by Julie Cannon
“Yes, I’m here for Ms. Austin. Is she in?” The woman’s eyes widened, giving Luca the distinct feeling people rarely came looking for Stephanie Austin.
“All the executives are in a meeting right now.” They stared at one another for a moment before she dragged a chair from an unoccupied desk over to Luca. “She may be a while.” Her smile was polite as she left Luca alone.
Luca pushed the chair against the wall, but didn’t sit. She was too nervous after seeing the shocked look in the other woman’s eyes at the mention of Stephanie Austin, and knowing what so many already thought of her new boss. She swallowed back her desire to scream and run, because Luca Garner had never turned away from a challenge, and Stone Cold Steph Austin wouldn’t be the first.
Chapter Two
Stephanie Austin’s latest case pile had just increased by two, and she was fine with that. She sat impatiently as the biweekly executive meeting wrapped up, still unsure as to why they couldn’t address her first so she could be on her way. Stephanie had already started scribbling various notes for her new cases, all while shutting out the president of LGR’s monotone voice. Gerard Witlin was satisfactory as a boss, but Stephanie really wished someone else would head their meetings. She yawned widely.
“Are we keeping you up, Stephanie?” Gerard said, smiling in her direction.
“Not at all, but you are keeping me from my work.” Stephanie’s lips remained in a straight line and she tapped her pen against her notepad. The five other executives around the table looked from Gerard to Stephanie and back again.
He nodded. “Very well. I’ll conclude with a quick update on our staff. We have five interns taking on the role of assistants today, and while most have already been assigned to senior accountants, there’s one left for someone in this room.”
While everyone else around the large table perked up, Stephanie dropped her attention back to her notes. She never understood the excitement that accompanied having an assistant, nor could she grasp why the thought of having someone new replace your current assistant was so titillating. Stephanie believed in doing your own work and making sure it’s done right.
“It’s important to remember that the purpose of our intern to assistant program is to help groom these individuals and train them to be as successful as we are. We believe in the five interns we chose, and it’s up to us to make sure they become prime LGR accountants.” Stephanie circled a key word on her notepad and checked to make sure she had updated contact information for her newest client. She looked up when Gerard cleared his throat. “Stephanie, I expect you to teach Luca Garner everything you know and build her up to be as successful as you have been with LGR.”
“Who’s Luca Gardener?” Stephanie said, placing her pen parallel to the edge of her notebook.
“Luca Garner,” he emphasized her last name, “is your new assistant.”
Stephanie laughed. “No, she’s not. I don’t need or want an assistant.”
“You have one now,” Gerard said sternly, a tone he rarely took with Stephanie.
She sat forward with her elbows on the tabletop and dug them in hard. “Are you saying I need an assistant?”
Gerard’s kind smile was back, though slightly hidden behind his bushy beard. He adjusted the perfect Windsor knot in his tie, a nervous habit that was often a prelude to an argument. “You know I’m not.”
“Very good, then.” Stephanie sat back.
“I’m telling you that you now have one. Meeting’s over, everyone. Let’s get to it.” He knocked on the conference table and the room was cleared out, but Stephanie didn’t move an inch. “There’ll be no discussion,” he said directly to her.
“There should’ve been a discussion before this decision was made for me. I work alone. I know this, you know this, everyone here knows this. I don’t need some eager puppy following me around while I work my ass off to keep our clients happy. I can get my own coffee and answer my own phone calls.”
“I don’t think you were listening. We set these people up with experienced forensic accountants so they can learn and grow within one of the best firms on this side of the country. She’s not your beck-and-call girl.”
“Yes, I’m well aware considering I do sit through these meetings every year.” Stephanie stood from the table, making a show of closing up her portfolio and twisting the tip of her Cross pen back into its stainless steel shaft. “Place her with someone else,” she said curtly, feeling as if she were stuck in a custody battle. Except she didn’t want custody of anyone.
“I’m afraid you don’t have a choice in the matter, no matter how much you fight me on this. You were requested.”
“By whom?”
“Someone from Marcati and Stevens. I don’t have to tell you how important the cooperation between us is to our firm.”
