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I drag my chair closer to the desk and rest my arms on it. "Why dinnae ye tell me what it means? That way, we won't need to spin in linguistic circles."
Rebecca's eyes widen even more than they had when we fell into a heap on the walkway. "Linguistic circles?"
"Aye."
"I didn't expect you to use a phrase like that."
"Why not?"
"Because---" She fidgets in her chair. "I guess I assumed you would, um..."
Oh, aye, I'm getting the picture now. "You assumed I must be a dolt because I make whisky. Or is it because I'm Scottish?"
"Neither one. I guess I made that assumption because your distillery is so small and...unassuming."
"Are you trying to say it's tiny and useless?"
She clears her throat and flips through pages in her portfolio. "I apologize if I've offended you. But honestly, it's my job to annoy people. Marketing isn't something most business owners want to do, and they certainly don't like having to hire someone else to manage such things."
Fiona must believe this woman can help my company. That means I should listen to Rebecca's ideas, even if they annoy me.
So, I lean back in my chair and wave a hand at her. "Go on, tell me your ideas."
"First of all, we need to discuss the name of your company."
"What's wrong with it?"
"Can anyone pronounce it?" She bites her lip as she squints at a page in her portfolio and struggles to pronounce my company's name. "Coll-aid...sig-yule...roo-in?"
"No, that is incorrect."
"It's Gaelic, right?" She pronounced the word as gay-lick.
"Gal-ick. Not gay-lick." I drum my fingers on my chair's arms. "And the name is pronounced 'collie scale rune.' Collaidh Sgeul-Rùin is a fine name, so I dinnae need to change it."
Rebecca pulls out a pen and begins to tap it on her portfolio. "What does the name mean?"
"Sensual secret."
"And that has...what to do with whisky?" When I open my mouth to speak, she holds up a hand. "Never mind. I'm about to give you the most important advice of your career as a master distiller."
"What is it?"
"Ditch the Gaelic name. Now."
Chapter Two
Rebecca
Thane Buchanan is not the kind of man I expected him to be. Fiona hadn't told me much about him, so my preconceptions had come from my own mind, I suppose. I thought a man who owns a whisky distillery would be more freewheeling and gregarious. Instead, Thane seems thoughtful and self-contained. I've known him for a few minutes, so I probably shouldn't judge his character based on our brief interaction.
I'm usually good at figuring people out quickly. My inability to do that right now makes me feel slightly off kilter. Having my hand on his groin bumped me off kilter even more.
He smells good. I know that much for sure. And those eyes... They're the most striking shade of blue I've ever seen, a sort of pale aqua color that's a bit darker closer to the iris. Dark rims encircle them. Maybe his eyes do enchant me, and maybe his face does too, but I never let an attraction to a client interfere with my work.
Is he a client? I'm now working for his company, so I guess that makes him my boss. But Fiona hired me. That makes the hierarchy more difficult to figure out.
"Why should I change the name of my company?"
