Beneath the Fallen City, Jamie A. Waters [ebook reader .TXT] 📗

far more than you’ve ever seen working with Leo.”

“How much?” Kayla wasn’t really interested but was trying to hurry the conversation along.

Carl walked around the desk to stand next to her. “Five hundred credits a month with a twenty percent bonus to whatever you bring in. I’ll pay for all of your equipment and living expenses, and you can spend your credits on whatever you want. Send it back to Leo, for all I care. I want you, Kayla.”

Kayla was momentarily taken aback. She hadn’t been expecting such a generous offer. But either way, there was no way she’d accept the offer of a trader. The thought of working for OmniLab left a bitter taste in her mouth.

“No, thanks. I wouldn’t ever leave Veridian.”

Carl studied her for a long moment. “If you want him, you can have him too. He’ll have a salary of two hundred fifty a month. No bonus, though, since he doesn’t scavenge.”

Kayla’s eyes widened, her fingers gripping the edge of the desk to prevent her from falling off. She hadn’t expected Carl to want both of them. Veridian was skilled, but he wasn’t a scavenger. Most trader crews had plenty of techs, but there was a high demand for people who were actually willing to navigate the ruins. “Holy shit. Um, wow. Uh, I guess I’ll think about it and get back to you.”

“Of course,” Carl said easily with a trace of a smile on his face. He tapped a few instructions into the keyboard on the desk and pulled up a contract. “I’d appreciate it if you could read through this. I’ve outlined the salary, bonus percentage, and other benefits. The contract is for a year. At the end of the year, we can renew it for the same terms or renegotiate. Veridian will have a separate contract.”

Kayla sighed as she glanced at the lengthy document. “You want me to read through this now?”

At Carl’s nod, her shoulders slumped in dejection. Resigned to her task, she pulled her hair into a ponytail to get it out of her face.

Carl froze, studying the side of her neck. “Is that from yesterday?”

“Huh? Is what from yesterday?”

“You’ve got a particularly nasty bruise back there.” Carl frowned, his gaze fixed on her neck. She reached up to touch the area in question and winced when her fingers brushed against a painful bruise that crept up from her shirt.

“Yeah. Guess so,” she said with a shrug. “It happens when you fall through the floor.”

“I heard about that. I’ve got something that can help.” He moved around the desk. “You should take a couple of days off to heal. Your muscles won’t be relaxed, and you could injure yourself even more if you try scavenging too soon.”

Kayla scoffed at his statement. “Some of us don’t have the luxury to take days off. I’m amazed people aren’t lining up at the door if you treat all recruits like this.”

“Not all,” Carl admitted and reached into a drawer to pull out a bottle of dark-colored liquid and two glasses. “Just the promising ones.” He opened the bottle and poured a small amount into each glass.

She accepted the offered beverage, sniffed it apprehensively, and grimaced. “You want me to drink that?”

Carl didn’t reply. Instead, he lifted his drink and took a long sip, savoring it before putting his glass back on the desk. Kayla looked at his beverage and then considered her own. It seemed harmless enough. Raising it to her lips, she took a drink, making a face at the unfamiliar taste. Her eyes watered from the burn in her throat.

“Hell’s balls. What is that?”

He chuckled at her reaction. “It’s an old-world drink OmniLab recreated called scotch. It helps relax the muscles.”

“Hmm.” She licked her lips. “It’s not too bad once you get past the burn.”

She reached over to confiscate the bottle, poured herself a slightly larger amount, and took another drink. This time, it went down a little easier. She examined the bottle while Carl watched her in amusement.

“Be careful,” he warned. “It packs a hell of a punch, especially if you’re not used to drinking it.”

Carl reached into the desk drawer and pulled out a small tube of cream. Kayla recognized the OmniLab medicinal cream used to promote healing. It was extremely expensive and, in Kayla’s experience, should only be used in dire emergencies.

He tried handing it to her, but she pushed it back toward him with a look that clearly let him know she thought he was nuts. “It’s a bruise, not a gaping wound.”

“Use it. You ruin rats don’t take care of yourselves and wait until someone’s near death before trying to fix the problem. If you use it, you’ll heal faster and it could help prevent further injury.”

