Chapter Eleven
“Do we really have to do this?”
“We do. Why are you chicken all of a sudden?”
“I like the interviewing part. I don’t enjoy telling people they no longer have a job.”
“The great Cooper Jackson is scared of firing someone. That surprises me.”
“I’m not scared.” He scribbled on his notepad. “It’s just that I’ve never actually let anyone go before.”
“Ha! Really?”
“Really. I choose staff carefully and they usually leave of their own accord. Mostly for better opportunities.”
“How many staff do you have, anyway?” Emily sat down next to him as she sorted through the file in front of her.
“Only two. I have a personal assistant and I outsource my accounts. So the bookkeeper isn’t even staff I guess.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll do all the talking. Remember, we’re doing this first so we can do the good meeting afterward.”
He grinned at her. “I noticed you set them up like that. You left the positive one for last on purpose?”
“I did. I don’t like the bad meetings to linger so I always follow up with something positive.
“Clever.”
“I try.”
“So, no Andrew today?”
“Hell no!” The words were out before Emily considered them and she rolled her eyes at Cooper. “After the other week I think I may ban him from the office.”
“He sure was chatty. Right up until the moment you took him out to the car.”
“You heard that?”
He laughed as he said the words that turned her face crimson. “I’ll never forget the sound of his shrieks echoing up the staircase and down the corridor. There’s something quite alarming about a parrot screaming ‘take Andrew back! Andrew is decent! Not like Cooooopppperrrrr!’”
***
Mick Gordon from the warehouse took the news well and Emily and Cooper quickly moved to their next meeting. They’d asked Heather to come upstairs at eleven o’clock and when she arrived she was a bundle of nerves. News had spread about their task from the morning and she looked like she was on the verge of tears as she steeled herself for whatever they were about to say.
“First of all Heather,” Emily began, “please relax. We’re not finishing you up.”
Heather let out a pent up breath and flopped forward in her chair. “Oh thank goodness. I was so worried when I heard you let Mick go this morning.”
“Mick wasn’t performing and he’d already had two written warnings.” Cooper informed her. “You haven’t had any warnings have you, Heather?”
“No of course not.” She was shocked that he’d even suggested such a thing.
“Great. Then you can relax.”
Emily gave his foot a tap under the table. “Please ignore Cooper being so flippant, and let me explain why you’re here. We’ve been looking at everyone who works at Simpsons and laying out the tasks that they do.” Heather nodded. “We want to offer you some extra training because I know that sometimes you struggle with the computer and the various programs.”
“I’m sure I can do better to learn them.” She spoke like she still suspected this was some sort of test.
“I know you can but we want you to learn them properly from a trainer, not through us showing you a keystroke every second month because we just realised you don’t know it. You’re a valuable member of staff. You’re friendly, you help others with their boring tasks when they get behind and your own work is great. We want to help you to be better so that you have a long future with us.”
A tear rolled down Heather’s cheek and Cooper sat up, alarmed. She sniffled and then pulled a tissue out of her sleeve, making Emily smile. “Thank you so much!” she said as she wiped her eyes and then dabbed her nose. “I was so worried coming up here, but you’ve made me feel so valued.”
“You’re very welcome.” Emily pushed some papers toward her. “Here are the course details we have for you. You’ll see there’s more than one. Talk to your department and let me know which dates suit you best.” Heather took the papers and got up from her chair. Emily rose and walked her to the door. “Can you do one more thing for me?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Can you make sure you let everyone know those are happy tears? I don’t want a revolt in my office when they think we fired our most loved staff member!”
***
“That went well.” Cooper followed Emily to her office and lingered in the doorway as she sat at her desk. The sight of him lounging there was becoming familiar to her, now that he’d being doing it for several weeks. She tore her eyes away and focussed on her computer monitor. “How do you feel about closing the site for an entire day and running a team building exercise of some sort?”
Her head snapped up. “That’s pretty extreme, but we could make it work. As long as it’s not lame. No high ropes courses or I’m out.”
He laughed and pushed off from the doorframe. “Let’s talk about it later, but I have some ideas that you’ll like. It needs to be a day that feels like a reward for your people, not a punishment where they’d rather have had a day off work.”
