Page 76 of Silk Shadow

"Thank you." She touched his arm, then walked inside.

Viper lingered behind to speak to him. "Do you have spare keys to all the apartments?"

"Yes, of course."

Viper lowered his voice. "Due to the continuing threat to Miss Beaumont’s life, it's imperative that nobody gains access to her apartment."

"I understand, sir," he said earnestly. "I'd never give the key to anyone."

Viper looked him over. Middle-aged, with thinning hair, but upright and light-footed, the concierge looked like he could handle himself.

"Even if they had a gun to your head?" he asked.

The concierge swallowed. "Should I give you the spare key to Miss Beaumont's apartment?"

"I think that would be wise. Thank you, Lewis."

As they walked past reception, he darted into the office and opened a steel cabinet by punching in a code. Viper watched him through the glass panel in the door. At least it was secure.

"Here you are." He handed the key to Viper, who put it straight into his pocket.

"Thanks. I'll see it’s returned to you when I leave. Is this the only spare?"

A nod. "Yes, sir."

"Was that necessary?" asked Izzy as they took the elevator to the top floor. Of course, she'd have the penthouse.

"It's safer for him too," Viper explained. "If he's under duress, he won't be able to give them the key. He can open the cabinet and prove it's not there."

She gave a little nod. "I suppose so. But let's face it, if those armed men come bursting in here, Lewis isn't going to be much of a defense."

He gave a grim smile. "That's why you've got me."

She raised her eyebrows, then opened the door to her apartment. "I'm so tired, all I want is a soak in the tub and to go to bed."

Viper followed her in. He felt well-rested after the flight, and the debrief hadn’t bothered him, even though it had been fairly long. The hardest part was ignoring her, so that his boss wouldn't guess they’d slept together. Pat had a soft spot where Izzy was concerned, and he didn’t want to get him pissed. He couldn't afford to lose this job. The glimpse he’d had at what life was like without it had scared him. Scared him more than being alone.

"Izzy, we need to talk about what happened," he said reluctantly.

She sighed, her shoulders sinking. "I know."

He dumped his bag on the floor and took her hands in his. "I don't want this to end, but I don’t see how we can keep seeing each other under these circumstances. Not without everybody finding out."

“We can’t,” she whispered, taking a step back. He let her go. Fuck, this was hard. Harder than he thought it would be. His gut wrenched at the thought of not holding her in his arms anymore, not laughing with her, or watching her eyes light up when he kissed her.

He watched as she turned and flopped onto the sofa. “So, we’re going to call it quits? It’s over?”

“Yeah. It’s over.” She looked up at him. “We always knew it was a temporary thing. A beautiful, brief affair while we were away. The circumstances were unique in Mexico. It was just the two of us. It’s different now. You have your job to do, I have mine.”

Protecting her. Making sure she was safe.

While she went shopping, organized photoshoots, built her online media empire. Then there were the mines, the shareholders, the business.

Their two worlds were so different. He knew she was right, so why did it hurt so goddamn much?

“Okay.” He exhaled, ignoring the nausea that threatened to rise in his throat. “I wish it could be different, but your uncle…” He didn’t need to continue.

She gave a dry chuckle. “Yeah, Pat would skin you alive.”