Breathless (The ABCs of Love Book 2)

by Clover Hart

  This can’t happen. “Hamilton, you’re aware that she doesn’t even have a college degree, and she’s highly inexperienced for the type of large-scale operation we’ll be running, right?”

  “Yeah, and those are legit concerns. But remember — Dawson will have one of his HR specialists mentor our person remotely. That’ll help.” Dawson Crew is Zach’s mentor and a primary investor in FCT. I wish I had the man’s silver tongue right about now so I could capably argue with Zach, who’s still on a roll.

  “Also, Penny’s sharp, and we would be sending her to Marloe for training at one of Dawson’s companies.”

  I start to talk, only to get cut off again.

  “When Penny started that curio shop several years ago, it was nothing, and she turned it into a business that’s flourishing, thanks to the influx of tourists to Cherry Valley. She’s familiar with the people in this town, too, so she already knows who might fit into this or that job.”

  “But—”

  “But she’s only one of many candidates we’ll be interviewing this week, so just do me a favor and keep an open mind, would you?”

  I hesitate, then decide I should nod, because, hell, maybe I can keep an open mind. In fact, I’ll open my mind to formulating every argument I can think of to keep Penny from haunting me at work every single day of the week, reminding me of what I really, truly shouldn’t have done with her.

  Even if the dog in me wouldn’t mind doing it again.

  Chapter 10

  Penny

  A few days after getting canned from WayzComm, I walk past the Old West downtown buildings and stop in front of the one with a pressed tin facade that holds FCT’s temporary offices. A thunderclap strikes the air, echoing in the cold, gray sky, and I hope it isn’t a bad omen for how my interview is about to go.

  Cherry Valley is not only known for their cherries, but for these thunderclaps. I grew up hearing them, so I’m not cowed. I’ve also been online these past few days, studying human resources articles and sites, so I feel pretty good about today. Silly me for being anxious, right?

  Hah, not so silly. Barry’s going to be sitting in on this interview, and I wish I didn’t have to see him. If I had been able to predict that I’d be up for a job at FCT someday, I would’ve never messed around with him. My biggest fear is that he’ll have a superior look on his face the whole time and be all I told you so about WayvComm, and then I’ll have to smart off right back at him. Then, for the second time in one week, I’ll find myself without a job. Worse, what if he gives me sexy eyes from across the interview table, reminding me that he’s had me and that he certainly has me now? From what I know, he’s enough of a pig to do that kind of thing.

  Why couldn’t I have just stayed away from him?

  I duck into the building’s doorway just as lightning splits the sky and another thunderclap shakes the air. There’s no receptionist in the small yet comfortable lobby, but as I slip off my heavy coat, I notice that there’s a camera in the upper right corner of the room. I wave to it, betting that the entrance is being monitored.

  As I wait, I fidget with the black workbag I’d purchased for Chicago. The tweed business suit I bought on sale at a department store in Marloe doesn’t feel right on me either. When I owned The Curio Cupboard, I wore what I wanted, usually a cute, classy, comfortable dress that always turned heads. I never put my hair up like I’ve done today, and I sure as hell didn’t wear stockings or heels unless I was going out for a fun night.

  God, why did I wear heels today, knowing that Barry has a thing for them?

  I’m in the middle of wishing that I’d just worn some damned rain boots when Zach rounds the corner into the lobby, smiling at me. He looks so enviably at ease wearing his winter button-down over a black tee with a melting gold music record on it.

  He sticks his hand out for a shake. “Penny! Welcome to the temp offices.”

  I shake his hand like the businesswoman I know I can be. “I can’t believe I haven’t been in here before.”

  “This is nothing compared to the FCT work campus. You need to come out and see it.”

  “I’ll do that. Mandy’s always talking about it.”

  He starts to walk me down the hallway. “Mandy said you got together with your landlord about staying in your apartment, so you’re squared away?”

