Chapter 2—Bobby #2
“Um, part-time financial analyst?” She says it like she’s wondering if I’m going to fire her. Like it’s a trick question.
But there’s no trick. Nothing about this is something to brush off.
Full-time, part-time, even interns are allotted overtime pay.
It’s encouraged that everyone clocks their time accurately to prevent any federal mandate issues, which could allow the feds to find a footing that gets them access to the famiglia.
And Spencer Folly just created a problem.
“Right. Well, keep up the good work.” I turn to leave and casually toss out the rest. “We’ll connect on Monday and have a talk about your time with us.”
I want it to sound less threatening than it is.
I can’t fire her for simply working off the clock.
That could open us up to bigger issues. But I could talk with her and say we had a “change of heart” or some bullshit that could get her to overlook it.
I also want to find out if she knows whether Spencer is pulling this same shit with others too.
I need to know how deep this goes before I let someone go.
And yes, someone is getting laid off. Just not sure who yet.
“Oh, sir?”
I barely glance at her as I keep walking, expecting her to freak out with the big boss in the building wanting to talk with her, but it’s her next words that have me stopping dead in my tracks.
“To avoid any further delay, do you want me to just give you the Myers file now?”
Marco, who was in step with me back to the elevator, cocks his head to the side to look at me with a raised eyebrow. I shake my head. This doesn’t make sense.
Why would a low-level analyst expect me to take a file from her?
“Excuse me?” I turn and look back at her so I can read her body language when she speaks next. I need to make sure I understand her intentions.
Reading a person’s mannerisms is half of what makes me so good at my job. I can tell when a person is lying and when they’re just doing it for attention. It’s a family trait we all know, though only Danny took the time to study it in full. The rest of us just dabble at it enough to do it well.
“The Myers file. I was able to finish identifying the inconsistencies in it just now. I thought it would take me a few hours, but I was further along than I had thought. Since you’re here, I didn’t know if you just wanted it now or if you preferred I get with Mr. Folly on them like I did last week on the other file. ”
“Other file?” My head tilts slightly, as if a nervous tic overtakes me. Her words make little sense. And things that don’t make sense are never harmless.
“Yes, sir. The Chandler file? I gave it to him last Friday, and he said he would speak with you about my findings, but I needed to start on the Myers file next to find the same issues.”
I see Marco shake his head once out of the corner of my eye. He knows my schedule better than anyone other than my secretary, who’s the one to schedule my life but also sends a copy of everything to Marco for final approval. If he doesn’t dispute it, then there are no issues.
“He must not have found time in my schedule this week to discuss it with me,” I say with no alarm in my voice. Better to let her think I’m in on everything and not that I have zero clue what she’s saying.
She nods as if that explains it all, but only Marco and I know I have a free hour daily for unexpected meetings from the company. And this week? Those hours were never occupied.
I take a step closer and rest my arm along the top of the cubicle. I notice she’s taller now, having slipped her shoes back on while my back was turned. “You have time to walk me through it?”
“Me? Today?” She wobbles on her feet and slips back to her smaller height.
Her eyes are wide, and I find it comical and endearing all at once as I dip my head in acknowledgment and look over the side to see she only has one shoe on.
Well, had. Now it’s twisted to the side as if she fell off from balancing on it in shock.
“Ahh, sure. I can give you the Myers files now, but I’ll have to redo the Chandler file.”
My expression doesn’t change, but my fists clench. Already knowing I won’t like the answer, I ask, “Why?”
“Mr. Folly took all my files on that case. I can still access the original document he sent me, but he had me scrub the final draft. I’ll have to redo it if you want to look it over today.”
“How long will that take?”
She nibbles her bottom lip as she does the calculations in her head. She’s not looking at me, but I don’t stop looking at her mouth. Her lips aren’t plump like injections would make them, which more than one woman seems to find attractive in this building. They’re pouty in a subtle way. Like her.
I take a moment while she’s lost in thought to look her over closer. Slender, sure, but a decent figure. Nothing overly large or wide in one area or the next, but she’s not rail thin. She’s balanced in a way that holds attention.
Her honey-blonde hair seems natural, not bleached or dyed to a certain color.
Her nose is narrow and pert. Her cheekbones are sharp, but her oval face makes them look naturally balanced.
Simple in every way and alluring in others.
And her eyes? Aqua. Not green, not blue—a mix, like the sea off the Amalfi Coast.
“An hour, maybe two, since I know what I’m looking for.”
“Two hours,” I confirm.
She’s quick to speak, as if she said something wrong. “I can try to do it in one if you have other plans today.”
I shake my head. “Two is fine. Come find me on the twenty-fifth floor when you’re done. I’ll make sure you have access up there.”
“Yes, sir.” She nods vigorously. Then, unlike so many others before her, she turns and gets to work without waiting for me to leave first, which I appreciate more than she knows.
I prefer those who just start rather than waiting like I’m some damn king who needs to be seen exiting.
I might be a king in this building, but I don’t want to be treated as such. Well, not when work is on the line.
“I want everything on Spencer Folly, and you don’t have two hours. You have one,” I say to Marco as we step into the elevator. He already has his phone out, typing to do what I asked before I even voiced it.
“Yes, sir. Already on it.”
Guess coming in today wasn’t such a bad thing after all.