I told him everything. Who Barbara was, what she’d meant to me, how she’d literally put me on the path that I was on today. And then all about The Empire Group, the merger, and what it might mean for me.
“So you know some of the details but not all of the details, it sounds like, right?” he asked when I’d finished.
“Yeah, I don’t know too much. But I know enough to be nervous about what this means for me and my job. My partnership is essentially gone, that’s for sure.”
“Well, I think until you know all the details, you shouldn’t worry.”
“Shouldn’t worry?” I asked.
He shook his head. “I’ve never seen the point in worrying until there’s a reason to worry. This could all work out for the best, you never know.”
“But Barbara basically got kicked to the curb,” I said, frowning.
“Well, that’s obviously terrible, but you said yourself she’s looking forward to starting an herb garden.”
“That’s not really the point, Archie.”
He clasped my hands together once more, brought them to his mouth, and kissed them. “All I’m saying is let’s worry about this when the time comes.”
“That time is kind of now. I’ve got to go into Boston on Monday to meet my new boss.”
“Perfect, you’ll get the chance to show him how fantastic you are. I’ll tell him myself, as the client you’re currently working with I can testify to how great you are.” He turned my hands over and left lingering kisses in the center of my palms. “And when I say great, I really mean great.”
He was teasing, but just the idea of him talking to my new boss, possibly somehow spilling the beans about what we’d been doing up here outside of working . . . it sent a shiver through me.
He noticed, and pulled me back into his arms. “Don’t worry about this, Bossy. I promise it’ll all work out.”
“But you don’t know that,” I told his shoulder.
“I wouldn’t spend any more time thinking about this until you know more.”
I insisted. “But what if—”
“What if Martians showed up tomorrow, Clara, and decided to blow us all away? How would you feel if that happened and you spent your last night on earth worrying over something you had no control over, instead of spending that time with me, letting me do things to you.”
I smiled in spite of myself. “Letting you do things to me?”
“Preferably things where we’re both way more naked. Although I’m not picky, I bet I could work wonders even with your skirt still on,” he said seriously, one of his hands dropping down my leg and sliding up and under my skirt.
“Oh, Mr. Bryant,” I sighed, trying like hell to let go like he asked, to not worry.
Admittedly, it was easier to let go when he put his mouth on me underneath the night sky.
But I didn’t really stop worrying.
Chapter 21
“Clara Morgan? Nice to meet you, I’m Dick Stevee.”
Dick Stevee. Best name ever.
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Stevee,” I replied, shaking his hand as I walked into the conference room. “How are things going for you so far?” The management team had taken over two of our conference rooms while they “transitioned” into this new arrangement. Dick Stevee would be my new supervisor, and he was the one meeting with the entire field team to appraise, adjust, and make any changes as he saw fit regarding the way we ran our operations.
Here’s what I knew about Dick so far. He was efficient, clever, and made split-second decisions—not only on policy but on people. The kind of guy who if you were on his good side, then you saw him as a leader, but if you were on his bad side, then you just saw him as a—
“Call me Dick,” he said, gesturing to the chair on the other side of the table. “Things are moving quickly, Clara, which is why it was so important for me to meet with you today.”
I didn’t say call me Clara, but . . .
“See, I’ve been reviewing your files, I’ve been reviewing the files of all my new employees, and I must say, very impressive.”
“Well, thank you, I try and—”
“But you take too damn long.”
I swallowed. “Excuse me?”
“You take too damn long. All of you do. Some of the changes you’ve made at these places, and the results you’ve been able to achieve, are incredible. No one is denying that.”
“Okay?” I asked.
“But we need to start achieving those results in half the time.”
“Impossible,” I said, without missing a beat.
“That’s interesting you said that, Clara, because some of the other people in your position said no problem.”
“My colleagues do good work, great work in fact, but no one has the track record I do. My success rate is flawless, the returns made on my clients’ investments are a windfall in each case, and every single one of them would hire me again.”
“And yet you take longer on every project than anyone else in this firm.”
“Some would argue that’s exactly why I have the success rate I do. I take my time.” I held my ground. I was all for making nice with my new boss, but I knew guys like this, and if they sensed a weakness, any weakness at all, you were done for.
“Take the . . . what’s the name . . .” He shuffled through his papers. “Bigelow Mountain House?”
“Bryant Mountain House,” I corrected, and he looked up at me over his glasses.
“Yes, the Bryant Mountain House. According to your initial plan you’re spending the better part of the spring up there, but based on your projections you should be practically done by now.” He slid the paperwork toward me.
“Practically done and done are two different things,” I said, not looking at the paperwork. I knew what it said, I’d drawn up the plan myself. “This is a unique property, with unique concerns. They’ve agreed to more changes than I initially anticipated, and they’re significant. To abandon them now would be to do exactly that, abandon.”
“But surely you’d circle back to check in on progress?”
“Of course. After the initial phase is complete. Which we are still weeks away from, not to mention they’re going into their busiest time of the year.”
“One week.”
“I’m sorry?” I shook my head, not understanding.
“One week, Clara, you have one week to wrap things up at the Bigelow project.”
“Bryant Mountain House, but sir, with all due respect, that’s simply not possible.”
He looked at me keenly. “I’ve chatted with three other employees today, all of whom share the same job title as you. All of whom produce not nearly the results that you do. All of whom said they can bring their projects in early. Now, I have no doubt that whatever it is you’re doing up there is incredible, but now is the time for efficiency. Did Barbara tell you about the hiring freeze? The promotion freeze?”