AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He didn’t spare a backward glance as he walked out of the office and closed the door behind him once more, leaving Farren alone with an intimidating Mr. Rayner.
She stood from her desk, facing her boss and feeling a flush warming her cheeks again as she recalled what she had walked in on earlier in his office.
“Mr. Rayner, I’m really sorry about my intrusion earlier. It was thoughtless of me, and it won’t happen again,” she promised as her hands fidgeted together in front of her.
He paused as though thinking about it, then shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. How are you doing so far? Do you have any questions about the software?”
She was a little jarred by the mercurial mood swings, but was glad the angry one wasn’t directed toward her at the moment.
“No, so far I’m getting it. The main program is put together really well. It’s complex, but at the same time, the interface is very intuitive and easy to follow.”
She noticed the corners of his eyes crinkle as he displayed a look of… pride? He must have written the program himself, she thought. Amazing.
“Very good. I’m going to have Rita come in and walk you through a few things in the next hour or so, as well as have you sign your I-9 forms and so forth. She’ll be at the front if you need anything else today.”
And then he was gone once more. Her head was nearly spinning, she was so confused by the display she had just witnessed. She was a quick study when it came to computers and electronics, but she was finding it hard to figure out Mr. Rayner. The trouble was, now she was intrigued, and that meant she had to get to the bottom of it.
SIX
The first week flew by at Rayner Technologies. Apparently, word had spread that Farren was hands-off to the other employees, except for Rita. According to Rita, the other new girl had been a novelty to the men in the building, but that quickly wore off when they realized she was just another computer nerd like the rest of them.
Farren thought the same would have been said for her, had Rayner not made her off-limits. Instead, it had everyone curious to know what was so special about the boss’s new assistant, the forbidden fruit.
By the end of Farren’s second week, she had just about gotten the hang of things. She’d had some opportunities to show Rayner a little of what she was capable of, and from what she could tell, he liked what he saw.
She got the impression that he hadn’t thought she would know what she was doing, and had been surprised to discover she was quite capable.
“You surprise me, Miss Fields,” he told her that Friday evening as she was packing her things to leave for the night.
“I do?” she asked, stopping what she was doing to look up at him. She noticed he had taken his glasses off, and she had an unobstructed view of his eyes, which was a rare occurrence. The scar that divided his left eyebrow caught her eye again, and she vowed someday to ask him how he’d gotten it.
“You do. I had my doubts, but you’ve exceeded my expectations and proven yourself at every turn so far.”
He stood in her doorway leading to the hall, waiting for her to follow so they could walk out together. They had stayed late that evening putting the finishing touches on a program design.
“I don’t get why it’s so surprising. I’ve been studying computer technology since before I was even in high school. It’s just what I’ve always done, what I’ve always known.” My escape, she added silently.
“Maybe. You just don’t strike me as the typical computer geek,” he admitted.
“What does that mean?” she cried defensively. She thought she knew what, but part of her wanted to hear him say it.
He stopped at the front exit with his hand on the door handle, but didn’t push it open yet. Instead, he angled around to face her and replied, “You’re much prettier than any computer geek I’ve ever met.”
That shut her up for a moment. She stood, frozen in his glare, surprised by the candid response. Was he just being nice? She wasn’t sure, but the way he was looking at her wasn’t helping.
She lowered her gaze from his eyes to his lips, and she wanted to reach up and brush her fingers across the barely noticeable scar there. She was close enough to, and something in the way he looked at her acted as a magnet, an invisible pull that called to her, beckoned her to come closer, to touch him.
“I… guess I could say the same for you.”
Shit! She just admitted he was much prettier than any computer geek she had ever met.
“That you don’t strike me as the typical computer geek, I mean,” she corrected.
He smiled. His arm lifted to touch the smooth, bare skin of her neck, and his thumb brushed the line of her jaw. His hand was so warm, it soothed her, and her instinct was to lean into it.
Was he about to kiss her?
She could feel the quickening of her heart at the very prospect of it. What would it be like to kiss him? Maybe the more pertinent question should have been, what would it be like after kissing him? Did she really want to?
