Chapter One #2
Where were the years taking her? She liked what she did and she was good at it. But time was drifting by and her life was drifting by with it and now this man, showing up here…
She was only twenty-eight! Something about the way those dark, amused eyes rested on her made her feel conscious of her shortcomings.
More than that, he made her conscious of her sexuality in a way she hadn’t since she and Steve had crashed and burned.
Since then, she had returned to the farm to help her dad and to process her own grief at the loss of her mother.
That had happened shortly before she and Steve had broken up and put the sexual side of her into cold storage.
The ice was beginning to melt just now and that was throwing her into a state of panicked confusion.
‘Not,’ she said in an over hearty voice, ‘That my age has anything to do with…anything.’
‘Of course not.’
‘I…’ She breathed deeply and wondered how possible it would be to dodge this job and hand him over to someone else.
Vera had specified that she should show the man round because she knew so much about the store and because Pete, her boss, was off this week.
But weren’t rules meant to be broken? She’d never actually gone down that road but the thought of battling feelings that were suddenly at war inside her was a daunting prospect.
‘I think you should fill me in on some basics if I’m going to assign you to the relevant department.’
‘I would rather several relevant departments as opposed to just the one. The more I can see, the better.’
‘Sadly, you don’t get to decide where you go or don’t go. Tell me what sort of shop you have and what areas are of interest to you.’
‘A range of things, actually, although wine and everything to do with it is a large part of what I stock.’
‘Really? Then why on earth would you want to look around a department store?’
‘You stock food and wine?’
‘Yes, of course, but that’s a fraction of what we have in the store.’
‘I would be interested in finding out what the profit margins are for that particular department in comparison to the others,’ Rocco said smoothly. ‘In a fast-moving age, it’s good to find out what sells and what doesn’t, wouldn’t you agree?’
‘Yes.’ She was on more secure ground and relaxed.
‘I think the white-goods department has suffered because of online shopping. It’s so easy for people to flick through a website, find what they want and order it without having to trudge into a store to see what might not even be the full range of models on offer. ’
‘So true,’ Rocco murmured.
She was preaching to the converted. He already knew the stats on which department was failing, and frankly not many in the store were succeeding, hence Ron finally agreeing to sell.
Rocco had floated the idea two years previously.
By then, his father had all but retired after suffering a stroke and, having been involved in his own extensive business concerns, Rocco had returned briefly to Spain to oversee certain changes he’d wanted to make for some time.
One had been to extend into eco-friendly, highly sustainable accommodation and office space. He had plans to be the leader in the field, and he’d met Hailey sufficiently often to have noted the decline in the department store which was in such a prime location close to Dublin city centre.
He’d made his move when he knew that the tipping point had been reached between holding on to the family legacy and letting it go because it was haemorrhaging money. He’d come here to make sure he wasn’t being conned into paying over the odds and to work out floor plans.
He already knew everything else there was to know. In fact, as the woman stood up and beckoned him to follow so she could show him what he was actually not much interested in seeing, he realised that what he really wanted was to find out more about her.
‘People can be lazy,’ she said, walking ahead of him. ‘Footfall in stores makes high streets thrive. Hailey’s has been going for ever and it’s the heart and soul of the community. The more people shop from home, the more a place like this loses its identity.’
‘That’s a very impassioned speech.’ He caught up with her and fell into step. They had emerged into an open office space. Heads turned surreptitiously. She waved to a couple of people but didn’t break pace.
‘This is where all the paperwork gets done,’ she said without looking at him, but bee-lining for the lift. ‘Accounts, sales co-ordinators…customer services section.’
‘And you’re in charge of everyone on the floor?’
She pinged for the lift and he lounged against the wall and stared at her, noting the creep of colour into her cheeks.
‘Not everyone.’
‘But most.’
‘I handle the sales team, customer services and oversee one or two other areas as well.’
‘Tough call. For someone so young.’
