Read Online The Good Luck Charm (The Good Luck Series) by Leanne Tyler - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Leanne Tyler
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“Word has it Keely Jones has made a huge faux pas and has lost favor with the Jacksons.”
Darren shook his head. That was the biggest understatement of the day. Keely hadn’t made the mistake. He had. But it sounded like she would pay for his duplicity.
“I told you not to believe office gossip. Rule number two is don’t spread it. Besides, it’s not even nine yet. How did you get the information so fast?”
Encouraged Shelby leaned closer. Her perfume assaulted his nose. “I have my sources. But the word is she was practically in bed with the competition. She got caught playing footsy, passing confidential information under the table.”
Darren shook his head. What an exaggeration of the truth. He didn’t want to hear any more, but he needed to know if he was mentioned so he could curtail the rumors. “Which firm?”
“My source wasn’t at liberty to say.”
“I bet your source didn’t know.”
“Maybe, but it isn’t everyday something like this happens.”
“True.” Darren felt the hole he’d dug for himself getting deeper and deeper.
“I’ve got the Sandusky Water Supply account presentation ready for you to look over. I think you’ll find it most effective.”
Darren nodded, reaching for his smart phone. He scrolled down to his calendar. “I’ll look at it this afternoon, say around three?”
“Great. I’ll see you then.” Shelby turned and left.
Darren had just settled at his desk when Jama stepped into the office and closed the door behind her before he could protest.
“I think you can take the shades off now,” she said, without missing a beat.
Darren reached up and removed them.
“Have you been sleeping?”
He heard alarm in her voice. Did he look that bad? He frowned.
“I know it’s bad. Shelby caught me when I got here and dropped the little bombshell on me.” Jama looked pointedly at him. “So you didn’t take my advice and now Keely is suffering big time for it. Whether she really slept, and I use that term figuratively, with the competition or not, the rumor mill has her doing it. Her professional reputation is ruined. If Jackson and Jackson fire her, then it will be next to impossible for her to get another job in this town.”
“And it’s my fault.” Darren rubbed his forehead with his hand. He huffed, and then shook his head. “I really was going to tell her. I had it all planned out for when I took her home after our date. Everything would have been fine if we hadn’t run into Edward Jackson. Who knew he’d blow our being together out of proportion? You know, he called me a head hunter .”
Jama chuckled in spite of the situation. “He could have called you worse.”
“Don’t rub it in, Jama,” he warned. “Keely won’t even talk to me. I’ve called her three dozen times since then, but all I get is her voice mail. I’ve stopped leaving messages because I don’t want to sound like I’m pleading.”
Nodding, his sister crossed the room and hugged him. “And what lesson have we learned from this, little brother?”
Darren groaned. “I should have told her immediately that I was the competition. They always say hindsight is perfect vision. I wish I’d had that wisdom.”
“We all make mistakes. What matters is what we learn from the situation. By the way, how are you going to rectify it?”
Darren shrugged.
“May I make a suggestion?”
“Why not, you’ll do it anyway.”
Jama grinned, patting him on the back. “Get on the phone and call Edward Jackson. Explain to him what you told me the other day. Tell him how your relationship with Keely had nothing to do with business and you didn’t discuss any of her clients when you were together. Explain how all you wanted was to get to know her.”
“Jama, do you honestly think that man is going to talk to me after he thinks I tried to seduce information out of his top executive? Or that he’d believe anything I had to say?”
“It can’t hurt.”
Darren propped his
“Word has it Keely Jones has made a huge faux pas and has lost favor with the Jacksons.”
Darren shook his head. That was the biggest understatement of the day. Keely hadn’t made the mistake. He had. But it sounded like she would pay for his duplicity.
“I told you not to believe office gossip. Rule number two is don’t spread it. Besides, it’s not even nine yet. How did you get the information so fast?”
Encouraged Shelby leaned closer. Her perfume assaulted his nose. “I have my sources. But the word is she was practically in bed with the competition. She got caught playing footsy, passing confidential information under the table.”
Darren shook his head. What an exaggeration of the truth. He didn’t want to hear any more, but he needed to know if he was mentioned so he could curtail the rumors. “Which firm?”
“My source wasn’t at liberty to say.”
“I bet your source didn’t know.”
“Maybe, but it isn’t everyday something like this happens.”
“True.” Darren felt the hole he’d dug for himself getting deeper and deeper.
“I’ve got the Sandusky Water Supply account presentation ready for you to look over. I think you’ll find it most effective.”
Darren nodded, reaching for his smart phone. He scrolled down to his calendar. “I’ll look at it this afternoon, say around three?”
“Great. I’ll see you then.” Shelby turned and left.
Darren had just settled at his desk when Jama stepped into the office and closed the door behind her before he could protest.
“I think you can take the shades off now,” she said, without missing a beat.
Darren reached up and removed them.
“Have you been sleeping?”
He heard alarm in her voice. Did he look that bad? He frowned.
“I know it’s bad. Shelby caught me when I got here and dropped the little bombshell on me.” Jama looked pointedly at him. “So you didn’t take my advice and now Keely is suffering big time for it. Whether she really slept, and I use that term figuratively, with the competition or not, the rumor mill has her doing it. Her professional reputation is ruined. If Jackson and Jackson fire her, then it will be next to impossible for her to get another job in this town.”
“And it’s my fault.” Darren rubbed his forehead with his hand. He huffed, and then shook his head. “I really was going to tell her. I had it all planned out for when I took her home after our date. Everything would have been fine if we hadn’t run into Edward Jackson. Who knew he’d blow our being together out of proportion? You know, he called me a head hunter .”
Jama chuckled in spite of the situation. “He could have called you worse.”
“Don’t rub it in, Jama,” he warned. “Keely won’t even talk to me. I’ve called her three dozen times since then, but all I get is her voice mail. I’ve stopped leaving messages because I don’t want to sound like I’m pleading.”
Nodding, his sister crossed the room and hugged him. “And what lesson have we learned from this, little brother?”
Darren groaned. “I should have told her immediately that I was the competition. They always say hindsight is perfect vision. I wish I’d had that wisdom.”
“We all make mistakes. What matters is what we learn from the situation. By the way, how are you going to rectify it?”
Darren shrugged.
“May I make a suggestion?”
“Why not, you’ll do it anyway.”
Jama grinned, patting him on the back. “Get on the phone and call Edward Jackson. Explain to him what you told me the other day. Tell him how your relationship with Keely had nothing to do with business and you didn’t discuss any of her clients when you were together. Explain how all you wanted was to get to know her.”
“Jama, do you honestly think that man is going to talk to me after he thinks I tried to seduce information out of his top executive? Or that he’d believe anything I had to say?”
“It can’t hurt.”
Darren propped his
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