  “Pretty much. I also cancelled the place I was going to live in Chicago. It’s costing me, but it had to be done.”

  “Well, let’s see if there’s something we can do about helping you earn that money back.”

  And that brings us to a room with a big conference table that holds only one laptop. My hopes lift as I scan the empty chairs. No Barry!

  Completely relieved, I take a seat after Zach pulls a chair out for me. As he goes to a spot nearby, I’m able to breathe much better now. Thunder shakes the walls slightly, but I don’t mind. Now I’m relaxed enough to look around at the framed pictures of San Francisco Bay on the walls and actually settle in a little.

  Zach follows my gaze. “Those are Barry’s. He wants to feel like he’s looking out the windows of our old offices in California.”

  I’m just opening my mouth to comment on how nice the pictures are when it happens.

  Barry comes into the room with his laptop in one hand, and I nearly choke. All I see at first is the graphic on the tee he’s wearing under his sport coat. It’s the fucked-up clown from It, and the thing absolutely glowers in warped glee at me.

  I tell myself that I need to look at Barry and say hi. I have to make eye contact. With every ounce of dignity I have, I drag my gaze to his face and pray that he won’t be glowering at me right along with the clown, and …

  Huh. He isn’t even looking at me as he quietly takes a seat at the opposite end of the table.

  All right, then. I just won’t look at him again. I can’t. Hell, I already feel myself flushing and my pulse jumping at the thought of it, because I’m remembering bare arms, shoulders, chest.

  Hi, Naked Barry.

  I take a mental moment, because I do have a choice here. I can stay seated and hope that Zach doesn’t notice my mortification and that Barry continues to ignore me, or I can bust out of this joint. Then again, I need a job, at least until I can get back on my feet and make another attempt at a run out of Cherry Valley.

  When Zach speaks, I know it’s too late to make a break for it. “I’ll bet this is a weird experience, Penny, having your future brother-in-law interviewing you.”

  Him and my very recent screwbunny. “It is a bit surreal.”

  “As I told you when we set up this appointment, we’ve got other candidates for this HR job. We’re looking for someone to give the company a good running start. The department is only going to get bigger.”

  “Sounds good,” I say.

  “Fantastic.”

  Zach glances at Barry as if he’s expecting him to say something. Nope.

  He turns back to me. “We had a chance to look over your application, so I thought we’d talk about that first.”

  “Great.” Now I can feel Barry’s shrewd gaze slowly fixing on me, but I’m determined not to engage him. “What would you like to know?”

  My mind clouds from that point on. Zach — and only Zach — asks me about what I learned during my two years of community college and how it might apply to human resources. He asks about how I ran The Curio Cupboard, especially when it came to choosing employees and terminating them, and how familiar I am with laws and regulations. I’m not half bad with my answers, but I’m not a superstar either, so I decide it’d be to my benefit to actually sound as if I’ve got something major to offer. I go into detail about the quaint payroll system I used, but I mention that I’ve studied QuickBooks online. I figure this might show my willingness to learn and improve. Zach follows up with a description of the job, and I nod like I’m confident about being the FCT employee of the century.

  All the while, I feel the weight of Barry’s gaze on me, and my nerves start to fray. God, I
just want to look at him and ask him if he’s maybe angry with me about blowing him off afterward, or if he’s just always like this with the girls he hooks up with. It doesn’t help my anxiety when, with every question Zach asks me, I start to feel dumber and dumber. I mean, come on — I’m in the room with two brains who graduated from Stanford and are plotting to rule the tech world with their startup. FCT is going to be a big deal. I have absolutely no doubt about that. But how do I fit into their plans if I didn’t even finish college? Are they going to toss me out after this interview just as WayvComm ended up doing?

