For the first time, Turner was going to meet Kian in the guy's office instead of their usual place.

As he waited by the guard station, he wondered whether Kian worked underground like Bridget, or on one of the top levels. His information about the clan's operations stopped exactly where he was standing now. No one had been able to sneak past the security, and his hackers had had no luck either.

Given that Turner had been able to infiltrate government top secret departments, the security in this place was quite impressive. Especially since it was a civilian operation. Except, he had people working on the inside of various governments who'd owed him favors. He had no one inside the clan's hub.

Except for Bridget, but she was not easy to manipulate and would have caught on to any attempts by him to fish for information. He was already skating on thin ice with her.

She hadn't even kissed him goodbye when he'd left her apartment the night before, sending him home disappointed.

He'd taken care of his frustration to the image of her bent over her examination table, wearing nothing under her white doctor's coat and her wild red hair spilling in soft waves down her back.

Turner smirked.

He hadn't seen her in one of those coats yet, but when he did, he was going to enact his fantasy, provided he wormed his way back into her arms, which he believed he would. Bridget couldn't fight her attraction to him for long, and when she succumbed, he had a feeling she would be game for this. Hell, he was pretty sure she could teach him things he hadn't even imagined.

As if summoned by his imagination, Bridget emerged from behind the corner, regrettably sans the doctor's coat, and motioned for the guard to buzz him in.

"Hello, Victor." She kissed his cheek.

"Hi." He wasn't sure whether she was invited to his meeting with Kian or not. Kian hadn't said anything about it when Turner had called him to set it up.

"I offered to escort you down," she said.

"Are you joining us?"

"Yes. I want to help in any way I can."

"That's good."

He wasn't sure about that. He'd expected to work with Kian or perhaps one of his men. Turner liked to keep things compartmentalized. Bridget belonged in the box that contained his quest for a cure through immortality and sex. She didn't belong in the one which dealt with the nasty business of modern-day sexual slavery.

It would be too distracting.

Like a super-computer that required a cold room to function at its best, Turner needed a calm mind to do his job well. Bridget's presence was sure to heat up his environment to an uncomfortable level.

As they exited the elevator and continued down the wide corridor, Turner counted the closed doors they were passing by more out of habit than necessity. He didn't expect any trouble.

Bridget stopped in front of a set of French doors, knocked on the glass and opened the way.

"Nice office," Turner said as he walked in.

A lot could be gleaned from someone's work environment. Kian had originally struck him as a control freak—the type of leader who didn't take counsel from anyone unless it was shoved down his throat. But given the large conference table that took up most of the available space in the guy's office, Kian was in the habit of conducting meetings with his people, which meant a more inclusive style of leadership.

"Thank you." Kian pushed away from his desk, walked over to Turner, and offered him his hand. "How was your trip?"

"Successful." Turner shook what he'd been offered.

"I had no doubt." Kian motioned for him to take a seat next to the conference table, then pulled out a chair for Bridget.

"Thank you." She sat across the table from Turner.

"Did you make up your mind?" Kian asked Bridget.

Turner tensed. Last night, they had agreed to wait another two weeks before either one of them made a decision.

"I want to do it," she said.

Turner started to relax, when it dawned on him that the wording of her answer was off. Bridget didn't want to approve his transition. The best he hoped for was her reluctant acquiescence.

Kian threw her a hard stare. "Are you sure? It's not something you learned to do in medical school. It will require your undivided attention and a tremendous commitment of time."

Obviously, they were not talking about him, for some reasons assuming he knew what this was all about or not giving a shit that he was being left out.

"This is more important than my medical practice. I feel like I was meant to do it. I want it to be my project."

Kian nodded. "Very well. From now on you're in charge." He turned to Victor. "Bridget is going to head the operation. You'll be working directly with her."

That was one of the dumbest ideas he'd ever heard, and he'd heard his share of them. "With all due respect, Bridget, you are a smart and capable lady, but you have absolutely no background or qualifications to lead this operation."

"Neither do I," Kian said.

"At least you have military experience."

Bridget didn't look offended by his dismissal, but Turner had a feeling it was the calm before the storm.

"May I?" she asked Kian.

"By all means." He waved a hand and then crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back in his chair.

"This project is complicated, and no one person is an expert on everything. You are obviously the tactical mind and will be in charge of organizing the extractions. But we also need someone who will be in charge of taking care of the victims once they are freed. To start with, they will need housing and psychological help. Then they will need education to prepare them for integration into society. Someone will need to be in charge of that transition, finding jobs and independent accommodation for the graduates. We also need someone in charge of fundraising, and another one in charge of public awareness. Finally, someone needs to head the team and coordinate all the moving parts. I'm offering to be that person because it's a full-time job, and Kian can't handle this in addition to everything else he is doing."

Turner nodded. Her logic was solid.

Bridget continued. "I obviously can't take over managing the clan's business conglomerate to free Kian's time for this project, so the only other option is for me to take this on. If you can think of a better candidate, I would gracefully bow out. I'm not doing this for an ego trip. I'm doing this because it needs to be done and I feel passionate about it."

Turner rubbed the back of his scalp. "I don't know about that, Bridget. Everything you said is true, but let me be the devil's advocate for a minute. Throughout your practice, you worked alone in your clinic and never managed a team. There must be someone more qualified for the job—someone who was in charge of leading teams before. As you said, this operation is too important for ego trips."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "There is no one else. Sari, Kian's counterpart in Scotland, could manage that, but she has her hands full as well."

Kian uncrossed his arms and leaned forward. "The clan is not big, Turner. We don't have that many people to choose from. And I don't want an outsider in charge of this. I have full confidence in Bridget's ability to handle the project. I can't allow myself to get bogged down with all the details, but I'm here if either of you needs me."

It seemed to be a done deal. Bridget was heading the operation.

The question was whether Turner had blown his chances with her by objecting to the nomination.