Stephanie knew very well how important good relationships between financial firms were, but she was too stubborn to admit as such. “Important enough to force one of your own into a position they’re not happy about?” Stephanie waited, but Gerard didn’t answer. “Who called in the favor? I want a name.”
Gerard turned to the large windows lining the wall of the boardroom. The sun was shining and the sky was clear, but Stephanie knew he wasn’t admiring the early spring weather. When he spoke again, his voice was low and even. “Catherine Carter.”
Dammit, Stephanie thought. One of the most successful women in their financial world. She knew she couldn’t push this too much without someone declaring a cat fight. She took a deep breath. “Gerard,” she started slowly, “I would really appreciate it if you’d try to place her with someone else. Another senior accountant who can offer her just as much as I can.”
“Catherine Carter asked for you, for the best, and you know as well as I do there’s no one here who compares. Think about what this can do for your career.” Stephanie’s attention was piqued. “For you to create a protégé? Another woman who could follow in your footsteps and take the world of forensic accounting by storm. This could be the opportunity of a lifetime for you.”
Stephanie was momentarily humbled, but she had to stand strong. She checked her watch. “I have a phone conference in ten minutes. We’ll continue this later.” She held Gerard’s eye contact until she was out of the boardroom. Frustrated and distracted by her to-do list, Stephanie muttered promises of bodily harm as she walked to her office. She froze before she could manage the last twenty feet.
A beautiful, if not slightly plain, brunette stood just outside Stephanie’s office door. Her brown suit and tan shirt fit a little boxy, her heels qualified as clearance section pumps, and her dark eyes sparkled in spite of her furrowed brow. She appeared to be pacing and possibly talking to herself. Stephanie knew this woman was Luca Garner, without a doubt. She was bright-eyed and very chatty, apparently. “Great,” Stephanie said to herself. She tried her best to avoid Luca as she walked to her door, which would’ve only worked if she were invisible.
“Good morning, Ms. Austin,” Luca said. Stephanie stopped with her hand on the doorknob. “My name is—”
“I know who you are.” Stephanie turned to meet Luca’s eager stare.
Luca looked slightly shaken, but persisted. “Great. I’ve heard a lot about you as well, and would like you to know that working for you, and with you, is an opportunity of a lifetime for me.”
Stephanie stared at her before asking, “Why is that phrase everywhere today? Did someone pay you to say that?”
“Excuse me?”
Stephanie shook her head. “Listen, Luca, don’t get comfortable. I don’t need an assistant and hopefully by tomorrow they’ll find you someone who does. For now, you can take that desk,” Stephanie said, pointing toward a vacant desk beside her office door. “Do whatever you want for the rest of the day.” Stephanie opened her office door.
“But, Ms. Austin?” Luca asked. Stephanie grimaced. Her phone conference was starting in a few minutes and she needed to go over her notes. But her mother had taught her to at le
ast have manners. She looked at Luca expectantly. “I deserve to work with the best, and you’re the best.” Luca was firm, her sweet voice turning forceful, which caught Stephanie off guard.
Stephanie stepped into her office slowly, buying herself a few seconds to shake her surprise. She turned to Luca. “Then I suggest you spend the rest of this free day preparing yourself to work with the second best.” Stephanie shut and locked her office door.
Chapter Three
Stephanie went into the office nearly an hour early on Tuesday. The appearance of Luca had caused her to become uncharacteristically distracted. She completed her phone conference flawlessly and then fell into an agitated rut. All afternoon, she could hear Luca moving about. At one point, Luca had even introduced herself as Stephanie’s assistant. For all the money LGR had put into the design of their offices, Stephanie wished they had spared a few bucks on soundproofing her office.
Since she had failed to work proficiently the day before, Stephanie had no choice but to make up for the time she had wasted. Stephanie started her morning with another follow-up email to Gerard. She had already sent multiple, demanding Luca be moved and attached a list of accountants she’d fit with perfectly. Stephanie even went as far as to look for the most eligible and attractive of the staff. Maybe playing to Luca’s personal prospects was a bit beneath Stephanie, but she was doing this in the name of self-preservation. She hit send on her email to Gerard and then got down to business.
