My Luna is a Spy

CHAPTER 2

Taylor turned immediately, placing her hands over her chest as it heaved loudly, “Holy crap! You scared me,” she exclaimed.

Her right foot tripped over the left, and she fell flat on Sage, who landed with a thud on the floor.

She swiftly pulled herself away from his chest while he managed to stand up.

“I’m sorry. I hope you were not hurt?” she asked, watching him as he approached the table.

“Get out!” he ordered.

“I'm really sorry for coming here without informing you and ___,” she said, but he yelled at her without a backward glance.

“I said get out!” he barked, his voice laced with squirts of pain. Taylor crossed to the door in quick strides and left. She lay on her bed, worried that he might know something about her or that he was starting to dislike her.

Meanwhile, Sage held the edge of the desk in his study as he silently growled. His claws and fangs pulled out uncontrollably. He grunted, tumbling into the empty spaces in the study. He snarled, forcing his body to realign to its human form.

**********

Taylor did not show up early at the office the next day. Sage had left early because he felt weird around her. He was learning to control how she made him feel while hiding his feelings from Joe. Her recent search in his study was also too suspicious to ignore.

When she eventually arrived at the office, she walked in to report to him. Sage stood up the moment he saw her.

Taylor watched as he paced the open space in the corner of the office that exuded opulence from the state-of-the-art technology seamlessly integrated into the walls to the private bar stocked with the finest spirits. It wasn't just an office. Sage O'Brien had built a personal empire inside his enormous kingdom.

“I know how lucky I am to have this job and how nice you've been to me. I apologize for my indiscretion and for getting on your nerves yesterday. And for also resuming late today. I slept past the time and I understand if you think that I do not qualify to work with you anymore, sir,” she said without stopping to catch her breath.

He stopped in his tracks and turned to her with a face that glowed as his lips parted lightly. “You don't have to apologize. I'm the one who's sorry for yelling at you. I wasn't feeling too well and seeing you in my private space made me cranky.”

She observed him from the corner of her eye. She was trained for situations like this. “I could not sleep and noticed that my favorite keychain was missing. I visited the study to search for it when I noticed it wasn't locked,” she added to foil any suspicious thoughts or disturbing questions that he might have.

“Is that so?” he tilted his face upwards, biting his lower lip as he flexed his arm and went to his coffee maker. “Coffee?” he asked.

“I'm good, sir. I'll just work on the files and send them to the PR team,” she replied, turning and walking towards the door.

“It's Sage, not sir. I want you to call me Sage,” he said, gulping the portion he drank.

She nodded and said, “Alright, Sage,” then turned the doorknob and left.

**********

“Are you locked in?” a female voice asked over the phone.

“Yeah,” Taylor answered, pushing the cart as she strolled inside the ever-busy mall.

“Pull out of the mission on Red. We have eyes on another potential target. His name is Augustine Rivers,” the voice ordered.

“I can't do that. I'm a hundred percent sure that Red's hiding something and I'm going to figure it out. Give me a little more time,” Taylor replied, her pitch almost rising at the thought of forfeiting the mission.

“I'm the boss here and I'm ordering you to back down,” the voice barked.

“I cannot, Fiona. I've been chasing this lead for months. I'm this close to discovering the truth. It's so obvious that Red has a thing for Gia and I could turn everything around if you'd just let me,” Taylor's eyes twitched as she grew tense.

“You're chasing a dead end. We've run every scan on him but he's super clean. There's no time to lose,” Fiona said.

“Then get someone else to follow the new lead while I conclude mine,” Taylor replied, frustrated at Fiona's orders.

“We can't risk anything or waste resources figuring out nothing. You're one of the best agents we've got which is why I want you here,” Fiona responded calmly.

“I'm sorry but I can't leave now. Just give me a few days,” she replied before her other phone rang. “I've got to go.”

Taylor dragged the cart back to its corral and exited the mall. Her phone rang again but this time, it wasn't Joe but Gus, her best friend.

“If it isn't the flamingo that went AWOl,” he teased.

“Hey! How are you?” she asked, unwrapping a chewing gum.

“You left me hanging. No calls or texts. Do you know how uneasy it was to ambush that cleaning lady so you could take her place?” he questioned, drowning in his own laughter.

Taylor's lips curved as she chewed the gum, “you've ambushed a tank filled with armed men. That should be a piece of cake,” she teased back and they both burst out laughing.

“Meanwhile, did you get the summon?” he asked.

“Yeah, but I'll conclude this before following any new leads,” she replied.

“Why can't you be logical, Tay? It's a dead end. I knew it wasn't a good idea from the start. Werewolves don't exist and carrying out your revenge while handling a serious operation for the agency is too risky. Can you please stop?” he said but she hastily replied, cutting him off.

“Logical? Are you kidding me right now? I should stop?! I've searched and waited for three years to get my revenge on the bastard werewolf that killed Jude and my child. I don't give a damn about what's logical. Red has feelings for Gia. I've never been this close to finding the truth so if you're not going to support me, get off the phone!” she yelled, pulling out her earpod while wiping out the tears that ran freely on her face.

Although Taylor was so sure about her hunch, her conviction was starting to fade when she spent another two weeks tending to Sage's needs without any suspicious action or movement. She often stayed over at his house but nothing happened out of the ordinary. She was starting to doubt herself and was ready to bid Sage an unsaid farewell.

Sage had not taken any action to confirm that he had feelings for her which added to her worries. How could a man be so calm and indifferent while being charming and engaging at the same time?

Before the end of the month, he threw a party to celebrate his recent award. He was on the front page of every tabloid and headlined the news on television. Taylor felt out of place the moment she stepped into the event hall. The crystal chandeliers which adorned the ceiling sparkled on her shimmering dress. Soft music floated through the thin air as she searched around for Sage. She had dolled up for the man. Even if it was her last night as his personal assistant, she was still hopeful that her hunch might be correct.

When she caught sight of Sage, he was following one of the servers into another room. She strolled in between the crowd and stealthily followed them. She was disappointed when they ended up at the parking lot to speak to one of the guests. She seethed, turning back to the hall. However, something else grabbed her attention while finding her way back. She stumbled into a dimly lit room where two men were rushing to pack some powdered substances into selected souvenirs.

“My hunch has never been wrong,” she murmured, pulling out her phone. In the silence, she took shots of the operation.

“I always knew you were up to no good,” a male's voice said, startling her. Her body stiffened and she instantly turned to face the cold, unmerciful face of Joe.

“Sometimes, being obstinate is just a shortcut to disaster” - Unknown.