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“Babysit?”
“Perhaps a poor choice of word. Would entertain be a better choice? Since you seem a bit overly sensitive, I’ll be careful what words I choose going forward. Anyway, I needed some time to get my calendar cleared, so I could spend more time with you. That’s been done. I’m all yours.”
Anger filled her up. This guy was arrogant, demanding, a pain in the ass...and insanely all she could think about was what he might be like in bed. No. I have a job to do. “Mr. Wilde, I think we’re getting off on the wrong foot. But you do need to understand one thing. If I find any infraction that I deem serious enough to merit closure of the mine, I will do my duty to make sure no one else gets hurt.”
Austin’s face grew dark, and his eyes narrowed. “My job is to make sure that the miners whose families depend on this place staying open continue to earn a living.”
“Even if that means some of them might get hurt, or worse— killed.”
He slammed his fist into one of the lockers, causing her to gasp. Still, when he spoke, his voice was steady and controlled. “Ms. Greene, I’m certain you will not find any infraction that points to something lacking in our policies and procedures at Wilde Mine.”
She shivered. The man was so intense. And so sexy. “I’m here to make sure it’s safe. Do you agree with me that something is odd about the accidents? Wilde Mine has been free of incidents for years. Now, there’s several in a month. Even I was nearly injured in one just a few days ago.”
His hands curled into fists. She’d hit a nerve. Good.
“I apologize for that. You do understand that the driver of the machinery had an episode with his heart?”
“Yes. How is he?”
“I checked with the doctor this morning. He says that Paul should be going home sometime tomorrow.” For the first time, Jessie spotted a softer emotion on this stoic man’s face. It was relief.
“I’m glad to hear that he’s doing well.”
“What do you need to help you speed your investigation along, Ms. Greene? The quicker you get through it, the quicker you can get home.”
“Well, I’d like to look into the files around the areas where the initial accidents occurred. Then, I’d like to read the reports that were filed by the supervisors that were on site.”
He stood up and gathered up his papers and the remainder of his meal. “Follow me.” Without waiting for her, Austin walked out of the locker room.
Jessie leapt to her feet and trailed him. He’s got me hopping like a trained pup.
When she finally caught up to Austin, he was standing in front of his secretary’s desk.
“Yes, sir?” Selby asked.
“Whatever Ms. Greene needs, make sure she gets it. Understand?”
The woman looked up at him with stars in her eyes. “Sure thing. Mr. Winters has called three times. Said it’s urgent.”
“Bankers think everything is urgent. Fine. I’ll call him. I’d like some coffee.”
Selby nodded. “I’ll make some fresh for you, sir.”
“It’s going to be a long night. I’ll need you to stay late, too.” Austin wasn’t asking the woman, he was commanding her. Arrogant. Chauvinistic. Asshole. Steamy.
“Yes, sir.” Clearly, Selby was totally smitten by the man and didn’t mind his dominating nature. Austin seemed to like her mooning gaze on him, too.
Jessie suspected there was a lot more than just business going on between these two. Well, she wasn’t some airhead girl from this small town that didn’t know a thing or two about dealing with jerks. There were more than one or two at work that had tried to go toe-to-toe with her. They’d lost.
She decided to push him. “If you really mean that, Mr. Wilde, I would like one thing from now on.”
“Of course I meant it. What do you want?”
“I’d like to have better access to you.”
The corners of his mouth turned up, warming her entire body. “Interesting request, Jessie.”
She felt all her skin burn from embarrassment. “I–I mean I would like to be able to meet with you on a regular basis and not have to go through your gatekeeper.”
