Flirting With The Boss. Tina Beckett

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ than her loafers. A good pair of sturdy boots was on her list. She headed up the plywood-covered path when a young man dressed in jeans, a denim work shirt and lace-up steel-toed boots came toward her.

      He gave her a big smile and tipped back his hard hat. “Can I help you, ma’am?”

      “I’m looking for Jace Yeager.”

      The man’s smile grew bigger. “Aren’t they all? I’m Mike Parker, maybe I can help you.”

      All? Lori couldn’t help but wonder what that meant. She started to speak when she heard a familiar voice call out. They both turned to see Jace. He was dressed pretty much like the others, but he had on a leather vest over a black Henley shirt even though the temperature was in the low fifties.

      Lori froze as he gave her a once-over. He didn’t look happy to see her as he made his way toward them.

      Jace ignored her as he looked at Mike. “Don’t you have anything to do?”

      “I was headed to my truck for some tools.” He nodded to her. “And I ran across this nice lady. Sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”

      “Lori Hutchinson.”

      Mike let out a low whistle. “So you’re the big boss? I can’t tell you how good it is to meet you, Ms. Hutchinson.”

      She tried not to cringe at the description. “It’s Lori. I’m not anyone’s boss. Jace is in charge of this project.”

      That was when Jace spoke up. “Mike, they’ve finished spraying the insulation up in the lofts, so I need you to get started hanging drywall.”

      “Right, I’ll get on it.” He tipped his hat to Lori. “Nice to meet you, ma’am.”

      “Nice to meet you, too, Mike.”

      She watched him hurry off, then turned back to Jace. “Good morning. Seems you’ve been busy. What time did you start?”

      “I had a partial crew in at five.”

      “What about Cassie?”

      He seemed surprised at her question. “I wasn’t here, but my foreman was. My daughter comes first, Lori. She always will.”

      “I didn’t mean … I apologize.”

      That didn’t ease the scowl on his face. “Were we supposed to meet this morning?”

      She shook her head. “No.”

      “Did you come to work?” He looked over her attire. “You’re not exactly dressed for a construction site.”

      She glanced down at her dark trousers and soft blue sweater under her coat. “I have an appointment at the bank later this morning. I wanted to stop here first to see if everything got off okay. Do you need anything?”

      “No, it’s fine. I know it looks a little chaotic, but things are running pretty smoothly for the first day back to work. It’s most of the same crew so they know what I expect from them.”

      Lori had no doubt that Jace Yeager was good at his job. “So everything is on schedule?”

      “If the weather holds.” The wind picked up and brushed her hair back. “Come inside where it’s a little warmer,” he said. “I’ll introduce you to the foreman.”

      “I don’t want to disturb him.”

      “As you can see, it’s a little late for that.” He nodded toward the men who were watching.

      She could feel a blush rising over her face as she followed Jace inside the building to a worktable that had blueprints spread out on top. A middle-aged man was talking with another workman.

      “Hey, Toby,” Jace called as he reached into a bin and pulled out a hard hat. He came to her and placed it on her head. “You need to wear this if you come here. Safety rules.”

      Their eyes met. “Thank you.”

      Toby walked up to them. “What, Jace?”

      “This is Lori Hutchinson. Lori, this is my foreman, Toby Edwards.”

      The man smiled at her and tiny lines crinkled around his eyes. “So you’re the one who saved this guy’s as … sets.”

      Lori felt Jace tense. “I’d say I was just lucky to inherit some money,” she told Toby. “Speaking of money …” She turned to Jace. “Were the funds transferred into the Mountain Heritage account?”

      He nodded. “Yes. We’re expecting materials to be delivered later today.”

      “Good.” She glanced around, feeling a little excited about being a part of this. “It’s nice to see all the work going on.” It was a little noisy with the saws and nail guns.

      Jace watched Lori. He wasn’t expecting her here. Not that she didn’t have a right, but she was a big distraction. He caught the guys watching her, too. Okay, they were curious about their attractive new boss. He hoped that was all it was. There could be a problem if she stopped by every day. And not only for his men, either. He eyed her pretty face and those big brown eyes that a man could get lost in.

      No way. One woman had already cost him his career and future, and maybe his daughter. He wasn’t going to get involved with another, especially in his workplace. Or any other place. He thought about the cozy dinner last night in the Hutchinson kitchen.

      It was a little too cozy.

      Enough reminiscing, he thought, and stuck his fingers in his mouth, letting go with a piercing whistle. “Let’s get this over with so we can all get on with our day.” All work stopped and the men came to the center of the main room.

      “Everyone, this is Lorelei Hutchinson. Since Lyle Hutchinson’s death, Lori will be taking over in her father’s place. It’s thanks to her we’re all back to work on this project.” The men let go with cheers and whistles. Jace forced a smile, knowing this was a means to get this project completed. But damn, being beholden to a woman stuck in his craw. “Okay, now back to work.”

      “Thank you,” Lori said. “So many people in town have been looking at me like I have two heads.”

      “Has someone said anything to you?” he asked.

      “No, but they’re wondering what I’m going to do.” She shrugged. “Maybe I should just make a big announcement in the town square. ‘Hey, everyone, I’m not here to cause trouble.’”

      A strange protective feeling came over him. “Now that the project has started up again, maybe they’ll stop worrying.”

      “I hope so. I’m bringing my sister and nephew here to live. I want to be part of this community.”

      “What you did for Mac Burleson yesterday was a pretty good start.”

      “Oh, Mac. Is he here?”

      Jace nodded. “Yeah, he was here waiting when Toby opened the gates.”

      She СКАЧАТЬ