Page 14 of Bossman

Running to the elevator bank, I saw that one car was just about to close, so I stuck my foot in to stop it. It worked but almost took off my toes in the process.

“Shit. Ouch.” The doors bounced open, and I hobbled my way inside, unknowingly sticking my shoe’s thin heel in the small gap of the door track. With my heel stuck, my body kept going, yet my foot didn’t, and I wobbled, falling forward. An arm caught me and kept me from landing on my face.

“Goddamn it,” I cursed under my breath, realizing my shoe was now completely off my foot and stuck in the elevator track.

“Nice to see you too, Reese.”

My head whipped up as I realized for the first time exactly who was keeping me from falling. “You’ve got to be kidding me. How many bad impressions can one person possibly make on another?”

After steadying me, Chase kneeled and pried my wedged footwear loose from the elevator. He tapped my calf to signal me to lift my bare leg and then slipped the shoe back onto my foot.

“Definitely not a bad impression,” he said, lingering on his knees longer than necessary. “You have great legs.”

“Thank you—for unjamming my shoe, I mean.”

He stood, and his eyebrows rose. “So you’re not thanking me for complimenting your sexy legs, then?”

I felt a blush creeping up and was relieved when he turned his attention to the button panel. “What floor?”

“Umm…thirty-three?” Is his company on more than one floor?

“You’re coming to Parker Industries? Are you here to meet Sam?”

“Yes. And Josh Lange.”

“Josh?”

“Yes. He’s who I’m interviewing with, right? The vice president of marketing?”

“Right. Yes. Josh is the VP of marketing,” he agreed, but I had the distinct feeling Chase hadn’t known I was coming to interview today.

We rode the elevator up in uncomfortable silence. When the doors slid open, he held out his arm for me to exit first, and we walked to the glass double doors of Parker Industries together.

The reception desk was empty.

“Why don’t you have a seat, and I’ll let them know you’re here?” he said.

“Thank you.”

A minute or two after he went inside, the receptionist returned to her desk. “Hi. Sorry, I had to make some copies. I hope you weren’t waiting long.”

“Not at all. Actually, I came in with Chase, and he was going to let Samantha Richmond and Josh Lange know I was here.”

“You must be Reese Annesley. Sam asked me to bring you to the conference room when you got here.” She waved me back. “Come on, I’ll show you the way.”

The conference room had a long mahogany table with a dozen chairs around it. The walls to the hallway were glass like a fishbowl, but the blinds on a track were partially closed. Once inside, I took out my Chapstick and lined my lips, adding some MAC Rebel lipstick on top. As I finished, I heard Chase’s voice from the other side of the glass.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to hire Reese.”

My heart sank. Obviously, he didn’t see me.

I recognized Samantha’s voice when she responded. “Why? We have a position open that she would be perfect for.”

“She wouldn’t be a good fit.”

“That’s crap.”

“Don’t give me a hard time, Sam. Just don’t hire her.”