The early hour flew by for Stephanie as she lost herself between old financial reports and new, lists of a company’s expenditures, and employee profiles. Stephanie Austin loved what she did. She was a math geek, and being a forensic accountant gave her the opportunity to feel like a detective. If something fishy was going down within a multi-million-dollar company or between two individuals on a personal level, Stephanie would be able to trap the culprit down to the penny and guarantee a favorable outcome in court. She dropped her pen and rolled her shoulders after finishing the last notes. She considered her most recent case closed. She would email a report to the lawyers and put together a box of physical evidence to hand-deliver later in the afternoon. But first, Stephanie was in dire need of another cup of coffee.
She stood and straightened her burgundy pencil skirt before shrugging on the matching blazer. She buttoned two out of three jacket buttons and straightened the collar of her navy blouse. Stephanie checked her appearance in the full-length antique mirror she had propped against the far wall of the office. The ornate frame allowed the piece to be disguised as decorative, but it was there for Stephanie’s vanity and no other purpose. Stephanie had a motto: look good, feel good, and work harder than anyone else around you. She smoothed her hands over her slicked hair and along her long platinum ponytail.
With a deep breath, Stephanie left her office and nearly collided with Luca, who was holding two cups of steaming coffee. Not one drop escaped.
“Good morning, Ms. Austin,” Luca said cheerily. Stephanie gritted her teeth. “This is for you.” Luca held out a mug, the mug Stephanie always used and hid in the back of the break room cabinet for safekeeping. Stephanie eyed it suspiciously. “Two and a half sugars, a teaspoon of hazelnut creamer, and a splash of one percent milk.” Luca’s smile was bright, perfect, and proud. “I asked around,” she said with a wink.
Stephanie stared directly into Luca’s brown eyes and corrected her misstep by saying, “I make my own coffee every morning.” Hurt glimmered in the depths of Luca’s gaze and her cheeks colored with embarrassment. In any other circumstance, Stephanie would’ve found such a visible reaction attractive. “I’m still waiting to hear back from Mr. Witlin about your placement, so please, leave me alone until then.”
Luca placed the two cups of coffee on the desk Stephanie had assigned her and clasped her hands at her front. “Yes, ma’am.”
Stephanie hadn’t expected Luca to surrender so easily. She could nearly feel the argument on the tip of her tongue fizzle away. “Very good,” Stephanie said. They stood awkwardly for a moment, Luca’s eyes never meeting Stephanie’s again. “It’d be a shame for a cup of coffee to go to waste.” She reached around Luca for her coffee, catching a hint of her perfume. She smelled freshly showered and feminine. Stephanie’s grip tightened around her warm mug. “I’ll, um, I’ll let you know when I hear from Gerard—Mr. Witlin.” Stephanie retreated to her office quickly and shut the door.
Luca stood in a stupor. Her eyes went from Stephanie’s closed door to her own desk. She had brought a few small plants to brighten up the surface and a monogrammed blotter her brother, Chris, had sent once news had spread. Luca moving into her new office space had been overlooked by Stephanie, someone known for her attention to detail. She thought about the email she’d received from Mr. Witlin the previous afternoon. He had welcomed her to the company once again and assured her that working alongside Ms. Austin would offer her opportunities above and beyond her expectations.
“I think it’s safe to say he didn’t cc her on the email,” Luca said to herself, snorting. She sat behind her desk, flipping open her memo portfolio and booting up her computer. She wasn’t entirely sure where to start her day. She didn’t have a copy of Stephanie’s cases or schedule, so her last resort was the company database, which held minimal information for every accountant.
Luca read line after line in search of Stephanie Austin’s name anywhere. She made a list of other accountants within the firm who’d be able to feed her a little information. Luca felt better investigating Stephanie during her second day, as opposed to daydreaming about her like she had on her first. Her pen stilled. She wasn’t daydreaming about Stephanie Austin, she was considering her for a long period of time. Which she was certain anyone in her position would also do.
