Chapter 3
***MALCOLM***
Flying high from his morning spent touring what would be the first property in his empire, Malcolm glided through his late morning class, then headed off to work, looking forward to sharing his good news with his boss.
Since it was payday, he knew that he’d find Roger at the office camped out in his big office chair, the stack of checks on the desk in front of him.
It was a bit of a ritual every Monday, and unlike the rest of the guys, he didn’t mind.
It was a chance to pick his boss’s brain about anything that had popped up during the week on the job site.
When he saw Vanessa sitting behind the reception desk, his spirits lifted just a little bit more and he sauntered over to her, looking forward to their usual banter. “Hey there, hot stuff, what’s happening around here?” he asked, shooting her a big smile. “What have I missed since last week?”
Vanessa didn’t grin back at him; instead, she looked over her shoulder and whispered.
“Sandra is on the war path. I wouldn’t cross her today if I were you,” she said.
“I’m just sitting here keeping my head down until the storm is over, but it might be a while.
Roger hired someone for the accounting position without telling Sandra.
She was planning on giving the position to her niece, so you can imagine how well that went over.
Of course, she’s taking it out on the new girl, even though it’s not her fault.
Honestly, if I were you, I’d just turn around and leave right now.
I’m not sure a paycheck is worth all this. ”
He laughed. “Oh, come on, it can’t be that bad,” he said. “I’ll just pop back and see Roger. If I see Sandra coming, I’ll go the other way.”
“Good luck,” Vanessa said. “You’re going to need it if she catches you.”
He was so busy looking over his shoulder for Sandra, he didn’t see what was in front of him, and as he came around the corner, he crashed into something warm that let out a familiar gasp of surprise.
His arms went around her instinctively to keep them both from falling, but that meant pressing her body up against his and to his horror, his body responded instantly.
He sucked in a shocked breath at the strength of the need that flared to life inside him, waking the dragon and bringing it to life as the woman’s scent filled his lungs.
All too aware that he needed to put some space between them, he gently untangled himself from her arms and looked down at her, an apology on the tip of his tongue.
He was just beginning to wonder if there was something wrong with him, if his celibate life was catching up to him, and then he was gazing into the same beautiful hazel eyes he had been almost a week before.
The woman gasped, clearly recognizing him as well, and he panicked. “Sorry, didn’t mean to almost knock you down,” he said, stepping carefully around her. “I’m in a hurry, gotta go.”
He booked it down the hallway, leaving the woman staring after him, the ground littered with the invoices she’d been carrying, the creature inside him roaring with indignation that he’d run away.
Roger was sitting behind his desk when he raced into the room.
A look of alarm appeared on his face, and he set down the stack of papers that he’d been holding.
“Malcolm, what’s wrong?” he asked, starting to get to his feet.
“Nothing, don’t get up,” he said, forcing himself to calm down. “I just ran into someone in the hallway, I mean literally…”
“Oh, you must have just met Rose, she’s our new accountant,” Roger said, waving his hand in the air. “Sandra is mad as a wet hen about it, but I owe her father a favor, and she is qualified, which is a lot more than I can say for Sandra’s niece.”
“Keep me out of it,” he said, sitting down across from Roger, feeling more in control. “What’s the news this week? Did we get that new contract?”
“Yes, I got the new contract, but we won’t be working on the job unless you finish your safety training,” Roger said, giving him a dirty look. “In fact, if you don’t, you won’t be working on any job site any time in the near future.”
“I hate that stuff, it’s just a huge waste of time,” he said with a sigh. “I can make the company a lot more money out on the job site. I don’t know why you even bother with those stupid classes. They don’t do any good.”
“The insurance company disagrees with you; in fact, they feel so strongly about those safety videos that they’ll raise my rates if we don’t watch them,” Roger said. “That doesn’t sound like very good business to me, but maybe you know better, college boy.”
“I didn’t think about the insurance,” he said, properly chastised. “Sorry, Roger, I guess I got ahead of myself. I’m sure you’re carrying some heavy liability insurance, and I bet it costs an arm and a leg.”
“You got that right, and if you don’t watch those videos, it will cost me even more,” Roger said, giving him a dirty look.
“Now get your butt down to the training room and watch those videos. I don’t care how long it takes, but you’re officially banned from the job site until you do. Is that clear?”
“Fine, no more messing around, I’ll get them done,” he said, then brightened up. “Do you want to hear about my morning? I finally put an offer in on the property I’ve been looking at, and I think the sellers are going to accept it.”
“Congratulations, that’s great news, I just hope you’ve thought this through completely,” Roger said, shaking his head. “That old restaurant is in bad shape. You’re going to have to gut the entire building and start over.”
“That’s what I love about it,” he said. “It can be anything I want it to be; all I have to do is use my imagination and find an investor.”
Roger laughed. “Oh, is that all?” he asked, shaking his head, then smiled at Malcolm. “I really do hope this works out for you. I’m always here if you need advice.”
“I’ll remember that,” he said, getting to his feet. “I guess I should get on those videos, I’m going to need my paycheck now more than ever.”
***Rose***
“Oh my gosh, are you okay?” Vanessa said, rushing over to Rose, who was staring open-mouthed down the hallway. “I can’t believe Malcolm just mowed you over like that, then didn’t even stop to help pick all this up. He’s usually not a jerk.”
Vanessa’s words managed to penetrate the desire rushing through her, making her brain feel foggy, and she turned to look over at the other woman.
“Did you say Malcolm?” she asked, then started picking up the invoices to hide the blush that crept up her cheeks at the memory of being pressed up against him. “Is that his name?”
“Yeah, he’s one of the framers; I guess he goes to college on the other side of town too.
He’s a frat boy, if you can believe it,” Vanessa said, shrugging her shoulders, then bent down to help.