  The interview is wrapping up, so I put my all into giving them a grand finale, even though it might be useless. “I really am eager to learn. When I was preparing for WayvComm, I soaked up every tutorial that was available online. I’ve got a great work ethic and have never called in sick, even to my own business.” I laugh awkwardly. “You can ask the Burger Bomb about my attendance and performance, since that’s where I worked before I opened up The Curio Cupboard.”

  Great. I just said that they could check out my first job as a burger waitress to back up how awesome I am.

  I’m the worst. I’m pretty sure Barry is silently thinking the same thing. He’s probably stacking up criticisms of me in that inflated head of his. He might even be judging me for sleeping with the boss, even though I never dreamed I’d be in this position one day.

  When the interview ends, Zach stands up. I follow his example. Barry quietly does the same, and all I get from him is a muttered Thank you very much, Penny before he sits down again.

  Well, fuck you very much, too.

  Zach smiles at me in the lobby while shaking my hand. “We really appreciate your coming out here, Pen. The storm could’ve stopped you.”

  “Nothing would’ve stopped me, Zach. Thank you again for giving me a shot.”

  I almost add that he doesn’t have to feel bad about how I obviously bombed out of this job. It was sweet of him to try and help me out. But what weighs me down most of all is that I made a total fool of myself in front of Barry. Even the surety of having to continue my job hunt isn’t as humiliating.

  I step outside into the rain, but I don’t even bother putting up the hood of my coat as I numbly walk down the street to my little Chevy, totally defeated.

  Chapter 11

  Barry

  Zach takes a few minutes to return to the conference room, and all I can do is hope that I made it through the interview without him seeing how uncomfortable I was. When he does return, he’s looking at his phone, then he raises his gaze and leans against the doorframe. “Well, that was interesting.”

  Oh, damn, he saw something he shouldn’t have seen between Penny and me, didn’t he? Maybe I was too quiet. Maybe I looked at her too often. Maybe I didn’t look enough.

  I clear my throat. “What was interesting?”

  He comes all the way into the room, and I swear that the bastard is stretching out this moment like a rubber band that’s about to snap back and hit me in the nose. He knows about my prodigal dick. Shit, Zach’s so good at reading a room that he could see that Penny and I had our own big, rambunctious interview the other night.

  By the time he sits, I’m coiled and ready to confess everything.

  Then he says, “I’ve never seen Penny so nervous.”

  That’s what was so interesting? I slump back into my leather chair, and not entirely from relief, either. I actually feel kind of bad, because Penny was obviously nervous due to our secret. Hell, I was even anxious with her in the room, and I’m the one in a position of power. I can’t even imagine how stressful this interview must’ve been on her end.

  The truth is, though, if I thought she shouldn’t work here before, I’m doubly certain now. During the past half hour, my caveman brain kept going back to Penny naked, except for those slingback heels. I could even smell her damned coconut scent all the way across the room, and it was all I could do to contain myself. Imagine that happening here at work every damned day.

  She can find another job, and you know what? I’ll even help her do it. Sincerely.

  Zach is watching me again, trying to read my silence, so I shrug and act casual. “Can you and I finally agree that she’s not a good fit for FCT? There’re a lot of jobs she’s suited for in Cherry Valley, and we have an increasing amount of influence with other businesses. We can recommend her to them.”

  “Why would we want to lose our best candidate to another place?”

  This clearly will not be going my way.

  “Barry.” He leans forward. “Just think about what you’re saying. Was there a better candidate that we interviewed this week? And Penny was our last one.”

  He’s right. No one stood out. Now Zach is about to preach the benefits of Penny, and I’m going to have to disagree and deprive her of a job, and it’s because of me.

  And Zach’s off. “Her experience running a business puts her ahead of the others. Even the out-of-town interviewees don’t know the local labor pool like she does. And look how she’s been taking it upon herself to learn more about HR. She really wants this, and that’s a valuable quality.”

  He’s right. I know he’s right. Most importantly, hiring Penny goes along with the philosophy Zach and I established for FCT — we’re not only here to work in Cherry Valley; we want to help the citizens improve it. That means taking in local employees like Penny so they can have some buy-in and will benefit from our mixed reality platforms.

