of college, including obtaining her MBA, to perform clerical duties in a small Houston investment firm. But, during her extensive job search, she had been forced to see the one major strike against her—youth. It seemed, she’d found out the hard way, that no one wanted to hire her in the position she was qualified for because she was only twenty-two. Graduating high school a year early and maintaining a perfect four-point-oh grade point average in college didn’t matter in light of her lack of experience.
After searching for three solid months without the first bite, Raymond Jarvis finally offered her a job as his “administrative assistant.” He promised her a junior partnership after one year of dedicated service, assuming she lived up to his expectations.
She, apparently, had done so. Ray had told her at Christmas that the upcoming year would be hers. In a show of good faith, he’d already started interviewing actual secretaries to take over the clerical duties.
A smile stretched across Kelly’s face, erasing the frown that had nagged at her earlier. Very soon she would take her rightful place in the ever-changing world of high finance. She couldn’t wait. No more monotonous filing, no more tedious reports, no—
“Kelly.”
As she dropped the last record into the appropriate folder, she looked up to find Ray emerging from his office, then carefully closing the door behind him.
Before she could ask what he needed, he hurried to where she stood by the long row of five-drawer high file cabinets. “I need you to put this away some place safe.”
She accepted the small computer disk he offered. “Does it pertain to a particular client’s file?” She had organized the computer disks the same as she had the hard copies of files. Whoever took over would have no problem following her system.
“Ah…” He gave the question entirely too much consideration before answering. “No…just…ah…”
Was it her imagination or was he sweating? A new line of concern formed along her brow. What in the world had made her boss so antsy?
“Just take it home with you and lock it up with your personal files.”
“My personal files?” she echoed, surprised by the suggestion. His gaze collided with hers and for just one instant she recognized fear in his. “Ray, is—”
“If,” he cut her off, the fear she’d seen in his eyes vanishing in the same instant, “you don’t mind. It’s just that if something happened here then those files would be safe.” He pressed her with his gaze, some unreadable emotion making her suddenly uneasy. “I’d really feel better about it if I knew you had a copy safely tucked away. You might need it…sometime.”
She nodded uncertainly. “All right. I’ll take care of it.”
He smiled to put her at ease, the expression clearly strained. “Don’t bother waiting for me. The other offices in the complex have already closed. Lock up and go on home.” He started to turn away but hesitated and glanced back at her. “Happy New Year.”
She managed a dim smile. “Same to you.”
When he’d gone back into his office and closed the door firmly behind him, she stared down at the disk. What on earth was this about? She’d worked for Ray for just over six months and she’d never seen him behave this way. Strange. Spooked, almost. He was always the epitome of cool and calm. His ability to make snap decisions under intense pressure never ceased to amaze her. What was it about this disk—her gaze shifted to his closed office door once more—and this client that made him so uncharacteristically agitated?
Kelly considered all that she’d noted about the client. Mid-thirties, she guessed. Well dressed in a charcoal suit. Dark hair. Not particularly handsome, but attractive in a generic, polished businessman sort of way. Nothing about him gave her pause—it was her boss’s reaction to him that didn’t fit. He hadn’t even introduced her to the client and he never failed to do that.
Ray Jarvis prided himself on a family-like atmosphere at his place of business. He’d told her over and over again that he hadn’t chosen an upscale office building downtown for that very reason. He preferred the smaller, more personal atmosphere of this quiet, off the beaten path, office complex. As he’d pointed out, his immediate neighbors, a mortgage company and an orthodontics office, had already closed for the weekend.
For the first time since she’d started working here, Kelly felt uneasy…alone. Somehow set apart from the rest of the world. It was completely ridiculous. Whatever was bugging Ray appeared to be contagious.
The bell over the front door jingled, drawing her from the troubling thoughts.
“Am I early?”
A genuine smile curled Kelly’s lips as she greeted her friend, Ann Jones. “Definitely not.” She felt better already just having another warm body in the room.
Ann, looking regal as always, came over and gave Kelly a hug. “That tyrant isn’t planning to keep you late today, is he?” She glanced at Ray’s closed door.
Kelly shook her head. Ann knew Ray was a push-over. “No. He’s with a client. Just give me a couple minutes to finish clearing my desk and I’ll be ready.”
“Make it fast. I’m in a hurry to get started on this weekend.”
Kelly laid the disk on her desk next to her purse and quickly sorted the messages Ray had yet to return. That annoying frown bored another line across her forehead. Why hadn’t he taken care of his messages? He hadn’t returned a single call all afternoon. There had to be something going on that she didn’t know about. Maybe something had gone wrong in his personal life. But then she remembered distinctly that he’d told her earlier in the week that he and his girlfriend had big plans for the weekend. They were going to New Orleans for the festivities. Maybe they’d broken up last night and he hadn’t wanted to talk about it.
Kelly almost hated to leave under the circumstances. She liked her boss, considered him a friend, as well. Maybe she should hang around and simply ask him if everything was okay.
“Can I use your phone?” Ann asked abruptly.
Kelly stepped aside and gestured to her desk. “Sure. I’ll get my coat.”
Ann reached across her desk and snatched up the receiver then swore. “Sorry,” she muttered. “I think I knocked something off your desk.”
The disk lay on the tile at Ann’s feet. “I’ll get it,” Kelly said quickly. She should have put it in her purse already. Ray obviously considered it important.
Just as she crouched down to grab the disk, Ann shifted her stance and inadvertently knocked it beneath the desk with the toe of her high-heeled shoe.
“Well, damn, Kelly, I’m sorry,” she muttered as her fingers paused in their work of entering the telephone number she wished to call. She moved slightly aside, as far as the phone cord would allow. “I’m a real klutz today.”
“No problem.” Kelly eased onto all fours and crawled under her desk to retrieve the disk, all the while mentally kicking herself for not having put it away as soon as Ray gave it to her. Her fingers curled around the disk at the same moment that the bell over the front entrance jingled. She turned too quickly, banging her head against the desk’s middle drawer. Cursing herself silently, she clenched her teeth a moment to
