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you with this, but I’m having a problem with my assistant. There are some trust issues and I just don’t think I can continue to work with her. I’d like to have her reassigned to another department.”
    “I’m sorry to hear that, Kate. Unfortunately, there are no openings right now, so I’m afraid you’re going to have to work through whatever it is. I’m really pressed for time, I apologize.” He looked at his watch as if to emphasize the point. “Don’t sweat it, Kate. I have faith that you’ll find a way to make it work.”
    With that she was dismissed. That was odd. Walking deliberately back down the hall to her office, she made a couple of decisions.

    “Hey, Technowiz, how the heck are you?” She was on the phone in her office with her door shut, having passed by Marisa’s desk without so much as a glance in the woman’s direction.

    The Cost of Commitment

    “Well, if it isn’t the all-important Ms. Kyle. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
    “Actually, Peter, I was wondering if you had plans for dinner tonight.” Peter Enright was Kate’s closest friend outside of Jay. A security, tactical weapons, and technology expert, he had retired recently from DOCS to start his own consulting firm. At the moment, he was under contract to the feds to try to determine the origin of the bombs that had ripped through the state capitol several months earlier.
    “Why do I get the feeling this isn’t just a social invitation?”
    “It’s not. There’s something rotten in Denmark and I need to pick your brain. Are you game?”
    “Me, turn down an intriguing opportunity like this? Never. Tell me what time and I’ll be there. Not only that, but I believe it’s my turn to bring the Chinese takeout.”
    “I knew I could count on you, buddy. See you at 8:00 p.m.”
    Kate hung up the phone and redialed.
    “Parker.”
    “Love, you’ve got to work on your phone etiquette. You’re sounding a little gruff there.”
    “Hello, sweetheart. I wasn’t expecting you. How are you?”
    “I’ve had better days.”
    Instantly alert, Jay asked, “What’s going on?”
    “I can’t go into it all right now, but I’ve invited Peter to dinner. I hope you don’t mind?”
    “No, babe, of course not. If you’ve called in the big guns it must be serious. Are you okay? You sound a little shook up.”
    “I’m not sure. I don’t want to sound paranoid.”
    “You? Paranoid? You’ve got to be kidding. What happened, Kate?”
    “I’ll explain it all later. Right now I’ve got some ass to chew.”
    “Okay. Glad it’s not mine.”
    “Never yours, love...although taking a nibble out of those cute buns now and then...”
    “Katherine...”
    “Okay, okay. I told Peter 8:00 p.m. Will you even be out of the Big Apple by then?”
    “You bet. I should be home by 7:15.”
    “Good. I could use a good hug and some alone time before he gets there.”
    “You’ve got it, sweetheart. See you in a few hours. Don’t take any prisoners.”
    “Can you hear me groaning from here, Parker? That was a terrible pun.”
    “Well, I never said I was going to quit my day job.”

    Lynn Ames

    “It’s a good thing. Later, love.”
    Kate took a minute to gather herself and put on her game face before opening the door.
    “Marisa, get in here.”
    The assistant appeared almost before Kate had finished the sentence.
    “Shut the door and sit down.”
    “Kate, I’m really sorr—”
    “You know, there are very few qualities I value more than trust, honesty, loyalty, and respect. You have managed to violate all of those things.”
    “I didn’t know you were in your office,” Marisa said quietly.
    “You think that was your transgression? Let me see if I understand you: if I hadn’t been in my office, it would have been all right for you to be reporting to your former boss on my handling of the job? It would have been acceptable for you to withhold vital information from me in, what—an attempt to make me screw up?”
    Marisa wisely