Page 5 of Out of the Shadows

She sobered and let out a sigh. “I hope he’ll be okay.”

“Me too. He’ll be safe with Team Two watching him.”

She nodded. “I’ll get on those background checks for the new security staff ASAP.”

“I know you will. Get some rest first, though.”

“Night, boss.”

“Hey, B,” he said before she could cut their connection.

“Yeah?”

He glanced behind her. “That 49ers sweatshirt back there may be a piece of shit”—he smothered a grin when she rolled her eyes. He was an unapologetic Seahawks fan, much to Bean’s disgust—“butyoudon’t ever look like shit. Tired or not. No matter what that dumb Brit says, got it?”

Bean’s eyes went owl wide. “Uh . . . thanks?”

What the fuck, Frazier?He wanted to clobber himself in the head. Why the hell had he just said that? “Night, B,” he said, forcing a smile before quickly disconnecting.

He frowned and scrubbed his hands over his face. Damn. He must be more tired than he’d thought.

CHAPTER THREE

Roughly thirty-three hours had passed since the mission debrief, and Bean’s office clock declared it nearly two in the afternoon on Wednesday. She’d managed to catch a few hours of sleep after the mission, but she’d been working nonstop since. She’d handed off two projects to Tiny—a client who had a stalker they needed to trace emails and calls from, and a company looking for someone internal who was sabotaging their IT security. She was still swamped though.

From extensive background checks on the prospective new members of the McClintocks’ security detail, to shoring up Hudson Security’s firewalls, and little fires popping up here and there, it was safe to say her plate was full. If she could just get a couple more hours added to the day, she’d be able to knock everything off her to-do list.

Squirming in her office chair, she snorted as she dialed out, her phone ringing in her ear.Yeah, right. If she had two more hours in the day, she’d no doubt fill it with more work.

Work-life balance? Not a thing for her.

The phone continued to ring, and she was a split secondfrom disconnecting the call when a man’s deep voice answered. Nerves took flight in her stomach as she cleared her throat. “Hey, Doc. It’s Bean at Hudson Security. I hope it’s okay that I called your cell.” She fiddled with her pen, absently doodling while she spoke. While there were a number of doctors at the local clinic, Doc Buchanan was the head physician as well as the father of one of her colleagues. She and Doc were friendly when they saw each other, but still, she hoped she wasn’t overstepping. “Is this a good time?”

“Of course, dear. How can I help you?”

She softly pressed the pads of her fingers against the edge of her right cheekbone and winced at the sharp pain. “I know it’s last minute and all, but is there any chance I could get in for a quick appointment to see you today?”

He was silent for a moment, and she swore she could feel his unease through the phone. “Of course. Is there a specific time you’re thinking?”

Glancing at her computer monitor, the calendar blurred.Shit.She blinked a few times, and thankfully, her calendar came into focus. “Would now work? I could be there in fifteen minutes. Twenty tops.”

The last thing she wanted to do was drive into town.Especiallyto see a doctor. She also didn’t know how she was going to sneak out of the office without anyone seeing her, but Bean knew if she didn’t get checked out, she’d go down the internet rabbit hole and self-diagnose herself with a fatal aneurysm within an hour.

“Can you tell me what’s going on?” Doc’s soothing voice, the concern in his words, had her throat going thick.

“I’m sure it’s nothing, but I... um... fainted, and on the way down, I must have hit the corner of my desk.” She cleared her throat as she cringed. “With my face.”

“I see. When did this happen?”

She glanced at the clock on her monitor. “About half anhour ago. When I came to, I was on the floor, but I don’t think I was unconscious for more than a couple minutes. I want to make sure I didn’t break anything in my face or give myself a concussion.” And hopefully figure out what the hell was wrong. This was the second time this week she’d passed out.

“You know, Bean, I was about to head over to the gym. Why don’t I swing by your office and see you?”

“You know that you’re a horrible liar, right, Doc?” A smile tugged at her lips. She knew the man belonged to De La Rosa Gym, which was located next to Hudson Security, but she didn’t believe him for a second.

He chuckled. “Perhaps. Truthfully, I don’t think you should be driving. So I can come to you.”

Though relief had her shoulders relaxing, she asked, “Are you sure?”

---