"I'll make sure I mention it to Mr. Yates," I replied, being careful to maintain an air of distance from Jack. I didn't want anyone to know I was living at his mother's house, and I especially didn't want them to know that I'd fallen for Jack.
After lunch, Norma called down to tell me that Jack was going to visit the warehouse around four and that he wanted a run down on the status of the new orders along with a summary of the status of everything we had going out this week. I assured her I'd have it all ready for him when he came down.
I spent the rest of the afternoon compiling reports while I fought back the memory of Jack's arms around me and the feeling of his lips on mine. I had no idea how I was going to negotiate a raise while I fantasized about what it would feel like to pull off his shirt and press my naked breasts against his skin.
"Knock it off, Walsh," I muttered to myself as I typed up a summary report. "If you're not careful, you're going to get yourself fired for inappropriate behavior."
I reminded myself that men like Jack didn't fall for poor, Irish girls from the wrong side of the city. Any fantasies of that happening would be relegated to nothing more than my imagination.
But I still held out a sliver of hope that the impossible could become possible.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Jack
All afternoon, I'd been making urgent phone calls as I steadily worked to put the pieces in place for the plan to save Baby Steps from destruction. By the time I looked at the clock, I realized I was late for my meeting with Leah.
"Darlin', you need to get a move on," Norma called from the front office. "You were supposed to meet with Leah an hour ago. Oh, and the construction foreman said Leah's office is finished, so you might want to go take a peek at it.
"I know, I know!" I said as I grabbed the folder with her employee file in it. I rushed past her desk without stopping to check my schedule for the rest of the day.
"I'm out of here in a bit. I’m having a party for my granddaughter tonight, and I still need to frost the cake!" she called after me as I headed for the back stairs. "Your schedule is clear!"
"Thanks, Norma! Have a good night!" I called over my shoulder as I headed for the back stairs. I quickly ran down the stairs to the ground floor and headed for Leah's office without stopping to see the progress the construction crew had made. I tapped on Leah's door, "I'm sorry I'm late, got hung up on a call."
"No problem," she said without turning around. "I was just running the last of the numbers so that I could show you where we are."
"While that's printing, do you want to go see your new office?" I asked. "Norma said the construction crew finished it."
"Sure. Let me say good night to the warehouse crew, and then we can check it out," she said, finally turning around. I felt my breath catch as I looked at her.
She was wearing her usual warehouse uniform of a t-shirt and cotton skirt paired with sturdy boots, but she'd done something different with her hair. It was pulled back. A few tendrils had escaped and were framing her face. Her eyes looked bluer than I'd seen them before, and I could see that she'd applied mascara and lipstick at some point during the day because both were a little smudged. I smiled as I nodded, leaning against the doorframe and waiting for her to finish.
A few minutes later, she stood up and followed me down the hallway to the warehouse floor where we talked briefly with Burt and the guys before heading to the corner where the construction crew had shaped the space to fit Leah's managerial and personal needs. I pushed the door open and urged her to go in first. I was glad I did because hearing her gasp in surprise at the finished office was worth every ounce of effort I'd put into it.
"Oh, my gosh, Jack!" she whispered as she looked around the room and took in the entire office. To the left of the door was a small seating area with comfortable chairs and a couch that could be converted into a bed should she ever get stuck in the office overnight. Behind the seating area was a conference table that could seat all of the warehouse workers comfortably so that Leah could hold meetings in her office rather than on the warehouse floor. To the right of the conference table was a desk that held a large computer screen and was connected to shelving with all kinds of storage compartments neatly tucked into the design. The whole office was done in soothing earth tones and felt calming.
But the best part of the place was the small bathroom that contained not just a toilet and sink but also a tiled shower and radiant heat flooring. I knew how dirty it could get on the warehouse floor when the orders were deep, and I knew that she'd probably want to clean up before heading home. It was a relatively small expense given the large expenditure for the warehouse update, so I'd gone with it.
"Jack, this is an amazing office!" she exclaimed as she walked around opening doors and looking at all of the features. "I can't believe I get to work here!"
"I'm glad you like it," I said as I pushed the door shut to show her the storage space built into the wall for her boots and coat to drip dry when winter finally hit.
"This is absolutely amazing," she repeated as she turned around in a circle, taking in all of the elements.
"I'm assuming that since you like this so much, you're willing to stay and continue working here," I teased as I gripped the file in my hand.
"You're nuts! Of course, I'm staying!" she laughed as she reached out and gently smacked my arm.
"All right, then we need to talk about your salary increase," I said as I showed her the file and gestured to the sitting area where I sat on the couch. I laid the paperwork on the low table in front of it. "In my estimation, you are overdue for a raise. As best I can tell, my father didn't give you a raise for over five years. Is that right?'
"No, he didn't, but he did give me benefits," she said defensively. "He wasn't a bad boss."
"I didn't say anything about him being a bad boss," I replied brusquely. "I'm talking about monetary compensation for a job you've been doing exceptionally well."
"I'm sorry, Jack," she said laying her hand on my arm. "I just feel like your father did so much for me. I don't want you to think he was a bad guy."
"It's okay," I nodded, feeling my body respond to her touch almost immediately. "He's a touchy topic for me."