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Her voice is cold, and I know of few people who could earn that sort of reception from her. Lia was devastated when Carrie left me. She had claimed at the time that she hated to see Tasha lose her mom. Now, though, I think it was far more personal. It must be Jean. I don’t want to deal with Jean today, but the wrath Lia would endure isn’t worth my preferences right now.
“Our door will open manually from this side. You can either directly open the door or there is a yellow square that lights up on your phone when someone doesn’t have access. If you press that, it will open the door for them.” She’s already at the door and pushing the button before I can ask her who it is. Security would have called me if Jean’s visit were announced as a visit for me. She must have told them she was here to see Lia.
I straighten the papers on my desk, hiding the top sheet of confidential numbers. Jean is leaning on Lia’s desk, and Lia has put herself between her step-mother and my slightly ajar door. “If you’ll wait here, I’ll check with Mr. Huntsworth to see if he’s available.”
“Oh, he’s available for me, Lia.” Jean pushes past her and lets herself in, reminding me why I’m glad she can’t get past security without permission each time.
“Jean—” Lia sounds exasperated as she stomps after Jean into my office. “I’m sorry, Mr. Huntsworth.” The professional tone is a one-eighty from when she first came in a few hours ago. Her ability to project the right persona as the secretary to the CEO of my corporation means a lot to me. I need someone who can provide the correct image.
“It’s okay, Lia. If you want to go for lunch, it would be great to head down to the cafeteria now or go out if you prefer. My food will be sent up from the cafeteria in about an hour. If you could be back by then, it would be great. I have some things to go over with you for while I’ll be away.” I can get back to work (or to fantasizing about Lia) depending on how quickly I am able to rid myself of my impromptu visitor.
Lia gives me a bright grin, one rich with more than a little mischief. “I know about your lunch. The chef called up to see if I wanted a grilled chicken salad when he sent up yours, or if I wanted something else. I’m going to go see what they are serving everyone else. It would probably be good for me to meet the factory employees while I’m at it. Second floor, right?” she asks me. “If your tray is ready, I’ll see if I can just bring it up with me to save the kitchen staff the effort. See you in a bit.”
I wave as she disappears, and then I turn my attention to the woman in front of me. “How can I help you, Jean?” She’s dressed in a short suit dress, one considerably shorter than what I would consider professional. Her shirt has a low neckline, and she leans over my desk, daring me to look at what her husband likely paid to have enhanced. I don’t take the bait.
Jean is beautiful, but she is far too greedy for prestige and money aside from her being married. She toys with her necklace, a red fingernail dropping below my peripheral vision.
“I am busy, Jean. Is there something wrong?”
“No, Beck.” I hate the way she purrs out my name. “I just wanted to check in and see how Lia is working out for you.” She comes around and leans against the corner of my desk, one toned leg stretched out only inches away from me. Her act could be seen as innocent flirtation by anyone else. I know the truth.
“She’s great; thanks for recommending her.” I keep my eyes on hers or on my computer as I type in an order sheet for inventory to get moved from one warehouse to the factory for additional work. “Did you manage to fix that error with how the generator converts the solar powered energy?” Jean is excellent at her job most of the time, but when she makes a mistake, it’s a big one. Even before she married Lia’s dad, Jean had pursued me to the point of it being laughable.
Jean nods, her chin rising and falling like one of those bobble heads lined up along a car’s dashboard. “Weeks ago, Beck. Really, I don’t have any problems. It’s my lunch break, so I thought I would come up here, see if Lia’s doing okay, and if there’s anything I can do for you.” One fingertip dances across my desk and touches the side of my hand.
It’s too much, and I’m done with the conversation. I can only be polite for a short time in the face of such blatant disregard for my boundaries. A swift keystroke triggers my own security protocol, and my phone rings five seconds later, appearing to be from the main reception desk downstairs instead of being a fake proxy call through the computer.
“Sorry, Jean. I have to take this.” I pick up the receiver and hold it to my ear as a recorded voice begins questioning me about our upcoming releases. “This is Beck. How may I help you?” This truly was one of my more brilliant additions to my phone system. I’ll have to come up with something like this for Lia’s computer, too.
I listen for a few more seconds. “Hold on just a moment. I’ll be right back.” I place the fake call on hold. “I really am sorry, Jean. This call is about my upcoming trip. I leave in the morning for several weeks. I’ll drop by Research and Development later today when I give Lia a full tour of the site. I want to introduce her to all the department heads before I leave in case she needs anything for me while I’m gone. We can catch up when Lia and I are down there. Okay?”
Sour-faced and sulking, Jean shows herself out. She knows she can’t complain about me having her step-daughter there when talking to me, not without admitting to ulterior motives.
I hang up the phone once she’s past the security door. Thankful for her departure, I make a few quick calls to wrap up loose ends before I start packing up my desk for my trip. Being gone for several weeks at a time is a normal part of my job. I can work from virtually anywhere as long as I have a Wi-Fi connection or remember to pack my portable satellite access. Video conferencing keeps me close to Tasha no matter the distance. Not seeing Lia, however, is going to be painful. It has barely been twenty-four hours since she came crashing back into my world, but I’m not sure I can envision my life without her.
I’ve got to get this boner in check.
3
Lia
It’s nearing the end of my first day at Huntsworth Industries, and I find myself happy with how it went. Behind a desk is not exactly how I saw myself, even as a temporary financial solution, but all the staff I’ve met are friendly. Having Beck visible from the edge of my monitor is quite a job perk, too. He’s even gorgeous when deep in thought with his work.
“What’s it like working for my dad?” The words pop up in my chat messenger, and I minimize the window quickly. I know I’m allowed to chat online a bit, and even use the desk phone for personal use if needed, but wasting work time does not sit well with me. It feels like stealing from Beck when he’s paying me to be productive.
My tour of the facilities has already blurred in my memories except for the sensation of Beck’s hand on my waist or at my elbow to guide me. Always the gentleman, he opened doors for me and answered all my questions with patient enthusiasm instead of making me feel stupid when I did not understand a division’s responsibilities. Some of the signs seemed more likely to be from a sci-fi film than belonging in a company, but they mostly made sense by the time we finished. By the time Beck is back from his trip, I hope I know my way around without guidance.
Near the end of my tour, as he showed me the gym as well as his favorite escape route from our wing of the building, I could feel myself falling for him. He doesn’t take for granted the position he has here, nor does he hold the responsibilities lightly. The pride in Beck’s eyes as he showed me the location of the time capsule we had buried here when I was just a kid…
I open my computer’s web browser and Tasha’s message, replying to her about my afternoon. “Do you think your dad will give us back the things we hid in the box before it was sealed?” I type. My favorite charm bracelet went in there along with Tasha’s teddy bear. We hadn’t thought that out too well. There are still seven years to wait before the time capsule will be dug out and opened.
