Safe and Secure, Part 1

Ben Wade

The dark little pub in Sydney was a perfect place to meet, Ben Wade thought. Dim and just busy enough to keep everyone else distracted from your business. The corner booth he sat in gave him a view of the bar and the door, which was right where he wanted to be.

Tossing back his whiskey, Wade gave the waitress a signal to bring him another. She obliged, giving him a wide smile and a seductive look. "I know it's early now, but I get off at eleven," she told him quietly, "and you look like a man who enjoys female company."

Giving her a grin, Wade replied. "I do like female company, ma'am, but I've got that all covered at home these days."

The woman looked disappointed. "If you change your mind...," she said, as she turned to leave.

He wouldn't, and that fact had rather surprised him. In the months since he'd married Liana and moved to the Glen, Wade had had more than a few chances at such companionship. The first time, he had taken the woman up on it, but he had quickly discovered that it wasn't the same any more. It had been Liana's face he wanted to see, her skin he wanted to feel, her he wanted lying next to him when he fell asleep. Since then, he hadn't even been tempted.

As he was thinking about her, he saw the face he was looking for come through the door. The man wore the same smile he always did. Seeing Ben in the corner, he headed toward him as though he'd found a long-lost friend.

Ben didn't stand, but he returned the smile and held out his hand to the man with the dark, handsome face who stood above him.

"Good to see you, Frank!" he said heartily, as the man sat down.