Read A Sense of Duty: A Former Navy SEAL Falls in Love and Begins a New Journey with his Private Consulting Company: Dark Horse Guardians for Free Online Page B

pacing by the plate glass window of her office. She waved to him through the glass while on the phone with a client. She ignored Eliot as she busied herself with the work on her desk.
    Lara dutifully returned client phone calls and went through the motions of the afternoon of architectural design, consulting with co-workers and talking with contractors. Having a touch of obsessive-compulsive disorder actually made her life easier. She was rigid with schedules and rarely missed a detail. With a client list of wealthy individuals, the Portland architectural firm of Stone and Associates was well known and widely sought after. Grant Stone, Eliot's 80-year old father and the founder, personally selected Lara as an intern for the firm. Thirty-five other students applied for the coveted position, but Lara was chosen. The internship was a benefit to the firm and to her. She provided free labor for them and the work experience was great for her portfolio. She was now at the end of her two-year commitment. Although everything she did was overseen by Eliot, Lara was in charge of a team of contractors on six medium-sized renovations. She delighted in pulling permits, meeting with supervisors, and searching architectural salvage yards to find the perfect items for each project. Her days consisted of sorting through painstaking details, site visits and attending meetings that lasted hours. The most difficult part of the position was proving her leadership skills to a group of Neanderthal men. She was the project manager and every person who reported to her was male and older than she. However, every moment of this afternoon was spent consumed with the thought of one man, Ben Keegan.
    Her chaotic day ended abruptly as she felt the vibration of her phone. She observed a text from Ben. "Where are you?" He was waiting for her at Professor Harris' office to walk Einstein. Lara sent a text, "Coming," and packed up her leather sack and parked the Fiat at home. She quickly strode toward the four square brick building that contained the most exciting man she had ever laid eyes on. She knew this minute Ben was standing in her professor's office awaiting her arrival. Lara's breath quickened with the thought of seeing him. Standing before the building's huge carved wooden door, she paused to take a deep breath and gain her composure. She opened the door and stepped into the wainscoted hallway that led to her professor's office. It was cool, dark and quiet inside. Her boots moved quietly across the ancient mosaic tile floor. She caught the distinct fragrance of Harris' pipe.
    Harris was playing the piano softly as Lara walked down the hallway and she faintly heard their voices. As she moved toward the office, she overheard part of the conversation. "Have you told her?" Harris pressed Ben with an insistent tone. Lara wanted to hear more. But Einstein noticed her familiar footsteps and bounded through the door that was slightly ajar. Lara kneeled and took his English bull dog face in her hands, "Oh, I love you, too!" She took the dog treat out of her pocket and slipped it to Einstein. His tail wagged. Ben focused on Lara and said jokingly, "Thank goodness you came. I thought you might stand me up." Harris relit his pipe and bellowed, "She would never do that, not this one. She is very responsible, never late. She would never be rude." Lara smiled at this impromptu compliment from her favorite professor.
    Ben grabbed Einstein's leash and touched Lara's arm. They started out for their walk, bidding goodnight to Harris. "Why don't you leave your knapsack here?" Ben asked her. Harris answered for Lara. "She will never leave it, Ben. She always has it with her." The door closed behind them and Ben teased her, "You never set your leather bag down. It is almost as big as you are. It must be heavy by the end of the day." Lara lied to Ben telling him the sack contained her make-up, cell phone and wallet, all things she needed to carry. It wasn't completely a lie.