Romance: Dedication - A Workplace Romance (Dedication Series, Romance, Contemporary Romance Book 1) (2 page)

BOOK: Romance: Dedication - A Workplace Romance (Dedication Series, Romance, Contemporary Romance Book 1)
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              “Hows your first day going, Parkett?” Mckinnon said easily, after a pause.

              “It’s good. Probably not as fun as yours was.”

              “James is a good friend.” He said, “Known him since I was little.”

              “You’ve known the Schwick’s that long?” Jane asked, her brow furrowing in confusion. “Why’d you even bother with the internship then?”

              “They haven’t built the business they have by hiring just anyone. I had to prove I wasn’t just book smarts and a nice face.” Something in his words made the smile grow all the wider. “I wanted to prove myself to Mr. Schwick. I grew up around this company,” For once, his words didn’t sound mocking, or teasing, and Jane found herself hanging on them. “My father retired from the tech department 3 years ago. Everything I’ve ever known came from Bradford and Schwick: I’d like to give something back.”

              “Wow, I didn’t expect that from you.” The words came begrudgingly from Jane’s mouth. “I figured you were just another trust fund son looking for some entertainment until summer.”

              “Nah,” He pushed back in the chair until he had enough space to stand. McKinnon already towered over most people, but from her vantage point sitting down, Jane thought he looked like a giant. “I know what it takes to survive in this company, Parkett. Everyone doesn’t have it. You should quit while you’re ahead.”

              A flash of anger ran through her, and Jane found herself on her feet. “I’m sorry?” She hissed, “Didn’t we get the same internship, hell, the same fucking job?”

              “Yeah, we did. But you and I, Parkett, we aren’t the same.” In her anger she’d moved close to him. And then he glared down at her, eyes serious, and jovial. “I’m a shark here. You, and your dedication to this company will only get so far. Rebecca, at least, has some balls. She’s sharp, and is willing to use it to her advantage. You...Parkett are afraid, I saw it the first day. You’re a good worker, but this is all just part of your plan for life. You don’t want to be great, you want to be better than the rest of your family.” Then the serious look was gone, replaced by a joking stare, “We’ll see in a few weeks, won’t we? If you don’t fit in, you won’t be here, right.”

              “Same goes for you, McKinnon.” Jane said. “You may be able to talk big, but lets see if you can deliver.”

              “If you two are done with the foreplay,” An agitated voice made them both turn toward the door. ‘I have some real work you can be doing.”  Sam Belmore was a monolith at Bradford and Schwick. An analytical genius with the client base and delivering power to match. He was a known hard-ass, and upon looking at  him, Jane could see why. He was a medium height man, but the way his eyes pierced them made Jane feel like she was an ant. He was dressed impeccably, in a suit with his signature bright red tie, and his face was more than stern, it was almost fiercely handsome. Aged perfectly, and undoubtedly touched up by a master plastic surgeon.

              McKinnon rushed out of boardroom, followed closely by Jane. As she passed Belmore, she looked up at him, “Trust me,” She said, “It wasn’t foreplay.”

              Belmore’s face was skeptical, “That's what they always say, Ms. Parkett. Now out. There’s a lot I need to catch you two up on.”

CHAPTER TWO

 

              She was tired. Run down to the point where Jane considered giving up and throwing in the towel. True to his reputation, Sam Belmore wasn’t a man to be messed with. Once he’d showed the ropes, and explained how he wanted things done, he put Jane and McKinnon to work right away. That first day, while the rest of the new recruits were having dinner and drinks with their mentors, Jane had been busy creating spreadsheets for meetings, and crunching numbers.

              All too quickly, Jane fell into a pattern: Wake up at 5AM, head into the office, have coffee at 6:30, meetings at 7, and then work through until lunch, then work until the end of the day. While her routine may have seemed monotonous to an outside, Jane rarely did the same thing more than three times. Belmore’s strict demand that she
learn
how to do her job, kept her surveying all different aspects of client files, financial accounts and business profiles. Of course, that meant that she was forced to commit what she learned to memory, so many of her nights were spent huddled with her laptop and a steamy cup of coffee.

              “Can you get away for lunch today?” Rebecca asked, her head peeking over the top of Jane’s cube. It was early morning, the sunlight just starting to filter through the windows of the office. Rebecca looked well-rested, hell, she looked great. Even had enough time to do her eye makeup.

              Jane was only a little envious of that.

              “Maybe, I have to make some calls, and there are a few models i need to be finish. But I should be able to. Did you want to go somewhere specific?” Jane asked, warily.

              “I got a tip that Boca has great lunchtime happy hour specials.” Rebecca said lightly. “Charlie, Ms. Everson, I mean, suggested it.” She giggled a laugh that Jane knew well.

              “Oh, you get the nurturing mentor. You’d do well with Belmore: He’s just as cutthroat as you are.”

              “I like my group, thank you very much.”

              “Yeah, it looks like you’re sleeping way more than I am.”

