Absolute Zero (6 page)

Impossible.

He closed out of the screen and his search engine altogether, deciding to spend his time a bit more productively than cyber stalking his newest employee.

The phone on his desk chirped, breaking into his thoughts. It was a most welcome distraction. “Hello?” he spoke after pressing the speaker button.

“What are you doing there?” The disembodied voice of his Director of Operations filled the room.

“Excuse me? It’s my company, the last time I checked. I’ll go anywhere I damn well please, eh? The question is; where the hell are
you,
Rand?” Ian asked with a tinge of anger evident in his voice.

“Aspen. But don’t tell Shay. I told her I was in Iowa,” Rand responded quickly.

“Why are you in Aspen?” Ian glared at the phone.

“CPSA Symposium. Why are you in the States?” he asked.

“Why shouldn’t I tell your wife where you really are?” Ian asked instead.

A deep breath and a whoosh were clearly audible in the office.

“Because if she knew I was in
Aspen
, she would want to come, bring the kids; turn it into some kind of vacation. I don’t have time to be her tour guide. It’s morning to night conferences and I just want to do
this
, not
that
,” Rand stated honestly.

“And who’s in charge while you’re gone?” Ian asked.

“Harry Kerns,” he answered immediately.

“Harry Kerns? Mr. Invisible? I’ve been here half a day and I have as of yet to run into Mr. Kerns, as usual…” he added.

“That’s because you terrify him. He avoids you like the plague, Ian.” Rand answered.

That was interesting.
Ms. Bennett had alluded to the same thing earlier.

“Where’s your Lab Manager? What’s his name? Flemming? Shouldn’t he be in charge while you’re out?” Ian asked after a brief moment.

“Ah, I had to fire him,” Rand answered after a brief hesitation.

“Why?”

“Well…he kind of had a, ah…” Rand stammered.

“What?” Ian asked testily.

“Nervous breakdown. He lost it. I had to get rid of him. I hired a new Manager. He’s with me right now,” he stated.

“So you left Harry in charge,” Ian responded blandly.

“Yes. He’s fine, Ian.”

“Where the hell is he? Never mind. I’ll check the supply closets…”

“Ian!”

“What? You don’t remember that? Who hides in a supply closet?” he asked, his voice beginning to lighten.

“You make him extremely nervous. You ask too many questions,” Rand returned hotly.

“Yes, so when you see me walking down the hall, you duck into a supply closet to hide? Who does that?” he asked.

An email heralded its arrival with a ping. The subject line was ‘Request for Anne Bennett’. His eyes flitted toward it before concentrating on the phone again. He could think about her
after
the call.

“By the way, you just hired a new Scientist. Anne Bennett? Ring a bell?” he asked.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Rand answered.

“Really? Do you have any idea what’s going on in the facility you manage? Ask your new Lab Manager. Maybe he knows,” Ian stated, his tone exhibiting his irritation.

“Hold on.”

He waited for a moment, his fingers drumming on his desk impatiently before the voice returned again.

“Ah, well…he has no idea. Maybe Ron hired her before I fired him? I’m not sure,” he responded, suddenly timid.

“Rand, you need to get your shit together. When are you coming back?” Ian stated in a grave tone.

“Friday,” he replied.

“It’s Monday!” Ian barked, before tamping his anger down, “You’re going to be out an entire
week
?”

“Yes. I’m presenting on Thursday night, so I have to stay.”

“You mentioned none of this during last week’s Ops call. What else are you hiding?” he stated before rolling his eyes to the ceiling. “Never mind. Don’t even answer that. It’s settled. I
was
going to go back on Wednesday, but I’ll stay until Sunday. As soon as you get back in town, we’re going to have a talk,” Ian stated in the calmest voice possible.

“You can go back to Scotland. Harry’s got it under control.”

He did
not
just say that.
Does he know how stupid that sounds?
Ian shook his head in bewilderment.