The lift came. Ella stepped in, aware of him behind her and the way her whole body was burning, conscious of unvoiced questions surfacing for the first time since she had returned home.
What was going to happen next in her life?
What lay around the corner? She enjoyed what she did here, but was she really happy or was she simply biding time? Was this it?
She stared at the panel, mouth dry as uncomfortable thoughts ricocheted around her head.
The silence dragged until she felt compelled to break it as the doors opened onto the floor below, dedicated to the failing section selling white goods, a handful of computers and phones, and the much bigger toy section which always pulled up profits.
‘I’ve had a lot of experience here at the store so when I…when I had to return I was fast-tracked to a managerial position.’
‘Had to return from where?’
‘Had to return from the place called none of your business, Mr Rivero.’
Their eyes met, Ella’s appalled at her lapse in professionalism, Rocco’s openly curious at how her hackles had risen. That was definitely disproportionate to his inoffensive question.
Rocco was accustomed to women making themselves available to him and one of the ways they did that was to present themselves as an open book.
They were always keen to elicit his interest. They didn’t set about shutting him down by being abrupt.
This was new for him. But then, he mused, he wasn’t Rocco Mancini to her, was he?
He was Jose Rivero and effectively she was in charge of him.
She was going to be his boss for two weeks! He had to suppress a grin.
‘Point taken.’
‘Sorry. My apologies… I…’
‘I see what you mean about footfall.’ He adroitly changed the subject, because trying to encourage her to talk would have the opposite effect, and his curiosity was growing by the second. ‘It’s very quiet on this floor.’
‘It’ll pick up as Christmas gets closer.’
Ella frowned and saw the store dispassionately, through an outsider’s eyes, while knowing what this outsider wouldn’t know.
Profits were down and had been for a number of years.
The annual financial reports didn’t make for pleasant reading, but the general manager was always optimistic.
Hailey’s had been a presence in the town for so long that they were all convinced it would never be allowed to fall by the wayside.
It was more than just a store. It was the heart of the community.
It was only September, but they were already making plans for Christmas and the traditional events they hosted over the festive season.
That said, there was no doubt that the store needed updating and that some departments were losing money hand over fist.
How much should she confide in a perfect stranger, though? Zero, she decided.
She pointed things out. She explained tricks they used to get footfall on the upper floors, which were always quieter. She was saying all the right, helpful things, while her mind was in freefall and her body responded to him in ways she didn’t want.
She tightened her lips and fell silent as they toured the floor.
She wondered whether she could palm Jose off on Hal in the white goods department.
If he wasn’t around her, he wouldn’t get under her skin and she wouldn’t think about the parts of her life that were so unsatisfying when held up to scrutiny.
‘We seem to be covering ground at break-neck speed,’ Rocco murmured next to her.
‘There’s a lot to get through before I decide what I do with you.’ Ella flushed at the unintended innuendo.
‘Do with me as you will. You have my word that you’ll find me a very able and enthusiastic worker. Your wish will be my command while I’m here.’
‘Great. We love able and enthusiastic little worker bees here at Hailey’s.’
Rocco burst out laughing, and he felt that something again as her green glance slid across to him and held his amused gaze for a couple of seconds.
A couple of seconds longer than was strictly necessary, his highly attuned sexual antenna told him.
Something stirred inside him, the thrill of being in a completely novel situation for the first time in his life, he thought.
‘Maybe we could take a breather for five minutes while I process everything you’ve told me.’
‘You should have been taking notes.’
‘No need. I have an excellent memory.’
Ella gazed at him, out of her depth with this lazy banter. She wanted to escape this yet she wanted to bask in it and enjoy the excited, light-hearted feeling it gave her. Neither option was the efficient, brisk response she knew she should give him.
‘How many more floors have we to look around?’
‘Three,’ she said crisply. ‘And don’t tell me that you’re exhausted. You don’t look the sort who tires easily.’ She cast a critical eye over him and reddened at the slow smile he shot her.
‘What sort would you say I looked like?’