              “Charlie keeps me busy, and she’s a great person to learn from. I’m going to sit in on a meeting today. Actually for lunch, we are scoping out the place, she wants to take a client there. So, you have to come, it’s on Charlie.” Her eyes widened in silent plea. The look so unusual on Rebecca’s face that Jane had to agree.

              “Okay, now go so I can finish all of this.”

              “Don’t work too hard,” Rebecca said, “Where’s your other half?”

              “Never call him that again,” Jane huffed, “He’s probably in Mr. Schwick’s office. They usually chat in the morning.” She rolled her eyes so hard it was a wonder they didn’t stay lodged in the back of her skull. “I wish I was that lucky.”

              A comforting hand settled on Jane’s shoulder, and she looked up to see Rebecca grinning down at her. “If he isn’t pulling his weight, you make sure Belmore can see that. You outshine McKinnon, then you won’t have to deal with him again. It’s a win-win.”

              “I know.” Jane said, “It’s just he already has so much attention from the partners. Their basically grooming him for it as we speak. And I’m here, working my ass off, for what.”

              “Because you want this, Jane,” Came Rebecca’s gentle reminder. “You want this more than anything. And you’re going to get it, right? You’re going to be a senior analyst in three years. Then you’re going to be partner.” The resolution in those words made Jane breathe out a heavy sigh.

              “You’re right. It’s only been a month. I knew it was bound to get tough, but I honestly wasn’t expecting this much so soon.”             

              “Deal with it.” And those three little words coming out of Rebecca’s mouth were nearly enough to make Jane want to shout. Seeing her face crumple, Rebecca added, “It’s work. You’re tired, you’re hungry. But you bills are paid and you’ve got cash to spare. Hard work will pay off.” The other woman smiled brightly, “Besides, have you
looked
at yourself the last few weeks? Your body is looking bangin’. All those desk lunches and pilates are really paying off, huh?”

              Jane smiled ruefully, “Well, my pilates instructor is an evil bitch.”

              “If you’re trying to insult me, it ain’t working. Bitch is a compliment in this world.” She turned with a wink, sauntering off to her cube, “Means you’re doing your job right.”

              An hour passed in relative silence. McKinnon hadn’t shown his face yet, and Belmore was scheduled to be in meetings until well after the lunch hour. Though the meetings didn’t stop him, Jane noted, from sending countless emails to her phone. That little detail brought the smallest of smiles to her face. It had been
weeks
before Belmore had trusted her enough to send directions in email form, rather than in person. It was a small honor that gave Jane the notion that she was doing
something
right.

              The past few weeks had been a blurry mess, but Jane thought that she’d been good at putting in her time. She’d even made a point of being civil with McKinnon, who was too busy schmoozing up to all the partners to even notice that she was trying. It would have been much easier to ignore him if everyone on the floor didn’t find him so damn
likable.
Every morning, when she came in, Jane would witness a battle royal between the receptionist and interns to see who would get to bring him a coffee. He was always getting asked out to lunch (Which he somehow found the time to go to). It was aggravating to see him doing nothing but socialize, and then reap all the benefits of someone that was working hard.

              "Coffee, Parkett?" A voice asked from behind her. Jane spun, a frown pulling at her lips as she took in the sight of McKinnon leaning against the divider to her cube, eyes friendly.

              "Thank you," she said slowly, reaching for the coffee with only a hint of suspicion. A thankful rush went through her as Jane sipped slowly at the warm liquid. It was a little more bitter than she usually took it, but the caffeine perked Jane up too much to care.

              "No problem," McKinnon moved into her cube without an invitation. Suddenly the space was small, warm. Stifling hot against the steam of the coffee. It wasn't him, Jane told herself. Not his perfectly suited body, or the rippling muscles she could see against the fabric.              

              Jane reminded herself to breathe as she prayed silently, hoping her face wasn’t as red as it felt.  When she finally composed herself enough to speak, Jane worked to push the appropriate amount of venom into her voice. “Damn, I should have checked for poison first.” She said, throwing a wary look at the still warm cup. “I know how much you hate competition.”

              McKinnon’s smile struck at that. It made a hot rush of glee run through Jane’s body to see. “I just figured you could use a pick me up: You could carry groceries in those bags under your eyes.”

              “There’s the charm I’ve come to know so well,” Jane said, turning her attention away from the man to focus back on her work. “What do you want, McKinnon?”

              “I was really just being nice and bringing you a cup of coffee.” He said. There was an odd tone to his voice. It was lower, more rushed and agitated. Jane paused mid-sip, eyes widening. Was he offended?

              “And I appreciate it,” She gave him a small smile over her shoulder, “No, really, I needed it. Thanks.”

              McKinnon smiled. “You’re welcome. If you’re not too busy, we should grab lunch sometime.”

