Page 13 of Diego

I watch him click through something on the screen.

“I’ll clear my schedule,” he continues. “We can dedicate the entire day to it.”

“No.”

His hand stops on the mouse.

For the first time since I walked into his office, Randall looks genuinely confused. “No?”

“I don’t want you showing me the properties.”

There is a brief pause while he works out whether he heard me correctly. “I’m sorry?”

I lean back in the chair and glance toward the glass wall separating his office from the main floor. I cannot see much from this angle, only part of the work area and a few desks beyond it, but I already know exactly who I mean.

“The woman outside.”

Randall follows my gaze and then looks back at me. “Which woman?”

“The one with the black hair.”

His expression changes.

For a man who has spent the entire meeting smiling at me, the flicker of disapproval is almost refreshing.

“Blair?”

I turn the name over in my head.

Blair.

It suits her.

“Yes,” I say. “Blair.”

Randall hesitates. “Blair Owens.”

“That’s the one.”

He shifts in his chair, and for the first time his smile looks strained rather than polished. “She’s new.”

“Are you in the habit of hiring incapable employees, Randall?”

“No,” he says quickly, almost panicky. “She’s very capable, but she’s still building experience. For a search like yours, I really think you’d be better served by someone who has been working at this level longer.”

I study him.

There are several things I could say.

I could tell him that I did not ask who he thinks would serve me better. I could remind him that the company he is sitting in belongs to my family now. I could also point out that he's been working at this level for quite some time, and he has managed to show me nothing that I like.

Instead, I smile sharply.

Randall notices the change in it.

“I want Blair.”

His mouth opens, then closes.