Follow Me (Corrupted Hearts) by Tiffany Snow

like this at that place,” I said. “Some are pretty bizarre, others are hilarious.”
    “I think I should pay you back for dinner. It’s the least I could do.”
    “Oh no, that’s okay. Consider it a welcome to the neighborhood.”
    “No, I insist. Are you free for dinner tomorrow night?”
    It took a moment for me to process that, and my heart leapt into double time once I had. Superman was asking me out to dinner? Like . . . a date? The fortune was right. Today was most certainly way better than yesterday.
    No, wait, he said he was paying me back. So not a date. A return favor.
    “That’s really nice,” I said, swallowing my disappointment, “but I have plans—”
    “No she doesn’t!” Mia called out from behind the closed bedroom door. “She can go!”
    I spun around. “I’m going to put you on the next plane home!”
    Silence. I let out a frustrated breath, turning back to see Clark grinning broadly. He raised one eyebrow. “Are you sure you’re not sisters?”
    “She’s . . . impetuous,” I said. “And I love her . . . when I don’t want to strangle her.”
    “So how ’bout it?” he asked. “I’ve never had to work so hard to convince a woman to have dinner with me before.” That smile again, full wattage and double dimples.
    Aw hell . . .
    “Yeah, that would be great,” I said, not quite believing I was saying yes. But really, how could I possibly say no at this point? And Mia would probably kill me if I did.
    “Fantastic. I’ll be by about seven.” He headed for the door and I followed. “Thanks again for helping with the sofa. And the Chinese.”
    “Anytime.”
    I watched him go back into his place before I closed and locked the door.
    “Is it safe to come out now?” Mia called.
    I pushed open the bedroom door. “Yes.”
    She was sitting on the bed, a book in her hands. “And the plane home?”
    “You can stay,” I said. “But no more interfering. That could’ve gone really bad.” For me.
    “But it didn’t.” She stood, closing the book with a snap. “And you’re having dinner with the total hot-guy neighbor, two nights in a row.” She brushed by me with a flip of her hair and whiff of light perfume. “You’re welcome.”
    Smart-ass.

5
    Jackson called me into his office the next morning. Thankfully, it was after I’d scarfed down my bacon, egg, and cheese McMuffin.
    As I took a seat opposite his desk, I said what I’d rehearsed inside my head. “I’m sorry for your loss. I don’t remember if I said that yesterday or not. How is Madeline doing?”
    “She’s doing all right,” he replied, leaning back in his chair. “The best that can be expected, I suppose.”
    He looked good today, as always. He wore black on black, which made his eyes appear even darker. But there was a soberness to him that made me think the usual wardrobe had another meaning today as he mourned his friend.
    “I called you in here because I was contacted by Wyndemere last night.”
    I stiffened. That couldn’t be good.
    “In light of Tom’s death, they’ve given the entire project to us and need someone to manage it,” he continued. “Someone who doesn’t need to be trained and who can get up to speed quickly. I’d like you to take that position.”
    “Me?”
    “Yes. You’re the most qualified and we’re already working on part of it. You’ll need to coordinate all the different pieces Tom had going on and manage them. Your interoperability with non-techies is the best in the company.”
    That was high praise indeed, especially coming from the boss. I felt like I was glowing inside. The people pleaser in me was twirling in glee. Though in reality, it wasn’t hard to be the go-between for techies and users—I’d been doing it all my life in my family.
    But he also wanted me to work for Wyndemere. All the whispers and rumors I’d heard about the secret government projects they worked on gave me pause. The private sector was always preferable to the government. I