Free Neil (The Uncompromising Series Book 2) by Sybil Bartel Page A

seat back as far as it would go.
    He spared me one more glance. “Go, now.”
    I drove straight to work.
    Tyler was waiting and opened my door for me as soon as I parked. “You okay?”
    “Yeah.” Seeing a familiar face, being in the secure underground parking, my heart rate slowed marginally. “Listen, I’m sorry about—”
    A huge smile spread across his face. “No way. Is Ariel Walsh apologizing? I didn’t think I’d live that long.”
    His jab, his easy demeanor, it almost cut through my tension. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
    He grinned. “You’re not the apologizing type, sweetheart. You’re more a take-no-prisoners kind of woman.”
    I cringed at the mention of prisoners and my tone came out way more snappish than I intended. “I am not.”
    Tyler laughed. “Case in point. But don’t take offense, all the guys love it. You’re the best hire Luna ever made.”
    I scowled at him. “I’m not in the mood for your bullshit, Tyler.”
    “It’s the truth.” He took my arm and helped me out of the truck. “All the guys upstairs trip over themselves every time you walk through the offices.”
    “That’s because I’m the only female at Luna and Associates. And I never walk through the offices.” I was always downstairs in the lobby.
    “You’re right.” One side of his mouth tipped up. “You don’t walk, you strut.”
    My eyes narrowed. “Did you just say I strut ?”
    He held his hands up. “Hey, I’m just calling it like I see it.”
    “Mama!”
    “See?” Tyler opened the door to the extra cab. “Even he thinks I’m right. Don’t you, buddy?” He stepped aside so I could get Conner.
    “Come on, sweet boy.” I took Conner out of his seat.
    Tyler ruffled Conner’s hair. “Did you have fun in the big truck?”
    “Truck!” Conner smiled his toothy grin.
    “Yeah, trucks are awesome, buddy, aren’t they? One day maybe you’ll drive one.”
    His easy demeanor with Conner, the fact that I was desperate to take my mind off what was happening, it made me break one of my own rules and ask a coworker a personal question. “Do you have kids?”
    “Nah, just a bunch of brothers.”
    “A bunch?” I grabbed the diaper bag but Tyler took it from me.
    “Yep, six.”
    “Your mother had seven boys?” I was an only child. I couldn’t even imagine that. “Where did everyone sleep?”
    Tyler chuckled. “Bunk beds in two rooms. Now you know why I joined the Marines—for solitude.” He laughed.
    “I’m sure that worked out for you.” I glanced at the garage entrance, but there was no sign of Viking or André.
    A frown clouded Tyler’s features. “Better for me than some of the other guys.”
    I didn’t comment. A lot of the guys at Luna and Associates had served with André and all of them had lost friends. “Did Viking tell you what I should do with his keys?”
    “Viking?” Tyler tickled Conner’s belly and Conner giggled.
    “Neil,” I corrected.
    Tyler whipped his head up and looked at me like I had two heads. “Does he know you call him that?”
    His expression pissed me off. “What do you care?”
    Alarm spread across his face then bled in to disbelief. “You and Christensen?”
    “What? No. ” Definitely no.
    Tyler shook his head. “You need to be careful, Ariel.”
    “I’m not dating him. Not that it’s any of your business.”
    He ignored me. “We all have a healthy dose of fearful respect for Neil Christensen, for good reason. You should too.”
    Tyler probably knew Viking better than I did, that is, if anyone actually knew him, which I wasn’t so sure about. But his fearful respect comment and telling me to be careful irritated the hell out me off. Viking hadn’t put three crates of guns in my car. “Drop it,” I warned. “I’m going to wait upstairs for André. Are either of the small conference rooms open?” No way was I going to hang out with Conner in the glass-enclosed lobby. I didn’t know who the hell would come after the guns. I felt