“For what? What did I do?”
I smiled a bit.
“Well, Fiona, I do own the company. When one of my best junior scientists winds up in the infirmary, I’m going to find out about it. We can't afford any unnecessary delays with the Link Protocol. I thought I made that clear.”
She nodded and looked away. I watched as a hard swallow forced its way down her throat.
“Yes, I know,” she whispered. “I’m sorry. It won't happen again.”
“I should hope not.” I replied, feigning displeasure with her. “I’d hate to have to fire you less than a month in on the job.”
Fiona snapped her head in my direction. “Look, I said I was sorry, okay? Please don’t make jokes like that. And anyway, I’ve heard things…”
Her voice trailed off, leaving footprints of innuendo in their path. I felt a smirk come to my lips as I let her comment hang in the air between us.
Cheeky.
I studied her for a moment as I considered whether or not to entertain her gossip. Even under the less than flattering glow of the lights overhead, her beauty was getting harder to ignore. I’d only meant my threat to fire her in a teasing way. It would take a lot more than a silly panic attack, or whatever it was, for me to even consider doing such a thing.
As to her remark, well, she only had one side of the story. It didn’t matter much to me where she’d heard it. Anyway, it wasn’t something I cared to discuss with her now, if ever. I continued to look at her and as the seconds ticked by, her features flickered with lines of worry, even sadness. I nodded and pushed myself to a standing position.
“Is there something I should know about you, Fiona? Something you’re keeping from me? It’s not every day things like your fainting spell happens around here.”
Fiona dropped her head a bit, lowering her eyes and looking away from me in the process. “Gabe, this job is really important to me. That’s all. I get overwhelmed sometimes. I’m working on it. Getting better I mean.”
I wondered if she’d go so far as to tell me what I already knew about her… the death of her family, her grandmother’s illness or her debt. But instead of continuing, she turned away from me and grabbed her pen from the desk.
“Would you like an update on my lab work?” she asked, changing the subject.
I narrowed my eyes as she closed herself off from me. There’d be time to get to the bottom of all these issues. Although I enjoyed getting under her skin, I couldn’t quite get a read on whether it was affecting her in a negative way or not. That was also something I’d have to wait until later to figure out.
“Sure thing Fiona,” I said, as I leaned in towards her. “Talk to me.”
GABE
Early the following week, I asked Holly to summon one of the men from the lab, Andrew Monroe, to my office. I’d just wrapped up a call and lowered the phone back in its cradle when I heard a knock against the inside of my office door.
“Gabe?” Andrew said, as he rapped against the wood. “You wanted to see me?”
“Andrew. I did, yes,” I began as I stood. I gestured towards one of the oversized leather chairs across from my desk. “Come, have a seat. Hey, close the door first will you?”
Andrew did as I asked and a moment later he began walking towards me. He was a tall, thin man with a bowl haircut and the longest legs of any human being I’d ever known. Looks aside, he also happened to be one of my best researchers and most senior employees. His loyalty to me was beyond question, so he was the logical choice for the task I had in mind.
“How’s your week going so far?” I asked, as he eased into the chair.
“Fine. No issues,” he began. Suddenly a frown came to his face. “I’m sorry, Gabe. Holly didn’t mention why you wanted to see me. Should I go back to the lab? Is there something specific you wanted information about? Updates on my Link Protocol work or…”
Lifting my hand, I waved at him, cutting him off mid-sentence.
“No, no, Andrew. It’s nothing like that.”
He nodded for a moment or two before he leaned back into his chair. “Oh, okay then. Well, what can I do for you?”
I mirrored his body language and reclined in my chair as well.
“How’s the new hire working out?”
Andrew’s eyebrows tented. “Fiona, you mean?”
“Yes.”
“Oh,” he said as he cleared his throat. “Well, I haven’t had much interaction with her just yet.”
“Mmm, hmm.” I replied. “Were you by chance in the lab last week when she had the fainting episode?”
“No, I wasn’t. Amanda and Melissa were there though. It’s my understanding they helped her to the infirmary.” As he finished speaking, Andrew gestured over his shoulder in the direction of my office door. “Should I get them? I’m sure they could tell you about it.”