same as firing him."
"No, it's not the same thing. He'll know he's fired if he finds himself on the street
looking for another job."
She gave him a fulminating glare. "He'd never find one at his age. You know how
much discrimination there is against older workers."
"Relax. I'm not letting him go. Not yet, at any rate. But I want someone else
running that department."
She came to a halt in front of the desk and crossed her arms beneath her high
breasts. "Why? What's wrong with Melwood?"
"Sit down, Olivia."
She made no move to take the chair he indicated. "Rollie used to say that no one
knew Glow the way Melwood did."
"That may have been true at one time. But things change." Jasper opened a
drawer and removed one of the financial printouts he had ordered from the
accounting department. "From the looks of these, I'd say they started changing
around here about three or four months ago."
She tapped her fingers on her arms and shot a wary glance at the printout.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm referring to the fact that these reports from accounting are out of date and
somewhat less than accurate."
Her eyes widened. "Are you accusing Melwood Gill of incompetence?"
"I'm not accusing him of anything." Jasper decided not to mention the suspicions
that were beginning to take shape in his mind. "I'm saying I need someone in
charge down there in accounting who can give me more accurate information."
"Did you talk to Melwood?"
Jasper dropped the report onto the desk. "Of course I did."
"Well? What did he have to say for himself?"
"He says that the switch to the new accounting software a few months ago
created a lot of problems for his staff. He says they're only now starting to recover."
"So he had a good explanation." Triumph sharpened Olivia's eyes. "Perfectly
reasonable. There's always a certain amount of confusion after a major software
change, especially in an accounting department"
"Is there?"
"Sure. Everyone knows that." She unfolded her arms and leaned forward to
flatten her palms on his desk. Her voice softened to a confidential tone. "Look,
between you and me, poor Melwood had a brush with cancer a few months back. It
really shook him. Aunt Rose says he hasn't been himself since."
"Aunt Rose?"
Olivia angled her chin toward the closed door that led to the outer office. "Your
secretary."
"Is she the one who called to tell you about Gill's transfer?"
"Yes."
"I see." He propped his elbows on the desk and steepled his fingers. "Out of
curiosity, how many other Glow employees report to you instead of to me?"
The high color in her face intensified. "Aunt Rose is not one of my spies, if that's
what you mean."
"Who are your spies?" he asked with great interest.
She took her hands off his desk, straightened abruptly, and glared at him. "We're
a little off the topic here."
"Yes." He exhaled slowly. "We are. Look, it isn't just the reports from that
department that worry me. There are some basic management problems."
"What kind?"
"The kind you get when the person in charge is not paying attention. Were you
aware that both of the senior accountants handed in their resignations two months
ago?"
Olivia frowned. "No. Uncle Rollie was still here at that time. No reason he would
have told me."
"Gill's obviously in over his head." That was putting the nicest possible spin on it.
The alternative explanation was far more sinister, but Jasper did not mention it. He
did not yet have any proof of his darker suspicions. "If Rollie had not gone off on
that month-long photo safari, he would have realized by now that he had a problem
in that department."
Olivia sighed. "If he had not gone off on that safari, he'd still be here running
Glow and none of us would be in this mess."
Jasper hesitated. When it came to business, he relied on his innate sense of
timing. But with this woman he was wary of trusting his instincts. They were giving
him dumb instructions. For example, right now he wanted to sink
"No, it's not the same thing. He'll know he's fired if he finds himself on the street
looking for another job."
She gave him a fulminating glare. "He'd never find one at his age. You know how
much discrimination there is against older workers."
"Relax. I'm not letting him go. Not yet, at any rate. But I want someone else
running that department."
She came to a halt in front of the desk and crossed her arms beneath her high
breasts. "Why? What's wrong with Melwood?"
"Sit down, Olivia."
She made no move to take the chair he indicated. "Rollie used to say that no one
knew Glow the way Melwood did."
"That may have been true at one time. But things change." Jasper opened a
drawer and removed one of the financial printouts he had ordered from the
accounting department. "From the looks of these, I'd say they started changing
around here about three or four months ago."
She tapped her fingers on her arms and shot a wary glance at the printout.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm referring to the fact that these reports from accounting are out of date and
somewhat less than accurate."
Her eyes widened. "Are you accusing Melwood Gill of incompetence?"
"I'm not accusing him of anything." Jasper decided not to mention the suspicions
that were beginning to take shape in his mind. "I'm saying I need someone in
charge down there in accounting who can give me more accurate information."
"Did you talk to Melwood?"
Jasper dropped the report onto the desk. "Of course I did."
"Well? What did he have to say for himself?"
"He says that the switch to the new accounting software a few months ago
created a lot of problems for his staff. He says they're only now starting to recover."
"So he had a good explanation." Triumph sharpened Olivia's eyes. "Perfectly
reasonable. There's always a certain amount of confusion after a major software
change, especially in an accounting department"
"Is there?"
"Sure. Everyone knows that." She unfolded her arms and leaned forward to
flatten her palms on his desk. Her voice softened to a confidential tone. "Look,
between you and me, poor Melwood had a brush with cancer a few months back. It
really shook him. Aunt Rose says he hasn't been himself since."
"Aunt Rose?"
Olivia angled her chin toward the closed door that led to the outer office. "Your
secretary."
"Is she the one who called to tell you about Gill's transfer?"
"Yes."
"I see." He propped his elbows on the desk and steepled his fingers. "Out of
curiosity, how many other Glow employees report to you instead of to me?"
The high color in her face intensified. "Aunt Rose is not one of my spies, if that's
what you mean."
"Who are your spies?" he asked with great interest.
She took her hands off his desk, straightened abruptly, and glared at him. "We're
a little off the topic here."
"Yes." He exhaled slowly. "We are. Look, it isn't just the reports from that
department that worry me. There are some basic management problems."
"What kind?"
"The kind you get when the person in charge is not paying attention. Were you
aware that both of the senior accountants handed in their resignations two months
ago?"
Olivia frowned. "No. Uncle Rollie was still here at that time. No reason he would
have told me."
"Gill's obviously in over his head." That was putting the nicest possible spin on it.
The alternative explanation was far more sinister, but Jasper did not mention it. He
did not yet have any proof of his darker suspicions. "If Rollie had not gone off on
that month-long photo safari, he would have realized by now that he had a problem
in that department."
Olivia sighed. "If he had not gone off on that safari, he'd still be here running
Glow and none of us would be in this mess."
Jasper hesitated. When it came to business, he relied on his innate sense of
timing. But with this woman he was wary of trusting his instincts. They were giving
him dumb instructions. For example, right now he wanted to sink
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