You're the One

Rebecca

“There you are. I was starting to think someone snatched you up at the bar last night, but then I remembered that Trisha was there.” Parker looked up from the reception area as Rebecca rushed in, out of breath.

She stopped and let her briefcase land in a nearby plush crimson chair, their waiting room quite impressive for the small operation they ran. Appearances were everything, or so Parker always reminded her.

“I got home late last night and meant to shower and didn’t, so I promised myself I’d get up this morning—”

He cut her off. “But you didn’t, or you did, but late.”

She rolled her eyes, collected her bag and walked toward her office, the small hall that led from the front lobby to all of the offices decorated in St. Patrick’s Day paraphernalia. “Is our receptionist missing in action too?”

“She quit.”

“She what?” Rebecca slipped into her small office, depositing her stuff and walking back out to stand beside Parker. She put her hands on her hips, her black pencil skirt getting a little snug, which meant less beer and more treadmill.

“You heard me. She called in this morning and quit.”

“Why? She’s the third one in the last few months. Why on earth would someone not want to work here?” She threw her hands in the air to accentuate how ridiculous the situation was getting.

“It’s because we don’t pay enough and”—he lifted his finger in the air, stopping her from making a quick rebuttal—”… and because we don’t offer a gym membership or a housing allowance.”

“Housing allowance? We’re not a freaking church, and we don’t have a parsonage. Even if we did, you and I would be the ones living there. We’re the bosses!”

He laughed and shook his head. “Yes, we are, but calm down. It really isn’t that big of a deal. It’s unfortunate, but we’ll find another one. We always do.”

“We need to hire someone who has a more professional demeanor this time. The women we’ve had up here have been ridiculous, always filing their nails or bitching on the phone. This is a professional environment, and we need someone who can put that image forward. There are plenty of qualified women out there … or maybe we should even consider hiring a man.”

“You called for a man?” Jason walked down the hall, the young man smiling like a tomcat.

Rebecca stifled the need to roll her eyes; his perfectly starched navy suit fit him well and his brown hair was combed in a very businesslike manner. He really was the epitome of professionalism, but he was young, and his innocence sat on him like a bright neon sign.

She pointed to the chair just behind Parker and smiled at Jason. “I did call. You’ve been promoted.”

His eyebrows lifted as he moved a few feet from her, wise enough to leave some distance between them. “Oh yeah? To what?”

“To receptionist.” She smiled back and reached for Parker, grabbing his arm and tugging him toward her office before Jason could throw in a rebuttal.

“He can’t be the receptionist, Becca. He’s taking the last part of his CPA exam. He’s brilliant and answering the ph—”

She put her finger to his face, her expression filled with the angst that pulsed through her. “Shut it. I know he’s not the new receptionist. I was just getting him to fill in until you and I can find someone else. He’s going to be great for this firm, and you need to find him a girlfriend.”

“A girlfriend? He doesn’t have one?”

“I don’t think so, but you need to get busy locating one.”

“And why would I need to do that?”

“Help him settle down a little. He needs a reason to stick around the area, otherwise he’ll be off to bigger and better things as soon as he finishes that exam.”

She glared at her partner as he leaned back out of her office door, his eyes gazing out into the lobby. “He’s such a good looking kid. He’s got everything going for him. What woman wouldn’t want that?” He gave her a pointed stare.

She crossed her arms over her chest and growled softly. “Me. I don’t want that.”

He laughed and moved into the office, closing the door behind him and sitting down in the open chair in front of her desk. “Oh, that’s right. You’d rather not have anyone. What was I thinking?”

“I’m not in the mood.” Rebecca dropped her arms, walked to her chair and sat down, turning to poke at various buttons on her computer to bring it to life.

“You’re never in the mood. Here you are, trying to get me to hook up the twenty-two-year-old kid in our lobby with someone, and you’re headed into your forties and not even looking.”

“Forties?” She looked over at him and gasped at his words. She was only thirty-four. Surely you had to at least be thirty-seven to be on the downhill slide to forty, but there was no reasoning with him. He was right, of course, but she’d rather dunk her head in acid with her mouth opened than tell him that.

“You know what I mean.” He huffed and slouched in his chair. “Becca, you’re beautiful and successful. A million great guys would be knocking down your door if you’d just let them.”

She turned back to her computer, wanting to be done with the conversation that they seemed to have every other day. “I’m not stopping anyone from knocking down my door.”

“Yes you are.”

She looked over to glare at him with pseudo-intensity. “Name one guy I’m stopping.”

“Jason.” Parker laughed and covered his face with his hands, and Rebecca grabbed a rubber band and let it loose in his direction.

“Find him a girl. Now.”

“Why not give the guy a chance?”

“The boy.”

“He’s in his twenties, Becca. He’s not a boy, he’s a man.”

“He’s a boy. Get out. I have things to do.”

“And I don’t?” Parker stood, feigning hurt feelings.

She smiled over at him and nodded. “You sure do. You have a boy who needs help finding a girl.”

He nodded and opened the door. “You’re right, and I have just the girl for him.”

She stopped what she was doing, a little surprised by his sudden moment of clarity. “You do? Who?”

He laughed and moved into the hallway. “You.”