“Sounds good.” She went back to her email, but he didn’t return to his office.
“Will you have dinner with me?”
“Nope.”
“Please. I believe I owe you a thank you.”
“No, you don’t owe me anything. Especially after the way that Andrew behaved the other day. It’s bad enough that everyone has worked out that we dated a few times. I’m going to kill that bird.”
“So it wasn’t you who replaced the photo frame for me?” He took two steps to his office and quickly returned to hold it up.
“Yes, it was me, but I don’t need a thank you.”
“It was nice of you.”
“So, I’m nice. I still don’t need a thank you.”
“How about if we make it a working dinner?”
She sighed and closed her eyes for a moment, before turning toward him. “You don’t give up do you?”
“Not when I want something.” His eyes bored into hers, telegraphing a double meaning to his words.
“You promised Ed.”
“That was a mistake. I’m considering retracting it.”
“You can’t do that!” Now he had her full attention. “I don’t want you making work even more complicated.”
“I guess that’s a yes to dinner, then.” He smirked and stepped away from the door, cheering quietly and high-fiving himself all the way back to his office.
***
Emily was determined to keep their dinner focussed on work and not give him any leeway to start a personal discussion. She insisted on taking her car to dinner and promised to drop him at his hotel afterward. As she drove in silence, she mulled over the short talk she’d had with Jenny after Andrew had outed her to the entire office.
“He’s so sexy. No wonder you dated him.”
“Shhh… Jenny. No one was supposed to know.”
“Well, Andrew screwed that up, didn’t he? Who knew he’d start saying all that stuff?”
“Don’t remind me. Cooper has been very good about it.”
“I’ve seen the way Cooper watches you Emily. He wants another chance, I’d bet my house on it.”
“No, he doesn’t. We’re working together for a few more weeks, then everything will go back to normal.” She’d nodded, to convince herself more than anyone.
Jenny had actually put her finger up and tapped her on the forehead. “Hello! You’re making a mistake. Guys like Cooper Jackson don’t come along every day. Grab him before someone else does. Someone like that Lucy woman that you interviewed.”
Emily laughed. “He said he wasn’t interested but I did point out he could get her number any time he liked from her resume.”
“Well, he can’t because I shredded it.” Jenny grinned, pleased with the shocked look on Emily’s face. “And, Sasha has been intercepting all the calls she’s made since her interview.”
“She called him?”
“She did. More than once. I told her last time that Cooper had moved to another office.”
“That’s evil of you.”
“Yep. You’re welcome. So, as I was saying, grab him while he’s here. No one in their right mind would let a sexy surfer dude, who’s well spoken and a great guy slip through their fingers.”
She shook the memory away and pulled into a vacant parking space. When they were settled in the restaurant she pulled out her computer, silently communicating to him that she was here for work. Her eyes focussed on her computer screen while Cooper frowned at her. “Can you put the laptop away? We’re here for dinner.”
“You said a working dinner,” she reminded him.
“So I lied. I expected you to give in gracefully when I said it was work-related and then be bowled over by my charm and let me get away with it. But no, here we are discussing the finer points and making it awkward.”
She sighed and closed the laptop before slipping it into her bag. “Why couldn’t you just let me go home?”
His exasperation was plain for anyone to see as he hissed at her, “Because I don’t want you to go home unless I can come with you. I’d let you go home, if home was my place by the beach and you were moving in.” He relaxed a little and sat back in his chair, his emotions still out of control. “I’d even let you bring Andrew, if we could tape his nasty mouth shut.”
His vicious words about her pet made Emily giggle and soon the small eruption became outright laughter. Cooper’s face softened and he soon joined in. The waiter approached their table and then detoured to a different one when he saw them guffawing and slapping each other’s arms as they shrieked.
“Oh, man, that bird will be the death of me! I’ve never heard him say so many words in one day in his entire life. If I had a housemate I’d have accused them of setting me up and teaching him what to do.”
“The look on Jenny’s face when you took him out to the car and he just kept screaming about me was priceless. She didn’t know where to look when I passed her desk.”
“I’m not happy that they all know about us.”
“No, it wasn’t the best way for them to find out. I sent Ed an email, just so you’re aware. In case it becomes an issue.”
