His Secretive Lover (The Thorpe Brothers) (2 page)

Cricket leaned against the back of her office door, breathing deeply of the cool air and trying to slow down her frantic heart rate.  She couldn’t believe that she felt so exhilarated just because that man watched her walk into the building.  Even from a distance, the look was so hot, so intense she felt like she was going to burn up as she walked from the parking garage to the door and then into the building. 

Often, on her drive into the office, she tried to talk herself into actually looking at the man
, maybe acknowledging him.  She’d seen him up close once and he was…amazing!  She’d been such a wimp that day.  She’d seen his intention to talk to her, to actually communicate, but she’d run away.  It was one thing to have a secret infatuation with a man, to build up stories about him and wonder what it would be like to actually talk to him and meet him.  She imagined herself sitting down with him in a fancy, elegant restaurant, enjoying witty repartee while he laughed at her quick wit and pithy observations. 

Alas, she wasn’t quick witted and she rarely had profound
reflections about people other than whether they had adequate security or if their jewelry was real or fake.  Other than that, her normal, some might say tedious and boring, life revolved around numbers and finding the stories in the numbers.  She might be able to sneak into a high security building without being noticed or find variances down to the penny in a multi-million dollar project, but conversing with a gorgeous man?  Nope, she was too shy.  Especially around her tall, terrifyingly huge and intimidating morning-man. 

She really needed to change her schedule so she wasn’t showing up at the exact same moment he was arriving each day.  B
ut then she smiled inside her tiny office where no one else could see, her body’s reaction slowing down.  As long as he continued to arrive at the same time, she’d probably keep the same schedule that had her driving up at the same moment.  Her mind relished the zing that she got from his look each morning which was better than a double shot of espresso.  It might be silly, looking forward to simply seeing a man every morning, but she loved her morning excitement.  If she changed her schedule, she’d miss that man terribly. 

She should be brave and just talk to the guy. 
Every morning, she set her alarm clock so her morning was timed to park at the exact right time, skipped breakfast if she was running late, went around the block a few times if she was early…all so she could get a glimpse of him each morning.  It was more than a little pathetic, she told herself. 

But the idea of actually talking to him, of meeting him face to face instead of across the courtyard set her whole body to shivering in fear.  What would she say to him?  What could they possibly have in common?  He looked like some sort of executive while she was a lowly accountant.  She’d probably trip on her own feet if she got any closer to him.  He made her so nervous just with a look! 

With a sigh, she sat down behind her dull, brown laminate desk and pulled her chair in close, turning on her computer and pulling the large stack of messy and poorly written expense reports closer, forcing her mind away from one dazzling, sexy and scary man.  Now that she’d had her morning jolt it was time to start her day.  Cricket smiled as she sifted through the stack of papers.  She might be a boring, cautious accountant but that didn’t mean she wasn’t also a secret adrenaline junkie. 

Speaking of which, she thought silently…

With an inward giggle, she went back to her office door and opened it once again.  She definitely didn’t want to miss this morning’s excitement.  Last night’s adventure had been more fun than all the rest because she’d almost gotten caught by that security guard.  Well, not almost.  She’d been pretty stealthy last night but she’d enjoyed the extra challenge when she’d seen him through the ventilation screen. 

And now it was show time.  Her boss would walk into his office, see what she’d done and the show would begin. 
She couldn’t wait to hear the outcry when her boss walked into his office.

Last night’s escapade was yet a
nother reason she probably shouldn’t even think about the elegant stranger.  Most likely, he confronted the people who irritated him head on.  Cricket had a knack for being creative, but it was a silly, passive aggressive creativity.  Her antics might be amusing, but still…she should just get a new job instead of dealing with Jason Moran’s petty ways. 

She smiled and sat back down at her desk, working diligently at the
tiresome expense reports that had been piling up over the past few days, scowling at the mostly handwritten notes and trying to interpret the scribbles.  Why couldn’t this company automate these reports?  She’d submitted a proposal to do just that last month, had even included the cost of a relatively simple software program that would expedite the whole process and help employees get their reimbursement checks more quickly.  Unfortunately, she hadn’t heard a word from Jason Moran.  His silence told her that there was no way he was going to spend any money on something like a basic software package, even if it saved him more money in the long run. 

When she finished one expense report and set it up to be processed for payment, she pulled the next one forward, reminding herself that she’d chosen to become an accountant.  She could have gotten a degree in any subject but accounting had suited her needs perfectly.  And she was pretty good at it too.  One had to have the ability to pay attention to small details to get this job done well which meant that the skills her mother and father had taught her growing up were perfectly suited to being an accountant. 

So what if she hated every moment of her day?  It paid well and gave her the sense of security that she needed.  That feeling was more important than loving one’s job.  She’d hated the insecurity growing up, wishing desperately that her parents hadn’t been so good at their chosen profession.  So no matter how much she loathed this job, she reveled in that sense of peace. 

This job might be mind-numbingly boring and tedious but it
kept her out of prison, which is something her parent’s occupation couldn’t guarantee. 

Her mind was focusing on the expense reports but
, once she got into a rhythm, she was able to whip through the stack in record time.  There were a few that had messy handwriting and nonsensical amounts but most were pretty straightforward.  Those were so easy she could almost do them in her sleep. 

“Hey Cricket,”
Debbie, one of the other accountants poked her head into her office.  “How about lunch today?” she asked.

Cricket looked up and smiled.  “I’d love it,” she replied, relieved to have an excuse for a break from entering numbers into spreadsheets and software programs for an hour.  But then her eyes tur
ned wary.  “What about Mr. Moran?” she asked in almost a whisper. 

