Page 12 of Wolfish Player
“You’re done with the tour already, Theresa?” A deep voice sounds from behind, and I turn around to see if?—
Oh. My. God…
My brain short-circuits, and the floor falls away under my feet. Suddenly, the hallway feels like it’s closing in on me, and I’m convinced that this is a dream.
It has to be…
The asshole customer I served at the bar weeks ago is dressed in another expensive suit that fits like sin, his deep green eyes glint beneath the light—calculated, lethal, too perfect to belong to any man who plays fair.
No, no, no…
“Yes, yes, yes.” Theresa beams. “Heather Barrett is ready for her interview with you now.”
His eyes flick to mine and he blinks a few times, his jaw clenching as the seconds pass.
“You might want to step back, Theresa,” he says, his voice terse. “Miss Barrett might reach into her bag and throw her coffee on you.”
Just leave, Heather.
Do not pass go. Just effin leave.
“He’s been looking forward to bringing a new junior executive onboard.” Theresa clasps her hands, clearly not reading the room. “I know you’ll make one hell of a first impression on him.”
“She already has…” He extends his hand to me, and as much as I want to leave it hanging, my brain is firmly wired to escaping a potential dip into poverty, so I shake it.
A warm jolt rushes through my body and as if he can feel it too, his lips slowly part.
“Well, I’ll leave you two to it!” Theresa should audition to voice a Disney princess. “Call me when you’re done so I can give Miss Barrett our usual thank-you bag.”
“Will do.” He slowly pulls his hand from mine, and I suddenly feel bereft.
We both watch her step onto the elevator, and as the doors begin to shut, I debate whether I should slide inside with her. I lean my shoulder, mentally calculating if I have enough time, but they snap shut too fast.
“I would say that it’s nice to see you again, Miss Barrett, but I think we both know that’s a lie.”
“Should I just uh—leave now?”
“Unless you want to stay and apologize for ruining my favorite tie,” he says. “I think that’s the least you can do.”
“So, since that’snothappening, we can just skip the interview?”
“I didn’t say that.” He’s staring at my lips. “We’ll still do that part.”
“Okay, great.”
Silence.
We stare at each other for several moments, the tension building with every second that passes between us.
“My office is behind you,” he says. “You should start walking that way if you want me to consider you for this job.”
“I have a feeling it’s a ‘no’ already.”
“I didn’t see ‘mind reader’ as your previous place of employment.”
“Did you see the part where I owe you a ton of book advance money?”
“Not on your résumé.” He smirks. “But I did notice it when I pulled up your file this morning. Now that you’ve brought it up, though, I honestly think you working here is a conflict of interest.”