She immediately sobered. “Did he reply?”
“He did.”
“And?”
Cooper pursed his lips and looked directly at her. “You won’t like it.”
“Oh, no. What?”
“He said he couldn’t give a shit.” He grinned at her as she swatted at his arm again. “Said you deserved to be happy and if ever two people were made for each other it was us.”
“Wow. That’s a bit sloppy for Ed.”
“I know, I was surprised myself. He said if it went bad he would seek my immediate removal. Emily is more important to the company than some horny consultant, were his exact words. It means it’s okay.”
“No, it’s still not okay.”
He groaned. “Will it be okay in November when I’ve completed my mission?”
She watched him, watching her, and was lost for words. What do you say to a man you really like, or suspect you might even be in love with, when he asks you that? How do you tell him you’re scared of being hurt again, even though you know it was entirely your fault last time? How do you confess the awful and selfish reason that you broke it off?
You don’t.
“I’m not sure that’s what I want.”
Much better to bluff your way through.
“Bullshit. I won’t push it tonight, but I know you want me as much as I want you.”
Damn.
***
Somehow they got through dinner without any more conversation about their personal lives. Emily knew Cooper was holding in everything he wanted to say and she admired his self-control.
Time to get him home before I lose mine.
As they got into the car to start the short drive to his hotel, he surprised her with a question. “What’s something in your life you still want to achieve?”
“That’s a weird question. Why do you want to know?”
“I’m just making small talk. We can discuss how much you want me if you’d prefer.”
“No, I think a discussion about my life goals is much safer.” She pulled out into the deserted street before answering. “I’d like to see the Northern Lights. I’m fascinated by them and by all the photos I’ve seen of see through hotel-type igloos. They’re definitely on my bucket list.”
“Nice.” He smiled to himself in the dark. “I wouldn’t mind seeing those either. You know you can see them in Tasmania at certain times of the year.”
“No way!”
“Yep, it’s true. I’ll show you the Aurora Australis, otherwise known as the Southern Lights, on my phone tomorrow. Not to move on to discuss anything too personal, but once I’ve talked you into dating me again, I’ll take you on holiday to see them.”
The traffic light turned green and she edged forward, glancing at him as she drove slowly. “That’s totally not true! You promised no personal talk, anyway! Oh—” she slammed on the brakes, suddenly realising that the traffic light had not turned green, but was still red, and they were now parked in the middle of the intersection. “It wasn’t my light!”
Traffic to her right started to move forward and she panicked that they were about to be the cause of an accident. Quickly checking to her left she tramped hard on the accelerator and rushed the car out of the intersection.
“What the hell was that?” Cooper said, his wide-eyed stare settling on her.
“Oh my God! I was sure the light turned green, but it wasn’t mine. That junction can be confusing but I could have killed us!” She drove slowly up the street, pulling in big breaths, noticing that her hands shook on the steering wheel. “I’m so sorry.”
Cooper let out a short laugh. “I’ll have to remember not to declare my intentions while you’re driving. I promise to stick to discussions about the weather from now on.”
She laughed, but it was a sound devoid of mirth. “I can’t believe I did that. I’ve only gone through two red lights in my entire life and that was the second. Wow. Just, wow.” She glanced in the rear view mirror and watched the traffic move slowly through the junction behind them. “We are so lucky it’s late.”
“It’s okay. Just take it easy and we’ll make it home alive.”
“Oh no.” Her eyes flicked from the rear mirror and back to the road in front. “I think that’s a police car.”
“Oh sure. Funny, funny. This is not a time for jokes.”
“It’s not a joke, Cooper.” Worry crinkled at the edge of her eyes. “I recognise the shape of the wagon. Just wait and the lights will go on any second. Make sure you have your seatbelt on.” She turned right at the next traffic light, being careful to indicate and still watching the car in her mirror. As predicted the red and blue lights started flashing and the car pulled in behind them. “See? Oh my goodness, I’m going to get a fine.”
She didn’t stop the car immediately as they were on a two-lane road, instead taking the next residential street on the left and pulling to a careful stop behind a parked car. Cooper turned in his seat and watched as officers got out of each side of the car, torches flashing. “Oh, you’ve got two of them interested. They’ll be worrying about who’s in the car since we didn’t pull over straight away.”