“Ack!” he scoffed disgustedly. “Do you hear yourself? Harry? I’m going to go find Harry right now…”

“Please don’t do that,” Rand’s voice was irritatingly smooth.

“I have to go…” Ian’s finger lifted and was poised on the speaker button to cut off the call.

“Wait! Wait! Could you be…nice, please? I don’t want to have to do damage control when I get back,” Rand’s voice pleaded. Ian stared at the phone, his features scrunched up in irritation.

“Ian?” Rand asked after a few beats of silence.

He stabbed the button and cut off the call.

His attention immediately drifted over to the email, clicking on it and reading it. Apparently Ms. Bennett was an insomniac with a penchant for early morning workouts, much like himself. The HR representative was asking if he would mind granting her 24-hour keycard access to the gym seeing as he usually had it to himself in the early morning hours.

Nice of them to remember.

She could definitely have access. Absolutely.

He typed a simple ‘yes’ in response.

What is WRONG with me?

I need this job. I need to shut up. Pissing off the owner of the company is not a good idea,
she thought for the millionth time that day.

She stared at her computer monitor later that evening, almost expecting an email to come through stating that she had been sacked.

It never came.

Looking at the time stamp on the screen, she realized that the office was vacant. The last few inhabitants had left for the evening. Some had even mentioned something about Happy Hour, but she politely waved them off, pretending to be completely absorbed in her computer.

She should leave; she certainly wasn’t doing anything productive anyway. Apparently her new boss wasn’t even in the facility and wouldn’t be back for a week, which left her completely confused as to what she was supposed to work on. HR had told her to take the rest of the day to familiarize herself with the computer and the rest of the Handbook. Earlier, an IT specialist had spent an hour going through the various software programs, all of which she was more than familiar with using.

Maybe her few belongings had arrived at her temporary residence, although the movers hadn’t called. She checked her phone periodically throughout the day and nothing came through.

I should leave.

She pulled her purse from the desk drawer and settled it on the surface before rifling through it and grabbing the paper with directions to the house.

*****

Perfect.

At least
one
thing went well today.  The two-story home had to be surrounded by at least a few acres, nestled back behind a copse of trees that shielded it from the road, isolating it from neighboring properties. The design was an extended Cape Cod, white with black shudders, well landscaped.

Perfect.

She parked the car in the driveway and eagerly fished the keys from the side pocket of her purse before grabbing the suitcase from the small backseat of her car. She had driven directly from the hotel she stayed in the night before to the company, not bothering to even view her temporary residence this morning.

Wandering up the bricked walkway, she noticed small bunches of spring flowers attempting to shoot their way up and out of the ground, although there was still a distinct chill in the air. Rural Pennsylvania was definitely a different climate than Southern California, but at least the promise of warmer weather was imminent.

She settled the suitcase near her feet, tried the first of three keys and finally found success with the third attempt. Pushing open the door, she walked in without the suitcase and turned to gaze at her surroundings. The home was fully furnished in a neutral color scheme with splashes of bolder colors coming from the paintings on the walls.

Very homey - very nice actually.
This is definitely the work of an interior designer
, she thought as she wandered further into the living room. Stairs to the second floor were situated to the left of the room; a large brick fireplace took residence on the wall to the right. A huge opening lead to a kitchen beyond and French doors revealed a back porch overlooking more trees in the background.

She walked through the house, taking in the huge kitchen – much larger and better appointed than her small galley kitchen in the San Diego apartment. Her heels clicked on the highly polished hardwood floors before she kicked them off in the living room and practically bounded up the stairs to the second floor. Three bedrooms, one with its own large bathroom and two that shared a bathroom between them were situated along a hallway. She wandered into what she assumed was the Master bedroom, closing the door behind her and checking for a lock. She pressed the small button in the knob, hearing the tell-tale click and attempted to turn the knob to no avail. A small relieved sigh escaped her lips before she checked the knob one more time for good measure without even thinking why. Satisfied, she pressed the small button again and stepped out of the room. The hallway was open to the great room below giving the second floor a loft effect. The place was absolutely charming.

