“Oh, would you?” Her face lit up like Christmas came early this year. “That would be so awesome. This paper is due tomorrow and I need to print it out. It’s on my computer.” She said the latter as if he didn’t know that.
He was going to her house. He resisted the urge to puff out his chest and howl. Yes, he did need to keep her talking, not to mention he might need to know some things. Focus, Bax. “Did you back up your computer recently? If you didn’t, you might have data loss.” He hated to break that news to her.
Her smile stole his breath with its brilliance, even more so than the last two times. He needed shades to dampen it, not that he wanted to. “Now, I do know what a backup is and I do backup.”
“How often?” It still might not be a good answer for her. Some people backed up once a month and thought that would save them. Mostly, it bit them in the ass.
“Once a week.”
Not great but better than never or once a year. He pulled one hand out of his pocket. “You might lose anything since the last backup. When did you write the paper?” He only hoped the next answer was better than the last.
“Pap…oh. I…uh…worked on it way before the last backup. Yep, before the last backup. So it should all be there. I just hadn’t printed it yet. Was waiting until it was due.” She seemed awful happy about her answer. Maybe because she wouldn’t lose that much data. “My computer is old and it’s hard to deal with…”
“Procrastination huh?”
“Yeah. Something like that.” She shrugged. Her shoulders were even pretty. He’d bet they’d be as milky white as the rest of her. Probably covered in freckles. Or would she have none? “So could you come over tonight to fix it?”
He nodded. “Sure. I’ll come right to you after work. We get off at the same time. I don’t know how long it will take…”
“No!” Her face went into what looked like a panic attack. “Um… No. I mean after work I have this thing that I can’t get out of. It’s a thing and I have to do it. So right after work isn’t good but how about seven p.m.?”
“That’s cool.” He’d get to go over, she’d feed him dinner and he’d spend most of the evening knee deep in her files. If only he could be knee deep in her.
She licked her lips. “I’ll make it worth your while.” She sidled up a little closer and her eyes sparked at him.
Was she flirting with him? Now he knew this had to be a too much soda induced dream because Anna Marie never flirted with him.
Only she batted her lashes at him coquettishly. She had long lashes, too, the kind that would shed, leading to lashes in eyes. If she kept batting them like that, they were going to start losing hairs. She’d never done that before either. But it didn’t become her. If only she’d stop.
“I…uh…I’m sure you will make it worth my while.” Just being around her would make it worth anything.
He waited to wake up to the alarm going off any second now and starting this miserable day as code monkey over again.
Only Darth Vader didn’t seem to want to speak.
He and Anna Marie stared at each other in silence a minute. He couldn’t think of anything to say and she seemed lost in thought.
Finally, he asked, “So what’s your paper on? And who’s it for? Surely they don’t have you taking work home with you?”
She blanched as if he’d hit her. Not his intention. “Ohhhhh noooo. I don’t take work home. Work here and here alone.” She twisted her hands around, looking almost miserable. “Hard to be a phone monk…er answer phones at home.”
She’d been about to call herself a phone monkey. He’d never heard the phrase but as he often thought of his job as playing code monkey, it fit. “I’m sure.” He waited a second but she didn’t seem inclined to answer. “So what’s the paper for?”
“Oh.” She twisted her hands some more. “It’s an economics paper. On supply and demand for the mushroom industry. It’s for a class.” Her eyes widened a little as though she couldn’t believe she’d told him that.
“Oh? You’re going back to school.” He rocked back on his heels. “Where you going? Whatcha majoring in?”
She waved a hand dismissively as though what she was doing didn’t matter. “Oh it’s nothing important. I just need to get the paper in on time.”
“Well of course you do. You want an A.” He noticed she had a dimple when she smiled. He liked it. “Seriously, where are you going? What are you majoring in?”
“University of Glen Allen.”
He whistled. “Nice school.” They had a great academics reputation. “And your major? It’s computers, isn’t it?” Suddenly he didn’t feel like as much of a geek as he usually did around her. He was teasing her, not anything he’d expected to do, ever, with Anna Marie. She put him at ease this time in talking. Maybe because for the first time, she was talking to him. And he was seeing her as a real, live human being, not some angel on a pedestal. He liked that even better.
“Nooo. Not at all.” She laughed a bit. “I’m majoring in business with a minor in economics.”
“That’s great. What do you want to do with it?”
“Ultimately I’d like to manage a small business. Maybe start off doing the books, sales, and financials and move my way in. I…” Her mouth clamped closed. Now she definitely looked as though she couldn’t believe she’d said that. “You know, business stuff.”
He could use one of those people himself. His computer software had taken off but he wasn’t a businessman or a salesman. He liked the design part and resented how much the other parts took away from that. “You’re going to be great.” He said the words softly. Couldn’t believe he said them but he did.
Red moved up her neck and into her cheeks. “I’ll get by.” She seemed taken aback he’d said that to her.
“More than get by. How much longer do you have? Before you tackle that master plan?” How much longer would see her here at work? He’d never thought about her leaving here before he did.
