"Thanks for coming. I really didn't want to talk to Colleen alone."
Wes sat in front of the desk. "You're hoping if I'm here she won't blow up at you?"
"Something like that and I wanted a witness, too. I'm hoping that I can do a better job of this then I did talking with Jenny the other night."
"What happened?"
"I had her over for dinner and confessed to her that I slept with Colleen, but that it was over between us and I wouldn't go out with her again."
"Derek, Derek, rookie mistake. She didn't take it so well, did she?"
"I thought she did at first. But, later when we were dancing by the fireplace, I asked her to spend the night with me." He paused.
"And?"
"She told me she had to process everything I had told her and then she left."
"Ouch."
"And, she refuses to talk to me now."
Derek's phone rang before Wes could respond. He pushed the intercom button. "Yes."
"Colleen is here," Ellen said.
"Thank you. I'll be out to get her in a minute." He looked at Wes. "How do I handle this?"
"Haven't you ever broken up with a woman before?"
"Not since high school."
Wes laughed. "As your legal advisor, don't prolong it."
"You're loving this, aren't you?"
"Billable minutes, Derek. Billable minutes."
Derek walked to the door and opened it. "Colleen, come in."
She entered the room. "Hi, Wes. It's nice to see you."
"Colleen."
"Please, sit down," Derek said.
She took a seat in front of his desk and Wes moved to the couch at the side of the room.
Derek leaned back against the front of his desk. "Colleen, I need to be honest with you about a few things. You should know that I didn't really give you that tennis bracelet for Christmas."
"Of course, you did. Ellen told me she was just delivering it for you."
"Ellen bought it and told you it was from me. She didn't mean any harm. She thought I'd forgotten, but you received the same gift as all of the department managers."
"I don't understand, Derek."
"I'm afraid that you've read more into our relationship than there has been between us."
"Suppose you explain it to me." She crossed her arms in front of her.
"We can't see each other anymore. It's not a good idea for a boss to date an employee."
"You didn't think that way when you slept with me."
"That was a mistake. I drank too much that night. I apologize for that."
"I see. Did your Efficiency Consultant tell you to dump me?"
"No, he doesn't know anything about us." He walked behind his desk and sat down.
"Is the fact that I'm a subordinate the only reason you're ending our relationship?"
He looked at Wes, who gave him no help. "No. It's just that I'm not interested. I never really was, but it seemed that both Ellen and Cynthia thought we should be together and kept arranging it."
"I suppose your little gold-digging cook has something to do with this, too."
"Not directly, but I'd be lying if I said she wasn't involved. I have very strong feelings for Jenny and she's not a gold-digger."
Colleen stood. "Does she know we spent the night together after the art show?"
"Yes. I told her about it."
"I bet she wasn't happy about that, was she?"
Derek didn't like the direction of this conversation. He stood. "Colleen, I no longer want a personal or romantic relationship with you. As far as I'm concerned, our professional relationship is fine. I hope you realize that I find your work with this company to be an asset and hope you will continue with us."
"Thank you, Derek. I enjoy working here very much." She turned and left the office.
Derek looked over at Wes. "That went better than I thought it would."
Wes got up and moved to he chair in front of the desk. "No, it didn't. She's pissed and you're screwed."
"What are you talking about? No yelling, no screaming, she stayed calm, other than the comment about Jenny being gold-digger, I'd call our discussion a win."
"This isn't over. I bet she'll be on the phone with Cynthia as soon as she gets to her office."
"What else do I do then?"
"I don't think there's much you can do. Try not to be alone with her. You never know what she'll claim. I'd also talk to Jenny. I doubt Colleen will contact her, but you never know."
"I appreciate you being here and helping me with this. You're a good friend, Wes."
Wes stood to leave. "I feel a little responsible with Cynthia being somewhat involved. Call me anytime."
"You know I will. Thanks."
Wes left.
* * * *
Jenny walked out of her last class for the day and headed down the hallway to go outside and then the long drive home.
"Jenny, wait!" Stefano jogged down the hall to catch up.
"What's up?"
"I just wanted to check to see if you're okay."
"Sure, I'm okay. Why would you ask?"
"You didn't seem like you usual bubbly self in class today."
"You know me pretty well. Something is bothering me."
"Let's go down to the coffee shop and talk." He put his arm around her shoulders and they made their way downstairs. She sat at a table while Stefano got their coffee.
"Here you go." He put her coffee in front of her and sat down. "Now, tell me what's wrong."
"It's Derek." She went on to explain to him what had happened at Derek's house.
"He was jealous of me?" Stefano laughed out loud.
"He didn't know you were gay and apparently neither did anyone else that night."
He smiled. "You know, if you don't want him, I wouldn't mind..."
"Seriously?" She laughed with him and shook her head. "He's not really your type."
"You like this guy, right?" he questioned.
"You know I do, but he slept with her and admitted that he had feelings for me when he did it. I don't understand why he would do that."