She immediately descended the stairs, walking toward the still open front door and grabbed her bag. Closing the door behind her, she leaned against it, her eyes scanning the room once again before a contented smile lit her features.

*****

According to
Yelp
, Connelly’s was the best bet for a decent meal in the small town of Pernell. The menu was varied but definitely had a gourmet flare to it. Normally, she would be more than happy to cook for herself, especially in a sumptuous kitchen such as this. She would definitely grocery shop tomorrow.

Tonight, she would drive to the restaurant and pick up her meal to take back to the house. Apparently in Pernell, they didn’t offer amenities such as
Grubhub
or
Food to You;
it was just too far outside of Philadelphia for delivery service.

She shut the laptop and grabbed her keys from the kitchen island after shrugging on the jacket she wore earlier. It was a gorgeous jacket, Marc Jacobs, dark navy with gleaming buttons that ran from the high lapel down the front of the fitted fabric. She had pulled on jeans and flats instead, completely transforming the look. She stopped at the mirror situated to the left of the front door to check her appearance. So maybe she did look a little rigid in the jacket… He had made fun of her for that too.
Don’t think about him. He’s clearly an asshole.
Her face frowned immediately.

“You have to be nice. This house is great, you are swimming in debt. Don’t screw this up.” She told her reflection seriously. She needed this job, or rather, she desperately needed this income.

She combed her fingers through the side swept tresses near her forehead before they fell neatly to the side, partially hiding one of her eyes. She gave the tip of her pert nose a small tap with her forefinger as a brilliant smile erupted on her face.
That’s better
.

*****

“
What
are you doing here?” the female voice gasped as his head turned to regard her.

“Hi, Shay,” Ian stated with a smile.

“Don’t ‘Hi Shay’ me. What the hell is going on? You haven’t been here for like, I don’t know, what? A year? You don’t even tell me you’re coming to town? What the hell, Ian?” She gave him a slight punch to his shoulder and cocked her head to the side. Luckily Connelly’s was busy tonight; her voice was drowned out by a multitude of noises from the other patrons and the wait staff bustling about.

“I…well, I was only going to pop in, stay for a couple of days…”

“So? You can’t call? You know, we’re the only sane people in this town and you’re
never
here. I can’t believe you.” She fixed her dark eyes on him before narrowing them.

“So, what brings you out tonight? Where’re the kids?” Ian asked.

“Way to change the subject,” she replied dully, but continued, “They’re with my Mom. I take Zumba on Monday nights. We all come out after class to drink wine and stuff ourselves rotten. I know it doesn’t make sense. Burn calories just to put ‘em back but, whatever. It’s a fun group of ladies. Hey! Why don’t you join us?” Her smile lit up her face, the mocha brown skin radiant under the flattering light from the pendant fixtures above the bar.

His eyes followed the direction of her gaze, settling on a table of six women, some black, some white, all different shapes and sizes and varying degrees of attractiveness. Each one had a glass of either red or white wine in front of them. A multitude of platters sat in the middle of the long table, most of them had only a few pieces of food left on them.

“Are you kidding?” he muttered.

“No! Come on. There are two recently divorced ladies that would
love
to meet you,” she confided in a low voice.

“No.” His voice held a certain tinge of finality to it.

“Oh come on, Ian. It’s been two years! You need to get back on the horse,” she stated as his eyes snapped to hers.

Silence reigned for a few moments before her warm smile was replaced by a grim set to her lips.

“I’m sorry. I think that was the wine talking,” she stated gently.

“It’s all right. I know you’re right. I could, it’s just…I’d rather work. And…I haven’t really been looking. I’m fine,” he replied just as gently.

“Right,” she replied before smiling once again. “So, does my husband know you’re in town?” Shay asked as she rested her elbow on the bar next to him.

“He does now.”

