Page 7 of Duty Compromised
We both turned as a man in a suit came through the inner doors. Forties, professionally pleasant expression, the kind of guy who probably had his coffee preferences memorized by every assistant he’d ever had.
“Dr. Gifford, the test results from yesterday’s trial are—” He stopped when he saw me. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize we had a visitor.”
I glanced around for Dr. Gifford. No sign of him. But the other two people in the reception area weren’t looking around either, which could only mean…
Fuck. I’d been talking to Dr. Gifford?
I looked at the flustered woman with stains on her wrinkled blouse, a pen tucked behind one ear, and the general air of someone who’d lost a wrestling match with the office phone system. This was Dr. C.L. Gifford? The head of the quantum engineering team? The genius George had told me about?
Maybe I should’ve read the damn file George sent me instead of just skimming it last night. But I’d been focused on the building layout, the lab access points…not the staff roster.
And okay, in my defense, she couldn’t have been more than mid-twenties. The head of a world-class quantum R&D team? She looked like she should be prepping for midterms or leading a sorority mixer, not wrangling qubits for breakfast.
“This is…” She paused, looking at me with those green eyes, and I realized she’d already forgotten my name.
“Ty Hughes,” I supplied, putting a friendly edge on my tone. “Security consultant. George Mercer should’ve mentioned I was coming.”
The man in the suit eased immediately, extending his hand. “Alex Richards, head of R&D. Yes, George did tell me. I just wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow.”
“Figured I’d get an early start. Raymond Wilmington handed me a badge”—or threw it at me. Same difference—“so here I am.”
“Charlotte,” another voice called out, and a dark-haired woman appeared in the doorway. Petite, polished, the complete opposite of the flustered Charlotte. She was carrying a lab coat in one hand.
“You left this in the break room again,” the newcomer said, holding up the lab coat like it was evidence in a crime. “How are you supposed to—oh.” Her eyes landed on me, and her smile shifted to something warmer. “Hello.”
The shift made me wonder: professional interest or personal? The answer was probably yes.
“Darcy Giglio. Computer engineer,” she said, bypassing any formal introduction. “And you are?”
“Ty Hughes. Security.”
Darcy’s brows rose, and she flicked a glance toward Charlotte—brilliant Dr. Gifford, I corrected myself again—who was in the middle of an Olympic-level juggling act involving the lab coat, a tablet, a sticky note, and a pen. She was losing to all four.
“Charlotte, did you know about this?” Darcy asked.
“I do now,” Charlotte said, trying to keep her pen from escaping while also attempting to put on the coat one-handed.
“Here, let me.” Darcy stepped forward, holding it open like they were about to waltz.
Charlotte slid her arms through the sleeves and glanced down with a groan. “Still damp. I, um…spilled coffee on it earlier. Washed it in the sink. It’s…mostly fine. Probably.” She stopped abruptly, realizing she was oversharing, and then barreled on anyway. “Well, unless you hate the smell of coffee, in which case, it’s a war crime.”
“This is why I keep telling you to stash a spare lab coat in your office,” Darcy said in a tone equal parts fondness and exasperation.
“I have spare lab coats,” Charlotte insisted. “I just…spilled stuff on those too.”
Alex cleared his throat. “Mr. Hughes, perhaps we should discuss the security arrangements in my office. Dr. Gifford, the test results?”
“Oh! Yes. They’re…somewhere.” Charlotte patted her pockets like she expected the results to appear by magic. “I had them. I know I had them.”
“On your desk,” Darcy said. “Under the lunch you forgot to eat.”
“Right.” Charlotte spun toward the inner doors, then stopped and turned back to me. “It was nice to meet you, Mr.…”
“Hughes,” I supplied again, smiling. “But call me Ty.”
“Ty.” She nodded like she was committing it to memory…and then walked straight into the closed glass door because she’d forgotten to badge in.
She jumped back, cheeks pink. “I’m okay! Totally fine. Didn’t even hurt. Probably.”
