Page 3 of Danger and Dominance
Maybe she’d finally be able to sleep.
“What do you think?”Kincaid—her current bodyguard, Dom from the club she went to, and friend—asked as they crossed over a huge bridge.Tall, dark-haired, and handsome, the former police detective was a big, broad-shouldered guy whose self-assurance made it easy to feel like he had everything under control.His very presence was calming.
Cassidy took in her first view of the city.Things were lower than she’d expected.Not a ton of skyscrapers.She’d been thinking it would be more like New York City, but it wasn’t like D.C.either.The huge river through the center of the buildings, the hills and dips, and the darker colors of the buildings made it nothing like the place where she’d been living the past few years.
“It’s pretty.”Which was true enough.
“It is.”
Kincaid let them lapse into silence again, driving through the streets as Cassidy studied her new home.The streets were narrower than she expected.More like Georgetown than downtown D.C.Lots of brick.There were some tall buildings, casting long shadows over the streets, but there were a lot that were only a few stories high as well.
A sense of calm settled over her.Everything was so unfamiliar, so foreign, she couldn’t imagine Don here as easily as she did back home.The idea of him jumping out of one of the alleys, of him being in the car behind them—or somehow devious enough to be in the car in front of them—seemed impossible.
She sighed in pure relief.
Pulling up in front of a fairly nondescript brick building, Kincaid turned the car into a parking lot.There was a security guard in a little booth next to the entry gate.Cassidy watched in bemusement as Kincaid signed them in, handing over his driver’s license.The guard’s eyebrows rose, and he glanced at her, but when he scanned Kincaid’s ID, he nodded and handed it back.
The barrier arm rose, and Kincaid pulled into the parking lot.The entire interaction had been conducted in total silence.
“Was I supposed to give him my license, too?”she asked nervously.
“If you were anyone else, yes, but we’re trying to keep your license completely off the radar, remember?”Kincaid pulled smoothly into one of the open spots.“They’re going to get an ID made for you that will get you in and out of this building that no one will be able to track.”
A little chill went up and down her spine.Cassidy hated to think that this was necessary.That Don might find some way of tracking her through her driver’s license, her credit card, or her social security number.She was going as off-grid as they could get her, and it was a constant reminder of how unsafe she was.
“Right,” she muttered.
Kincaid reached over, putting his hand atop hers when she went to undo her seatbelt.His dark eyes bore into hers, firm but kind.
“It’s going to be okay, Cassidy.It’s to keep you safe, but it won’t be for forever.”
God, she hoped he was right.
2
Cassidy
Walking into the main office of Black Fox Security, Cassidy took a good look around.She’d never been inside a security firm before.There hadn’t been a sign on the outside of the building, but there was one above the receptionist’s head as they walked in.
The receptionist was a very pretty, very young Black woman.Not that Cassidy was that old at twenty-eight, but she was pretty sure she was a few years older than the young woman behind the desk, which surprised her.She’d been expecting someone older, maybe a little hardened in personality.Check your assumptions at the door.
They’d had to come up to the second floor of the building to where the offices were.Kincaid explained that the first floor was dedicated to various training facilities and a locker room.The top floor was storage.
Cassidy clung to the bag she had over her shoulder because she didn’t know what else to do with her hands.If Kincaid didn’t have a boyfriend, she might have tried to cling to him, but she didn’t want to be that person.
“Hello,” the young woman chirped, smiling broadly.Her navy-blue suit dress was professional-looking, conservatively cut but also flattering.She had very straight black hair that brushed against the shoulders of her jacket.“How can I help you?”
Wait, shouldn’t she know?
“Kincaid Cavill,” Kincaid said, looking at the younger woman with curiosity.Apparently, he hadn’t met her before, either.Was that usual?“I’m bringing in Cassidy Simone to meet Lincoln.”
The young woman brightened and hopped to her feet, leaning forward to reach across the desk.Kincaid immediately stepped forward to take her hand and shake it.
“Oh, hi!I’m Jennifer Johnson.I just started last week.It’s nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you, too.Does this mean Mrs.Dartmouth is officially retired?”Kincaid let go of the younger woman’s hand and stepped back again, glancing at Cassidy.
“Not yet, just on vacation this week to see if I can handle things on my own.”Jennifer grinned, obviously not at all worried about her ability to do so.“She’ll be back next week for her final week.There’s going to be a retirement party if you want to come.”