“He’s at a conference this week, in
Iowa
,” she enunciated with a wide eyed expression on her face.

“So I hear.”

“He’s full of shit,” she stated in a flat tone.

“Pardon?” Ian’s eyes grew wide.

“He’s in Aspen. He thinks he’s
sooo
clever. Like I can’t figure out where a CPSA conference is. It’s not like I don’t have access to the Internet,” she scoffed. “He’s the World’s worst liar, I swear. I only suggest he take the kids and I on his little trips just to make him uncomfortable. It’s so funny watching him come up with new and inventive ways to let me down easy. Iowa? For real? That man cracks me up.”

“So you know…?”

“Yeah, I know! That’s Ok, when he gets back I’ll ask him a shit ton of questions about Iowa and watch him squirm,” she stated with a devilish gleam in her dark eyes.

“You’re evil.”

“Yes. I. Am. Just don’t tell him you know. You’ll ruin my fun,” she stated. “Speaking of fun, why don’t you come and sit with us? We need to catch up. I swear, I won’t play matchmaker, promise.” She straightened from her leaning position holding her hand up as if she were swearing an oath.

“Nah.” His eyes wandered to the front of the restaurant, the front door clearly visible. He could escape, except his food hadn’t arrived yet.
Maybe he could get it to go?

He was about to turn his gaze back to Shay when the strangest thing happened.

Anne Bennett walked in the front door.

He was just thinking about her before Shay had interrupted his musings. Now, here she was, in the restaurant and headed toward the bar on the opposite side of the room. She was alone, dressed in jeans and that ridiculously stiff military-looking jacket from earlier in the day. Her eyes were settled straight ahead. She was clearly on a mission.

“Who’s that?” Shay’s voice snapped him from his temporary trance.

“What?”

“That woman.”

“What?” Ian asked again.

“Yo, Earth to Ian.” She was snapping her fingers in his face.

“Ah, new hire, just moved here. She’s a scientist,” he stated before grasping her snapping fingers and giving them a light squeeze before letting go.

“She’s
adorable
.” Shay gave a closer look to the petite woman before turning her attention back to Ian.

“She’s a bit of a baw juggler.” He responded as he watched her lean on the bar.  She was speaking to the bartender.

“I have no idea what that’s supposed to mean. Could you translate that into English please?” Shay’s voice interrupted his one sided stare down.

“She’s mean. She’s wee, but she’s just plain mean. She’s like a wet cat,” he responded absently. The bartender was grabbing a white plastic bag from under the bar and handing it over to her.

“She doesn’t
look
mean. She’s really cute,” Shay stated. “I should go introduce myself. Where’s she from? Did she move here by herself?”

“San Diego and I have no idea. If you
do
introduce yourself, whatever you do, don’t bring up the Zoo. It’s a touchy subject,” he stated with slightly widened eyes.

“What are you
talking
about?”

“Nothing. Never mind. I just wouldn’t do it,” Ian said in a grave tone.

“She’s a long way from home. It might be nice to meet people. You know, I
am
sort of the unofficially official social coordinator in this town,” Shay responded as she stepped around Ian but stepped back quickly as a waiter walked by with a food covered tray.

Anne was already walking toward the door. Her eyes were downcast, head angled toward the floor, trying to be invisible, if he could take a guess. She sidestepped a few patrons before reaching for the door handle. A man standing next to the door smiled appreciatively down toward her, he was saying something.

Whatever it was, she certainly didn’t respond. She breezed through the door causing a look of confusion to cross his features. He probably thought she didn’t hear him.

She heard you, buddy.

“Ian, what a surprise! Welcome back!” A boisterous voice caused his attention to snap from the front door to the portly man standing behind the bar. He was wearing a chef’s jacket and his face had an almost ruddy appearance.

“Hey Doug, business is good, eh?” Ian gave a quick sweep around the bar and restaurant. Not one seat was empty.

“Yeah.” He practically beamed as he responded. “How long will you be here? I haven’t seen you in like…”