"From what you said, he thought you were probably sleeping with me and he got drunk because of it. It sounds like he regrets his actions of that night."
"I'm sure he does, but he slept with her. I have trust issues."
"Then, you have to tell him that. Nothing will ever get resolved if you two don't talk this out and figure out how to trust each other."
"You should have majored in psychology."
"I've been told that before."
"It's going to be a very difficult conversation to have with him."
"It will, but if you really care for him, it's a necessary one," Stefano insisted.
* * * *
That evening, Jenny sat on her couch eating a microwave pizza for her supper. She thought how funny it was that she's studying to be a gourmet chef, but eats frozen pizzas. Her cell phone halted that thought and the caller ID showed it was Derek.
"Hello."
"Hi. I hope I'm not interrupting anything," he uttered.
"Not at all. I just finished eating."
"Something good, I hope."
"Just some pizza."
"I've missed you," he declared.
"It's only been a few days since I was at your house for dinner."
"But, it's been very long days."
She laughed.
"Jenny, I have something important to talk to you about."
She wasn't ready to have the talk about their relationship yet, especially over the phone.
"I broke everything off with Colleen today," he quickly declared. "I explained that I had no feelings for her and I never did."
She hadn't expected him to say that. "How did she react?"
"She didn't say much and I thought it went well, but Wes didn't agree."
"Wes was there when you broke up with her?" She tried to hold her laughter in so Derek wouldn't hear her.
"I wanted a witnes
s. Anyway, Wes didn't think it went as well as I did and he thought I should warn you."
Jenny sat up. "Warn me about what?"
"During our discussion, she accused you of causing this. I told her you had nothing to do with it, except for the fact that I did have feelings for you."
Jenny's whole body shivered. "You think she might do something to me?"
"No, no, nothing like that. However, she might confront you, if you happen to run into her. It's a small town and she knows where you work."
"I'll do my best to avoid her, but if I can't, I can take care of myself."
"I bet you can," he replied.
She just knew he was smiling.
"It's still early and you just finished dinner, would you like to meet for some coffee and dessert?" he asked.
She desperately wanted to. She wanted to look into his dark eyes and taste those sweet lips again, but not yet. Not this soon. "I'm not ready to see you yet, Derek. I'm sorry." She heard him let out a deep breath.
"What else do I have to do? I broke all personal ties with Colleen. Jenny, I..." He stopped.
"You what?"
The phone line became silent.
"I wanted to warn you about Colleen. Have a good evening." He hung up.
* * * *
By the end of the week, Pruitt had interviewed almost all of the department managers and now sat across the desk from Derek.
"Have you come up with anything yet?" Derek asked.
"I'll email my first report to you later today. So far, I haven't found any leaks, but my office is still running the background and credit checks on everyone. That will take some time."
"I see."
"This is a little awkward, but I came here today to do your interview," Pruitt said.
"Me? Why? You think I'm trying to ruin my own company? That's absurd."
"I understand and I certainly don't think you would do anything to hurt your company, but it's been known to happen. There also could be someone connected to you, or something you do that could inadvertently leak out information. It’s things like that I look for."
"Very well. What do you need to know?"
Pruitt opened up a leather-bound notebook holder and began. "Let's start with friends. Who are your closest friends?"
"Wes Forbes, who set all of this up, has been my best friend since high school. During the winter months, we get together a couple times a week to play racquetball and in the summer, we play golf."
"At the local clubs?"
"Yes."
"Any other activities you do on a regular basis?"
Derek thought for a few seconds. "I sometimes work out, but it's usually at the employee's fitness center. Other than dinner out, nothing else."
"You eat out often?"
"I did have a cook, but she quit right before Thanksgiving because of a family emergency. After that, I ate most of my meals out, until recently."
"Recently? What happened recently?"
"I taught myself how to cook, so I eat more often at home now."
Pruitt wrote down some notes. "What about companions?"
"Companions?"
"Yes, girlfriends, dinner dates, bed partners. You're single. You must date."
"I do and it's kind of complicated."
"How so?"
Derek felt uncomfortable talking to a stranger about his love life. "Up until last Monday, I was sort of seeing two women."
Pruitt smiled. "What happened Monday?"
Derek took a deep breath and let it out. "I was going out occasionally with Colleen Michaels."
"The Distribution Manager?"
"Yes."
"You were dating an employee? Do you know how dangerous that is?"
"I was and I am very aware of that now. On Monday, I ended the relationship with her."
"I see." He made more notes. "Why did you end it?"
"Because of the other woman I was seeing."
"Tell me about her."
"I don't see how she could be involved."
"What's her name?"
"Jenny Marshall. She works at one of the bakeries in town and goes to culinary school in Cincinnati."
"Were you sleeping with either woman?"
Derek lowered his head. "I slept with Colleen once." He looked back up at Pruitt, "and have regretted it ever since."