              Jane’s fingers floated above the keys. She turned around in her chair, enough to look him up and down suspiciously. He still stood there, hands in his pocket, a small smile on his lips. Jane didn’t know what his game was, but he had to be up to something. When his face didn’t falter, she shrugged.

              “Maybe. I’m really busy right now though, actually working. Could you come back later?”

McKinnon sighed. “I was just trying to be nice. We don’t really communicate much.”

              She somehow doubted that. Her eyes followed him until he disappeared from sight, a sigh of relief escaping her lips. Turning back to her computer, she tapped her fingers on the desk. What if he really was just trying to be nice? Jane gave a derisive chuckle, shaking her head. There was plenty of time to deal with McKinnon later.

              Once he was gone, she pushed the man out of her mind. The glowing of her computer screen was beckoning her back to work. Jane embedded herself back into her work until the numbers that she input began to blur together. The steady clacking of the keys began a sort of rhythm that threatened to lull her to sleep. Rubbing her eyes, Jane pushed her chair away from the desk. It was time for more coffee.

              She gathered the metallic blue coffee mug from her desk before she headed to the break room. There were a few people inside who Jane nodded to. Mckinnon was of course leaned back in one of the black chairs, one leg crossed over the other. He didn’t acknowledge her as he spoke to one of the senior analyst, but she could feel his piercing eyes on her as she poured herself another hot cup of coffee. She capped her cup before turning to leave. As she glanced over at Mckinnon, he winked at her.

              Jane hurried out of the break room. What was he trying to accomplish? Did he really think he could get under her skin? A scoff escaped her lips as she headed back to her cubicle. The mantra that she didn’t have time for Mckinnon kept looping around in her head as she pulled her chair back up to her computer. He was a confusing man.

              The day seemed to trickle by, but the work didn’t slow. Jane found herself flexing her fingers as she stared at the screen. The little clock in the corner said that it was time for lunch. As if it had heard her, her stomach growled loudly. She groaned. Rebecca popped her head into Jane’s cubicle.

              “Let’s go, woman. Lunch.”

              Jane pointed to the screen. “I’m not sure I can go…”

              “Get up. Now. Don’t make me have to drag you out,” she said as she popped her hands onto her hips.

              “I’m not getting out of this, am I?”

              “Not a chance in hell/”

              Jane couldn’t contain the smirk on her lips. She gathered up her purse before she logged off of her computer. Rebecca was waiting patiently, a grin on her face as they walked out of the office towards the elevators. When they emerged on the first floor, Charlie stood waiting for them.

              Charlie was an impeccably dressed woman in a cream dress and heels. Her dark brown hair held streaks of gray that she wore well, the loose curls flowing over her shoulders. She had kind, brown eyes. Jane could see the faint lines around her eyes and mouth, but they just enhanced her looks. As they walked closer to her, the woman smiled at them.

              “You must be Ms. Parkett.”

              “Jane,” she said as she shook the older woman’s hand. “It’s so nice to meet you. Thank you, for the lunch.”

              “Well, Rebecca told me how brilliant you are and I can’t resist taking the strong women of this office out for a meal and a drink. Let the men have their little secret clubs. We’ll do it better and with martini’s,” she said with a wink.

              Jane couldn’t help the wide grin that spread across her lips. She liked the woman already, wished that she’d gotten her as a mentor. The sound of their clicking heels filled the lobby as they left the building. The brilliant afternoon sun made Jane squint. Was that what sun looked like? It felt like it had been so long since she felt the sun on her skin, fresh air in her lungs. They made their way to Charlie’s car. Jane whistled at the sleek, silver Mercedes that sat in the parking garage.

              “A beauty, isn’t she? I admit, I have a weakness for nice cars,” Charlie said with a chuckle.

              Jane thought of her small, red Taurus sitting a few floors above. How long until she could afford a car like this? She slipped into the back seat, the leather sliding against her legs as she closed the door behind her. Rebecca and Charlie chatted about her project in the front seat, the woman’s words kind and encouraging. She could tell they’d already formed a close bond, but it was impossible not to between the two women.

              Although it was Jane’s first time meeting Charlie, she’d heard of her. Despite her warm eyes and endearing smile, the woman was known as a shark. She had become a senior analyst in half the time it took any of her colleagues, from there she’d been unstoppable. Jane had heard tales of the woman cutting a person down to size with a few quick words. She wasn’t too keen on testing that theory out for herself.

              It wasn't any wonder that she and Rebecca had hit it off: The pair of them were both cut from the same cloth. Where hard work was tandem with ferocity to succeed that no one else could topple. They didn't have confidence, they exuded it.

              They pulled up in front of a small, dark bricked building with the word
Boca
printed in vibrant orange. As they walked into the restaurant, it was a mix up of corporate suits and vacationers. The atmosphere was casual, which Jane was instantly thankful for. Jane slipped her purse onto the seat beside her as they settled at a little table by a window.

BOOK: Romance: Dedication - A Workplace Romance (Dedication Series, Romance, Contemporary Romance Book 1)
11.08Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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