Page 16 of Waiting for Him (Trident Security #3)

From his side, Kat answered before Boomer had a chance.

“ No , she’s not. As a matter of fact, she’s going to be very surprised to see me.

I - I haven’t seen her in a very long time.

” Boomer gave her a subtle look. Realizing she’d said too much, she tried to cover her ass.

“ I’ve lived on the West Coast for over ten years and just moved back East . I was hoping to surprise her.”

“ Well , I hope you’re not in a hurry because she and a few members of her women’s group took an overnight road trip to Roanoke Rapids .

They go every other month to see a show and play some slot machines at the Royal Palace out there.

” At Kat’s expression of dismay, Harry added, “ Don’t fret, missy. She’ll be back tomorrow by noon.”

Smiling , Boomer put his arm around Kat’s shoulders and squeezed. She got the picture and put on a happy face while he spoke. “ That’d be fine, sir. We just got into town and came straight here, so can you recommend a motel nearby?”

Harry scratched his head. “ Well , you’re a little out of luck there because Murfreesboro doesn’t have any motels.

Nearest one is about twenty miles away in Franklin .

But we do have a nice bed and breakfast in town.

Always clean and not too expensive. And it’s right across the street from a good place to eat. ”

“ That’d be great. What’s the name of the B & B ?”

“ Carmichael’s . Drive straight back into town, and it’s on your left after the first traffic light. Can’t miss it.”

Extending his hand again, Boomer thanked the man. “ And I’d appreciate it, sir, if you see Irina before we do, please don’t spoil the surprise.”

“ No problem, son. And call me Harry . I might see you both tomorrow anyway. Irina always brings me back a blueberry pie from this great bakery they have out there. Good night, now.”

“ Good night.”

As they returned to the car, Boomer peeked over his shoulder and caught the old man doing the same. He might be friendly toward them, but he was protective of Irina , and it showed. “ I think your aunt has a boyfriend.”

“ Huh ? What are you talking about?”

He jerked his thumb toward the end of the drive. “ Harry . I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s got a thing for her.”

Kat glanced over her shoulder at the older man before climbing into the car. “ Really ? Well , good for them. She’s a sweet woman, and I always wondered why she never married.”

After shutting her door again, Boomer rounded the car and settled in the driver’s seat. “ Maybe she never met the right guy until now.”

“ Maybe .”

Kat was quiet as Benny drove back into town.

Now that the stress from this morning was leaving her body, her mind was filled with everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours.

Unfortunately , one irrelevant thing kept popping up.

It was what she’d found on the bathroom floor this morning.

The pink piece of paper from a memo pad must’ve fallen out of Benny’s pocket by accident.

She knew it was his because it said “ Ben ” in his secretary’s neat handwriting.

Apparently , Kat wasn’t the only one who didn’t use his nickname.

The message scrawled on the paper was what was bothering her as she replayed the words in her mind.

Tanya would like to play with you at the club tonight. Please call. 813-555-9438.

Kat had never asked him if he had a girlfriend, and she hadn’t heard anyone mention one, but it didn’t mean he wasn’t dating. And what did Tanya mean by “play with you”? Play what? Darts ? Pool ? And what club? Night club? Country club?

There were too many variables, but her mind kept flashing to the book she was currently reading— Leather & Lace .

It was a romance novel, but the sex was not “vanilla,” a term used by book websites when the sex in the story was tame.

By comparison, Leather & Lace was what they called erotica, and the sex involved BDSM — Bondage , Discipline , Sadism , and Masochism .

Kat loved to read, and while she didn’t fully understand “the lifestyle,” as it was called, the fictional books about the subject were fun.

And hot. Holy shit, were they hot. Her vibrator tended to go through quite a few batteries when she was reading one of those novels.

It was the word “play” which was bugging her.

It was used extensively in BDSM books, and those stories were usually set in clubs.

Sex clubs. Didn’t the woman they’d met at the pharmacy yesterday mention a club?

Could Benny be into something like that?

And how did she feel about it? Kat didn’t know what to feel or think at this point.

And she was too embarrassed to ask him about it.

What if she was wrong? Oh God , what if she was right?

“ Kat .”

She jumped at the sound of his deep, sexy voice. “ Wh -what?”

Pointing at the large house they were parked next to, he said, “ We’re here. You okay?”

“ Um , yeah. Sorry .” She blushed. “ My mind was elsewhere.”

“ Yeah , it’s been a long day. Come on. Let’s get a room and climb into bed.”

Oh boy.