“Don’t say that.” Emily opened her door and didn’t miss the quick step backward the officer took.
He thinks I’m a threat and I’m getting out of the car!
“Hi there.” He shone the light in her face as his partner shone his in Cooper’s window. “Do you know why we’ve pulled you over this evening?”
“I do, and my window is broken, that’s why I’m opening my door.”
“Why have we stopped you?” he asked, ignoring her statement about the door.
As Emily’s mouth opened, her brain chose that exact moment to take a holiday. “Because I must be on some kind of drug or something, and that was not my green light back there!”
“That’s correct. Do you have your licence on you?”
“I do.”
She picked up her handbag from the floor and Cooper whispered to her, “You just told a police officer you’re on drugs!” She glared at him in the darkness and concentrated on getting her licence as he held in his giggles.
“Oh my goodness, we were talking and laughing and then I realised I was out in the middle of the intersection and my light was actually red,” she babbled as she dug around in her purse for her licence, ignoring Cooper’s hysterical choking sounds. “I just rushed to get us out of harm’s way before any cars could move through.” She handed him her licence, “Here you go.”
“Thanks.” As he lifted it to look, she reached out and snatched it out of his hand.
“Oh I’m sorry. That’s my banking card!”
“Well, I’m not interested in that tonight.” His answer almost made her laugh, but she kept it in, unlike Cooper who now started laughing outright beside her.
“Would you shut up?” she hissed at him as she finally found her licence and handed it to the officer.
He shone his light on the plastic ID card and she knew exactly what was coming next. “This is a Queensland licence.”
“Yes.”
“How long have you lived in Victoria?”
From beside her, Cooper said between giggles, “Two years,” and the officer raised his eyebrows.
She smiled at him and tried to look vague. “Umm… maybe a year and a half. Two years, or so?” Her tone rose at the end like a question and she willed herself not to turn around and look at the other officer, who was now checking her tyres by torchlight.
“Do you realise you are required to change your licence to a Victorian one after,” he looked at his partner who had appeared with a breath testing kit, “it’s three months isn’t it?”
Oh god, I’m behaving so insanely they think I’m drunk!
“Yep, three months is the deadline,” his partner agreed and handed him the package.
“Oh, really? I didn’t know that.” A lie. “I even flew to Queensland when it expired last year so I wasn’t driving unlicensed.” Not a lie.
She ignored Cooper as he informed her in a low voice near her shoulder that she’d be getting a second fine for that oversight.
God I wish you weren’t here to witness this!
“I guess I’m committing all kinds of crimes tonight,” she said with a laugh, as she smiled up at the officer and Cooper finally lost his mind in the passenger seat. She elbowed him and kept her eyes on the uniformed man in front of her. “Please excuse my workmate. Can you hear him laughing at me?”
The officer handed the licence to his partner who returned to the vehicle. Without smiling at all he instructed her to blow into the yellow tube. She followed his instructions, almost losing her breath at the end. Cooper’s giggling was rubbing off on her and she experienced an overwhelming desire to laugh. From the look on the officer’s face laughing was the wrong thing to do, so she bit her lip and waited to hear how much her moment of inattention at the traffic lights was going to cost.
The officer announced her alcohol reading was zero and both officers returned to their vehicle while she glared at Cooper. “Would you stop it? I’m probably going to get eight hundred dollars worth of fines.”
He ignored her and continued laughing, sliding down in his seat and slapping his knee. He gasped as he spoke, “You said you were on drugs to a cop! Then you told him you were committing all kind of crimes! I can’t believe you said that.” He continued laughing and she shook her head as the officer approached her door again.
“Well,” he started, and she braced herself for the bad news, “It’s your lucky night. The fine for running the red light is around four hundred dollars and it’s about the same for not changing your licence over. However,” he paused for effect and Emily held her breath, “I’m able to let you off with a warning tonight.”
She let out her breath in a whoosh as Cooper finally stopped laughing. “Thank you so much!”
“Drive carefully and have a good evening.”
“Thank you! I will! Straight home!”
She pulled the door closed and ignored Cooper as he said, “Ooh, another fib! You’re on fire tonight!”