“A year. At least.” Her smile was rueful. “I’ve been in it for the long haul. Having to work and do this, I can’t take but so many hours of classes. I’m not smart like…”
He shook his head, interrupting her. “You’re smart.”
“No.” Another denial from her. “I’m not.”
“You answer fourteen phone lines at a time. You have to be smart to do that. Trust me, you are. You’re going to do great in business, too.”
She looked as if she didn’t know how to take that comment. She shifted her feet, looking a little uncomfortable.
Which meant it was probably time for him to retreat. When you start scaring the girl, time to go home. “I’d better get back to my desk. Lots of stuff to do.” Like banging on the keyboard and pretending to work while he dreamed of what would happen later.
“Oh. Yeah. Me, too.” She bounced away.
He watched that lovely rear walk toward the turn that would take her away from him. He was going to see that rear and the rest of her tonight. “Oh, Anna Marie?”
She half turned to him. “Yes, Baxter.”
God that name on her lips sent chills racing down his spine and made his cock jump. “E-mail me your address.”
“I can give you dir…You’ll use your GPS won’t you?”
“Yeah. How did…never mind.” He waved at her.
She continued her walk away and he watched her until he couldn’t see her any more. Then he pumped his fist in the air. “Yes.” It was only fixing her computer, but it was a start, along with the conversation they’d just had, and more time with her than he’d ever hoped for.
He couldn’t wait until tonight.
Chapter Three
Anna Marie pounded on the keys. “Come on you stupid slow thing.” One hand balled into a fist. Her dialup was so slow. She’d never find a virus by seven p.m. if it didn’t hurry up and load a webpage.
She had to have something on there to back up her story.
Her head was still dizzy from how easy this was goin
g to be. And from his comments. He had seemed sincere when he said he thought she’d do great in business. She hadn’t told anyone at work what she was doing with school. It had really just slipped out to Baxter. She hadn’t expected encouragement from him. She still couldn’t believe what she was shooting to do with her life sometimes anyway.
Seemed a wide stretch from the girl who’d tried to be invisible most of her teenage years and lived on the other side of the tracks from decent people.
Her gaze shifted to look around her apartment as she waited on her computer. Everything was in its place. No mess for her.
Her small apartment was decorated with mostly old pieces of furniture that might be slightly ratty but everything was neat and scrubbed. Her entire house smelled of cleanser as usual. There was no debris, no soda cans or pizza boxes.
No girl peeking over a book from the sofa as her mother yelled at her to get off her “lazy ass and amount to sumting, Stupid” even while she tried to remain as still as a rabbit evading detection. Her mom’s boyfriend had been the predator. Her mother had never taken her side against them.
She tossed off that image. She hadn’t been that girl in years.
Her own mother hadn’t believed she’d be anything more than a slut or welfare whore, so why should Baxter? Yet, he’d seemed sincere.
About the girl who’s trying to bust him.
Not that Baxter seemed thrilled by working there, but she’d never imagined he would be a spy.
Which is why they don’t pay you to think, just do what they (or I) tell you. A corollary of her mother.
She turned her concentration to her PC. At least that she understood, even if it was running even slower today than usual. Maybe she had really caught a virus.
She grabbed a brush from her desk drawer and ran it through her frizzy, tangled hair. “Come on.”
She’d just managed to find what she thought was a virus and download it when the doorbell rang.
It was six-fifty. He was early.
Figures.
She found her hands sweating as she switched off her computer. Her heart started to race, too.
Surely she couldn’t be nervous.
Not over the computer geek?
Her hands trembled before she yanked over the door. “Hi, Baxter.” She bit her lip, looking at the man standing outside her door.
“Hey, Anna Marie.” He smiled, showing all of his teeth. “I’m here.”
“So you are.” She motioned him inside and shut the door behind her. “My computer is over here.” She pointed, which was sort of stupid, because the computer desk wasn’t in another room so he could plainly see where the computer was. Her hands bunched up and then released. She needed to pull herself together.
He sidled over to it and then she saw a transformation that took her breath away. Baxter Savage, goofy guy with definite hint of geek, turned all business. He even walked differently to her machine, like he was in his element. His strides were long and cocky. “Let’s see what you got here.” Without any fumbling, he reached down and turned on her computer. His fingers hit the keyboard as though he were stroking a piano.
Long deft fingers that had a couple of scratches. Fingernails were clean and short. He had nice hands.
Oh now that was pathos in action. Noticing a man’s hands. But she’d never seen him so sure of himself, nor had she ever seen him so tactile with anything.
Remember what you’re supposed to be doing? Standing here like a bump on a log won’t get it done.
Oh yes. “Can I get you something to drink?”
He barely shifted his gaze her way. Which considering how much attention he usually paid to her was troubling. “What? Oh yeah…” His fingers tumbled over the keys, clicking and clacking. “…geez this thing is slow. How about some Tab?”
She blinked at him for a few seconds before realizing she had to answer him. But watching him work was fascinating. “Oh, I uh don’t have Tab.”
“How about some Mountain Dew?”
“Er, no.”
“Cola?”