Stephanie’s appearance matched her tongue in sharpness. Not one of her corners was dull, and every word she spoke was pointed. And while Luca was intimidated by Stephanie, she was also envious of her. She hoped to be half the professional Stephanie was, and have a small fraction of the clientele. Stephanie Austin was a powerhouse, one Luca was determined to win over.
Luca’s thought process was shattered when she heard Stephanie’s phone ring through the door of her office. This wasn’t the first or tenth time it had rung that morning, and Luca felt the proverbial lightbulb go off above her head. Stephanie shouldn’t be answering her own phone, not while an able-bodied assistant was sitting with very little to do. Luca fished her phone from her purse and typed out a quick message to Andrew. He had dated someone in the IT department, and Luca was hoping they were still on good enough terms for a favor.
Twenty minutes and the promise of a bottle of Grey Goose later, Luca’s phone was ringing off the hook. Message after message came in for Stephanie, and Luca was making a note of every company, firm, and individual, as a reminder to herself to research them later. Whether Stephanie liked it or not, Luca was well on her way to figuring out how she could help her.
Luca’s progress halted when she heard a door slam shut.
Stephanie stormed down the hall, the heels of her stilettos clicked loudly against the hard floor. Luca looked around the office space from her desk, and not one set of eyes was looking up. Everyone was involved in their own business or was pretending to be, at least. The office on the far end dropped its blinds. Muted voices could be heard in the distance. If Luca had to guess, she’d say they were coming from Mr. Witlin’s office. She cringed.
The click-clack of heels was approaching again, but much more quickly this time. Luca swallowed hard and contemplated hiding beneath her desk. Her plan would’ve worked, too, if she had acted quickly enough. Stephanie’s fierce eyes trained on Luca the moment she rounded the corner.
Luca froze. Stephanie’s face was red, her normally full lips pinched together in a tight frown, and wordless death threats could be seen in the depths of her icy blue eyes. “You,” Stephanie said, her hard gaze trained on Luca. Luca jumped to her feet. “You will have the phones switched back before yo
u leave today or you may as well not come back. Do you understand?” Luca nodded. “And don’t you ever overstep like that again or I will make sure no one in New Jersey or the tristate area will hire you.” Luca blinked, but she was so nervous even her eyelids stuttered. Luca stood a fraction taller than Stephanie, but Stephanie’s deadly glare made her feel two feet tall. “It would be my pleasure to make sure you’re seen as unemployable, so don’t push me.” Stephanie turned and retreated back into her office.
Luca fell back into her chair with a long exhale. So much for wanting to assist her new boss.
Chapter Four
“Garner,” Stephanie yelled from her office door and watched in satisfaction as Luca nearly leapt from her skin. She leaned against the doorway and waited for her assistant to approach. Stephanie stood less than ten feet from Luca’s desk, but she still felt it imperative to her authority for Luca to rise and come see her.
Luca smoothed her palms along the obviously synthetic material of her ill-fitted brown skirt. “Good morning, Ms. Austin,” she said, still cheery despite their first week together being anything but pleasant. Stephanie thought maybe she could make today the Friday that breaks the camel’s back, so to speak. “What can I do for you?”
“I’m so glad you asked,” Stephanie said, her voice toeing the line between sarcastic and professional. “All of my finished case files from last quarter need to be archived—”
“Consider it done.”
“I’m not finished.” Stephanie paused and shot a hard stare at Luca, letting Luca know that being cut off was greater than a simple pet peeve to her. “I’m sure you’re familiar with our archives and how archaic the system is.” Stephanie waited a beat and was pleased when Luca only nodded. “Alphabetical order is good, but not good enough. I’d like you to overhaul the system. You will need to sort through the files and separate them by senior accountant on the case, then put them in chronological and alphabetical order.” Luca’s eyes grew so wide, Stephanie wanted to laugh. “That makes a lot more sense, doesn’t it?” Luca opened her mouth, but Stephanie didn’t care much for her reply, so she dismissed her instead. “Have at it, Garner.”
