Paige’s stomach is clenched like a fist ready for a punch the entire drive into the office the next morning. She has replayed the few interactions with Joe at work and other than the one disagreement for the project they worked on together, there are no other incidents. Word had gotten back to his supervisor about his behavior, but it hadn’t been because she said anything. She’d pulled Joe aside and coached him herself. His temper is volatile though, that she knew because she saw it during the verbal disagreement.
Her knuckles are white on the steering wheel as she continues her drive into the office and when she finally pulls into a parking space in the garage, she knows she drove on autopilot. Not a good thing. Shaking her head side to side to clear it, she grabs her work items and heads for the elevator.
Mike is at the window to watch for Paige. He swapped his workday with a peer so that he can head to the police station this morning and then update Paige tonight on her way out of work. Mug of coffee in hand, he’s half sitting in the windowsill sipping the strong, smooth brew and enjoying the sight of people hurrying to their jobs.
He sees her come out of the parking garage, her head is swiveling, and he hopes that she is looking for him. Or perhaps she wants to be sure Joe is nowhere around. He watches as she walks purposefully down the sidewalk and he smiles watching her head move as she looks at the people around her.
“Smart Paige,” he whispers. “Be on your guard. They aren’t going to touch you again on my watch though. Of that I am sure.”
Paige is disappointed that Mike isn’t around and assumes that he might have had to work. She is surprised at the reaction of her body when she brushed his hand the previous day. It was like a tremor from a small earthquake not to mention her insides heated up like lava in a volcano. Remembering those feelings from yesterday creates a swirl of butterflies in her stomach and she smiles. He is a good-looking man with a build that makes one’s knees weak. She must remember to get his digits.
Mike watches Paige disappear into the building and decides to hang out to see if Joe shows up for work. That is information the police may want when he reports what he knows this morning. Finishing his cup of coffee, he doesn’t leave to refill his mug. He might miss Joe’s arrival. At ten, he knows Joe isn’t coming in today so he hand washes and dries his mug. Leaving his apartment, he walks the four blocks to the police station, enters by the double doors, and steps into chaos.
