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Determined, I walked back to the kitchen and fired up my laptop. My assistant should have emailed me my next audit by now. He knew I liked to have it before the weekend. Ah, and there it was, an email from Jackson.
I needed coffee before I settled in to research the company for my next audit. I had one of those fancy espresso machines, but tonight I brewed a pot. It could be a long night.
Setting the coffee to brew, I settled back into my seat and opened the email. Yadda, yadda, yadda, oh, here it is:
“Grace,” Jackson’s email read. “The next audit will be located downtown. The name of the company is Crawford Corporation.”
There was another sentence with an address and something about parking, but my mind was stuck on the company name. Crawford Corporation.
No. It couldn’t be. It had to be some sort of coincidence.
I frantically typed the name of the company into my browser, and the first hit was the company’s website. I scanned it as quickly as I could and read the About Us page. There was a photo of Colton Crawford, the CEO. He looked like the same grumpy boy I remembered from high school. There was also a photo of his brother Ryan. Panicked, I scrolled to the bottom, but there was no photo of Luke. Maybe he didn’t work with his brothers. Maybe he just stayed in bed all day and did nothing for a living except travel to Caribbean islands. I could picture that.
My heart slowed down and I breathed in deeply. I hadn’t realized how anxious I’d become until the fear had fled. I had jumped to conclusions and overreacted. Luke wouldn’t be there on Monday. I had nothing to worry about.
I needed this audit to run smoothly and killing Luke would not please my bosses. But it would make me feel a hell of a lot better. I frowned, feeling a tiny bit disappointed he wouldn’t be there and I wouldn’t get the chance.
The disappointment had nothing to do with wanting to see Luke again.
2
Luke
Mmm, this is good, but not spicy enough.
I reached for the chili powder and carefully tapped a few sprinkles onto the eggs.
Just a splash of milk—oh and maybe some onion powder, too.
After adding the extra ingredients, I stirred them all together and took another bite.
That’s it. That’s perfection.
“Oh my god, what are you cooking? I could smell it from the foyer.” Erika, the front desk receptionist for the twelfth floor, popped her head into the staff lunchroom, which was located just down the hall from her desk.
“Just some scrambled eggs and bacon. Do you want some?” I plated the eggs onto two dishes and added the bacon I had fried up earlier.
Erika appeared next to me and inhaled a deep breath. “Luke, why do we rarely see you at Crawford Corp? The staff needs you,” she teased.
“Because I hate wearing a suit and tie. And then I’d be a miserable asshole just like my brother Colton.”
“Well, he isn’t so miserable anymore,” said Erika, winking at me.
“God bless Frannie,” I said. “She’s a saint. I don’t know how she puts up with him.”
“She’s amazing and super patient,” said Erika. It was obvious Erika was Frances’s best friend and still her fiercest supporter, next to my brother.
“So, what are you doing here? Besides, cooking a fine breakfast,” she asked, tasting the eggs. She closed her eyes and sighed. I loved the look of a well-satisfied woman. Too bad Erika was already taken. But still, I couldn’t help myself.
“What are you doing this weekend?” I asked her, adding more eggs to her plate.
She shook her finger at me. “Oh, don’t tempt me, Luke,” she said, laughing. “Even though you’d be the only Crawford that could.”
“I’m honored,” I said, enjoying Erika’s good opinion of me.
“Besides, I’m sure you already have plans.”
I did. But I would change them for a hard-working girl like Erika.