Debbie’s smile brightened
and her hand waved away the concern about their boss.  “I’ve already checked with Dorothy,” Debbie replied, referring to their boss’s assistant, “and he has a lunch scheduled.  So there won’t be any flak from trying to take a break today.”

“Excellent!” Cricket exclaimed
, relieved and excited about just getting some fresh air not to mention talking about something that didn’t have to do with numbers. 

Jason
Moran was possibly the worst boss in the world, Cricket thought.  But he paid well and provided excellent benefits to his employees, probably because he was such a horrible human being and the salary and perks he provided were the only way he could keep people on staff.  Otherwise, Jason Moran walked around the office yelling at people to work harder, stop taking breaks, belittling some of the more junior staff members and just generally being a jerk.  Interns rarely lasted more than a week or two because he used their free labor to accomplish the tedious administrative work he was too cheap to pay someone a good salary to do. 

The man didn’t even like people leaving the office for their lunch breaks.  Legally, he couldn’t stop
employees from taking an hour for lunch, but he made snide comments when he noticed someone actually leaving for their break.  He preferred having people eat their meals at their desk or in the kitchen where he could find someone if he needed them.  And he made a point of interrupting lunches when too many people congregated in the kitchen so the team had learned ways to…

“Where the hell are all my
pens?” someone yelled down the hallway. 

Cricket heard the bellow and had to work hard to keep herself from bursting out with laughter.  Debbie was still
standing in her doorway but, thankfully, was looking in the direction of the yelling so Cricket had time to compose her features into an expression of concern and confusion. 

“What?” Debbie whispered
as she squinted in the direction from which the bellow had come.  “Not again!” she giggled then quickly covered her face with her hands to keep their boss from seeing her laughter at his expense.  Debbie turned back to Cricket, a huge grin on her pixie-like features.  “Oh, this is too good!  After yesterday afternoon’s staff meeting, he deserves much more than someone stealing all of his…”

“And how the hell did all of my pictures get turned upside down?” the man yelled again to no one in particular. 

Debbie stepped inside Cricket’s office so their boss didn’t see her laughing.  “This is perfect,” she laughed, covering her mouth with one hand while the other held her stomach as both women laughed at the latest joke at their boss’ expense.  “Who would think to turn the man’s pictures upside down?” she burst out. 

Cricket felt that it was now safe to release h
er laughter and went right along with Debbie as they both laughed while their boss, Jason Moran, stomped through the hallways on his rampage, trying to figure out who could have done something like this to his office.  The man had accused several employees of disturbing his office over the past several months but since normally only his pens were stolen, the police wouldn’t even get involved.  “This is not funny!” he growled when he stomped passed Cricket’s doorway and caught the two of them, as well as several other people, laughing in the hallways. 

“Whoever did this,” he called out to everyone in general, “you’re fired!  You hear me?  You’re fired!”

He walked into his office and slammed the door while the rest of the staff scurried away, still snickering at the mischief maker’s bravery and creativity.  Of course, that was before their boss let loose his wrath on everyone over the next few hours.  He dumped the contents of the coffee pot down the drain and refused to let anyone make another pot or leave the office to grab their caffeine jolt at the deli in the lobby of the stairs.  He also tossed papers across the conference room table when someone was trying to make a proposal about how to resolve an issue in the office, he stormed through the office stealing everyone else’s pens and dumped them into their garbage cans.  It was a highly ineffective retaliation since everyone simply picked their pens out of their trashcans again after he left their office but it was still demoralizing. 

By the time he left for his lunch meeting, Cricket was feeling bad about what she’d done.  Normally, Jason simply yelled and growled about her antics.  He’d never actually made people more miserable as he had today.  But apparently he was
on a rampage to find out who was stealing his ball point pens and turning his cheap artwork upside down. 

Cricket
frowned throughout the morning while doing the data entry that was her job.  She was on her last expense report when Debbie and two other co-workers stepped into her office.

“Coast clear?” Cricket
asked with relish, more than ready to get out of this horrible environment. 

“All clear.  He left five minutes ago.  We’re actually one of the last to leave for lunch so grab your purse and let’s go,” Debbie urged.

“Did you hear that Mona and Jeff both quit this morning?” Debbie announced, shaking her head because probably the entire staff felt the same way. 

Josie rolled her eyes at the loss.  “We’re more insulated from his wrath because he doesn’t believe anyone here in the accounting department has any kind of imagination.  We’re just boring data entry
clerks in his mind.”

Cricket
listened to their comments but didn’t hesitate to log out of her computer for a break.  She grabbed her purse and the four women were out the door, eagerly rushing towards the elevators.  “Where are we going?” Cricket asked, thinking just a simple sandwich would suffice.  She preferred to be back before Jason returned, not wanting to hear him growl about how his staff went out to lunch right after he did.  In his mind, he’s paying everyone so, therefore, his staff should work harder than he does. 

Josie clapped her hands as an idea occurred to her. 
“Let’s spoil ourselves and hit Antoine’s for lunch.  Anyone up for something decadent and fattening?”

“I’m all for that.  Why don’t we only order appetizers and dessert
s so we’re all slow this afternoon with a sugar coma?” Debbie suggested.

Cricket smiled, more than ready to eat just about anything.  She’d had to rush this morning
in order to make it to the parking garage in time.  She’d woken up fifteen minutes late and, instead of just arriving a few minutes late for work or, more specifically, late to see her mystery man, she’d skipped breakfast.