Chapter 8

Amanda exited the elevator on her way to the staff meeting. Along the way, she met Lee coming from the opposite direction. Lee smiled as he approached. "I was just looking for you." He checked the hallway to assure they were alone, "Did you get a hold of Mom?"

"Yes. She's excited I get to see Penny again, and she told me she would take care of everything on the home-front."

"That's great! What did you tell her?"

"I told her we were working on a documentary for royal customs on foreign soils, and Penny was going to be part of the film."

"Good thinking. I've been trying to figure out what we would tell them and couldn't come up with anything." Lee checked the hall one more time. "Anyway, I talked to John, and he is going to meet us at ten at the Credit Union. He said he contacted them, and we could all meet at the same time and get all the paperwork done at once."

Lee's eyes searched the halls once more, leaned in, and continued, "John informed me if everything goes according to plan, he'll have the keys to us by this afternoon."

"That's really quick. Because it took almost a month to get the keys after Joe and I signed the paperwork for our house."

"I told him the same thing. The sellers informed John, the house is empty, and they'd be leaving tomorrow to move to their new home, which is out-of-state. They wanted to get it settled today if possible." Lee reached for her hands. "And I was thinking—"

"Careful, Lee. We wouldn't want any rumors getting back to Amanda's man," Francine sarcastically interrupted.

They dropped their hands and swung towards Francine. "Button it, loose lips. We weren't doing anything wrong. We were just discussing our next assignment, and I was asking her if she had everything settled on the home-front," Lee snapped.

"Oh, I certainly hope you don't have to pose as a couple. That won't make the future Mr. King happy, now will it?"

Amanda rolled her eyes at her use of King and challenged, "Francine, puh-lease! We can be professionals. Can you?" Francine's mouth dropped with shock as Lee's eyes shone with pride. "I'm sorry, Francine. Maybe I assumed too much."

"I would say so. Oh, and don't be late for the meeting." Francine twirled while holding her head high and stomped away from the pair.

Lee gazed into Amanda's eyes with a smirk on his face. "That was a pretty good one. But she is right. We need to get going. I'm anxious to see exactly what our assignment will be."

Forty-five minutes later, Billy was handing out the last of the assignments for the week. Billy began rifling through his notes. "Okay, the last assignment I have right now is for Scarecrow and Mrs. King. You will head to New York for the rest of the week. The Prince and Princess of Zakir will be in town, and Scarecrow, they requested your help with security." Lee acknowledged with a nod.

"Since they won't have their normal security detail this trip, they want the security to look as natural as it can be. You know how the Princess hates to be surrounded by guards. So you and Amanda will pose as a couple vacationing with them. The Princess knows Amanda already, so she has agreed to this detail," Billy concluded.

"My, my, my. What will the Mister think of you shacking up with your partner for an entire week in New York, Amanda?" Francine taunted. "This can't be good for your relationship."

Amanda's face turned red with anger as she squared her shoulders towards Francine. "For your information, Francine. My mister, as you put it, has absolutely no problem with this assignment. He loves me and trusts me. You do know what trust consists of, right?"

Everyone instantly covered their mouths discreetly, trying to hide their smirks at the battle happening before them.

Francine quickly retorted, "Of course I know what trust consists of. I have to trust my coworkers every day, or I'd be dead. But this is a different kind of trust you're talking about."

"No, it isn't. The way I trust Lee and the way I trust my fiance are the same. I trust them to have my back. I trust them to want what is best for me. I trust them to support me in every way possible. And I trust them both with my life and my heart. No difference, just different situations."

"Whatever... However, I do find it funny you didn't dispute the shacking up part," Francine insinuated with a smirk.

"That's enough, Francine!" Billy interrupted. "Everyone has enough to do. We don't need to be listening to any more of your nonsense," Billy snarled at Francine, before turning to peer across the table. "Lee and Amanda, the details for the rest of your assignment are in your file. Take today to get everything you need done, so you're ready to go. Your plane leaves at six-thirty tomorrow morning. Now, everyone, let's get back to work."

The room emptied, with Lee and Amanda leaving last. Lee reached for Amanda's elbow. "It's almost ten. Why don't you go grab your purse and meet me at the Credit Union? This way, it won't look like we are going to the same place."

"What do I need my purse for?"

"They'll need to make copies of your driver's license and other information."

"Oh, right. I'll go get it, use the restroom, and then I'll be in."

