“Fine!” he growled. “But I’m going to have a cup of coffee, first.”
“But, she’s been waiting all afternoon,” Katie objected.
“Ms. Carson, a cup of coffee, if you please. With the mood I’m in right now, she won’t want to meet me until I’ve had a cup of coffee.” He glared at her until she placed the paper on his desk and moved to pour him a cup of coffee. He felt the blood throbbing in his head again. The ibuprofens had obviously worn off.
Unbidden, his eyes roved to the sheet of paper lying in front of him. Surely, this was a joke. The resume had more personal information than work experience. It was an older woman, according to the birthdate, forty-five years of age. Her education consisted of a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry. And she currently resided in Weatherford, Texas.
He smiled to himself. This would be fast and easy, and she’d be on her way back to Texas. And then he’d convince Katie to remain as his assistant. He had this under control.
Chapter Four
“Open the door, Ms. Carson. But, I’ll call her in.” Gherring decided he would make quick work of intimidating this woman, thus putting an end to this interview and this interminable day.
“Ms. Best!” he called out, in his most authoritative voice. Then he picked up a file and pretended to study it carefully, while ignoring her presence as he had all the others. There followed several minutes of tedious silence, during which time Katie refilled his coffee cup. The applicant was so quiet he wasn’t certain she’d even entered the room. But he resisted the temptation to lift his eyes from the reading material on his desk.
He heard Katie say, “May I offer you some refreshments, Ms. Best? Coffee? Tea? Water?”
Oh, no. He didn’t want the woman to be comfortable. He wanted this interview to end quickly. He frowned at Katie.
“That won’t be necessary, Ms. Carson. Please, leave us alone.”
“Yes, Mr. Gherring,” Katie murmured, turning to leave the office. He knew she would leave the door open for propriety, but the woman would feel more unsettled if she was alone in his presence. He still refused to make eye contact with the applicant, but his side vision told him she remained standing.
“Wait,” the woman spoke in a sharp tone. “Uhmm... Ms. Carson? Please wait. Yes, thank you. I would love some water.”
His eyes flew up. The woman had countermanded his orders. Albeit, in a captivating Southern accent, she had nonetheless spurned his authority with her words. She stood with her back to him in defiance, waiting for Katie to respond. He took the opportunity to peruse her form. She was tall and slender, with thick brown hair. Her clothes weren’t very impressive, but she had a nice pair of legs. Runner’s calves he surmised. To his surprise, he felt a bit of attraction. But he couldn’t let that stop him from putting her in her place.
Katie was still standing by the door, frozen in place. She was probably waiting for him to erupt. But he held his temper back, as he spoke in a sarcastic tone.
“Well, Ms. Carson, what are you waiting for? Please retrieve some water at once for our honored patron, Ms. Pest.”
The woman swirled around quickly and spoke with an acid tongue, while her body trembled with fury.
“My name is Anne Best. And I can see this interview is a waste of my time and a waste of your resources. Sorry to have inconvenienced you.”
But when she locked eyes with him, his heart lurched in his chest. The woman was glorious in her anger. Her large, chocolate-brown eyes flashing passionately, while a few unruly brown locks escaped from their confining barrette to frame her face. She had a small, pert nose with high cheekbones. Her beauty was natural. He could detect little in the way of makeup, as opposed to the perfectly powdered, flawless faces of the previous applicants. He found himself studying her lips, and wondering if they were as soft and pliant as they appeared. He also wondered if she would kiss as passionately as she’d defended her name.
Suddenly, her entire demeanor changed. She began to blink at tears, mumbling, “Sorry. It was a mistake to come.” Before he realized what was happening, she was trying to push past Katie. She was leaving. Before he’d even had a chance to talk to her.
“Wait!” he called out. Still she continued her retreat. He was moving toward her now. He had to stop her. He summoned all of his authority and placed it in his voice, “I said, wait!” This time she hesitated, and he reached her just as she looked over her shoulder.
“Please.” Now he softened his tone. “I meant to say, please wait.” He touched her elbow to guide her back into the room. His hand felt sparks where their skin met. He resisted the urge to pull her into his arms and hold her against him. He felt the need to comfort her, repenting of his efforts to cow her into submission.
“Please, Ms. Best, would you come back and sit down? I’ve obviously started off on the wrong foot with you. I’ve given you a bad impression.”
He led her to sit down in front of the desk and motioned for Katie to bring water. Feeling satisfied he was back in control of the situation, he said, “And you’ve given me an interesting impression as well.”
She flashed a grateful smile at Katie as she took the proffered water in trembling hands. He found himself jealous the smile wasn’t directed at him. He tried to analyze her behavior. There was only one explanation. She didn’t recognize him. She didn’t realize she was interviewing with Steven Gherring. He hid his delight at the thought. It would be fun to watch her face when she realized who he was.
“Shall we begin again?” he said. “Do you know who I am, Ms. Best? Let me introduce myself. I’m Steven Gherring. I’ll be interviewing you today for the position of my personal executive assistant.”
He waited for the information to sink in. But instead of the surprise and embarrassment he expected to see on her face, her expression was blank. She gave him a fake smile and stuck out her hand.
“Pleased to meet you Mr. Gherring. My name is Anne Best.”
He was confounded by her response. “Perhaps you’ve heard my name before,” he suggested. But she denied his claim with a shake of her head. “Well, I’m sure you know of my company, Gherring Inc.?”
“Do y’all make car parts?”