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restitution. When he walked back into the office, he saw Pulaski staring out the window
and Giselle seated at her desk.
“I’ll need your password,” she said in a subdued voice, her eyes on the computer
screen.
He gave it to her. Then Con cleared his throat and Pulaski spun around.
“And, uh, ’Zelle, I’ll get you back every penny, don’t you worry. And, uh, I’ll even
pay a penalty. You just name it and I’ll give it to you.”
Con watched as Giselle fought to control the emotions swarming across her face. “I
accept your resignation. And in recognition of your loyal service to Felix, I’ll give you
thirty days to repay Stonehedge Landscapes. Nineteen thousand plus interest plus
penalty, let’s say an even twenty-five thousand. In exchange for not pressing charges.”
She looked up at him then. “Can you do that?”
His Adam’s apple bobbed several times. “Yeah. Yes. I can. I will. Thank you, ’Zelle.
I’m sorry. I’m sorrier than I can say.”
She sighed. “So am I, Larry. So am I.”
* * * * *
“Oh Con, it hurts.”
“I know, baby. It’s a huge change in your life. Come here. You need a hug.”
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Cris Anson
More eager to accept his consoling arms than she should be, Giselle snuggled
against him in the quiet of the kitchen. “I never knew.”
For a moment she reveled in being coddled, protected. Loved. Then she pushed
away from him. “I have lots of work to do before the crews come home.”
“I’ll stay if you want me to. I’ll also go if you feel you need some alone time. But
know this, Giselle, you’re going to be going through all the stages of grief again. The
anger, the disbelief. Because you’re losing another big part of your life.”
“I— Why don’t you go. I think better when I’m alone, and I’ll need to make a list of
what needs to be done.” She gave him a watery smile. “Maybe you can call me late this
afternoon and see how I’m holding up.”
He gathered her in his arms again. “I’ll do better than that. I’ll come by around six,
when the crews are closing up shop for the day, and I’ll bring dinner. Would you like
Chinese? Pizza? Deli?”
“No. I’m not sure I’ll be able to eat much. Just—just call me around dusk. I’ll have
told the guys by then and will probably need a little cheering up.”
Con kissed her then, gently, as if she were fragile and valuable. “Whatever you say,
hon. Just know that I’m here for you.”
82
Adding Heat
Chapter Seven
The workweek passed without mishap. Giselle found herself enjoying the daily
visits to the jobs as de facto foreman—forelady?—and found two of her workers had the
potential to become foreman before season’s end. All her guys had expressed surprise
at Larry’s “defection”, as one of them put it, but she’d gathered from casual remarks
that they’d known of Larry’s feelings for her and thought his departure was in her best
interests. Especially since several of them had met Con and encouraged her to “hook
up” with him.
She didn’t tell them she already had.
But she’d declared a work-free Saturday, to which they reacted as expected. Some
relished a longer weekend, a couple grumbled about missing overtime pay. But she was
the boss and, as she’d told them, she needed time to decompress from her new work
situation.
And she needed the day to prepare for Con. Because she’d invited him to spend the
night. Premeditated, not because he was too exhausted to leave by midnight as with
their prior trysts. They’d talked on the phone every evening, but she hadn’t been
inclined to see him. She had to put her life, her future, into perspective first.
She was stroking blusher on her cheeks when the phone rang. Her heart skipped a
beat. Con. He was probably calling to say he’d be there in a few minutes.
“Hi,” she said, somewhat breathlessly.
“Mom? Are you okay? You sound like you’ve been running.”
“Oh. Andrew. I’m fine. I just—dashed to answer the phone, that’s all.”
“I mean, are you really okay? I heard about Larry. You know I got to be friends
with Darren when I worked on his crew last summer and he called me and told me
what happened. What a bummer. How are you handling it?”
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Cris Anson
“It was somewhat of a learning experience, going out to all the jobs every day, but
I’m getting a handle on it. I really love to see the progress the crews make from one day
to the next. I have my eye on two of the guys I think could step into the job. Another
week or two and I should have my decision.”
“Good. Now what you need is a boyfriend.”
Giselle was stunned into silence.
“It’s been almost four years, Mom, and you’ve been a nun all that time. You need to
go out and have some fun. Get laid.”
“Andrew!” [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]