Undercover

Undercover

By

Maria Hammarblad

Desert Breeze Publishing, Inc.

27305 W. Live Oak Rd #424

Castaic, CA 91384

http://www.DesertBreezePublishing.com

Copyright © 2012 by Maria Hammarblad

ISBN 10: 1-61252-216-5

ISBN 13: 978-1-61252-216-6

Published in the United States of America

Publish Date: September 11, 2012

Editor-In-Chief: Gail R. Delaney

Content Editor: Gail R. Delaney

Marketing Director: Jenifer Ranieri

Cover Artist: Gwen Phifer

Cover Art Copyright by Desert Breeze Publishing, Inc © 2012

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including photocopying, recording or by any information retrieval and storage system without permission of the publisher.

Ebooks are
not
transferrable, either in whole or in part. As the purchaser or otherwise
lawful
recipient of this ebook, you have the right to enjoy the novel on your own computer or other device. Further distribution, copying, sharing, gifting or uploading is illegal and violates United States Copyright laws.

Pirating of ebooks is illegal. Criminal Copyright Infringement,
including
infringement without monetary gain, may be investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is punishable by up to five years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Names, characters and incidents depicted in this book are products of the author’s imagination, or are used in a fictitious situation. Any resemblances to actual events, locations, organizations, incidents or persons – living or dead – are coincidental and beyond the intent of the author.

Part One

Chapter One

The snow fell heavily, and the wind playing with the flakes made them whirl into the woman’s eyes as she approached a low red building. She huddled down, pulled her heavy coat tighter around her body to keep out the cold, and jogged in spite of the ice under her feet. As much as she loved western Massachusetts, she hated the winters with a passion.

When she reached the short stair leading up to the front door, she glanced down at the concrete and smiled. Someone had been up early and brushed the snow off the steps. It was a nice but futile gesture in weather like this.

Futile or not, it made her feel welcome. Coming back to work wasn’t too bad after all. She’d taken a few days of vacation between Christmas and New Year’s, and the week that seemed so long when the holidays started flew by.

Safe from the cold, she tried to shake the snow from her coat just inside the door, before heading to the lunchroom to pick up a cup of coffee to get the chill out of her bones. The Christmas decorations that seemed so cheery and bright a few weeks earlier hung dusty and dull. It didn’t seem likely they would fade just because the holidays were over, but they did seem to possess a magical beauty that only worked through December each year.

Heavy footsteps woke her from her reverie and she looked up, flashing a smile when she saw a tall man with his hands shoved deep into his pockets. “Good morning, Mark.”

He glanced to the side and grumbled something unintelligible.

“Oh, aren’t you in quite a mood today.”

A smile tugged at his lips, and he looked a little guilty. “I’m sorry, Jen. It’s just that being home is very good compared to being here. Gimme an hour or so…”

Shrugging, the woman took her mug and continued the few steps to her office, sipping the hot, black brew. Mark made her smile; he was unique. He was the only man she knew who truly appreciated being at home with his family.

About an hour later someone entered the small office, and Jenny looked up with a big smile. “Nori, it’s so good to see you. It seems like an eternity since we were here, and at the same time it feels like yesterday. Isn’t it strange?”

Familiar voices drifted in through the door.

“Do we have any coffee?”

“Oh my, what happened to you?”

“My wife bought me skis for Christmas.”

Jenny tossed her pen on the desk. “I have a good feeling about this. It’ll be the best year ever.”

Nori laughed and brushed snow out of her long dark locks. She tossed her coat on a chair. “I hope you’re right, girl. Last year sure wasn’t too exciting.”

A few minutes later, another colleague entered the office and Jenny tried again, but no one shared her enthusiasm for a new year. Most of them said it was just more of the same old that wouldn’t stop until death.

*****

The phone rang for the umpteenth time that morning and Jenny rolled her eyes as she reached for it. This was turning out to be quite an ordinary, chaotic day, just like all the ones before it. She didn’t know what she was waiting for, or even why she kept expecting something exciting to happen, but there
had
to be more to life than this. Surely, the point of living couldn’t be to get up early every morning to fight weather and traffic in order to get to work, and work all day just to go back home to a frugal dinner and fall asleep.

Maybe it was just the frustration of the season with the holidays in the past, New Year’s promises already broken, and the new year turning into a copy of the old. Her heart and mind were ready for a change, but she didn’t know for what.

It had been almost exactly ten years since her first interview at Specialty Steel Associated. The job didn’t grow any more exciting as the passing days turned into weeks, months, and years. It wasn’t what she dreamed of doing as a little girl, but as time went by, it was getting difficult to imagine another option.

Their department was understaffed and overworked, and the double work load was starting to show. Jen wasn’t usually the cause of customers’ problems, but her job was to soothe and solve emergencies, and all the yelling made her edgy. This morning alone one major customer received wrong materials and was furious. Another got his material early, and was upset because his warehouses were full. He refused to unload the trucks. A third customer was livid over the opposite; he hadn’t gotten anything for weeks. Emails flowed into her inbox like waves against some distant shore, and she wished for a computer for a brain instead of a human one. Something would go wrong, she would forget
something
, and it was just a matter of time.

