“Morning.” Cody chuckled. Did that sound strained?
She was imagining it.
“Do you have a minute?” he asked.
“Sure. I’ll be right there.” She set her phone to Away and walked the short distance to his office. When she saw Janna, the head of Human Resources, in the room, uneasiness crawled over her skin.
Janna stood and gestured to an empty chair. “Come on in.” Her smile was warm, as she stepped around Trina to close the door.
The greeting wasn’t comforting. Trina took a seat. Calm down. It was nothing. There were a lot of reasons to be called into an impromptu closed-door meeting with her boss and Human Resources.
She wished she could think of any.
“Did you have a good holiday?” Janna asked.
Not so much. “It was nice. You?”
“Not bad. Before we get started, I want you to know that, if this conversation makes you uncomfortable at any time, you have the right to call a stop to it, and we can figure out a better way to have the discussion. Without Cody in the room, if you’d prefer. Or with someone besides me. It’s up to you.”
That sounded awesome. Not. “Good to know?”
Cody was being unusually quiet, which was another factor making Trina’s curiosity spin out of control.
“Great.” Janna’s smile never wavered, and it was starting to seem eerie. “We’ve had a complaint from an anonymous source, saying you’re dating people in the office.”
Crap. “I’m not. Not now. I guess I was, sort of? Mason and I went out a few times, but we aren’t anymore, and it was more hanging out.” She clenched her jaw before she could ramble too much and make an unknown situation into a definitely bad one.
“You read and signed our non-fraternization policy when you started working here.” Cody’s tone was difficult to decipher.
Trina hadn’t broken that rule. “It says no fraternization between subordinates and their managers.”
“That’s not our concern—”
When Janna looked at him, Cody stopped. She turned back to Trina. “This isn’t directly about the complaint. It’s about the questions raised because of it. For your safety. You could be considered Mason’s subordinate, since you hold a junior position, and we want to make sure you weren’t forced into anything that you weren’t okay with.”
This discussion was starting to. She’d ask them to stop, but curiosity won out. And why didn’t they lead with that? “He didn’t coerce me. I wanted to go out with him, and when we were done, we were done. He doesn’t hold it over me now. I don’t think there’s anything worth making a big deal over.”
“There have been other complaints as well,” Janna said.
Who had Trina pissed off? “About what?”
Janna’s eerie mask of I’m your best friend no matter what slipped, but it was back in place before Trina registered what the shift meant. “That you make people uncomfortable.” That must be one of her favorite words. Uncomfortable.
“What? How?” Holy shit. Trina couldn’t believe this was actually happening. “Isn’t that harassment against me?” Flashbacks to college raced through her head. The things Leo did. The betrayal. The lies. The rumors. Because she would rather keep things quiet, than make a big deal out of them.
Janna sighed sympathetically. “That’s why I’d like to talk to you. To get your side of the story. It concerns us that the information is reaching us this way, and this is your opportunity to let us know if you’re having issues.” Wow, this woman was really bad with the whole delivering-news thing.
“I’m not saying I have anything to talk about, but what would happen if I did?” Trina didn’t want to bring up the things she’d overheard, but if it was out there, she had the chance to tell her side of things.
Janna’s expression softened further. “This is a safe space. Anything you tell me is anonymous.”
Trina wasn’t reassured. “Except that there aren’t a lot of women in this department, and that makes it hard to keep names a secret.”
“We’re working with the source of the complaint, to determine if disciplinary actions need to happen. If you have something to say, we’ll weigh that in our decision. And we can see about moving you to another department, if we determine that’s better.”
“I’m a network technician. You can’t exactly assign me to Sales and have me be useful.”
“If there’s an issue, I’d like to help you resolve it. Do you want to talk about it? Would you rather have someone else in the room, besides Cody?”
Trina had almost forgotten he was there; she was so focused on the soothing-but-not assurances from Janna. “No, this is fine. You promise anything I say doesn’t come back to me?”
“Of course.” Janna sounded confident.
Trina took a mental breath and relayed the conversation she’d overheard in the breakroom. As she spoke, she glanced at her boss. The set of his jaw and the lines in his forehead caught her off guard. Was it a mistake to do this? Or was he upset on her behalf?
She prayed for the latter.
SPENCER SCANNED THE Civil Litigation paperwork he was served with. In the background, the office chatter bounced around as if it were a normal day. As if they weren’t being threatened by what he was calling a hostile takeover.
That might be a tad melodramatic, but he liked the way it fueled his irritation. The complaint from Mia was simple. As she’d said on the phone, she wanted half of Ride & Surf.
Her claim was that, based on the infidelity clause in their prenup, he cheated first.
He clenched his fist at the accusation until his knuckles ached, but kept reading. The complaint went on to state that in June of 2012, he’d been romantically involved with another woman.
It then referenced the specific adultery clauses in their original agreement.
“God damned, fucking....” He bit off the words with a growl and called his lawyer.
“This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about, when I asked you if there was anything that might be an issue here,” Christian said.
