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“I think she and Beau had another blowup,” Lucy added. Violet had been dating an investment banker named Beau on and off for the last three years. “Who knows with those two? What’s more important is what’s going on with you and Jonah?” Lucy asked.
Emma told them about the phone call and how she’d just turned down the job offer from Tim. Lucy looked as stunned as Emma felt, but Harper seemed pleased by her reckless decision.
“Good girl,” Harper said. “Tim deserves to suffer for turning on you like that. I bet he’s up to his ears in your work right now.”
Emma wasn’t quite as convinced. “You think it was the right thing to do? I wish I was that certain. I mean, what the hell am I going to do now? I’ve got to work.”
Harper nodded with a wicked glint in her eyes that made Emma uneasy. “Of course you have to work. And I have the perfect job in mind for you.”
Twelve
Jonah eyed the tiny Tiffany blue box on his desk. Today was the day. He’d made things right with Tim and hopefully Emma had gotten her job back. He’d talked to Carl Bailey at Game Town and Noah had been right—things were smoothed out there. All the broken pieces from the last week had been glued back together except for one.
Tonight, when Emma got home from work, he was going to her apartment. He would beg her forgiveness, swear his love for her and their baby, and then present her with the shiny two-and-a-half-karat Soleste emerald cut ring set in platinum that he’d picked up on Fifth Avenue yesterday evening. He would ask her to marry him—the Big Move as Noah had suggested—and hopefully, the last piece would fall into place.
Hell, he’d even worn a suit and a tie for the occasion. A classic, black Armani suit with a green silk tie that reminded him of her eyes. Every employee he passed in the hallway made a joke about him having a job interview somewhere today, as though he didn’t own the place.
A soft knock at the door caught his attention. Jonah snapped the box closed and scooped it off the desk and into his pocket. “Come in,” he replied.
Pam stuck her head into the room. “I’ve got the stack of résumés for your interviews today.”
Jonah had forgotten about that. He’d agreed to interview a few candidates for the financial director position. His human resources team had already narrowed it down to the top three candidates for him to talk to today. Fine. Whatever. If they could keep his brother from stealing from him again, they were hired.
Pam carried the papers into his office and set them down on the blotter. “Today is the big day, isn’t it?”
Jonah nodded. Pam always knew his business because she made his business possible. She’d called Tiffany’s and set up a private, after-hours appointment to select a ring. She’d made sure a car picked him up on time so he didn’t miss it. She was the one who saw to it that his suit went to the cleaners so he’d have it to wear today. She was pleased as punch to be part of such a big moment for her boss.
“She’s going to love it,” Pam insisted. “Don’t be nervous.”
“I’m not nervous,” Jonah said with a smile, but Pam didn’t seem to buy it.
“Of course you’re not. You’ve just got to keep it together through a couple of interviews and you’ll be fine. The first candidate should be here at ten.”
Jonah looked down at his watch. He had about ten minutes. Just enough time to scan the résumé, finish his coffee and think up a couple of intelligent-sounding questions for the interview. He hated doing this kind of stuff. Hiring smart, capable people was his goal. It was also his goal to do so well at that, that the smart, capable people could handle hiring more smart, capable people without him.
This was a director-level position, though. After the minor scandal with Noah, he needed to be really cautious about who he chose to head up the finance department. He needed Carl and any other CEO who might want to work with FlynnSoft to be completely confident in their decision.
With a sigh of resignation, Jonah took a big sip of his coffee and picked up the first résumé. As his eyes scanned the top, the coffee spewed from his mouth, coating the paper in mocha speckles.
Emma Dempsey.
Jonah reached for a napkin and wiped up the coffee, dabbing her résumé carefully so he could still read it. Never in a million years did he expect her to actually apply for this job. He’d offered it to her more than once and she’d turned him down. Of course, now the Game Town audit was over, maybe she felt freer to make that decision.
He tried to scan over her qualifications and education, but the only thought that kept running through his mind was that Emma was going to be here. In his office. In five minutes. He had her engagement ring in his pocket. Could he hold on to it for the entire interview and not give it to her? Play it cool?
Yeah, no. He was pretty certain he wouldn’t make it through the meeting playing the coy interviewer and interviewee.
How was it that no one mentioned Emma applying before now? Someone had to have known. At the very least, Pam. Perhaps that was behind the twinkle in her eye earlier. He’d thought she was just excited about colluding over the engagement, but perhaps she knew something he didn’t.
Another knock sounded at the door. It was exactly 10:00 a.m. and that meant she was here. “Come in,” he repeated, and stood up at his desk.
Pam pushed the door open with a devious grin and behind her was Emma. At least it looked a bit like Emma, but not in any way he’d ever seen her at the office before. The stuffy suit and severe hair bun were gone. Her hair was down in loose brown waves around her face like it had been on their date. She was wearing a pair of dark denim skinny jeans with comfy-looking ballet flats and a T-shirt with a navy corduroy blazer over it.
It was the perfect mix of dress and casual, as though Emma had merged her style with his and finally found her niche here at FlynnSoft.
It looked good on her. Amazing. It made him want to reach out and stroke the waves of her hair between his fingertips. But he knew better. First and foremost, this was an interview and even if she had forgiven him, Emma would want to keep things professional.
“Jonah, this is your first applicant, Emma Dempsey.” Pam grinned and disappeared from the office as quickly as she could manage.