“He’s one of those men who is great to look at but dangerous to get tangled up with.
He’ll break your heart and walk away without a backward glance. ”
“Oh, I’m not interested in him, I was just curious,” she said, pleased that it was the truth. “My heart is perfectly safe.”
Vanessa studied her for a second, then shrugged her shoulders, “Whatever you say, I just…well the way you two looked at each other, it seemed like there was something there and I wanted to warn you,” she said.
“It’s fun to flirt with him, but take my advice and don’t let it go any farther than that.
You seem like a nice person. I don’t want to see you get hurt. ”
She studied the other woman for a second, then she understood. “You’re talking from experience, aren’t you?” she asked, then put her hand over her mouth. “I’m sorry, it’s none of my business, I shouldn’t have asked.”
“It’s okay, it was a long time ago,” Vanessa said, standing up and handing her the invoices she’d collected. “Do you want me to show you the way to your office? You probably want to get started on these.”
“That would be great,” she said, knowing when to let something go. “I appreciate all the help. I’d be lost if it wasn’t for you, maybe I can buy you lunch or something.”
“I’d like that,” Vanessa said, smiling at her. “It’s nice to get along with the people you work with. I think we’re going to be friends.”
“Me too,” she said, smiling at the other woman.
She looked around the cramped office after Vanessa left, dumped the invoices on the desk, then walked around behind it and sank into the chair.
A puff of dust filled the air around her as the air escaped from the cushion.
She accidentally inhaled just as the cloud rose into the air, making her lungs burn and her nose begin to tickle.
The first sneeze sent another cloud of dust into the air from the top of the desk, the second completely cleaned it off, and she jumped to her feet, desperate for some fresh air.
Running over to the window, still sneezing, she threw it open and poked her head out, forcing herself to take little breaths until the tickle faded away and her lungs stopped burning.
Wondering how long it had been since the office had been cleaned, she looked around again, deciding it would be impossible to work there until she’d had a chance to give it a good dusting and vacuuming.
Picking up the invoices, she left and walked down the hallway, looking in open doors for someone to ask about using a different office for the day, hoping that it wasn’t going to be Sandra.
She was down to the last office when she heard footsteps behind her and whirled around to find the woman standing with her hands on her hips, glaring at her like she’d broken the law.
“What are you doing snooping around back here?” Sandra demanded. “Are you spying on us for another contractor? You won’t get away with it if you are, I’m too smart for that.”
“I was just looking for a different place to work; my office is very dusty, and I couldn’t stop sneezing,” she said. “I thought I’d get these done, then give it a good scrubbing and vacuuming.”
“That won’t be necessary, I’ll have the cleaning crew take care of it,” Sandra said, her voice a little softer. “In the meantime, you can use the training room. There’s a computer in there and enough supplies to get you through until your office is ready.”
“Oh, thank you, that would be wonderful,” she said, hoping Sandra was starting to get used to the idea of her being there. “I really wouldn’t mind seeing to it myself, I don’t want to be a bother.”
“It’s no problem, tonight is the night they come anyway,” Sandra said, leading her down the hallway. “Besides, the more I think about it, the more I think the training room might be a better place for you to work. There are a couple of nice long tables where you can sort the invoices.”
“I don’t think I’ll need that much room,” she said, holding out the stack in her hand. “There aren’t that many of them.”
Sandra looked at the pile, then back up at Rose.
“Oh, dear, didn’t I tell you, those are just this week’s, there are some more in the records room,” she said, clearly not the least bit sorry and enjoying herself.
“Come on, I’ll show you. I’m sure you’ll agree, it might be easier to use the training room. ”
She couldn’t help the groan that came from deep in her chest when she saw the three heaping boxes of invoices, and didn’t miss the look of satisfaction on her supervisor’s face.
“If you think it’s too big of a job for you, it’s not too late to back out,” she said, her voice full of false sympathy.
“I wouldn’t blame you. This is a huge mess.
I’ve been telling Roger for months that we need to get it straightened out… ”
“I’ll have it sorted out in no time,” she said brightly, refusing to let the older woman win. “I’ve seen worse than this.”
“Oh, well then, I’ll leave you to it, but I’ll be around if you have any questions,” Sandra said, clearly disappointed that she wasn’t going to complain.
Then, a little evil smile appeared on her face.
“I can’t believe how forgetful I am lately.
I completely forgot to tell you that I need this done by next Monday morning.
We have to send it in to the CPA so he can do the taxes. ”
“Next Monday,” she repeated, looking at the boxes. “That might be a lot to ask, I don’t know if I can do it.”
“Well then, I’ll just tell Roger that you’re not up to the job,” Sandra said, a look of triumph on her face. “I’m sure he’ll understand that fancy college education of yours didn’t prepare you for the real world, it happens all the time…”
“I’ll get it done,” she interrupted. “I just said it might be hard, I might have to stay late and come in early.”
The disappointment was back. “I’ll have to check with Roger about that,” she said, then turned and started down the hallway. “Are you just going to stand there, or are you coming?”
She grabbed two of the boxes and followed Sandra down the hallway and into a big room with several long tables and a bank of computers along one wall.
Plopping the boxes down, she looked around and noticed that she wasn’t alone, a man was watching a video, a pair of headphones on his head.
She started to turn away, then realized with a shock that felt like a punch to the gut that it was Malcolm who kept running into her and turning her world upside down, the man she was supposed to use to help her spy on the Sigmas.
Trying not to panic, she looked around the room and found Sandra staring at her. “Don’t tell me there’s something wrong with the room,” she sneered at her. “Isn’t it good enough for you, princess?”
“It’s fine,” she said, trying not to panic. “I’ll get to work now, thank you.”