Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 23753 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 119(@200wpm)___ 95(@250wpm)___ 79(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23753 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 119(@200wpm)___ 95(@250wpm)___ 79(@300wpm)
Brian
I appreciate your sense of humor, sir. I needed it today.
I roll my eyes and return to the office.
Kendall has pulled her desk closer to mine, close enough that I can smell her coffee and her perfume mixed together.
She looks up, catches me watching, and my checklist collapses.
We work in silence, stealing glances we pretend not to notice, the hours slipping past until the sun sinks behind the skyline and I’m no closer to forgetting the taste of her.
By the end of the week, Kendall and I are working on the final parts of the marketing campaign together—making sure the faulty timelines and emotional appeals line up.
Even though her specialty is numbers, she’s very talented when it comes to crafting sentences with emotional punch, too.
And she’s even more talented at pretending like there’s no tension between us.
“Can we call it a night?” She looks at her watch. “It’s almost nine and I need to get home.”
“Sure,” I say. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Kendall.”
“Lucian.” She smiles and begins putting away her things. She looks at me as if she’s about to ask something—and whatever it is, it’s a yes, but her phone suddenly buzzes.
“Sorry.” She pulls it out and glances at the screen. “I’ll be back. I have to take this.”
She rushes away, her heels clicking on my marble floor and leading the way into my side room.
I shouldn’t follow, but there’s one thing about her that’s still nagging at the back of my mind.
The boyfriend.
I make my way toward the room, watching her pace.
“No, no, no,” she says, setting her phone down. “You have to take that amount from the residuals and then subtract it from the former account.”
“Ahhhh!” A soft female voice sifts from her speakers. “Okay, I’ve got it, but uh, it’s still not adding up.”
“Okay, thanks for trying.”
“Why are you still trying to figure out this report?” The woman laughs. “Didn’t Lucifer give you a pass since you’re helping out with other things?”
“He did, but you know me.” She bites her lip. “I can’t leave equations unsolved.”
“You can if it’s not your money. What’s three million to Mr. Pearson, really?”
“A new watch, probably.”
“Exactly. He’s not losing sleep over it, so neither should you.”
“I’d hate to turn it in without doing all my diligence.”
“You’ve done enough.” The woman’s voice is firm. “Whenever you wise up and stop wasting your talents here, start your own company and take me with you.”
“I will, Mindy…” She sighs.
“Is he still treating you terribly?”
“He is.”
Bullshit.
“It’s like he has moments when he’s nice, but…” She shakes her head. “I swear he thinks the sun rises every morning just to shine on his bank account. Do you know he made me work through lunch? He gave me a look when I dared to eat a granola bar.”
“Oh my god.”
“And don’t get me started on the way he talks to me,” she continues, flopping onto a sofa. “It’s always orders and commands, like I’m an inmate in his prison.”
“So basically, he’s exactly what we thought he was, but worse in person?”
“Yep.”
“At least he’s attractive though, right?”
“Eh.” She shrugs. “He’s okay.”
My blood simmers at that lie, and I’m tempted to remind her exactly how wet she was for someone who was just “okay,” but I slowly step away from the door.
It’s my fault for eavesdropping, but it’s her fault for being a blatant liar.
I’ll show you what “okay” really feels like, Miss Clarke…
THE ACCOUNTANT
KENDALL
Mr. Pearson
Bring an overnight bag with you to work today.
We need to take a flight to Florida. Should be back by this evening, but just in case.
Is it possible for me to catch a separate flight home if things run late? I need to be back home by 9.
Okay.
Okay as in ‘yes?”
No. Okay as in just “OKAY” Miss Clarke…
So now he’s back to being impossible?
I toss my phone into my purse, and Myra pouts while she helps me pack a few outfits.
She hasn’t uttered a word to me all day, and I haven’t tried to make her. She has every right to be pissed, and I’m at her mercy for forgiveness.
“I put in an application for you at my school,” she says. “If they call you for an interview, I need you to promise that you’ll take it.”
I look up from my makeup bag. “You did what?”
“The base pay is one hundred and ninety thousand a year, and there are bonus clauses,” she says. “They’ve got great health insurance and retirement stuff, and best of all, my tuition would be free.”
“Wow.” I can’t help but smile. “I had no idea.”
“Because you haven’t had any time to yourself to search, I know.” She shoots me a sympathetic look. “I figured I should try to help.”
“I appreciate that, Myra.” I pull her close for a hug. “I’ll definitely go for an interview if they call.”
“If they don’t, you’ll have other options,” she says. “I’m putting in applications for you at other places, too.”