Spencer didn’t appreciate the assumption or the condescension. “I didn’t do this. Doesn’t she need evidence of some sort?”
“It’s not a criminal case. You’re not innocent until proven guilty. This is an instance of which of you is more right. Yes, she needs to prove it, but you have to work as hard to disprove it.”
“Is me saying I didn’t do it enough?” Spencer knew it wasn’t, but he had to ask.
Christian’s dry chuckle wasn’t comforting.
“File a motion to dismiss,” Spencer said.
“On what grounds?”
“On the grounds I was faithful and it never happened.” Spencer was calling Mia’s bluff. If she wanted the case to continue, she’d have to provide proof, and she didn’t have any.
“If this goes into discovery, it will cost you thousands in man hours.”
Spencer pinched the bridge of his nose at the money reminder. “Thousands is still less than she’s demanding. And it won’t.”
“I like that you’re so eager to toss money at the firm, but I’ll keep a loose total on man hours, and if you creep toward cheaper to settle, I’m going to let you know.”
“Are we at that point yet?”
“No.”
“File a motion to dismiss.” Spencer didn’t like repeating himself.
“You got it, boss.”
He disconnected. The conversation should have reassured him, or bled off some of his frustration, but anger still pulsed inside. He didn’t let anyone walk over him, and this was no exception.
But what the fuck did she have that made her think she could get away with a claim that he’d been unfaithful?
CHAPTER EIGHT
Trina parked in the lot of the new Ride & Surf building. The only other car here was Spencer’s. How was she supposed to act around him? Professionally? Friendly? What if he got the wrong idea?
He wasn’t like that. Or he was, and she’d read him w
rong.
She slapped her palm lightly against the side of her head, to make her brain shut up. The ambivalence spilling inside her was a dark cloud, compared to the glee she felt when Cody told her she could work on this install.
It would just be a couple of weeks, and as long as Mason wasn’t the one who filed the complaint against her at work, he was probably the safest person for her to be shadowing.
She shut off her engine, bottled up her uncertainty, and made her way inside.
Spencer was seated on a plastic chair in the unfinished lobby, jabbing the screen of his phone. He looked up and smiled when she approached. “Hey.”
“Morning.”
“Coffee and bagels in the temporary break room.” He nodded toward an open door behind him. “Help yourself.”
Her stomach wasn’t going to let her eat. Why did he have to look so good? And be so nice? “I’m okay. Thanks.”
The swoosh of the doors opening gave her an excuse to look away, and the faint churn in her gut turned to borderline nausea when Doug walked in.
She froze her smile in place. “I didn’t realize you were on this installation.”
Cody joined them as well.
“Change of roster.” Doug’s reply was ice sliding down her spine.
“Mason isn’t with us any longer. He’s moved on to another job,” Cody said.
“I hope everything’s all right.” This didn’t have to do with the conversation yesterday, did it? Trina didn’t want to get Mason fired. He hadn’t done anything.
Cody scowled. “I’m not at liberty to say.”
That sounded bad. She found an empty spot of wall to lean against, far enough from everyone she didn’t have to make conversation, but not so much it looked like she was retreating. Over the next ten minutes, the rest of the install crew joined them. It was a little more time of them wandering in and out of the break room, bagels and coffee in hand, before Spencer stood and gave a sharp whistle.
Every head swiveled in his direction. She liked that he could do that.
“Here’s the deal.” His voice carried easily through the lobby. “Four floors, and Cody tells me there are two of you for each. I want to talk to the pairs individually about specifics, but overall, this is how things will work for the next two weeks.
“And as an aside, there are cameras installed throughout the building. They’ll be tested intermittently while you’re working, not as a big brother is watching kind of thing, but so I know if they work.”
He ran through the install plan, leaving them the leeway to do their jobs, but providing appropriate information it would be difficult to misinterpret how he wanted things wired.
She was happy to watch him, as he moved and talked. There was a quiet self-assurance in the way he held himself. He knew everyone was listening. And he looked incredible in jeans and a T-shirt. Did she make a mistake, telling him to stop the other night?
He broke up the group and asked all of them to wait until he’d talked to each pair.
Doug nudged her. “Close your jaw. You’re drooling. Or are you looking to destroy another career?”
She snapped her head up and pointed a narrowed gaze at him. “I’m not drooling,” she whispered.
“Right. Oh holy shit. He got you this job, didn’t he?” Doug’s flat tone didn’t reflect the shocked words. “Did you...?”
“Did I what?” She let the edge creep into her question. If he was going to make lewd remarks or accuse her of sucking someone off for her job, she wanted him to have the balls to say it to her face.
“You know what.”
“If you mean, did I prove I was competent and good at my job, then yes.”
His smirk set her on edge. “You’ve got a few days to prove it, but I don’t buy it. Don’t think I’m going to give you any excuses to tattle on me.”
Did he know? So much for guaranteed anonymity. Or she was overreacting. He was a douche, and he was looking for ways to rile her up. She didn’t know if she could ignore him for the next two weeks, though.
