“Thanks, Nancy.”

Nancy slid her eyes to Rick for the first time. “Wow . . . boyfriend or bodyguard?”

He glanced at Judy and started to answer.

“A little of both,” she answered for him.

Those dimples made an appearance and he winked.

“Do you have a brother?” Nancy asked.

Judy felt laughter in her gut.

“Just me,” Rick answered.

Nancy fanned herself and turned her back so only Judy could see her face. He’s hot, she mouthed.

Judy walked into her office, giggling.

Her cubicle hadn’t changed much in her absence. It was tidier than she left it and in the corner sat the tube holding the plans she’d been taking home the night of the attack. Her gaze caught the tube and held.

“This is your desk?” Rick asked.

“Yeah.”

The tube hit the ground first. Over her staccato breaths, she heard it rolling away.

“Babe?”

Shut up, bitch.

“Judy?”

His breath was on her ear, blowing against her hair. “You’re not so tough now, are you?”

She squeezed her eyes shut and when she opened them, Rick was there, leaning over to force her to see him.

“You back?” he asked.

She nodded. “I remembered something.”

“What?”

“He said, You’re not so tough now, are you? I remember being confused. His words didn’t match what he was doing.”

“You’re not so tough? Are you sure that’s what he said?”

“Positive.”

“Do you remember anything else?”

Something else was there, tickling her head and scratching at her memory. Then it was gone.

“That’s it.”

Mr. Archer walked by her cubicle and stopped. “Judy?”

It was strange hearing her real name from the man’s lips. “Mr. Archer. Hi.”

“It’s good to see you back.”

“Thanks.”

The man actually smiled. “If you need anything . . . or need to leave, just let someone know.”

“That’s generous of you, Mr. Archer, but I’ll be OK.”

Mr. Archer looked at Rick then back to her. “Well, if it changes. I know José is backing up so you can pick up with him. We have someone new in the mail room, so don’t bother there.”

“Sounds good.”

Rick stood and offered a hand. “Rick Evans.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“Steve Archer.” They shook hands.

“Mind if I took a look around, Steve?”

“Not at all. The police already did. I don’t think they found anything in here.”

Rick leaned back on his heels. “I won’t take long.”

Mr. Archer walked away, leaving the two of them alone.

“You won’t blend walking around the office.”

“I don’t want to blend. I want everyone in this place to know my face.” He leaned forward and brushed his lips to hers. “I want everyone to know I’m your boyfriend.” He kissed her again. “I want them to know they will be messing with me if they mess with you.”

She stopped his next kiss. “Territorial much?”

“Very.”

He kissed her again and someone cleared their throat.

Judy jumped back.

Debra Miller stood by the cubicle wall. “Is this a kissing booth and where do I buy tickets?”

“Ms. Miller.” Judy felt her cheeks warm as Ms. Miller’s smile grew wider.

“So good to see you back, Judy.”

“Thanks.” Judy glanced at Rick, who leaned against her desk as if he belonged there. “And sorry. Rick just wanted to make sure I made it here safely.”

“That’s understandable.”

Judy made introductions.

“So a bodyguard and a boyfriend? Isn’t that a conflict of interest?”

“Not to us.”

Ms. Miller didn’t question further. “Security has been escorting all the women to and from the garage during off hours and most of us leave in groups. We’ve all been on edge.”

Judy hadn’t thought of that. She wanted to tell her boss that the attack felt personal, that she didn’t think anyone else needed to worry. Instead, she kept that to herself in case she was wrong. She’d hate to have something happen to someone and be the reason they weren’t watching their backs.

“Rick wants to look around the office. We cleared it with Mr. Archer, but are you OK with that?”

“Be my guest. Why don’t you show him around?”

“A quick tour, and I’ll get to work.”

“Great. I’m looking forward to that project we talked about.”

When Ms. Miller walked away, Judy felt much better about being back.

Meg glanced up from the computer screen and pushed away from the desk. “I think a temporary move of the business is necessary,” she told her boss, who directed her son to the backyard and balanced her not-quite-two-year-old daughter, Delanie, on her hip.

Samantha shifted Delanie to her other hip. “I was hoping you wouldn’t say that.”

She clicked a few links and brought up the database. “If Rick and Neil are right, and the police manage a search warrant, all this information would make it into their hands.” It wasn’t that Alliance itself had anything to hide. The clients that used Alliance, on the other hand, had plenty to worry about going public. “The move will be temporary. Once Rick clears his name in this we can move everything back.”

“You’re right. I know you’re right but it feels crazy to have Alliance anywhere but here. We’ve considered an office location more than once but it didn’t feel safe.”

“So skip a storefront. The phones all forward to the mobile. Keep the number here. Since I’m your main girl on the computer, I’ll take this baby home and set up an office. It will be better for all of us for a while.”

Delanie rejected her mother’s arms and Samantha placed her on the floor and shadowed her while they talked.

“The more people coming in and out of Michael’s home right now the better. The security is stepped up there.” Meg continued to plead her case.

“Fine. I can’t say I’m in love with the idea, but I know you’re right.”

Eddie ran in from the backyard, a handful of flowers with plenty of dirt-covered roots dangling from his fingertips. “Look what I found for you.”

Meg laughed at the trail of dirt the boy brought into the house.