Page 60 of One Hot Moment

"I would do anything for my family."

He swerves his gaze to the woman sitting beside me. "And you, Tabitha? Why should I grant you extra leave?"

"Because I'm going home with Spencer to help him with his brother and all the wedding preparations."

"That isn't part of your job, dear."

"I'm not going to England so I can see the sights. I want to be there for Spencer and meet his family."

Rademaker picks up a sheet of paper, seeming to read whatever is written on it. His lips curl into a roguish smile. He holds up the sheet. "This is a copy of your written statement declaring your desire to have a personal relationship."

I stare at him the way he's been staring at me. "That's right. We followed human resources guidelines."

He crumples up the paper and drops it into the wastebasket. "Don't you miss the days when you could date your assistant without signing a ten-page waiver?"

Will this bloke ever get to the point? I'm on the verge of grabbing his letter opener and holding it to his throat until he gets to the point.

"I don't mean to be disrespectful," I say, "but you seem to be delaying on purpose to test us or...something. Please, Mr. Rademaker, just make your decision and have done with it."

"Call me Desmond." He sets his arms on the desktop again and smiles broadly enough that dimples form in his cheeks. "I had to test you, didn't I? You wouldn't believe how many freeloaders march into my office and demand extra time off for frivolous reasons. One young man told me I should give him three weeks off so he could attend a wild concert at a nudist enclave out in the desert somewhere. I don't consider that to be a valid reason."

"Doesn't human resources handle that?"

"I insist on approving vacation requests myself. I'm the hands-on type."

"So am I. But you haven't answered my question yet, Mr. Rademaker."

"Desmond. I'll give you my answer once you start calling me by my first name."

I'm beginning to think Bramson Feigenbaum only hires lunatics for the upper-level positions. "All right, Desmond. Have you reached a decision yet?"

"Yes, I have." He grins. "Go on, fly to England to see your brother. Weddings are stressful for everyone involved, but especially the bride and groom. Tabitha will help you get through it. Everyone tells me she's worth her weight in gold. And you, Spencer, have earned some extra vacation days."

"How soon do those extra days start?"

"Right now." He stands up and walks around the desk to the chair on which I sit. Then he thrusts his hand out to me. "Glad to have you on the team, Spencer. Now, take this beautiful girl out for brunch and go home as soon as possible. I expect a full report on the wedding when you come back."

I grasp his hand.

Desmond shakes it so vigorously that I think my eyeballs jiggled. He has a very firm grip. I might need a massage once he lets go of my hand.

Tabitha is grinning.

Desmond releases my hand so he can thump me on the back. "I've kept a close eye on your work, Spencer. You've set the gold standard for risk analysis at this company."

"Thank you, sir---ah, Desmond."

He steps back and waves toward the door. "What do I have to do to make you youngsters get the heck out of the building? Go, scram, skedaddle."

I clasp Tabitha's hand as we hurry out of Desmond's office.

We grin and laugh the whole way to the lift, then grin and laugh some more inside the car. Four other people ride with us, and they seem to think we're barmy. Well, maybe we are. If insanity feels this good, I never want to go back to the sane way of life.

After a quick trip to my office, so Tabitha and I can retrieve whatever personal items we might need, we hop onto the elevator once more. This time, we're alone.

"Better call Duane," Tabitha suggests. "He might have gone out for coffee and a croissant."

"Yes, he does love that." I fish my mobile out of my pocket and ring our driver. "Duane, are you anywhere near the building? Tabitha and I are leaving the office early."

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