scrambled thoughts.
“I see you’ve already met with Marcus this morning.”
Abby’s neck cracked in protest as her head flew up. Cole stood in the doorway, a smile warming his eyes.
“You have the look of someone who’s tangled,” he said with a laugh.
“What do you mean? Actually no.” Abby shook her head. “I really don’t care.” She turned her attention back to her desk to emphasize her point.
“Don’t you?” Cole’s lips quirked and he came over to tap his fingers against the stack of financial papers. “Surely these numbers tell you something?”
Abby blinked. “What? About Marcus?” she asked dubiously. Getting into a personal discussion about Marcus wasn’t something she was going to do right now. “They’re just numbers.”
“If you say so.” Cole shrugged.
She waited until he walked away before taking a good look at the columns of figures. At first, they were just a jumble of numbers but Abby had always been able to push past the visual to what lay beneath. You could tell a lot about a man by the way he ran his business. She just hadn’t wanted to see what Marcus’s spreadsheets told her.
Abby settled her hand on her chin, her gaze flicking up and down the grid of numbers. He paid his employees well. The percentage of wages to profit was much higher than the national average. On the other hand, his entertainment expenses were low, so obviously he wasn’t one of those fat cats who spent all of their time dining out.
Abby blew out a breath and let the papers fall back into a pile. It didn’t mean anything. At the end of the day, they were just numbers. She almost had herself convinced. Anyway, she had a job to do. She checked her watch and calculated the time difference before putting in a call to Stacy.
“Have you got the details about New Zealand’s service tax for me?”
“Is he back?”
Abby gritted her teeth, holding back a sigh. “If you haven’t got anything constructive to help me with the Brookhein situation…”
“Oh, so there is a situation?” Stacy’s voice pitched higher, then dropped to a whisper. “ Soooo , he must be back.”
Abby shook her head and counted to five. “Tell me again how you became a partner of your own consultancy firm? I could swear you were still in kindergarten.”
“It’s my damn kids.” Stacy sighed dramatically. “They sucked the IQ right out of me.”
Abby couldn’t help laughing. “Honey, no wonder you’re an accountant if you think that’s what you were feeding them.” She was treated to an inelegant snort from the other end of the line.
“Don’t try to change the subject,” Stacy warned her in mock sternness. “Is he back. Yes or no?”
Abby closed her eyes. “Yes.”
“Oh, goody.” Stacy’s excitement rose a level, the sound of clapping filling the background. “Right. Have you seen him? Yes or no.”
“Yes. Obviously. How else would I know he’s back?”
“Good point. However, I just require a yes or no, so hold back on any additional comments, if you don’t mind.”
“Yes.”
“Yes what?”
“Yes, I do mind.”
“Oh, har-de-har-har. You’re in a mood today. I wonder why?” Stacy’s voice was bright with laughter. “So, did you like seeing him again?”
Abby chewed over the answer to that one. No, she hadn’t very much liked the way he’d waltzed into her office and laid down the law about who she could talk to. Fair enough it was his business, but so far everyone had been able to answer any questions she had.
On the other hand, yes, Abby had very much enjoyed laying eyes on Marcus again. She’d known as soon as she entered today that he’d returned, the buzz in the air had set her hips swaying when she walked past his office. Seeing him again was like waiting in the queue for a roller coaster. You were scared shitless of what was going to happen, but there was no way you’d step out of the line.
“I’ll take that as a yes.” Stacy gave up waiting and offered her own
“I see you’ve already met with Marcus this morning.”
Abby’s neck cracked in protest as her head flew up. Cole stood in the doorway, a smile warming his eyes.
“You have the look of someone who’s tangled,” he said with a laugh.
“What do you mean? Actually no.” Abby shook her head. “I really don’t care.” She turned her attention back to her desk to emphasize her point.
“Don’t you?” Cole’s lips quirked and he came over to tap his fingers against the stack of financial papers. “Surely these numbers tell you something?”
Abby blinked. “What? About Marcus?” she asked dubiously. Getting into a personal discussion about Marcus wasn’t something she was going to do right now. “They’re just numbers.”
“If you say so.” Cole shrugged.
She waited until he walked away before taking a good look at the columns of figures. At first, they were just a jumble of numbers but Abby had always been able to push past the visual to what lay beneath. You could tell a lot about a man by the way he ran his business. She just hadn’t wanted to see what Marcus’s spreadsheets told her.
Abby settled her hand on her chin, her gaze flicking up and down the grid of numbers. He paid his employees well. The percentage of wages to profit was much higher than the national average. On the other hand, his entertainment expenses were low, so obviously he wasn’t one of those fat cats who spent all of their time dining out.
Abby blew out a breath and let the papers fall back into a pile. It didn’t mean anything. At the end of the day, they were just numbers. She almost had herself convinced. Anyway, she had a job to do. She checked her watch and calculated the time difference before putting in a call to Stacy.
“Have you got the details about New Zealand’s service tax for me?”
“Is he back?”
Abby gritted her teeth, holding back a sigh. “If you haven’t got anything constructive to help me with the Brookhein situation…”
“Oh, so there is a situation?” Stacy’s voice pitched higher, then dropped to a whisper. “ Soooo , he must be back.”
Abby shook her head and counted to five. “Tell me again how you became a partner of your own consultancy firm? I could swear you were still in kindergarten.”
“It’s my damn kids.” Stacy sighed dramatically. “They sucked the IQ right out of me.”
Abby couldn’t help laughing. “Honey, no wonder you’re an accountant if you think that’s what you were feeding them.” She was treated to an inelegant snort from the other end of the line.
“Don’t try to change the subject,” Stacy warned her in mock sternness. “Is he back. Yes or no?”
Abby closed her eyes. “Yes.”
“Oh, goody.” Stacy’s excitement rose a level, the sound of clapping filling the background. “Right. Have you seen him? Yes or no.”
“Yes. Obviously. How else would I know he’s back?”
“Good point. However, I just require a yes or no, so hold back on any additional comments, if you don’t mind.”
“Yes.”
“Yes what?”
“Yes, I do mind.”
“Oh, har-de-har-har. You’re in a mood today. I wonder why?” Stacy’s voice was bright with laughter. “So, did you like seeing him again?”
Abby chewed over the answer to that one. No, she hadn’t very much liked the way he’d waltzed into her office and laid down the law about who she could talk to. Fair enough it was his business, but so far everyone had been able to answer any questions she had.
On the other hand, yes, Abby had very much enjoyed laying eyes on Marcus again. She’d known as soon as she entered today that he’d returned, the buzz in the air had set her hips swaying when she walked past his office. Seeing him again was like waiting in the queue for a roller coaster. You were scared shitless of what was going to happen, but there was no way you’d step out of the line.
“I’ll take that as a yes.” Stacy gave up waiting and offered her own
Similar Books