“Uh, I have milk, orange juice and water.” She didn’t keep soda in the house. Guess she should have mentioned that.
“Water. Water’d be great.”
This was going well. Not. She’d been turned into a babbling idiot. Interesting that at work, he was the one who seemed to struggle, yet get him working on a computer, and he became a different man. She was usually so sure of herself that she wasn’t sure what was going on. She took a deep breath before she carried out the glass of water and ice. “Here you go.” She sat it down beside him.
“Thanks.” He still clacked on the keyboard. “This thing always run so slow?” He still didn’t glance at her.
“It’s old.”
His laugh was genuine Baxter. “Yeah.”
“It’s been getting worse though. It’s why I think I might have a virus.” She did have a virus, she’d made sure to download one.
“Probably you do but it is an old machine too. Have you considered getting an upgrade?” He paused to take a sip of water.
“Can’t afford it right now.” Her partial payments to school and her rent took almost all of her money. There was little extra.
He scratched his head. “I could probably build you a computer. Pretty cheaply. I mean what do you use this for? Some research? Writing papers?”
She nodded, then realized he wasn’t looking at her. “Yeah.”
“You play games?”
“Does solitaire count?” And lately that hadn’t even worked. She’d have to wait two minutes just to move a card.
“No.” He snorted. “I’m talking like…games. Real games.”
“Nope. I don’t play any of them.” She didn’t have time with school. Nor did she have the inclination. She was trying to make herself better, not get caught up in some stupid game that didn’t mean anything. Of course she knew Baxter played, so she wasn’t about to make any cutting comments no matter that she was thinking them. He didn’t have any ambition, which made it easier for her to stop thinking about him in the romantic sense. Not that she was. She had to remember her goal. Hmmm, probably time to get more personal with him. “You play a lot don’t you? You and that security guard…” The guard’s name wouldn’t come to her.
“Joel.”
That was it and she nodded emphatically.
He went on even though he couldn’t have seen her head bobbing. “…we play a bit. A lot. Maybe.” He clicked a button or two. “This virus is embedded. I’m going to have to clean off your PC and maybe reload it.”
“Reload it?” She hadn’t even thought about what he’d have to do to fix this. That sounded complicated.
“Yeah. But I can restore it from your backup.” He pressed a couple of keys. “Where do you keep your backup anyway?”
She moved toward him and opened the drawer beside him. “In here. It’s a drive thing.” She couldn’t remember what it was called, even though she knew.
He grinned, looking up at her. “Flash drive.”
His smile kept knocking her off balance. “Huh?” She fingered the small piece of metal in her hands. Baxter smelled good. He was wearing something musky. She couldn’t help but notice that Baxter had a few muscles too. He must not spend all his time sitting behind a desk on the computer, playing games.
“The drive thing. It’s a flash drive.” He reached over to take it from her hand.
Their fingers met.
A blinding spot of heat moved up her hand as his finger grazed hers. Electricity ran up her arm to her shoulder.
They both swallowed at the same time.
She quickly snatched her hand away. What the hell was wrong with her? She wasn’t supposed to be feeling things about Baxter for real. He was a…code monkey. She had plans. Aspirations. That didn’t include him.
Except to bust him.
He closed his fingers around the flash drive. “Good on the backup.” He seemed to be out of sorts for a moment as he sat there without saying a
nything or turning back to his computer. Then, he looked down, and got back his professional mojo. He sat the drive on the desk and turned back to the screen. “Do you have copies of the programs on here?”
“Some. Why?” She watched as his fingers clacked over the keys.
“Might need ‘em. If you tell me what you had loaded, I may be able to find you free access copies or equivalents.”
“For the reload? I probably have all my CD’s. They’re in the top desk drawer.” She watched as his back muscles tensed.
He swung the drawer open. “Excellent. You’re so neat. My desk sometimes looks like a tornado hit it.”
Hers never did. She wouldn’t let it. “I’m sort of a neat freak.”
He glanced back at her and smiled. A smile that would melt any heart. “I sort of got that.” His voice was teasing but not cruel as people so often were. His attention quickly turned back to her computer. “This thing really runs slow. I’m amazed you can do anything on it.”
She was sometimes too. “I don’t do much on it.”
“You must have the patience of a saint.”
“Not really.” She didn’t know how to reply to that. On some things she did have patience, like building her career. On other things, not so much.
“Well lemmee get down to business. You might want to pull up a chair. This is going to take a while.” He flashed her another look. “You’re going to need that patience.”
*
Baxter stared at the monitor in front of him. Surely that bar on progress had to move soon. It didn’t seem to have moved in the last few hours, though it had only been a few minutes.
Hey, it’s keeping you in her presence longer. That’s a good thing. Right? Only if you use the time to get to know her. And you’ve been sitting in silence for a while now. Talk to her.
She’d finally pulled up a chair and sat behind him, legs crossed. She’d changed into pants but wore the same shirt she’d had on at the office.
“So, have you lived here long?” He pushed back from her desk a little. The desk where everything had a place. Was she one of those women who couldn’t stand for anything to be out of place?
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