Steven Gherring’s teasing smile disappeared when he looked over his shoulder at her. In an instant he was kneeling beside her, supporting her as she tried to stand up. “Are you alright? You’re bleeding.”
“Nothing hurts but my pride.”
Everyone scattered when Gherring approached, so Anne had no recourse but to accept his help, humiliating as it was.
“Are you sure you didn’t sprain something?”
“I was just hurrying because everyone was here, so I thought I was late. But my cell phone said it was only seven thirty. Don’t we start at eight o’clock? Was my cell time wrong? Or did we start work early today?”
“Now that’s an interesting story. I’ll let you in on a little secret.” He glanced around before continuing. “Officially, the office used to open at nine. But I noticed everyone made it a point to arrive before I got here at eight fifty, so I started arriving at eight forty or eight forty-five.” He smiled broadly. “So, of course, when I started coming in the office at eight thirty, people began to come at eight fifteen. And so on, and so on. I wanted to see how far the employees would go to try and make a good impression on the boss. So now I usually come in at about seven twenty.” He chuckled a bit. “But I understand the office opens at eight when I’m out of town.”
Anne raised her brows a bit. “You’re experimenting with your people at their expense? Just for fun? Or do you actually judge people by whether they beat you to the office?”
“I’ve never been impressed by people who go to great lengths trying to impress me,” he paused thoughtfully. “Although I guess I do expect it. No, it’s strictly for entertainment purposes. So, now you know the truth, I guess you won’t need to sacrifice your body to get here early.”
“No way!” She grinned, dabbing a tissue on her bleeding elbow. “I’m too competitive to let everyone else beat me to the office. What’s a little bruising and blood when you’re trying to win a game?”
Anne sat down at her desk and put away her personal things. “Now let’s get to work. What do you have for me today? Katie gave me as much instruction as she could, so hopefully I can handle it myself. She’s out for a gown fitting today.”
Her tense muscles began to relax as she managed to have a normal conversation with Gherring. He moved behind her desk and reached to grab the mouse, bringing up the day’s schedule on the computer. His arm brushed hers, sending shivers down her spine. She pulled away quickly, pretending to organize something in the desk drawer. With Gherring’s piercing gaze heating the back of her neck, Anne glanced up and realized he was waiting for her to respond to something he’d said.
“I’m sorry, what did you ask me?”
“I said, I’m scheduled to be in conference all morning, so you and I can meet during lunch.”
“Actually, I was supposed to have lunch with Sam, from Accounting.” She noticed his frown. Maybe he didn’t want to eat alone. “But you could come with us.”
“No,” he muttered. “That won’t be necessary. You can have lunch with Sam from Accounting, and we’ll meet afterward.”
“You ought to come. Sam’s a lot of fun. We’re eating next door at Papa’s Place.”
“I said no!” Gherring stalked into his office.
“I guess I’m supposed to work through lunch when Mr. Gherring is in town. He seemed pretty miffed with me,” Anne told Samantha. “I hate to think how much I’ll miss my lunches here.”
“He’s scary. I’d say packing a lunch from home is a small price to pay, if it keeps him happy.” Samantha glanced toward the doorway, as if Steven Gherring might come storming in and cause a scene.
“Maybe he’s just grouchy because he skips lunch.” Anne didn’t want Sam to be afraid of Gherring.
Papa’s Place was packed at lunchtime, but Papa George and his wife, May, had started saving a table for Anne. She’d eaten there every day since Monday, when their nephew, Spencer, had saved her from a disastrous fall outside the restaurant. Anne had returned at noon, heralding huge accolades on Spencer when she met the restaurant owners, swearing he’d saved her life. Spencer protested her exaggerations, but George and May were proud of their nephew.
When Anne had explained she was new to the city and admitted George reminded her of her daddy, they’d practically adopted her into their family. And Anne was secretly working on a plan to fix Spencer up with one of the receptionists at Gherring Inc.
“I invited Gherring to come eat with us, but he refused,” Anne told Sam.
“I’m glad he didn’t come,” Sam replied, shaking her blonde head for emphasis. “He’s just so intimidating.”
“I think you two would get along great.” Anne ticked off her points on her fingers. “You both like scuba diving and snow skiing. You both have grandmothers you’re close to. He seems to like dating blondes. You’re beautiful and smart. I think you would be great together.”
“Together? As in dating? Me and Mr. Gherring? You’ve got to be kidding! He would never—” Sam choked. “Good gracious! There he is!”
“Mr. Gherring?” Anne craned her neck around to see the entrance to Papa’s.
“Yes,” Sam whispered into her napkin, her eyes wide with terror. “And he’s coming this way, and he looks furious.”
Steven Gherring scowled as he approached the table, scanning the restaurant patrons. “I’m sorry to interrupt your lunch. But something has come up that can’t wait.”
“I can come up to the office right now. Or if it’s not something too private, you’re welcome to join Sam and me.”