“Where are you from?” I hoped to fucking hell it wasn’t too far from here. Somehow the thought of her leaving felt like an unbearable prospect. Strange. I tried to figure out where that came from, but her answer stopped all inner thoughts.
“Ohio.”
“Ohio? And you came all the way here for a job?” Now I was rooting for her to get the job. It wasn’t uncommon, but I wondered about the motivation behind her traveling this far. There were plenty of jobs much closer for sure.
“Yeah, well. I wanted a change.” She paused on the change, leaving me to hazard a guess she left because of some guy.
“From someone?” The words left my mouth before I thought it through.
“Sorry?” Her brows arched, and the tension in her shoulders visibly doubled.
I knew to back off immediately. “Nothing. That’s not my business.” Shit. From the look in her eyes, it was exactly the case. Whatever bastard hurt her needed to be thanked and then fucked up.
“No. It’s not your business, and if you were the boss or in HR, you’d know that’s grounds for legal action.” Damn, my dick got harder, if that was even humanly possible. Her ire was sexy as hell.
“Oh, shit. Tate, getting yourself in trouble?” Sean asked, walking into the building with a travel cooler. “Hello, you must be Ms. Blake Avery. I’m Sean Cavanaugh. Sorry about today’s mess.”
“Hello, Mr. Cavanaugh. Yes, I can understand why the need to reschedule. It’s just…”
“Never mind that. Since you’re here and so am I, Ms. Avery, let’s get this interview over with. And Tate, what’s with that noise?”
“Shit. The servers.” I dashed off, opening the server room door to let out some of the excessive heat. I manually shut them down until we got the air on. I could use a portable AC Unit for the room just in case. Once I got back to the front desk, I packed everything up and walked over to the boss’s office. “Come in,” he said through the open door. She turned her head to gaze at me.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
“Did you pick up the fans for the office?”
“Shit. I forgot.”
“I need to pick up some fans. I’ll be back in about half an hour.”
“Okay, great. Here’s some cash. If it costs more than that, let me know.” He handed me two hundred bucks. I stuffed it in my pocket. Despite quitting my job, I was well off, having saved and invested wisely over the years, but I wasn’t rich like him.
“Sure thing. I’ll be back,” I muttered again, feeling like an ass the second the words were out of my mouth. The drive to the store passed in a blur. I picked up three box fans and two rotating ones.
When I returned, my dream woman was gone, and Sean and his wife Macy were kissing in the lobby. Seeing me walk in with the fans, Sean said, “Hey, let me help you with that. How many more do you have?”
“Three more.”
“Good. We need one in my office. It’s fucking boiling balls in there.”
“Sure.” We both went together for the second load, and he took one to his office and plugged it in while I plugged one in up in Macy’s office. A sound of the whirling blades created a relieved sigh from Macy as she stood in front of it.
She leaned in and asked, “So that chick that was in here is hired. Sean gave her the job on the spot. Did you see her? Was she pretty?”
“Gorgeous as hell. Why?” As the words left my mouth, I realized what I got myself into. Fuck. Both Sean and I were in trouble. I should have kept my fucking mouth shut. Immediately, I attempted to correct myself. “I mean, to me she was, but that’s just my tastes.” I didn’t have a taste when it came to women. Fuck, it’d had been at least two years since I went on a date, and that was a mess and a half. Apparently, being behind a computer made me a complete novice when it came to women.
“Nothing,” Macy grumbled at my side.
“Come on. You don’t think the boss man would do you dirty like that?” I spoke to him about her before, and I sure as hell saw them together. He was obsessed with Macy. There wasn’t anyone else for that guy. Not even the sexy Blake.
“Macy, what the hell is he talking about?” She stared up at him with tears in her eyes. “In my office, now,” he demanded, his voice low but strong. Instead of letting her walk there, he skipped all niceties and flipped her over his shoulder. “Don’t bother us for the next hour. My wife needs a reminder that I’m only hers.” He winked and then strolled back into his office with Macy, and I went back to work and stayed clear of his office. It made sense that many of the rooms here were soundproof especially when it came to meeting with clients, but I knew that Sean would be taking advantage of it for their alone time.
I made sure to bring one fan with me as I worked on the rest of the computer setups. I was almost done with the actual computer installations when the AC guy arrived. “We’re sorry it took so long, but with the heat, you’re the tenth call.” He provided me with his credentials and work order, but I got a funny vibe from the fucker. Storing his name to my memory, I’d pull a report on him later.
“No, we understand. Let me show you the unit.” I led him to the AC room and he went to work, popping off the metal front of the frame. “Let me know if you need anything. I’ll tell the boss you’re here.”
As I went to knock, Sean opened the door. “I know you said not to bother you, but I wanted to let you know the AC worker is here.” They were both dressed, but Macy’s flushed face and messed-up hair proved what I already knew had been going on in there. They were fucking like bunnies.
“Good. I’ll go check them out after I grab a drink for the wife. We are going to need a full kitchen with a stocked fridge. Walk with me.” I could tell he had something important to discuss.
I locked in step with him back to the cooler with the drinks. “So Macy’s mood is a little off lately. You didn’t do shit wrong, and I sure as fuck didn’t, but I get her jealousy. I wouldn’t have hired the woman if I didn’t get a desperate feeling from her. She needed this job and is almost as qualified as the other guy who came in for an interview. I hope she doesn’t let me down.” I knew all about his relationship with Macy and how it began. He’d saved her from danger more than once, and they have been inseparable ever since. It was in his nature, our natures, to be protectors. I didn’t realize how strong mine was until she’d walked into the building.
“Well, she came all the way from Ohio. That’s a fuck long way for a job. There’s more to her story. Is there something else you know about her?” I wanted to know what he saw that concerned him.
“There is. She’s had a stalker. He’s in prison, but I’m guessing she wants to move far from home without anyone mentioning it. After our interview, I had to offer her the job.”
I tried to play it cool while anger seethed inside. Stalkers I understood and experienced. “She gave me the vibe of a professional, no-nonsense woman. I doubt you’ll have a problem with her.”
“Thanks for my drink,” Macy huffed, reaching into the cooler for a water.
“Sorry, babe. We were talking shop,” Sean said.