Bane of My Existence

Chapter 11

Perv.

She stepped around him for the elevator. He blocked her.

"How about I make it up to you?" he offered with a slimey smile. "Dinner after work?"

"No, thanks. I have a boyfriend." It felt good to not have to lied about that for once. Though, it may be a little presumptuous of her to assume Damon wanted to be her boyfriend after she ditched him last night. She wouldn't be surprised if he canceled on accompanying her to Grimrock this morning.

She attempted to move around the man again; he continued to block her way.

"I don't think you know who I am," he pressed firmly. His chest puffed out like a gorilla and he raked a hand through his greased back hair.

I don't really care. She just wanted to get away from everyone for five minutes and calm her racing heart before she had a panic attack.

"I'm Kevin Barnett. I'm the head of security here. You're the safest woman in town when you're with me." He finished with a wink she really hoped didn't work on other women. Kinsey didn't feel safe around him at all and, in fact, suspected she would feel safer the further away she was from him.

"I still have a boyfriend and I'd like to get to work now, please." Her deadline was fast approaching and she'd be damned if she was going to hand in her first project late.

Frowning, he finally stepped aside. The elevator doors couldn't open fast enough. As soon as they shut, Kinsey leaned her head back against the wall and released a relieved breath.

♡ ♡ ♡

Once she had gathered some sense of composure from her hectic morning, Kinsey collected the necessary equipment for her research then lugged it down to her car. This time, she walked slowly through the foyer, to draw as little attention to herself as possible. It worked. Nobody bothered her and she was allowed to drive away in peace.

She pulled into Grimrock's parking lot, a twinge of nerves hitting her when she saw Damon's truck was already here and stood as tall and imposing as he did.

He came. The sight surprised and thrilled her. She had let her mind run rampant last night after she had left him downstairs. She had imagined all the awful things he must think of her for going out to dinner with him, making him waste all that money on her, only for her not to invite him inside.

Not that she could have brought him home, anyway. She didn't have a home. And she wasn't about to kick Sabrina out of her own apartment just so she could get laid.

She parked beside the truck, eyes glued ahead. How could she face him after the way she had left things?

She squeezed her eyes shut. I'm going to be sick.

"Take a deep breath, Kins," she reminded herself. "You're here for your research, not for him."

Steeling herself, she grabbed the backpack in the passenger seat and stepped out of the car. She looked into the truck and was both disappointed and relieved to see he wasn't in there.

Maybe it's not his truck.

Kinsey laughed. Typical! She had been making a big deal out of nothing.

Sighing, she adjusted the pack on her back and pulled out the GPS. Like she did last time, she found the entrance and aimed for the trail she had used last time-

Ferns rustled beside her. She jumped, a scream locked in her throat.

A grey wolf came bounding through the ferns and skidded to a stop in front of her. Biting back a skriek, she stumbled, tripped on a root. The weight of her backpack pulled onto her rear.