SPENCER WAS PLEASED with the progress the group had made, as they took a mid-morning break. True, it had only been a few hours, but the team seemed to understand his vision, all of the hardware had been moved to where it needed to be, to start wiring, and the overall vibe was positive.
Trina was the exception. She hadn’t made eye contact with him all morning, and as her colleagues stood around the cooler full of soda, joking and laughing, she hung back near the wall. She took tiny sips from a can of Mt. Dew, and flicked her gaze at the pack every few seconds.
He took the spot next to her. “Need help holding up the wall?”
She jumped and looked at him, eyes wide, before turning back to her drink. “It’s your wall.”
“How’s your first day?” he asked.
“Great.” She sounded like it was anything but.
He didn’t like seeing her this way. Which, on an all people deserve sympathy level, made sense. But there was more to it—the quiet drive pulsing under his skin to find out what was wrong and crush it, if that would make her smile again. “How are you?”
“Great.”
“That’s great,” he said in a teasing tone.
She glanced sideways at him. “Please don’t keep asking me questions.” The desperation in her voice and gaze tore through him.
He didn’t understand where it came from, but he wouldn’t ignore her request. This wasn’t the place to force the issue. “Okay. I’ll leave you be.”
“Thank you.” Her voice was so quiet, he wasn’t sure he heard her right.
He quelled his uneasiness and the strange protective urge screaming for his attention, and stepped away. If they weren’t at work, he’d push her a little harder to open up.
When break time was over, everyone split and headed back to their floors. He returned to his laptop, to get some work done. He wouldn’t be onsite for the entire installation, but he wanted to be available for the first few days, to make sure things headed in the right direction.
He’d been at it for about an hour, when the sound of footsteps pounding down the stairs caught his attention. He looked up, to see one of the crew jogging toward him.
“Do you have a first aid kit in the building?” Brian asked between gasps for breath.
“I have one in my truck. What’s wrong?”
“Shawn sliced his hand open, and we need some gauze or something.”
“Have him sit tight until we get him bandaged.” Spencer was already sprinting outside to grab the kit.
When he found the group on the second floor, a short while later, Trina was kneeling next to Shawn, pressing a wad of tissues against his wrist.
She glanced over her shoulder. Her sullen expression from earlier was gone. She turned back to Shawn. “Keep pressure on this,” she said softly, but with assurance. “I’m going to clean things and wrap it up, and then you can go to the hospital and see if you need stitches.
“Sure.” Shawn nodded and did as ordered.
She took the nylon bag from Spencer without hesitation and unzipped it. He watched her work, impressed with the way she cleaned the wound, then sealed it up, talking calmly to Shawn the entire time.
“Brian.” Cody waved down the tech. “Make sure he gets to Instacare all right.”
Brian helped Shawn to his feet. “Will do.”
“And put on all the forms that this was work related, and my company name as the client,” Spencer said. That would ensure the clinic charged Workman’s Compensation instead of Shawn.
The two men left.
Trina packed up the first aid kit and handed it back to Spencer. “Thanks.” Her smile was freezing over again, but the warmth he caught underneath was worth the glimpse.
She left to wash her hands, and Spencer chatted with Cody about insurance details, before Cody excused himself to check on the other floors.
When Trina returned, she said she was going back to work, and Doug fell into step beside her.
“Yo
u’d better not run to HR about this.” Doug’s muttered threat floated to Spencer, as the pair walked away. “The last thing he needs is you bitching that he made you touch him.”
Spencer clenched his teeth at the remark and whirled, but Trina and Doug where halfway up the stairs. He could follow them. Pin the jackass to the wall and tell him to watch his mouth and attitude. That was an almost overwhelming impulse.
One which carried possible assault charges. He could warn Doug to keep his fucking attitude to himself, but from the snippet of conversation he’d heard, that wouldn’t help Trina any if she had to work alone with the guy.
Something Spencer wasn’t proud of, when it came to his past, was that his best friend growing up was a bully in every sense of the word. He had a feeling Trina didn’t know that about her brother, and Tristan changed as he grew up.
But Spencer learned a few important lessons, and stepping into this could make Trina’s life a lot more miserable.
Fuck if he didn’t hate that inability to act and resolve.
CHAPTER NINE
By the time Friday afternoon rolled around, Trina was convinced she’d aged ten years in two days. Doug never gave her a tangible, overt reason to complain, but every ten minutes, he pointed out something else she’d done wrong.
She knew better. Some of the things he bitched about, she did a different way than he did, but her way was still right. Others, he was outright wrong about. The reprimands wore on her, though. Worse—she didn’t know how Cody would react if Doug said she was incompetent. It would be her word against his.
She’d never anticipated a weekend more in her life. As soon as five hit, she’d be in her car. She was even excited about the slog of the evening commute if it meant this week was behind her. Two days to blow up Hoarde and save the digital world.
Shawn joined them. He hadn’t needed stitches after all, and the doctor sent him back with praise for whoever bandaged his hand. The one bright spot in her week. “Cody and Spencer want us in the lobby,” he said.
Riding the Wave Page 5