to encompass her surroundings. “What you do, these facilities, the research, the mission, your staff…”
He pierced her again, those blue eyes studying her so keenly as if he could see her soul. The look was penetrating, intimidating, and sexy as hell. It so distracted her she lost her train of thought.
“I’m glad you like it,” he said, his voice low.
Jackson glanced sideways, as if to ensure they were alone. When he returned his gaze, she was startled to see an ink black taint of desire reflected back at her. Suddenly she sensed an unexpected change in the air. It was as if an undercurrent of energy, not there minutes before, suddenly came to life. Her heartbeat skittered against her chest.
He eased his way closer, narrowing the gap between them. She shivered as he lifted a finger and trailed it down her arm, leaving a sizzle of heat in its wake. Her reaction was immediate, nipples pebbling beneath her blouse.
She licked dry lips. “Jackson, what—”
“What am I doing? Is that what you want to know?”
She nodded. He took another step toward her.
“It’s pretty simple. I’ve been thinking about last night.”
He stood so close his thighs brushed hers. She was suffused by his heat and his intoxicating woodsy smell. A slow, throbbing ache began building in her core.
“You made me lose sleep, you know?” He caressed her arm and along the side of her neck. He slipped his hand into her hair. “I couldn’t get you out of my mind.”
With the tips of his fingers he lightly stroked along her collarbone and the base of her throat. His eyes glittered as he looked down at her. She heard a change in his breathing as it grew heavier, more pronounced.
“You’re a very bad girl, Carla.”