“That’s what I love about it,” he said. “It can be anything I want it to be; all I have to do is use my imagination and find an investor.”
Roger laughed. “Oh, is that all?” he asked, shaking his head, then smiled at Malcolm. “I really do hope this works out for you. I’m always here if you need advice.”
“I’ll remember that,” he said, getting to his feet. “I guess I should get on those videos, I’m going to need my paycheck now more than ever.”
***Rose***
“Oh my gosh, are you okay?” Vanessa said, rushing over to Rose, who was staring open-mouthed down the hallway. “I can’t believe Malcolm just mowed you over like that, then didn’t even stop to help pick all this up. He’s usually not a jerk.”
Vanessa’s words managed to penetrate the desire rushing through her, making her brain feel foggy, and she turned to look over at the other woman. “Did you say Malcolm?” she asked, then started picking up the invoices to hide the blush that crept up her cheeks at the memory of being pressed up against him. “Is that his name?”
“Yeah, he’s one of the framers; I guess he goes to college on the other side of town too. He’s a frat boy, if you can believe it,”Vanessa said, shrugging her shoulders, then bent down to help. “He’s one of those men who is great to look at but dangerous to get tangled up with. He’ll break your heart and walk away without a backward glance.”
“Oh, I’m not interested in him, I was just curious,” she said, pleased that it was the truth. “My heart is perfectly safe.”
Vanessa studied her for a second, then shrugged her shoulders, “Whatever you say, I just…well the way you two looked at each other, it seemed like there was something there and I wanted to warn you,” she said. “It’s fun to flirt with him, but take my advice and don’t let it go any farther than that. You seem like a nice person. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
She studied the other woman for a second, then she understood. “You’re talking from experience, aren’t you?” she asked, then put her hand over her mouth. “I’m sorry, it’s none of my business, I shouldn’t have asked.”
“It’s okay, it was a long time ago,” Vanessa said, standing up and handing her the invoices she’d collected. “Do you want me to show you the way to your office? You probably want to get started on these.”
“That would be great,” she said, knowing when to let something go. “I appreciate all the help. I’d be lost if it wasn’t for you, maybe I can buy you lunch or something.”
“I’d like that,” Vanessa said, smiling at her. “It’s nice to get along with the people you work with. I think we’re going to be friends.”
“Me too,” she said, smiling at the other woman.
She looked around the cramped office after Vanessa left, dumped the invoices on the desk, then walked around behind it and sank into the chair. A puff of dust filled the air around her as the air escaped from the cushion. She accidentally inhaled just as the cloud rose into the air, making her lungs burn and her nose begin to tickle. The first sneeze sent another cloud ofdust into the air from the top of the desk, the second completely cleaned it off, and she jumped to her feet, desperate for some fresh air.
Running over to the window, still sneezing, she threw it open and poked her head out, forcing herself to take little breaths until the tickle faded away and her lungs stopped burning. Wondering how long it had been since the office had been cleaned, she looked around again, deciding it would be impossible to work there until she’d had a chance to give it a good dusting and vacuuming.
Picking up the invoices, she left and walked down the hallway, looking in open doors for someone to ask about using a different office for the day, hoping that it wasn’t going to be Sandra. She was down to the last office when she heard footsteps behind her and whirled around to find the woman standing with her hands on her hips, glaring at her like she’d broken the law.
“What are you doing snooping around back here?” Sandra demanded. “Are you spying on us for another contractor? You won’t get away with it if you are, I’m too smart for that.”
“I was just looking for a different place to work; my office is very dusty, and I couldn’t stop sneezing,” she said. “I thought I’d get these done, then give it a good scrubbing and vacuuming.”
“That won’t be necessary, I’ll have the cleaning crew take care of it,” Sandra said, her voice a little softer. “In the meantime, you can use the training room. There’s a computer in there and enough supplies to get you through until your office is ready.”
“Oh, thank you, that would be wonderful,” she said, hoping Sandra was starting to get used to the idea of her being there. “I really wouldn’t mind seeing to it myself, I don’t want to be a bother.”
“It’s no problem, tonight is the night they come anyway,” Sandra said, leading her down the hallway. “Besides, the more I think about it, the more I think the training room might bea better place for you to work. There are a couple of nice long tables where you can sort the invoices.”
“I don’t think I’ll need that much room,” she said, holding out the stack in her hand. “There aren’t that many of them.”
Sandra looked at the pile, then back up at Rose. “Oh, dear, didn’t I tell you, those are just this week’s, there are some more in the records room,” she said, clearly not the least bit sorry and enjoying herself. “Come on, I’ll show you. I’m sure you’ll agree, it might be easier to use the training room.”
She couldn’t help the groan that came from deep in her chest when she saw the three heaping boxes of invoices, and didn’t miss the look of satisfaction on her supervisor’s face. “If you think it’s too big of a job for you, it’s not too late to back out,” she said, her voice full of false sympathy. “I wouldn’t blame you. This is a huge mess. I’ve been telling Roger for months that we need to get it straightened out…”
“I’ll have it sorted out in no time,” she said brightly, refusing to let the older woman win. “I’ve seen worse than this.”
“Oh, well then, I’ll leave you to it, but I’ll be around if you have any questions,” Sandra said, clearly disappointed that she wasn’t going to complain. Then, a little evil smile appeared on her face. “I can’t believe how forgetful I am lately. I completely forgot to tell you that I need this done by next Monday morning. We have to send it in to the CPA so he can do the taxes.”
“Next Monday,” she repeated, looking at the boxes. “That might be a lot to ask, I don’t know if I can do it.”
“Well then, I’ll just tell Roger that you’re not up to the job,” Sandra said, a look of triumph on her face. “I’m sure he’ll understand that fancy college education of yours didn’t prepare you for the real world, it happens all the time…”
“I’ll get it done,” she interrupted. “I just said it might be hard, I might have to stay late and come in early.”
