AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Further action?”
“Inter-disciplinary. Mr. Nasteau says that you have crossed the boundaries of decorum by having a relationship with an associate with which we do business.”
“I what? No, I haven’t.”
“Thaddeus Ulrich?” she replied.
Jaycee looked over at Mr. Nasteau. He had a smarmy look on her face that made her want to slap him.
Or worse.
She gritted her teeth, pushing her inner wolf’s voice downward and addressing Mrs. Stutt as if he weren’t in the room.
“I went out with Mr. Ulrich before I came to work here. I had no idea that he was involved with our company in any way, shape or form.”
“And since you found out?”
Jaycee looked down at her hands for a moment and then took a deep breath before speaking.
“I went out to dinner with Mr. Ulrich once since then and haven’t seen him since.”
“That’s not true,” Mr. Nasteau interjected, getting a look of exasperation from Mrs. Stutt. She had obviously asked him to let her handle this.
“Yes, it is,” Jaycee protested.
“I sent you to deliver a contract. You would have seen him then.”
“He wasn’t available. I gave it to his associate to be delivered.”
“I told you to put those contracts in the hands of the people I sent them to,” he barked, turning his attention back to Mrs. Stutts. “See, this is what I mean. Not only is she jeopardizing the reputation of my company, but she can’t even complete simple tasks as requested.”
Jaycee said nothing. Anything she was thinking right now would be a sure-fire way to get canned if she let it slip from her mouth. Instead, she clutched the arms of her chair and willed herself to keep quiet.
“I don’t think that is terribly uncommon in our industry, Mr. Nasteau. When dealing with people in high level positions, our clerks and interns aren’t always given carte blanche to just walk in their office and hand them things.”
“I don’t have to be in here, Marilyn. I could have just fired her, but you have insisted I keep you in the loop on these things. If you are going to make an excuse for poor employee performance and behavior, then perhaps, I should let you walk her out and you can keep walking.”
Now, it was Marilyn Stutts biting her lip. Jaycee remained silent, waiting for what would happen next. She expected to be fired but was surprised by Marilyn’s next words.
“Jaycee, please return to your desk while Mr. Nasteau and I have a private discussion.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Jaycee said politely, getting up from her chair.
She caught a glimpse of Mr. Nasteau as she turned toward the door. He was fuming. His entire head was read. His face and the bald spot on top of his head that wasn’t covered with his hideous combover were splotchy with anger. He did not like to be crossed, especially not by a woman.
She sat nervously at her desk, wondering if she should go ahead and pack her things, though she hadn’t yet brought many in yet. Maybe she should just go ahead and quit. How could she continue to work here knowing nothing she did would please him and that he already wanted to fire her after less than a month?CHAPTER EIGHTEENThad
For the second night in a row, Thad had dreamed about Jaycee. He woke up feeling out of sorts and wanting to call her but refused to chase after a woman who didn’t want him. Still, the dream had been unsettling and he felt the need to know that she was okay. The feeling stayed with him as he waited for Barron to arrive. He didn’t hesitate to get to the point once he sat down beside him in the car.
“Barron, I need you to do me a favor.”
“Sure. What’s up?”
“I need you to keep an eye on Jaycee for me.”
“Keep an eye on her? You want me to stalk her for you?”
“No. Of course not. I just need to know that she is okay, and I can’t call her.”
“Can’t? Or won’t?”
“Same difference.”
“So, what is it that you want me to watch for then?”
“Nothing in particular. Like I said, I just need to know she is okay.”
“I think she is,” Barron replied.
“Why do you say that?”
“Listen, I don’t want to bother you. You seem to really like this woman, more than I’ve ever seen you like a woman, really, but she’s already moving on. She was curled up with someone else the other night down in the communal area, watching the tube.”
“Someone else? You sound like it wasn’t just someone else.”
“It was Aaron Golding.”
“The Aaron Golding?”
“One and the same.”
“Did he recognize you?”
“Nope. Too far up his own ass, I guess. She even called me by name, and it didn’t seem to ring any bells with him.”
“Fuck!”
“Anyway, to answer your question. Yes. I’ll keep an eye on her because I already have been. Whatever they have going on seems to be pretty casual. It seems like she always meets him downstairs and never takes him up to her room.”
