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I flush, aware I’m being told off. “I know, but—”
“And just because you haven’t worked with computers before doesn’t mean you don’t have other skills. You’re calm, reliable, smart, and efficient, and you have common sense, which is more than a lot of people have.”
My face fills with heat. “I wasn’t fishing for compliments.”
“I wasn’t giving one. I was stating a fact, and, knowing James, he’s also well aware of how valuable you are. Kia Kaha is precious to him, and he wouldn’t have offered you a job if you couldn’t help in some way, no matter how guilty he felt over what he’d done. Also, I’m not his boss. Whatever agreement he makes with you is his business.”
“Maybe, but he said he’s going to pay me ten thousand dollars. That’s, like, ten weeks’ work at minimum wage.”
Alex doesn’t bat an eyelid. “You know he’s Head of Finance at Kia Kaha, right?”
“Oh. I thought he was a computer engineer.”
“He is. He’s a smart arse. He has two degrees.”
“Really?”
“He majored in computer science with me, and then he took an online degree in economics and finance in the evenings because he wanted to help out more with the finances at the company. He got an A+ in his finals and was apparently top of his cohort, even while working ten-hour days.”
“Wow.”
“He has the smartest financial brain of any guy I’ve met. So I’m sure he knows what minimum wage is, and whether we can afford what he’s offered.”
My blush deepens at his gentle reprimand. “Okay.”
“He can even count to twenty without taking his shoes off.”
I nudge him with my elbow. “All right.”
He dips his head to look at me. “Don’t worry about it. He genuinely needs help for the presentation, so it’s not entirely altruistic. You’ll be doing him a favor.”
I know he’s being kind, but I appreciate his attempts to reassure me. “Thank you.”
“I’m glad he apologized,” he says.
“I said sorry, too.”
He smiles. “Good girl.”
Oh God, these guys. I clear my throat. “He told me about Maddie.”
He frowns. “Yeah. I worry about her. She’s vulnerable, and she leans on him a lot.”
“Did you ever meet Leia’s father?”
“No, but James said he was a—” He blinks, catching himself. He hardly ever swears.
“C U Next Tuesday?” I offer.
His lips curve up. “Yeah.”
“What was he like?”
“The polar opposite of guys like me. He majored in Exercise and Sports Science at Otago. He would have been one of those students who wore shorts all year round and put traffic cones on the top of statues.”
“You wouldn’t have done that?”
“God, no, we were far too nerdy for that. We were vampires and never saw sunlight. We might have invented a computer program that calculated the angle needed to climb safely up said statue.” He chuckles.