“If you say so,” Kayla huffed. She put a tiny amount of cream on her finger and rubbed it half-heartedly on her neck before handing the tube back to him.

Carl sighed at her lackluster display. “Well, there’s not much point if you’re going to do it that way.”

He flipped open the cap and squeezed a generous amount of the cream onto his fingers. When he touched her neck with the cream, she yelped.

“Hey! That’s cold.”

“Shh. Don’t be such a baby.”

She scowled but kept silent. Gentler than she thought he’d be, Carl massaged the cream into the back of her neck and shoulder. She relaxed against him and closed her eyes as his fingers caressed her skin.

He pulled his hands away far too soon and closed the cap on the cream. Kayla opened her eyes in disappointment and watched as he dropped it back into the drawer.

“That’s much better. You looked like you were falling asleep. I can’t let that happen when you’ve got important reading to do.”

“Yeah, right,” she grumbled and turned back to the detailed document. She was relatively quiet for several minutes while she skimmed the monotonous legalese, making occasional, colorful mutters about boring contracts. When she finished, Kayla pushed the tablet away and hopped off the desk. She pulled out her ponytail and shook out her hair.

“All done. Is that it?”

Carl nodded and crossed the desk to stand in front of her. “For now.” He looked down into her eyes, and a tingling feeling crept into the pit of her stomach.

Yep, I should have clocked him yesterday when I had the chance. He’s too damn pretty for his own good.

“Ah, looks like I missed some,” he added when he spotted a tiny bit of cream still on her shoulder. He ran his hand along her shoulder and gently massaged it into her skin.

Yeah, too damn pretty, and I’m a sucker—a sucker with a bug to plant. Kayla placed her hand on Carl’s chest, curling her fingers into his shirt. With her other hand, she discreetly slipped the listening device out of her pocket and attached it to the underside of his desk.

Leaning closer to him, she closed her eyes and tilted her head back. That was all the invitation he needed.

Carl lowered his mouth to hers, capturing her lips with his. He tasted like the scotch—warm, spicy, and surprisingly soft.

Damn, the man can kiss. Might as well enjoy this.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against him. This time, she didn’t resist and pressed her body against his, winding her arms around his neck. Kayla let out a soft moan, and he deepened the kiss in response. His mouth moved against hers, nipping and teasing and she clutched him tighter, wanting more.

A loud beep interrupted them.

“Damn,” he swore as he broke away from her.

She wasn’t sure if she was talking about the kiss or the noise. Kayla blinked in confusion, trying to get her head around what happened. He pulled back slightly but didn’t release her. Running his thumb along her swollen bottom lip, he gave her a long, heated look. Kayla swallowed and managed, “What was that?”

Carl smiled, looking amused and smug by her flustered state. “It’s probably Cruncher and Veridian. Your friend is probably worried about you.”

“Oh, right.” Kayla slipped out of his grasp, casually straightening her shirt. She glanced up to see Carl still watching her. She flushed and nodded toward the door to remind him about the visitors. He sighed in resignation and hit the button to open the door.

Cruncher and Veridian stepped inside. Veridian was grinning and held up Kayla’s equipment. “Zane wasn’t able to beat your time even using OmniLab’s fancy equipment. I think he got frustrated and gave up. He wants to watch you again at some point.”

Cruncher took a quick glance around the room, his eyes moving to the bottle of scotch on the desk and then settled on Carl’s annoyed expression and Kayla’s mussed hair. His mouth twitched in a grin.

“How goes the recruitment, Boss? Convince her to switch sides yet?”

Carl frowned, giving Cruncher a dark look. “It was progressing nicely. I think I covered most of the major points. Did you have any other questions, Kayla?”

She shook her head, shoving her hands in her back pockets. “Nope, I think you covered everything.”

The door beeped again and slid open. Xantham stepped through the door and tsked at Kayla like she was a naughty child. She narrowed her eyes at him. He held up a small metal device no bigger than his thumb. “Hey, Boss, you know how you mentioned you wanted me to do a sweep to make sure Kayla and Veridian didn’t accidentally leave anything behind? Well, I found this little bug in the comm room. It must have gotten away from them.”

Xantham slid the listening device across the desk. Carl picked it up and examined it closely. He tossed it back down on