They went their separate ways, not noticing the eyes that were watching their every move. Francine mumbled to herself, "You two are hiding something, and as sure as I like rich, powerful men, I will find out what it is."

Almost two hours later, John, Lee, and Amanda emerged from the credit union doors just as Francine came around the corner behind them. She ducked back so they couldn't see her. She couldn't hear what they were saying but saw them speaking and smiling at one another.

Soon, they shook hands, and John walked away. "Aha! I've gotcha!" Francine softly proclaimed as she hurried to where Lee and Amanda still stood.

As Francine approached them, she heard Lee say, "...talk to Leatherneck and see if he can…" Lee trailed off as he saw Francine out of the corner of his eye.

"Talk to Leatherneck about what?" Francine questioned.

"Nosy much? Francine, don't you know it's not nice to eavesdrop?" Lee complained.

"I wasn't eavesdropping. I was walking, and you were talking. I can't help it if you aren't careful with what you discuss in public." She glanced between the two of them and continued, "So what do you need Leatherneck for, and why did you just come out of the Credit Union with the Agency realtor?"

"We need to talk to Leatherneck to get some security items for our assignment. What we were doing in the Credit Union is none of your business," Lee declared.

"Why so secretive, Scarecrow? You got something to hide?"

"No, it's just none of your business," Lee insisted.

Amanda placed her hand on Lee's arm. "Lee, it's okay." They locked eyes for just a second before she turned her attention back to Francine. "If you must know, Lee was helping me get a loan. Since I'm not a full-time employee yet, I needed Lee's help."

"That explains the Credit Union but not John."

"The loan is a mortgage. I'm buying a new home. Well, with getting married and all, the house I live in now just isn't big enough for all of us anymore, and he lives in an apartment, so there's no way we can move in there."

Lee proudly smiled at the way Amanda answered Francine's questions and never once told a lie. "Satisfied, Francine? Now, if you'll excuse us, we need to go see Leatherneck."

Lee and Amanda turned and left Francine sulking, not giving her a chance to ask anything else.

Later that afternoon, Lee and Amanda stood at the doorstep of their new home, with key in hand. Lee glanced at Amanda and slid the key into the door. "Do you want to do the honors?"

"No, sweetheart. You can do it."

Lee unlocked it and pushed the door open. Amanda started in, but Lee stopped her. He leaned over to place his arm under her knees and proceeded to carry her over the threshold. He set her down on the other side, placed his hand on her cheek, and kissed her passionately. "Welcome home, Amanda!"

"Wow! That was quite a welcome, but technically you didn't need to carry me. We aren't married yet."

"Yeah, I know, but it's the first time we'll have walked into our home together, and I won't get a second chance to do that." They glanced around their home in awe. "It looks a lot bigger than it did when we first saw the house."

"That's because it's empty, sweetheart. There was still furniture in here when we saw it last. But now that I think about it, I am a little worried, how we're going to fill it up."

"We'll get there, eventually. It doesn't have to be done right away. What do you say we look around before Leatherneck gets here?"

"I know just where I want to start." Amanda took off up the stairs and headed directly to the balcony off the master bedroom with Lee at her heels.

When they reached the balcony, Lee placed his arms around Amanda from behind and just stood there overlooking their backyard. "It really is beautiful, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is." Amanda glanced down at the pool. "Oh my gosh, sweetheart. Look, they left the patio and pool furniture."

"Perfect, one less thing we have to spend money on. Right, honey?"

Amanda grinned. "Wow! You're learning."

Lee chuckled as he reacquainted himself with the size of their property, then stated, "I also forgot how huge the yard was."

"Yeah, and you're going to have fun mowing it."

"Me! Isn't that what we have the boys for?"

"Sweetheart, the boys are too young to mow. You'll have to do it for a few more years at least."

Lee kissed her temple. "And it will be my pleasure to do it." Lee snapped his fingers as a thought popped into his head. "Amanda, what do you think about staying here tonight instead of my place?"

"Here? We don't have any furniture. Where would we sleep?"

"Oh, I don't know. I just wanted our first night to be just us. I'm sorry, it was a bad idea."

Amanda turned in his arms. "No, it wasn't. You know what? I have a blowup mattress and bedding in the garage we usually take camping. We can use that."

"Really! How will we get it out of the garage without having to explain it to Mom?"

"We'll figure something out. Besides, we've already told Mother we're on the redeye and leaving tonight, so we didn't have to explain why we're not staying at the house."

Just then, the doorbell rang. "That must be Leatherneck. Let's go welcome our first guest."