Page 14 of Reckless Harmony

She scowled. “That isn’t an emergency.”

“It is when it’s the gym shower of the richest guy in town.”

She didn’t reply, and Doug said, “Head over there now, please, Rayna.”

“One, I’m on my lunch break, and I still have thirty minutes left. Two, I already have a client appointment booked for after lunch.”

“You’ll be paid overtime for your lunch hour, and I’ve already asked Ranjit to cover your one o’clock.”

“What? Why? Just send Ranjit to Stark’s.”

“I want you to do it.”

She tossed her half-eaten apple into her lunch bag. “I’m not doing it, Doug.”

“Yes, you are.”

“No, I’m not.”

Doug huffed in annoyance. “I don’t have time for your bullshit today, Rayna.”

“I have never once refused to work a job, Doug. I take all the messy jobs without complaint, don’t I? The exploding toilet? The broken sewage pipe under the trailer in the middle of July when the weather was over a hundred degrees? Who took care of those monstrosities without a single complaint? Me, that’s who.”

“You did, which means this one will be a piece of cake for you,” Doug said.

She tossed her half-eaten apple into her lunch bag. “Why can’t Ranjit do it?”

“Because you’re my best, Rayna, and the guy is a multimillionaire.”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“You do a good job like you always do, and we’ve got a new client. One with bottomless pockets. We all know he’ll be building a new house on that property he bought sooner or later, and it’ll probably be a goddamn mansion with seven fucking bathrooms. I want Sneaky Leaks to be the plumber he calls to install those seven fucking bathrooms.”

“He won’t be building any home until I sell him my property, and I’m never selling it to him, so this is a moot point,” Rayna said.

Doug sighed. “Rayna, I get that he isn’t your favourite guy, but I am asking you as your boss to do your goddamn job. Getting on Stark’s good side will only help the company, which in turn will help you. You want a raise next year, play nice with the multimillionaire.”

“I really hate you, Douglas,” Rayna said morosely.

“No, you fucking love me,” Doug said. “Get your ass over to Stark’s gym and be nice, Rayna. I don’t care how much you hate his guts. Got it?”

“Got it,” Rayna said.

“Thanks, kid.” Doug ended the call.

Rayna stared at her phone before letting loose with a very loud and very satisfying “Fuck!”.

“Thank you for coming so quickly, Ms. Abrams.”

Rayna didn’t want to be intimidated by the woman standing in front of her, but she couldn’t help it. The receptionist had asked her to wait a moment while she called Stark’s assistant, Hollis, and the woman had arrived at the reception desk roughly thirty seconds later. Hollis’s expensive suit, her perfect hair and makeup, and how she practically oozed sophistication made Rayna even more self-conscious of her make-up-free face, her hair pulled back in its usual ponytail, and the ill-fitting cut of her Sneaky Leaks golf shirt.

She wondered idly if Stark and the woman were sleeping together. She seemed like Stark’s type of woman. He certainly didn’t find Rayna’s look appealing, that was for sure.

You have no idea what his type of woman is. And hey, why exactly do you care that he doesn’t find you or your tits attractive? You hate him, remember?

She pulled at her shirt before studying the bright and open space they stood in. Whoever had been in charge of renovating the fire station into a working office had done an incredible job. The big bullpen in the middle was bustling with activity, and she glanced up when she heard a burst of loud laughter from the open upper floor. Was Stark in the office right now, just waiting to cast his judgmental gaze on her? Probably not. He would disapprove of laughter in the workplace. She could feel the tension oozing out of her shoulders.

Hollis was still waiting for her reply, and Rayna forced herself to focus. “You’re welcome. So, the problem is in the gym?”

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