Page 3 of A Reclusive Heart

Releasing a shaky breath, Jamie decided that she just needed to come up with a plan to get herself out of there before it was too late. She would eventually have to leave the safety of the bathroom and use the stairwell to make her escape. Then, she’d go home and pack up her small apartment and find someplace where she could blend in and allowed cats. Maybe she’d use her new fortune to buy a house somewhere where she wouldn’t be expected to interact with anyone. Wait, a house was too big for just one person. Unless, of course, cats required their own rooms, then she’d be all set. After that, she’d start up another internet publishing company and everything would be fine.

The only glitch in her plan, as far as she could tell, was that issue of the signed contract stating that she wasn’t allowed to start another internet publishing company and a few other factors that forced her to take this job. She needed an antacid, Jamie decided as she looked down at her oversized purse and frowned. She didn’t have antacids. Although, there was a good possibility that she had a half-roll of spearmintLifesaversand a few root beer barrels somewhere in her bag.

Deciding that a root beer barrel sounded great at the moment, Jamie picked up her bag only to release a heartfeltsigh when her bag tipped upside down, which normally wouldn’t have been a problem, except that at some point, her bag had opened on its own. The soft whir of the air conditioning unit was momentarily drowned out by the sounds of everything in her purse hitting the tiled floor.

“Why me?” Jamie mumbled pathetically as she grabbed her purse and started to shove everything back inside. Things started to look up when she spotted a twenty-dollar bill that she’d forgotten about and her favorite pen that she thought she’d lost. Well, maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all, Jamie thought as she kneeled down on the cold floor so that she could reach the items that had escaped the confines of the stall.

After a minute, it became obvious that she wouldn’t be able to reach them. Sighing heavily, Jamie opened the stall door and crawled out, picking up items as she went. Two tampons and a quarter later, she found herself frowning down at a pair of large black leather shoes.

Her first thought was one of sympathy for whatever woman had feet that large. That feeling slowly disappeared as her eyes traveled up a pair of men’s black slacks to a very masculine jacket, shirt, and tie that, in her opinion, looked really good on the obviously fit torso. Slowly, ever so slowly, Jamie looked all the way up and gulped when she took in amused green eyes and perfectly combed, short, honey-blond hair.

Why did it have to behim? Jamie thought, biting back a pathetic groan as she watched his eyes light up with amusement as he held out a tampon to her. Not just any tampon, but a purple tampon with the words“Ultra Heavy”written in clear bold letters.

“I believe this is yours, Miss Harris,” Nick Quinn said, sounding amused.

Jamie grabbed the tampon and shoved it back into her bag as she quickly got to her feet all while avoiding his gaze. When he tried to help her up, she took a step back.

“This isn’t the women’s room, is it?” Jamie asked, knowing that someone up there hated her.

“No, it’s not,” that smooth, deep voice that wreaked havoc on her heart said.

She nodded. “Of course, it’s not,” Jamie muttered to herself because really, it was to be expected.

Still avoiding his gaze, Jamie said, “Well, ah,” she cleared her throat, “it’s ah, very nice. Spacious, clean, and all that.”

He chuckled.

Darn it!

“I’ll, ah, I’ll just go see what my desk looks like now. It was nice to see you again, Mr. Quinn.”

“Oh, the pleasure was all mine,” he drawled.

With another nod, Jamie quickly turned to leave only to have her escape halted by the man that was slowly destroying her will to live.

“Miss Harris?”

She froze mere inches from freedom. “Yes?” she mumbled weakly.

“You have something on the back of your skirt.”

Of course she did.

“Thank you,” Jamie said, trying to decide whether she should duck back into one of the stalls or risk further embarrassment by looking for the women’s room to remove whatever it was when Mr. Quinn took the decision out of her hands.

She heard the telltale sound of crinkling paper and groaned. Heat rushed up her neck, leaving her to wonder if it was possible to die from embarrassment.

“Got it,” he said, chuckling.

“Thank you,” Jamie mumbled as she quickly made her escape, unable to help but wonder what else could go wrong today.

CHAPTER 3

Nick was still chuckling twenty minutes later when he took his seat in the conference room. Who knew that hiring the little recluse would make his day?

Ah, good times...

“What has you in such a good mood?” Beth, Janet, or whatever the hell her name was asked as she took the seat next to his.

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