It wasn’t personal.
And now I had nothing except sexual frustrations because of that stupid fence-jump move. And the chaps. And the tattoos. And the stormy eyes.
GAH!
I closed my eyes and thought of anything except the tattoos. To make matters worse, he hadn’t sent my heels back. When I’d gotten to the stadium, I’d realized I was still wearing his muck boots and had left my heels on his porch step. I’d overnighted the muck boots with a return label for my Louboutin shoes and a note that had been to the point—nice, even.
I checked the tracking again this morning, but they hadn’t been sent. Asshole. If he wanted to keep the shoes, he could have them. Maybe he had a high-heeled shoe fetish. I chuckled at the thought.
A knock on my door pulled me from my inappropriate thoughts.
“Come in.”
Joseph, the new controller, came into my office. “Ms. Wales, I wanted to drop off these reports. I’ve identified approximately a million dollars that’s been misappropriated over the last six months. I have proposed a budget for the next two quarters and upcoming fiscal year. If it’s approved, we should be in the black within six months. Things will be tight, but even with the new salaries, we should be good.”
A million dollars.
“Perfect. Thank you, Joseph. I’ll review and get back to you with any questions.”
“Sounds good. I have interviews this afternoon to replace the vacant accounting positions. I’ve audited the expenses of those you’ve kept on, and I agree with your assessment. I found no evidence of inappropriate spending with these associates.”
“Was everything reported correctly to the IRS?”
“Everything was categorized correctly for taxes, yes, just manipulated for the reports sent to the managers. I’ve sent my report to the corporate office of Wales Enterprises to verify my findings. I’ll keep you posted.”
That was good news, but the cover-up in reporting bothered me. If the expenses had been valid, why would they have needed to hide it? That would go on my to-do list to continue digging. “Thank you, Joseph. Let me know if you discover anything else.”
“Will do.”
Joseph left, and I continued researching different coaches. None of them had what I was looking for. Frustrated, I walked over to the window, which looked over the field. So much needed to be done before the fall. And there wasn’t much time. Our ex-running back had been picked up by the team that had won the entire championship last season. He’d been one of the best players we had. I cracked my neck as the tension grew.
Maybe the coach from Michigan State would work. He had a great record, but he lacked the passion.
Results were what counted, though. But I truly believed the sky was the limit when people were invested in what they did, when it was part of them.
As I pondered this dilemma, the door to my office swung open, and the man I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about filled the doorway.
My assistant was behind him. Only her feet could be seen behind Hunter’s broad build. “I’m so sorry, Ms. Wales. He just walked right by.”
“It’s okay, Amber. I was expecting Mr. Owens.”
I hadn’t been, but there was no reason to let him believe that. I minimized the list of other coaches on my computer screen before I walked around the large cherrywood desk that had been here from the previous owner. I hated how large and blocky it felt, but a new desk simply wasn’t in the budget.
The door shut, and I put on a smile. “Good morning, Mr. Owens. I hope you brought my shoes with you.”