“Good,” Greg said, his gaze dropping to the hem of her skirt. “I’ll see you later.”
Not if she saw him first. She hadn’t missed the disapproval on his face when he’d seen her updated appearance. Too bad. She liked it, and judging by the reactions of the rest of the males around the place, they liked the new-look Maggie. Besides, she’d scored a date. She couldn’t wait to tell the girls. She wasn’t looking forward to telling Connor quite as much.
Maggie skipped down the passage to her cubicle. As usual several of her fellow employees were playing solitaire and surfing the net. She wouldn’t have time to check her email since she’d promised Tanya, one of the partners, she’d complete the Weston accounts this morning.
After switching on her computer, she immersed herself in work. She worked right through morning tea, printing off the final set of accounts before midday.
She delivered the accounts to Tanya and waited while she glanced through them.
“Great job,” Tanya said. “Thanks for getting them done so quickly. Word is out about you.”
“No problem,” she said. “Pardon?” Tanya’s final words registered. Fear clutched at her heart. What did she mean?
“Word is out about the great work you do. Greg has requested you for a special project he’s working on next month. I understand you’ve done a few jobs for him recently.”
“Oh,” Maggie said. “That’s…uh…great.” What the hell sort of game was Greg playing? Yes, he’d requested her services for three projects. Normally that wouldn’t bother her, but when she reported for duty, he treated her like a glorified junior, getting her to make coffee and complete the filing. It was true she wasn’t a qualified accountant, but she wasn’t chopped liver, either. She excelled at her job. “Was there anything else you wanted me to work on?”
Tanya ran through a quick list of assignments. “The Dobson accounts are next on the list. The Dobsons are coming in on Monday.”
“All under control,” Maggie said. “I should have them completed for you to check tomorrow.”
Five minutes later, Maggie left her cubicle, desperate for a cup of coffee and something to eat. She spotted the other members of the Tight Five at their usual table, but made a beeline to the coffee machine. She purchased a salad sandwich and went to join them.
“What did you think of the speed dating last night?” Susan asked.
“I had a bunch of strange men, apart from Connor. He wasn’t weird,” Maggie said.
“But you can’t date Connor,” Christina said.
“Why not?” Connor said in a mild voice. “What’s wrong with me?”
“There’s nothing wrong with you, Connor. Christina didn’t mean it like that,” Susan spoke up.
“What did Christina mean then, ’cause I’m offended?” Connor puffed out his chest. “I’m a perfect date. Ask anyone.”
“But you don’t keep the fish,” Julia said. “You throw them back. Maggie wants a fisherman who keeps his fish.”
Susan chuckled. “Isn’t fish plural? Maggie doesn’t want to join a harem.”
“Not helping. Still feeling insulted,” Connor muttered.
Maggie noted his tense jaw and felt sneaking sympathy. She knew from personal experience he saw only one woman at a time. He didn’t go into relationships lightly. “Stop giving Connor a hard time. How did your dates go, Susan?”
“There were three that were reasonable and I put them on my list of men I’d like to meet again. I’m thinking of running a personal ad or joining one of those online dating sites. What do you think? Is that too sad?”
“Of course it isn’t,” Christina said. “You should let us help you vet them though. And you need to be careful. From what I’ve heard some of those men are weird. Julia, are you sure none of your dates are worth meeting again?”
“Positive,” Julia said in a crisp voice. “I scored a bunch of losers.”
“Did you have Connor?” Susan asked.
Connor made a protesting sound. “Still offended here, people.”
Maggie laughed. “Stop picking on Connor. You know we love you, right?”
“You might, but I’m wondering about the others,” he said. The quick wink passed as a joke to the other girls, but Maggie knew he’d sent her a secret message. A blush surged into her cheeks and spread across her face. Worried the others would notice, she applied herself to opening her sandwich.
“I have a date tonight,” she said, before they could continue the speed dating discussion.
