"Of course she did," Kerrie muttered lowly.
The woman straightened her shoulders and offered her hand to Kerrie. "I don't think we've been introduced. I'm Bette Cooper." There was a cool, hard edge to her voice.
Kerrie looked at the hand offered like a stain on her good shirt. Tyler cleared his throat loudly, and Kerrie reluctantly took the hand in hers, trying her best not to notice how soft it was or the pretty pink nails. She was a sucker for a feminine woman.
"I'm Kerrie Matthews."
"It's nice to meet you, Kerrie," the blonde offered, pulling her hand away.
"I wish I could say the same. I'm not quite sure why you're here."
Without missing a beat, Bette countered. "I would imagine because my services are needed. I'm here to help the building run smoothly, and I can assure you I won't be another task for you to keep track of."
Silence settled over them as a stunned Kerrie sat back in her chair. She hadn't expected the soft, demure woman to have a bite.
Slapping his knees, Tyler stood with a big smile. "Well, I think this is going to work out really well. Bette, why don't we head back down to my office and finish up and leave Miss Matthews here to tackle whatever it is she needs to tackle?"
"That sounds good to me." She turned back to Kerrie. "I look forward to working with you."
Kerrie snorted but otherwise didn't say anything.
"Kerrie, she'll be doing training videos and such for the next couple of days, but I'll send her up here once we get things settled."
"Whatever you say, sir," Kerrie said defensively.
The pair exited the office, pulling the door shut behind them. Luke turned to her. "No offense, Ms. K, but whatever that woman did, you could tell you didn't want her here."
"My boss appears to think I need help. All she's going to do is get in the way."
Luke scratched his head and then tossed the keys on Kerrie's desk. "I know it's not my place to say, but honestly, if I were the one overrun with things and never getting out on time, you'd be the first person telling me that it's okay to ask for help. I've got to go have a smoke before I set up the video. I'll catch you later."
Kerrie sat staring at the door Luke had just left out of, feeling about two feet tall and like an asshole.
Chapter 5
The interaction with Kerrie hadn't left the back of Bette's mind as she pulled into the parking lot of The Main building for her first official day. She had had every intention of calling Tyler and telling him she would not be taking the job after all, but Zoe's encouragement and her mother's screeching about using the wrong dryer sheets in her pristine electronic luxury machine convinced her to give it a go.
That Kerrie woman had been so rude. She had never met Bette and was already expecting her to be an issue. Like she would be more work than help. Incompetence and Bette Cooper were not two things people would relate together. She was a hard worker and knew she was overqualified for the position, but without the degree, she was stuck. Plus, everyone else had been kind to her. The clients made her feel a little weird, but she thought it wouldn't be so bad once she was in her own building.
She sat in her car for a few more minutes, wishing she could go home, when she noticed a hand waving at her. It was Elaine, with a boho bag over her shoulder and a long, flowy black dress with a hand-crocheted pink and orange scarf around her neck. Her lime green glasses were gone, replaced with a frame split down the middle, one side white and one black. Bette smiled back at her as she grabbed her purse and left her car. Just seeing the happy, sunshiny woman lifted Bette's stormy mood.
"Good morning, Bette," beamed Elaine.
"Good morning. It's really nice out today, isn't it?" Bette turned her face towards the new morning sun. It was shaping up to be a beautiful day.
"Yes, too bad we have to go into a stuffy portable instead of enjoying it." Elaine made a face, and they both laughed. Bette liked Elaine immediately. She seemed like someoneBette could be friends with, which was an odd thought since Bette couldn't remember the last time she’d made a real friend.
Bette glanced down at the bags. "Do you need help?"
"Nah, I got them. We needed a few things, so I had to run to the store."
They entered The Main building to find ten or so men scattered around the front desk, some with duffel bags and backpacks, while others seemed to have their belongings in black trash bags.
"What's going on?" Bette asked quietly.
"Oh, these are guys leaving. We have vans that go out to different parts of the state on certain days of the week. This should be the east vans this morning."
"I didn't realize we gave rides."