She reached out to disconnect her phone, wondering if “business meeting” or “lunch” would be the best lie to cover the situation and send the caller to voicemail, and sensed someone standing in the doorway. Flashing an automatic smile without really looking, she continued what she was doing, and heard the visitors cross the room to say hello to Nori.

A smile tugged at her lips when she heard Mark’s voice. He mentored her when she joined the company, and they shared many jokes the newer additions to the office didn’t understand. He used his best sales voice, reserved for important customers, and Jenny smirked when she heard him explain, “In here we have Nori, who works with deliveries, and Jenny, who handles well, we’re not sure what it is, really. She comes in every day, so I’m certain she does
something.
”

It was an old and rather demeaning pun, but the visitors were new every day and usually laughed, so why the hell not. Giving her head a slight shake, she mocked, “You’re not
supposed
to know. It’s a company secret.”

She wasn’t paying attention. People streamed in and out of the office all day long every day, and she often thought there were more people passing through than at the airport. They were the heart of the business. Everyone with a problem wanted to talk to them, and everyone trying to sell something wanted to show them off.

Jenny rose to greet the newcomer, still wondering what to do with those trucks. Maybe she could redirect the material somewhere… Her imagination painted out a big red car with a very angry driver. It might have been a Volvo.

Reality returned the moment the visitor shook her hand, and a pair of warm brown eyes erased every thought of work, customers, and other mundane problems. The world around her became dimmer and less important, and she was surprised she managed to say her name. “Jenny.” Getting a word over her own lips was a great accomplishment. One that helped her avoid looking like a complete idiot at that.

The stranger flashed a warm smile. “Alexei Roshenko. Please, call me Alex.”

He was handsome; tall and well built with dark hair that seemed to want to go its own way, and his grip on her hand made her think she really would forget how to talk The touch was electric, sending little sparkles up and down her spine, and she hoped she wasn’t blushing.

Returning his smile, Jenny spoke as naturally as she could. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Alex. Would you like some coffee or tea or something?”

Alex held her gaze. “I would love some.”

He held on to her hand a moment longer, and when he let it go, a sensation of something missing overwhelmed her. She wanted to reach out for him, and was surprised she could walk the few steps to the kitchen without stumbling over her own feet. She heard Mark mumble behind her back, “What just happened?”

Nori whispered, “I have no idea.”

Jenny didn’t care about them anymore. At that moment, the big red truck from her imagination could have rammed the building, and she might have been irritated over the noise, but apart from that not been too worried about it.

She smiled, distracted, and avoided looking at the man next to her out of fear of being paralyzed. She wondered why her hands weren’t shaking when she took clean mugs down from the shelf. “Do you want tea or coffee?”

Alex leaned his head a little to the side and pretended to consider it, but even Jenny could see it was a ploy, and she half expected him to say he didn’t like either. Her imagination ran away with her, and she wanted to slap herself to snap out of it. This was
work
. He was a customer and nothing else. No matter how handsome or intriguing she might find him, he would never be anything but a customer, and she needed to be professional. Yes, professional would be the word of the day.

A smile tugged at his mouth, and she prayed to whatever deity might be listening he couldn’t see in her eyes how she already imagined what his touch might feel like. Surely, having those strong arms wrapped around her would… She forced herself to stop. What was she thinking? She wasn’t thinking at all, and that was the problem.

She barely noticed when Mark walked through the sunny kitchen, heading for the stairs. “Well, you seem to be well taken care of, Alex. I’ll go check my e-mail. I’ll be back in a few.”

*****

As much as Jenny tried, it was difficult not to be carried away on pleasant fantasies when they stood talking side by side in the tiny kitchen, leaning against the high counter. He looked relaxed, but she was jittery, and didn’t trust herself not to say or do something dumb, like pouring coffee all over herself.

He spoke English well, but slowly, as if making sure to pronounce the words correctly. He had a small but charming Russian accent that gave familiar words an exciting new melody.

Jenny cupped her hands around the warm mug. She should say something, but what? If she opened her mouth, something stupid might come out, like, “Nice weather,” or, “What’s the weather like in Russia?”

Alex’s eyes glittered. “You have good coffee.”

“Yeah, it’s not bad. Mark usually makes a pot in the morning. He
really
likes coffee. So, what’s the weather like where you come from?”

There it was, the stupid weather. Great for stalling a customer on the phone, but right now, not so much. Why couldn’t she talk like a normal person instead of going from mute to babbling?

Alex chuckled, “Cold, colder, cold, really hot, and back to cold.”

If those were the seasons, it did not sound appealing. “What are you here for?”

He made a dismissive gesture, “Nothing interesting. Steel samples for a new kind of ship.”

She gave a blank stare. A ship could be almost anything.

“For the navy. Our countries are friends now, no?”

“To be honest, I can barely remember the time when we weren’t.”

He smiled and winked. “Well, you made the trip worthwhile.”

Was he
flirting
? No, it must be her imagination, or maybe a cultural difference. Either way, she should probably increase the distance between them. Maybe top off her coffee with some milk… She didn’t move; their arms were almost touching, and being close to someone made her long for more contact.