Charisma #2
“You keep referencing my accountant. How do you know about all of this?” He waved his hand around the office and I knew the way we met was the reason he was acting this way.
“Did you even look at my resume?”
“You mean the one tucked in my back pocket? That you gave me an hour ago? Nah, hadn’t had the time.” He spoke sarcastically but still had a smile on his face so I felt as though I could speak freely.
“If you would’ve looked at it you would’ve seen that I have a degree in business.
Not only that, but I’m almost thirty years old.
I know enough about how social media can be a huge driver of business because I’ve watched it happen my entire life.
So, if you’re looking to get things set to rights just say the word. ”
That same devastating smile crossed his face and it was his turn to cross his arms like he was challenging me. “Another addition to your job description?”
“Despite my creative side, I can’t do work like this in dysfunction. It will have me walking away and never looking back.” I was calling his bluff because I needed this job and he knew it. I was hoping he wouldn’t call my bluff and just think of a name for his company.
“Well, we can’t have that so pick a name, Bucky.” Doc was back to instigating as he popped Nate on the side of the leg.
He frowned down at Doc and then back at me with his shoulders rolling tensely in his fitted gray t-shirt. “On the spot like this? I can’t think of anything that means more to me than family but I don’t want people to think this is just another branch of the larger family business.”
“Then name it the BCL Center.” I figured he wouldn’t want this to be called a school but a center was where people could learn and train in whatever area necessary.
“BCL?”
“Bucky Chisholm-Love. It’s an homage to the family you come from while still honing in on your individuality and your love for all things rodeo. You got the name because of your want to ride I’m assuming?”
He was nodding and rubbing his chin like he was mulling over my suggestion. He didn’t speak immediately so Doc spoke up for him. “You’d assume right.”
Nate was nodding again before he pointed toward me. “We’ll run with that and I’ll make it official before the week is out. The LLC paperwork isn’t too hard to complete and I can do it before my training.”
“I’ll get it set up for you. How have you been paying your employees so far?” I pulled up my phone since I didn’t have login credentials yet and began looking up the LLC process for Texas.
“Out of pocket.” He damn near mumbled that information to himself and I slowly looked up at him because I couldn’t have heard him right.
“You mean under the table?”
“Most are 1099 but I see now I’m going to have to change that. At least by the look on your face.”
I sighed because this man’s heart was in the right place but he was going to be in a hell of a lot of trouble if he didn’t get his shit together.
“Yes. People are going to be looking for healthcare and other benefits. Especially in a sport like this, where you’re more prone to get hurt.
You want them to feel confident that they’ll have their needs taken care of.
” I wasn’t sure how people were working for him or even training at his facility without these additional protections in place.
“I’ll talk to my brother to see what plans he has. We might get a good group rate by going through the same broker the family uses. You can help me pick it out since you’ve spent the last few minutes letting me know I’m woefully unprepared for business.”
My eyes were wide because I realized I probably made him feel bad, which wasn’t my intention. “Oh no! Wait, I was only making—”
Doc reached across the desk to pat my hand silently telling me to simmer down. “He’s giving you a compliment, love. He’s glad you’re getting him into shape. He doesn’t do well with stuff like this. Nate is far more practical than he is about business. A hands on kind of person.”
“I more than appreciate everything you’ve done so far this morning. It’s not even noon yet and you’re already earning that bonus. And to think you thought this was a pity job.”
I relaxed as the truth of his words settled in. I didn’t want to get too comfortable and insult the man but was happy he took me seriously. “Glad I’m earning my keep.”
“Indeed. I’m thankful that I met you, Charisma. Real thankful.”
He was staring at me again, and Thumper was back to thumping. Which meant I needed him to look somewhere else. His gaze only got more intense and I looked down at my phone, having to break the hold he had on me.
“I’m going to get a list of things that we’re going to work on for the next few days so we can get everything squared up. Again, I’m not trying to get on your accountant’s bad side.”
“Cool, what you need from me?”
I nodded toward the desk and scooted back to give him room. “Think you can log me in so I can start pulling apart the threads in this ball of yarn you’ve got going on? I should be able to have this place set to rights no later than Wednesday.”
He didn’t give me a verbal confirmation; it was physical as he strode to my side of the desk and then bent down to sign into the computer.
Long strands of hair that women would’ve tied him up to scalp him for drifted from behind his back to the front of his chest. I’d never seen a man with hair that was damn near touching his waist but here was Nate, once again breaking all of my preconceived notions.
An avenger with a thirty-inch kinky straight bust down and diamond studs who would pistol whip a man quicker than speak to him.
It wasn’t just his hair that had me mesmerized.
His scent was doing as much damage as every other part of him.
He had the slightly salty scent of sweat with a fragrant deodorant that kept him from that man stank you would expect him to have after doing manual labor.
He smelled like a man but not like taint.
I wanted to rub my cheek against the cotton of his t-shirt so I could embed the scent into my skin.
Yeah, big problems.
After a few more clacks of the keys, he stood straight up overwhelming me with his scent as he moved and leaving me bereft when he was once again upright.
“Got you all logged in. Now you can start whipping us into shape.” The wink was playful but the words weren’t. They sent my mind to drifting on whether Nate liked to be tied up and spanked for being a bad boy.
Should’ve asked Mama to put me on the prayer list.
I only smiled back but it felt tight even to me. The computer was top of the line but there would be far more that was needed to get this place in working order.
“What to do about expenses?”
He reached behind him and pulled out his wallet before tossing an African American Express on the desk. “Use this for now. We’ll have a new account and cards set up for Bucky Chisholm-Love before the close of the business week.”
“Efficient. Must be nice having that kind of pull.”
“It’s a necessary evil when it comes to getting what I need and what I want. I’m not a man who likes to lose.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
His playful side shuttered turning into something warmer and far more seductive. “Make sure that you do.”