Page 7 of Hooked on Lane

A smile crossed my face. “Most of the assistants left hours ago. It's just you two and Mr. Curran here.”

He shifted his stance and scratched the back of his neck. “Well, what are you still doing here?” He popped his head back into the office. “Hey, everyone else is gone. I’m sending Jennifer home early.”

I flashed a tight smile. “Well, that’s sweet of you. Thanks.” He watched me as I shut down my computer, unplugged my phone, and grabbed my purse. A flush ran through my body, knowing he might be staring at my ass right now. I couldn’t blame him. This skirt was one of the best ones for that. I glanced over at Laura, who was mouthing ‘go for it.’ “Oh, I still need you to add me to your Google calendar. If I’m going to be working for you, I’ll need access so I can get it situated with my style of work.”

“You have a style? Like isn’t a calendar just that? You input text, date, and time? I’m confused.”

Oh gosh, don’t embarrass yourself in front of him. Get yourself together, girl. “I’ll get it all switched over and set up, and then I’ll explain it to you.”

He bit his lip, leaving a tinge of red. “Sounds perfect. Well, good night, Jennifer. See you in the morning.”

When he walked toward the elevators, my chest heaved. It was unprofessional to get hot and bothered by my boss, but tonight I might need my battery operated buddy.

Chapter Six

Lane

After leaving Coffee Chaos, the winter air bit into my skin. I had a mission ahead of me: to get through thirty case files today. Jennifer was going to be a wonderful asset and having someone of her caliber by my side would make things easier. What I didn’t expect, the magnetic pull to her which was dangerous. As much as I found her attractive, she was my assistant.

As I rounded the corner, I spotted the building where my life was going to be for the next year. I opened the bulky glass doors and proceeded to the elevator. The door dinged as it shut and I pressed the number eight. I walked into the office and stopped in front of Jennifer’s desk. She gave me a polite greeting and thanked me for the coffee, but something was off. She wouldn’t make much eye contact and seemed distracted.Did I do something wrong?

“Did you get to do anything enjoyable after you got off yesterday?”

Jennifer didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she stared at her computer and tapped on the keyboard. “I had a glass of wine. I also redid your calendar.”

She wasn’t being her usual self, but I shrugged it off. “Oh, what does HAFH stand for? I need to color code it.”

Honestly, I didn’t even think about her having access to that. “It’s an acronym, but I’d rather explain it to you in private. Do you want to come into Mr. Longford’s office?”

Jennifer hesitated before getting up and slowly walking in. I took a deep breath and told her HAFH stands for “Home Away From Home” and explained that my mother had Parkinson’s. Her eyes softened a bit, and she was finally making eye contact with me again. I didn’t want anyone’s pity. My mother might have it, but she wanted to live life until it was her time to pass. “After my father passed, when it got to the point she couldn’t take care of herself, I almost moved back, but she refused. Instead, she found HAFH and asked if I could get her in.”

Jennifer crossed her arms and looked at me. “So, why did you move to New York City?”

“My mother told me to. She’s a big part of my life, even though she can be quite particular about what she wants.”

“Aren’t all mothers? My mom thinks what I do is a joke, yet I work more hours than most. Heck, Laura spends almost twice as much time here as me. This job is no small feat.”

My mother’s symptoms, the tremors and the rigidness, were getting worse. The amnesia had just started rearing its ugly head.

“So, the fifteenth is when you pay them? I can put it under financial, then. I apologize if it seems like I was being intrusive.”

“No, it’s okay. Don’t be sorry.”

Her hands pulled to her sides, and I stepped closer. “That’s the one weekend a month I tried to visit her before I moved out here. Now, I’ll be lucky to see her at Christmas.”

“We’ll make sure you get out there, don’t worry. The firm usually closes down for the week between Christmas and New Year’s. It’s the only week everyone is off.”

That’s good to know. With having Parkinson’s, she was more prone to falls and pneumonia. Keeping her healthy was my top priority.

“I put it under financial. Do you want to see what I’ve done? I can explain it to you really quick if you have time.”

I stepped closer. Her lavender perfume causing me to roll my eyes back in my head. When she tapped the stylus on my chest, I smiled and paid attention to the screen. She completely transformed my previous calendar. She arranged the series of appointments and tasks neatly and added colored tabs.

“So red is for urgent, yellow is cases, blue is for personal, and green is for financial.” She flipped through my calendar and now I could see firsthand what Mr. Longford meant. She took her job seriously and was very particular.Who am I to step on her toes?

I thanked her as she closed the iPad.

“I’ll be taking some time today to finalize the plans for his retirement party next Friday. Will he be in today?”

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