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Authors: Marilyn Lee
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get the budget set. I thought maybe we could crunch figures over lunch.”
She glanced up at him, not quite meeting his gaze. “When?”
“Today. Are you free?”
“No. I have plans.”
He thrust his hands in his pant pockets. “Can you change them?”
“I’d rather not. They’re longstanding.”
“What about after lunch? Coffee?”
“I really need to decide who to ask in for interviews. We need to get people hired and up to speed as soon as possible if we’re not going to be outbid again by Fra-Tech.”
The muscles in his face tightened. “We are not going to come in second to them again!”
She wondered how much of the determination she saw in his gaze was based not only on having lost a big contract to Fra-Tech, but also on having lost Vanessa to the handsome owner, Clayton Frazier.
“Then we need to be ready.”
“I know that, but the budget is important too so we’ll know how much we can afford to offer in terms of salary and benefits.”
“I know. Tell you what. I’ll get together with Nelson in accounting and we’ll crunch the numbers, and I’ll get a report to you ASAP.”
He shrugged. “Fine.” He hesitated, his gaze sweeping over her face. “Or we could do dinner.”
She deliberately misunderstood him. “Fine. I’ll see if Nelson is free for dinner. If he is, we’ll burn the midnight oil and have the numbers for you sometime tomorrow. How’s that?”
His gaze narrowed and his lips tightened. “That’s not what I had in mind, Sharde.”
She went on misunderstanding him. “I don’t see how we can get it done any sooner.”
His gaze cooled. “Fine. Enjoy your dinner with Nelson.” He turned, pulled the door opened and left, closing it softly behind him.
She sat back in her seat, a small smile tugging at her lips. He’d looked ready to blow his stack. How long would it be before he came right out and asked to see her without the pretense of it being work related? Her smile vanished. That could take weeks unless she gave him another push.
But business first. She checked the office phone list on her computer and reached for the phone. “Accounting. Nelson,” a male voice announced in her ear.
“Hi, Nelson. This is Donovan in administration. Are you free to work late tonight with me?”
Chapter Five
“How long are you going to keep pulling his chain?”
“Pulling his chain?” Seated next to Darbi in a sauna several nights later, Sharde frowned. “Jeff? What makes you think I’m pulling his chain?”
“He’s asked you out three times this week and you’ve refused each time.”
“So how is that pulling his chain?”
Darbi shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean... well, he just looks so tense and frustrated lately. And he’s taken to lying in wait for me.”
Sharde stiffened. “What do you mean?”
“I mean lately I’m nearly tripping over him. If I go into the coffee room, he’s right behind me. When I arrive at work in the morning, he’s hanging in the parking lot waiting to hold the door open for me. Today, he asked me to have lunch.”
Sharde swallowed. “Did you?”
“No. I had plans, but he implied he’d ask me again.”
“I didn’t know he was...”
“Interested in me? He’s not. He wants to pick my brain about information about you. I think maybe you need to give him a break before he explodes.”
She closed her eyes briefly. “Oh, girl, you scared me. For a moment, I thought you and he...”
“Me and him? Never!” She shook her head. “No offense, Sharde, but I prefer my men a lot darker.”
“None taken. I didn’t set out to fall in love with him. It just happened. When he hired me, he was struggling to get the company off the ground and we worked a lot of overtime together. More than one night, we worked so late we fell asleep in the office... me on the sofa and him in a chair. One night, while we were working, he asked if I’d mind if he put the radio on so he could listen to the World Series. Since I had set my VCR
She glanced up at him, not quite meeting his gaze. “When?”
“Today. Are you free?”
“No. I have plans.”
He thrust his hands in his pant pockets. “Can you change them?”
“I’d rather not. They’re longstanding.”
“What about after lunch? Coffee?”
“I really need to decide who to ask in for interviews. We need to get people hired and up to speed as soon as possible if we’re not going to be outbid again by Fra-Tech.”
The muscles in his face tightened. “We are not going to come in second to them again!”
She wondered how much of the determination she saw in his gaze was based not only on having lost a big contract to Fra-Tech, but also on having lost Vanessa to the handsome owner, Clayton Frazier.
“Then we need to be ready.”
“I know that, but the budget is important too so we’ll know how much we can afford to offer in terms of salary and benefits.”
“I know. Tell you what. I’ll get together with Nelson in accounting and we’ll crunch the numbers, and I’ll get a report to you ASAP.”
He shrugged. “Fine.” He hesitated, his gaze sweeping over her face. “Or we could do dinner.”
She deliberately misunderstood him. “Fine. I’ll see if Nelson is free for dinner. If he is, we’ll burn the midnight oil and have the numbers for you sometime tomorrow. How’s that?”
His gaze narrowed and his lips tightened. “That’s not what I had in mind, Sharde.”
She went on misunderstanding him. “I don’t see how we can get it done any sooner.”
His gaze cooled. “Fine. Enjoy your dinner with Nelson.” He turned, pulled the door opened and left, closing it softly behind him.
She sat back in her seat, a small smile tugging at her lips. He’d looked ready to blow his stack. How long would it be before he came right out and asked to see her without the pretense of it being work related? Her smile vanished. That could take weeks unless she gave him another push.
But business first. She checked the office phone list on her computer and reached for the phone. “Accounting. Nelson,” a male voice announced in her ear.
“Hi, Nelson. This is Donovan in administration. Are you free to work late tonight with me?”
Chapter Five
“How long are you going to keep pulling his chain?”
“Pulling his chain?” Seated next to Darbi in a sauna several nights later, Sharde frowned. “Jeff? What makes you think I’m pulling his chain?”
“He’s asked you out three times this week and you’ve refused each time.”
“So how is that pulling his chain?”
Darbi shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean... well, he just looks so tense and frustrated lately. And he’s taken to lying in wait for me.”
Sharde stiffened. “What do you mean?”
“I mean lately I’m nearly tripping over him. If I go into the coffee room, he’s right behind me. When I arrive at work in the morning, he’s hanging in the parking lot waiting to hold the door open for me. Today, he asked me to have lunch.”
Sharde swallowed. “Did you?”
“No. I had plans, but he implied he’d ask me again.”
“I didn’t know he was...”
“Interested in me? He’s not. He wants to pick my brain about information about you. I think maybe you need to give him a break before he explodes.”
She closed her eyes briefly. “Oh, girl, you scared me. For a moment, I thought you and he...”
“Me and him? Never!” She shook her head. “No offense, Sharde, but I prefer my men a lot darker.”
“None taken. I didn’t set out to fall in love with him. It just happened. When he hired me, he was struggling to get the company off the ground and we worked a lot of overtime together. More than one night, we worked so late we fell asleep in the office... me on the sofa and him in a chair. One night, while we were working, he asked if I’d mind if he put the radio on so he could listen to the World Series. Since I had set my VCR
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