“I will?”

“Did you have any doubt?”

No. She really hadn’t. But she’d been so preoccupied with all the ups and downs of late that the actual logistics hadn’t had enough priority in her head. “What about my lease?”

Kir ambled to the living room window and casually shut the curtains. “It has been dealt with.”

“When?”

While she couldn’t see his face, there was a smile in his voice. “The day I moved you here. The rest of your things were carefully packed and moved to my house for safekeeping.”

Sneaky man. “So, your plan the entire time was to move me to your place.”

“Yes.” No hesitation. No pretense. Just the God’s honest truth.

She could have given him a hard time. Probably should have just to keep his possessive tendencies in check. But the truth of it was, his certainty felt wonderful. Made her not only feel protected and cared for but wanted. “And this move to your place—when should I plan for it?”

He turned and prowled toward her. “Tomorrow. Tonight, I believe I’ve been tasked with relieving you of unwanted tension and anxiety.” He smoothed his hands over her hips to her waist and skimmed his lips across the sensitive spot she loved just below her ear. His voice was pure velvet, his accent making his words that much more erotic. “And you know how I value my work.”

A delicious shiver rippled through her, the warmth of his breath against her skin and the promise of feeling him against her heady enough to eradicate anything else.

Until her phone on the coffee table let out a sharp ring.

Kir pulled away enough to eyeball the device then cocked an eyebrow at her.

Cassie sighed. “I know Frieda’s safe, but after the day we’ve had, I should check.”

She answered on the third ring. “Cassie McClintock.”

“Cassie, this is Ed. I don’t suppose you watched tonight’s newscast?”

No way.

Would the day’s surprises never end? She covered the phone’s microphone with her hand and whispered to Kir, “It’s my editor.”

The same amazement and curiosity she’d felt upon hearing Ed’s voice reflected in his expression, but there was suspicion, too.

She put the call on speaker, laid the phone on the coffee table and sat in the center of the couch. “You mean the story about Sergei’s wife and son? Yes, I saw it. I thought Lizbet did a good job.” Which was another thing she was going to have to ask her man about.

“She did. But the story itself actually calls to attention how our executives were clearly fed information intended to result in your dismissal. When Lizbet came to us with the story this afternoon, she pointed out that Miss Ricci had likely taken the action she did to keep you from finding her connection to Alfonsi.”

“It does seem that way, doesn’t it?”

Beside her, Kir stood and listened, his face giving her no indication of his thoughts.

“Yes, well...” Ed cleared his throat. “In light of this information, I feel like we owe you an apology.”