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“Yes?” I keep my voice icy cold.
“I’m Jered Coleman, the new head of HR. We met the other day.”
The man smiles at me crinkling brown eyes that are more amber than my pet’s. I look him over, not impressed with what I see. Mr. Coleman’s suit is way too expensive for the salary that he makes in HR. It looks like something my father would wear, slightly too tailored with the elbows and shoulders puckering. A gold diamond-shaped tie tack keeps his overly red tie in place and gives him a gangster-like quality.
Next to me, Mandy has a smile plastered on her face. I can feel how nervous she is, and I don’t like it.
“What of it?” I cross my arms in front of my chest and raise my eyebrows at the man.
He doesn’t move at my curt words. Jered’s body language stays relaxed like he practices acting cool. “I was hoping that we could talk in my office for a few minutes.”
“No. Leave.”
I turn to Mandy. Her eyes get wider. The hand she has on the table is shaking. Her eyes roam from me to the man who hasn’t left the table. Apparently, my response wasn’t clear enough.
“Mr. Keeley, I’m the head of HR. If I need to talk to you, you should be compliant.” Mr. Coleman has a fluffed-up vision of his importance here. I ignore him, but he continues. “I think we should head to my office. There are several things I want to discuss with you.”
I lean back in the booth, turn, and let my gaze center on him. “Mr. Coleman, you seem to be under the impression that I have to do what you ask. I am a full partner here at McKenzie Tech. You cannot call me into your office like some high school principle. I do not wish to speak to you. Leave.”
The rate of Mr. Coleman’s deep breaths speeds up. I can see the hatred filling his eyes. But the coolness of his voice doesn’t change. “Fine. We will talk here. Miss Burmmell, please go back to your workstation in accounting.”
Mandy is out of the booth and across the room before I can tell her to stay. She moves like a rabbit fleeing a predator.
Mr. Coleman takes a seat in the booth across from me, setting his hands on the table and clasping them. “There are two things I wanted to talk to you about, Mr. Keeley. It was best done in private, but if you are insistent about not going to my office then we will do this here, in public.”
I place both my hands on the table, mimicking his posture then open one slightly in a gesture for him to continue. Coleman is obviously a bully, and I have no problem manipulating bullies.
“First of all, you have not gotten the paperwork for the background checks on your team to HR. It was due last week.”
I grunt, cutting him off. “The paperwork is not necessary. My team has been my team for years. They do not require background checks.”
“Kane and Ashton were very clear that all new employees need thorough background checks. You are keeping me from doing my job.”
“The members of my team are not new employees. The merger between myself and McKenzie Tech is quite clear that my team stays as is. And I can assure you that I have done extensive background checks on them all. If that will be all, I need to get back to work.”
“That is not all.” Jered’s voice is hard. He’s really pushing it, trying to dominate me. “The second thing I wanted to talk to you about is the way that you are using Miss Burmmell. Running cables is not in her job description. She is an accountant, not menial labor. If you need help, you will tell me, and I will send over one of the janitors.”
The man’s face is hard. His breathing is still rapid. The way I am reacting to him is bothering him… a lot. Good. I do not like this guy at all.
With the way that Mandy reacts to him, I know that their past still affects her. That bothers me — like an itch I can’t scratch. There is a chance that she used to love this man. There is a chance that she still does. That makes me furious. It shouldn’t, but it does. Mandy is my pet, not his.
“Miss Burmmell has agreed to help me. Everyone has agreed. I don’t see why your objections matter, Mr. Coleman.”
His face pales as his eyes blaze. “I do not want Mandy running cables with you.” His professional tone is now dropped. The fact that this has to do with their past is even more apparent. Jered stutters slightly aware that he just revealed himself and his real intentions. “I mean, Miss Burmmell. Rumors are going around that what you two are up to isn’t just cabling.”
