Page 4 of The Demigod Complex
The flash was there, then gone in another blink and she raised her eyebrows, giving him that look. The one that said she thought maybe he needed to lie down for a minute.
“What’s the latest on the Morning Star project?” he asked, deliberately trying to make it harder for her to jump into resigning.
“I…” She hesitated, glanced at something in her pile of papers. No doubt that damn envelope.
“I assume you’ve heard from Lance?” he prompted. He could be ruthless when he had to.
Only another beat of hesitation, then she nodded. “He has sent in a new report on the progress. He’s asking for another six months.”
“He can have three,” he said.
She nodded and noted the task.
Castor sat back and fiddled with a pen. “Actually, scratch that. I’ll take care of it and talk to him directly.”
Not even a blink or hesitation. She merely nodded again and adjusted her notes, then glanced up. “Anything else?”
A loaded question if he’d ever heard one.
“I need you to accompany me on a trip.”
Chapter Two
Leia blinked. What the hell just happened? She’d had the perfect opportunity to hand him her resignation letter and she’d chickened out. Like a cowardly hen who clucked all the way into her coop to hide.
She should speak up. Right now.
She opened her mouth to do just that—
“Tell me about the trip,” is what came out instead. “Where will we be going?”
“Colorado. Rocky Mountain National Park. Specifically, we’ll be staying outside the park at the Stanley Hotel.”
She’d made a note to check the map for the closest city to fly into, probably Denver, though a private airstrip might be closer. Fort Collins perhaps. “When do we leave?”
“Tomorrow.”
She blinked. “Thisweekend?”
“Is that a problem?”
“I do have a life outside of this job,” she said, not that he’d pick up on the sarcasm.
He cocked his head, eyes glittering in a way she didn’t trust. “What? Hot date?”
“Something like that,” she murmured. She hadn’t been looking forward to the date anyway, if she were honest.
“You’ll have to reschedule.”
What would he do if she saidduh? Ignore her probably. That was his usual reaction to her snarkier comments. She resisted the urge, not wanting a repeat of the tension from earlier.
Leia gave him a small nod. “Of course. What’s the purpose of the trip?”
Castor leaned back in his chair. “We’ll be attending a mating ceremony, so I assume they have a block of rooms reserved. You’ll want to check that.”
She lifted her head. “Mating?” That was a new one. They’d traveled to social situations before, mixing business with pleasure. “But I’m only there as your assistant. Correct?”
He crossed his arms, his muscles straining the fine material of his navy suit. “Yes.”
