gave herself a mental shake. With the board meeting at the end of the month, she had to stay focused. “I don’t have time for lunch today.”
“I’m beginning to notice a trend with you.”
This was the first personal conversation they’d taken time for since he’d started. The reason she’d chosen him over the other candidates wasn’t his dark and mysterious eyes or his potential to be a male cover model. Her reasons were far more basic.
He was smart and cocky—enough so that he’d want to do what it took to make himself stand out in a good way. And that’s what she needed. A person ready to hit the ground running. And that’s exactly what Trey had done. He’d taken on every task she’d given him—even when it’d kept him here after hours.
She was almost afraid to ask, but she couldn’t resist. “What trend would that be?”
“You never have time for lunch or anything else that isn’t business related.”
Lunchtime was her quiet time. She did eat, but it was always something simple that she could eat at her desk while answering emails and reviewing deadlines.
“It’s the way I like it.” She’d been working so long and so hard to keep herself afloat that she didn’t have time for a personal life. Maybe one of these days when the magazine was back on track and she resolved things with her stepmother. “I need that report completed as soon as you get back.”
The truth was she didn’t like Trey analyzing her. She didn’t want him unearthing her shortcomings. Because aside from his sexy good looks, Trey was astute and not easily won over, which made her want to gain his respect. Did that make her a bad boss? Was she supposed to be immune to the feelings of her employees—even when they were six foot two, physically toned and had mysterious dark eyes?
* * *
“Hey, Trey.”
Trey nodded and smiled at the passing mail lady. It was the following day and he had yet to complete the advertising report to Sage’s satisfaction. Every time he thought he’d nailed it, she changed the criteria. He didn’t know if she was trying this hard to make a good impression on the board or if she was trying to make him quit. Either way, she was only delaying the inevitable. Come the end of the month, the board would vote to shut down the magazine.
He honestly never thought when he went undercover that he’d have this much work to do. He thought he’d answer the phone, sort mail and fetch coffee. So far Sage had answered her own phone, the mail provided more projects for his growing to-do list and the boss lady had her own coffeepot. In other words, this job was not the cushy position he thought it’d be.
“Trey, just the person I need to see.” Louise, the head of human resources, stood just outside her office door.
He came to a stop. “What do you need?”
“For you to settle a debate.” She waved at him to follow her into the office. The older woman with short, styled silver hair sent him a warm smile. Try as he might to remain immune to her friendliness, he liked her.
Something told him this wasn’t work related. “I really need to get going. Sage needs this information.” He held up the papers in his hand. And for emphasis, he added, “Right now.”
Louise shook her head. “Don’t worry. This will only take a moment.”
He glanced around, finding he wasn’t the only one who’d been drawn in. Ron, from subscriptions, was propped against a file cabinet in the corner. He waved and Trey returned the gesture. On the other side was Jane with the short blond hair with pink streaks, but he couldn’t recall which department she worked in. She flashed him a big flirty kind of smile. He didn’t smile, not wanting to encourage her attention. Instead he gave a brief nod. What in the world had Louise drawn them in here for?
Louise moved to the doorway, checked both directions in the hallway and then proceeded to close the door. She turned to them. “It’s come to my attention that Sage’s birthday is this month. And I think we should do something for her.”
Trey didn’t like the sounds of this. He’d come to QTR to shut it down, not to make friends. The longer he was here, the harder it was to keep his distance. Just like he knew that Ron loved to surf. He could tell you anything you wanted to know about surfing—even some things you might not care to know. Once Ron started talking, it was hard to get away.
Day by day, the employees of QTR were changing from nameless numbers on spreadsheets to smiling faces with families to support. He hadn’t factored that in when he’d devised his plan to put his father’s cherished company out of business.
And worse yet was Sage’s unflagging devotion to saving the magazine. In the little time he’d been here, he’d witnessed her long hours and her attention to details. How was she going to take it when they closed it—when he closed it?
“Trey?” Louise’s voice drew him from his troubled thoughts.
He glanced up to find everyone staring at him as though expecting an answer. The only problem was he didn’t know the question.
As though sensing the problem, Louise held a plate of cookies out to him. “Go ahead. Take one of each. I need to know which to make for Sage’s birthday.”
He made a point of eating healthy, preferring fruit to desserts. He’d watched his mother drown herself in food after his father abandoned them. His mother’s health problems had eventually spiraled out of control. As he waited for her at a doctor’s appointment, he swore not to follow in her footsteps.
Still, Louise had made a point of making him feeling welcome at QTR. And it wasn’t like one cookie was going to hurt anything.
He took the double chocolate cookie with a swirl of white frosting. “But isn’t a birthday cake more traditional?”
Louise sent him a knowing smile. “I’ve already done some investigating and the birthday girl prefers cookies. And since this is her milestone birthday, she can have whatever she prefers.”
“Milestone?”
Louise nodded and placed a couple of other flavored cookies in his hand before moving to Jane. “Yes, she’s going to be thirty. I couldn’t believe it when she’d mentioned it, but I double-checked her personnel file.”
Trey had to agree with Louise. His boss didn’t look like much more than a college grad, if that. And he was finding it increasingly hard to concentrate on his work with Sage around. Her beauty was stunning. He just wished that she didn’t try so hard to micromanage everything—including him.
He made short work of the baked goods, finding them all quite good. In the end, he voted for the double chocolate cookie. Louise beamed as he complimented her culinary skills.
As he walked away, guilt settled on him. He was about to take jobs away from these people. The QTR employees weren’t cold and heartless like his father. They were warm, friendly and caring. The exact opposite of his father.
On the way back to his desk more people greeted him with a smile. This was the friendliest office he’d ever been in—even on a Monday morning. It only made him more conflicted about his plan.