  For a harrowing second, I wonder what would happen if I came right out and told Zach the truth about my bedroom rodeo with her.

  Shit, I can’t.

  Well then. It’s obviously time for me to pull a card out from the bottom of the deck before this goes too far. “Are you sure you’re not propping Penny up for the job because she’s going to be your sister-in-law?”

  Zach picks up a pen and starts tapping it, reading me once again. I shift in my seat.

  “Aaronson, what do you have against her when it’s clear that she’s the best we have? Granted, she’s not ideal, but you’re usually all business with these decisions. Even when I put on my anyone-but-Penny glasses, I still can’t see around the fact that she’s our girl.”

  “I don’t have anything against her.”

  “Good.”

  “I’m just thoroughly running this through Business Barry’s filter.”

  “Great. Because not only do I want to hire Penny, you’re going to train her.”

  OH FUCK NO.

  “Why would I be training her?” I’m starting to sweat. “Dawson Crew has someone who’ll oversee her progress remotely.”

  “Dawson did have someone, but I just got a text from him. He decided that things are going so smoothly here that you can be more efficient in overseeing Penny. I agree with him. You’re already an ace at business law and practices, but we knew the majority of your time would be better spent doing what you already do. The arrangement will work out fine.”

  I know he’s right. I fucking know he is, and I feel like a rat in a maze that’s been closed off at every pass. I feel like Indiana Shittin’ Jones in an alternate dimension where he doesn’t beat that giant ball that’s bearing down on him after he snatched the golden idol and ran with it.

  What if Penny decides to tell people what happened after all? What if she wants to date me or get clingy or weird like other women do? True, she let me zip out of her room that night without a word of resistance, but right now I can’t see any good coming out of this.

  I am in deep schtuck.

  “So is that a yes from you?” Zach asks.

  I have no more arguments against hiring her, only giant, skyscraper-sized-mecha fears that are fighting me as I slowly nod my acquiescence.

  To the hangman’s noose I go.

  “Yes!” Zach says. “I’ll call her now with the good news.”

  As he dials her up, I wonder if the mountains that loom over one side of Cherry Valley have forests that are deep enough to shelter me if things go south w
ith Penny. And I’m not talking about the kind of going south that we already did.

  “Pen!” he says after he puts the call on speakerphone.

  “Hey, Zach.” She sounds like she’s waiting for negative news, and something cringes in my chest. I hate that she probably felt like crap about the interview.

  Zach smiles at me like we’re both here to give her the very best, most awesome news in the world! “You got the job! Isn’t that right, Bar?”

  “She got it,” I say lifelessly.

  When Zach gives me a look, I give a peppy thumbs-up.

  “I … did?” Penny starts laughing. “I did?”

  “Yeah.” Zach’s beaming. “I’m sending you an offer sheet, and the sooner you respond, the sooner you can start. Ideally, that would be Monday. Our action team will be starting right along with you, so you’ll have company.”

  “Monday. I’m available then. I sure am. That sounds perfect.”

  I wipe my hand over my face and try not to weep.

  Through my fingers, I see Zach pointing the pen at me. “Barry, do you have anything to say?”

  “You seem to be saying it all.”

  “Penny, what Barry means is that you’ll be training intensely in Marloe next week, but then he’ll be coordinating the rest of your training and also advising you.”

  There’s a pause on the other end of the line, and I think this is it. She’s going to tell Zach that working with me is impossible. She’s going to say something that’ll really clue him in about all the stuffin’ the muffin we did. I brace myself.

  “Okay,” she says quietly.

  Come again? Then I realize that she just saved my ass. But will that always be the case?

  Zach wraps up the call, and I give him another world’s least enthusiastic thumbs-up before he announces that he’s going to Screaming Beans to tell Mandy. Then he’s gone.