Free Slow Burn by Michelle Roth Page A

people were doing in the lab. That didn't really matter though. He was there primarily to listen and to watch. Someone was leaking some very important information, and it was up to him to figure out who it was.
    It was almost noon when all of the paperwork was finally complete. He'd gotten a security badge and an entry card for the parking lot. Then he'd been taken directly to the lab where he'd be working for the next few weeks.
    The first person he met was his direct boss, Marty Thompson. He judged him to be in his late twenties. Rick pegged him immediately as one of those guys with a Napoleon complex. When he had reached out to shake his hand, the poor kid had taken it in a death grip and puffed himself up so he looked bigger.
    Rick was kind of used to that, though. At six foot six, he was more often than not the tallest person in any room. He was built, too. After Marty had taken him on a quick tour, he'd been shoved into an office with some packets of paper that needed stapling. This, he could do.
    He wondered whether the majority of his job would be like this. That definitely created an issue. He couldn't really keep his eyes and ears open if he was cloistered in an office, now could he?
    It had been almost two hours of continuous stapling before he saw another human soul. He looked up when he heard someone clear their throat. He was surprised to see it was the woman from this morning.
    “Hi,” she said, smiling. “I'm Tessa Fitzsimmons. I wanted to introduce myself. I'm one of the lab techs.”
    When he stood and then moved to extend a hand in greeting, he realized how tall she was. She must be somewhere near six feet herself. That was kind of refreshing. He was used to being a foot and a half taller than most women.
    She reached out and shook his hand.
    “Rick Dante,” he said smoothly. “The new intern.”
    Tessa studied him and asked, “Intern? Um … okay.”
    Rick smiled and explained. “Career change.”
    “Oh, okay,” she said, still looking a bit mystified. “Anyway, I figured I'd say hello since Marty has you tucked away in an office. I'll see you around.”
    “I'm sure you will. Nice to meet you, Tessa,” he said, smiling. Not as shy as he'd thought.
    The rest of the afternoon passed in a blur of stapling and photocopies. Slowly but surely, he managed to meet the majority of the lab. They all poked their head into the office at one point and introduced themselves with the exception of about three or four of them. The tips of his fingers were numb from sorting.
    As he headed toward the elevator for the day, he wished he'd given this particular job to Mike. At least he was a little under six feet tall. Maybe he wouldn't have intimidated Marty into filing duty all day. He had several paper cuts. God knew, his own secretary, Lara probably needed a raise.
    “Hey,” a voice yelled. “Hold the elevator!”
    Automatically, his arm reached out to grab the door.
    A slightly harried looking Tessa joined him inside. “Thanks.”
    “Everything okay,” he asked, watching her closely. She seemed incredibly frazzled.
    She adjusted her bag over her shoulder and frowned. “Marty called me into his office. And… just… be glad you're not a woman. That's all I'll say about that.”
    “Tessa,” he said, frowning at her words as he pressed the button for the lobby. “That's unacceptable. You need to report him.”
    “It's hard enough being a woman in this field without being labeled as a troublemaker,” she said in annoyance. A moment later, she added, “Thank you for the concern.”
    Rick had obviously hit a nerve with his suggestion, so he just gave her a nod and looked away. Marty was clearly a weasel, but did that mean he was capable of selling secrets too? That would require some looking into.
    Tessa broke into his thoughts and asked, “So. What did you do before this whole interning thing?”
    “Christ,” he said, laughing. “Don't remind me I'm a forty eight year old intern. Please. Before