"Remember what I said in Wes' office about pillow talk?"
"That didn't happen. Besides, she knows almost as much about the company as I do."
Pruitt made more notes. "Has Miss Marshall ever had the opportunity to access any company information here at your office or at your home?"
He thought for a moment and then remembered. "I gave her a key to my home so she could get in to start cooking for a dinner party I had at Thanksgiving."
"How long was she alone in your house?"
"I'm not sure. When I got there, she had most of the food cooked."
"This was at Thanksgiving with turkey and ham?"
"Yes."
Pruitt started on a second page of notes. "It takes hours to cook a turkey."
"She's not involved in this," Derek emphasized again.
"I can see you have feelings for this woman, which is why your vision could be clouded. Let me check out her background and see what I find."
"No."
"It would just be a routine check, along with her credit report."
"I said no. I won't have you digging into her background like that, and for nothing. She's not that type of person."
"Derek, it's part of the investigation."
"Jenny is off limits and that's final."
"Very well. It's your call." Pruitt closed his notebook and stood. "You'll have my first report by the end of the day." He left.
Derek combed his fingers through his hair. She can't be involved. She just can't." Pruitt had put this insane idea in his head and now he couldn't get it out.
In the two weeks that followed, Derek and Jenny only talked on the phone and he spent a small fortune having flowers delivered to her almost every day. She still refused to go out with him and when he would stop by her house, she never answered the door.
Friday morning, Derek was working on the final draft of a contract bid with a deadline of the end of that day. His concentration was broken when his private line started ringing.
"Hello."
"Derek, it's Jenny. I'm sorry to call your personal line, but your cell phone goes straight to voicemail."
"I turned my cell phone off while I was working on something, but you can call this number any time."
"Thanks. I'm calling about your dinner party for Valentine's Day. You haven't mentioned it for a while and I was wondering if you still want me to cook for it?"
"Yes, of course I do. You will, won't you?" It may be his only chance to see her.
"I know you've been interviewing for a new cook and wanted to make sure she wouldn't be cooking for it."
"I haven't found anyone I like yet and I'm not in any rush."
"Okay. I'll need to get your approval on a menu so I can order the food."
"Why don't you bring it to my house tonight."
"How about I email it to you?" she counter-offered.
Disappointed. "Fine. You'll need my credit card to buy the food. I could bring it to you."
"Not necessary. The market in town is letting me run an account since I've been doing so much business with them."
Another attempt to see her shot down. "That's wonderful, but you'll need a key to get in my house to cook that day. I may not be there when you need to start." Then, he remembered what Pruitt said about her being in the house last time, but shook that thought out of his head.
"I suppose I will need the key. Why don't you drop it off at the bakery when you get a chance?"
He had an idea. "Are you working today?
"I am this morning."
And, you probably have classes to get to afterward?"
"Not today. My classes were cancelled this afternoon."
/>
This was good news. "How about I take you out for lunch? No discussing our relationship. It would just be two friends having lunch together. We could go over the menu too."
She paused. "I guess that would be okay, but only as friends."
"I promise." Thrilled, he could now put his idea into motion. "When do you get off work?"
"At noon."
"I'll pick you up at the bakery."
"I'll see you then."
"I'm looking forward to it." He hung up the phone. Turning back to his computer, he typed a few more things on the document and after saving it, attached it to an email and hit send. He logged off, grabbed his coat and rushed out of his office. "Ellen, I just emailed you the final edits on that contract proposal. Could you make the changes and submit it for me? It has to be in by four o'clock today."
"I'll get right to it. Where are you going?"
"I'm meeting someone for lunch and won't be back today."
“It's a little early to be leaving for lunch, isn't it?"
"I have some things to do first."
"I saw your personal line lit up. I suppose your lunch meeting is with that girl.
"If you mean Jenny, yes."
"Derek, I just don't understand why you chose her over Colleen."
"You never gave Jenny a chance. You never even tried to get to know her. You made your mind up that I should have been with Colleen." He shook his head. "I should have put a stop to it right from the start, but I was too nice about it. No more. You either learn to like Jenny, or risk a family problem." Derek turned and stormed out the door, not waiting for her reply.
It took a couple hours to get the arrangements made for their lunch, but he believed everything was finally ready.
He walked into the bakery to the ding-a-ling of the door. Becky popped up from behind a display case where she was placing a chocolate cake.
"Good afternoon, Mrs. Temple," he greeted.
"Good afternoon to you too, and it's Becky. Jenny will be right out. She's washing the flour off of her hands."
"Thank you, Becky and please call me Derek. What kind of cake is that?" He pointed to the one she had put into the case.
"It's a Bavarian Crème Torte layered inside with raspberry filling and Bavarian crème mousse."
Oh my, that sounds and looks delicious. I don't know how you and Jenny stay so skinny while working around all these sweets."
A Kitchen Affair Page 16
