The Candidate (13 page)

He’d be a good lover, with that intensity. Shocked by the thought, she took another mouthful and let the wine rest on her tongue. An image flashed in her mind, unbidden. Mac above her, moving inside of her slowly, deliberately, watching her like that. She felt that twinge again, but it was more of a quake, and much, much deeper down. She wanted to touch him, she realised. Just feel his skin — that was all.

Setting down her glass, she excused herself and headed for the bathroom. She ran the tap until the water was icy cold then scooped handfuls over her face until her heartbeat slowed.

It was all this sun. And the wine. And she was so damn relaxed. That combination always opened the door to thoughts of sex. That’s all it was, she assured herself, returning to their table where Mac looked at her with concern.

‘You okay?’

‘Fine, just famished.’ She met his eyes to prove to herself that she could. ‘So, what’s next on the to-do list for the bach? Downstairs bathroom?’

Realising the conversation had shifted dramatically, Mac nodded. ‘Spot on.’ He told her what he had in mind.

Ginny woke groggy and heavy-headed after a restless night. Groaning, wishing for the previous day’s sublime sense of wellness, she got up and pulled on her shorts.

Mac was nowhere to be found, although she avoided his room, not keen to see that bed, that big space with everything in duplicate. There was no note, but his car was gone. Relieved, she took a quick shower, ate a piece of toast and headed to the beach.

He found her tucked under a pohutukawa bough, nose deep in a book.

‘Hi.’ He handed her a coffee. ‘I thought you’d done a runner.’

‘I … uh … wanted to stay out of your hair and let you finish up.’

Mac couldn’t quite make out the look on her face. ‘No worries. Well, you know where I’ll be.’

‘Sure.’ She watched him walk off and puffed out a breath. As soon as she got back to Auckland, she’d call her mate Megan. She’d been bugging Ginny for weeks to go on a blind date with one of her colleagues, and Ginny had decided just this minute that it was a brilliant idea. What she needed was a hot date and, if it played out that way, a damn good shag.

They left soon after lunch. Mac couldn’t work out where Ginny’s head was at but it was no longer in Gibson’s Bay. Confused and worried that he’d done something, but knowing he’d never work out what, he figured the best thing was simply to get her home.

He double-parked close to her building, and insisted on making sure that Miles wasn’t skulking inside.

Pausing on his way out, he tried to catch her eye.

‘Thanks, Ginn, I had a great weekend.’

‘So did I. Thanks so much for everything. You saved my bacon.’ She reached up and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. ‘Have a good week.’

‘Good luck tomorrow.’ He was stumped over what else to say.

‘Yep. Thanks.’

Ginny waited until she heard the street door close behind him then pulled out her phone and called Megan.

Chapter 15

Ginny started her week with a long, fast run along Tamaki Drive. She pushed herself, and knew she’d caned her personal best even before she looked at her watch. She could tell by the way her chest was heaving and her legs had gone to jelly. But it was a damn good way to start the day.

Letting Steve the IT guy into the building at eight on the dot, she hustled him to her office and paced as he worked. Eventually, Steve turned to her and smiled.

‘Thank God,’ she breathed. ‘What was it?’

‘Your server’s a bit overloaded, Ginny. Probably time to look at upgrading.’

She groaned. ‘Do I have to do it now?’

‘The sooner the better,’ he said cheerily as he headed for the door. ‘Call me.’

Pushing it to the back of her mind, she opened up her far feistier computer and got to work.

When Ange arrived an hour later, Ginny gave her rapid instructions and dashed out the door, not wanting to be late for her meeting with Robert and Jackson.

In Parnell, she headed up their stairs and smiled as Camilla looked up.

‘Miss Hayes. Ginny.’ Camilla looked surprised. ‘What are you doing here?’

‘My meeting. With Robert and Jackson. At ten?’

‘But you cancelled it.’

‘No, I didn’t.’

‘Well, someone did. First thing this morning. A woman called from Shine Consulting at eight fifteen and said you couldn’t make it.’

Ginny paled. ‘I’m very sorry, Camilla, but I certainly didn’t cancel the meeting, and my assistant had no reason to either.’ She hesitated, not liking the look on Camilla’s face. ‘Is Robert available?’

‘No. I’ve scheduled another meeting for him.’

‘Is he free later on?’

Camilla turned to her computer. ‘Not until this afternoon. I could slot you in for thirty minutes at four-thirty.’

‘Done.’ Ginny smiled brightly. ‘Please pass on my apologies for the mix-up.’

Camilla didn’t smile back and, feeling foolish, Ginny traipsed back down the stairs. Who on earth would do such a thing? She stopped mid-stride and swore out loud.

‘Miles, you little prick.’ She gritted her teeth. It was just like him — vindictive and sneaky. There was no way she could prove it, even accuse him of it, but she’d bet her couch that he was behind this little stunt. And he’d achieved his goal: she looked incompetent to a client who already doubted her. It was unforgiveable.

Storming into the office, she ignored Ange’s look of surprise and slammed her door. If he wanted a fight, then let him bloody well bring it on. She was older now, and tougher, and smarter too — there was no way he was going to push her around again. Game on, she muttered, opening the uni proposal, determined to tighten it, tweak it and sharpen it further still.

By the time she arrived in Parnell that afternoon she was back on track. Smiling at Camilla, she waited to be shown in to see Robert.

She gave his hand a firm, brisk shake. ‘I haven’t got a clue what happened this morning. It appears that someone thought it would be amusing to muck both of us around.’

Running through the search list, she showed him a cross-section of candidates who had responded to the advertising and search work. Talking through her top four, Ginny left Daniel until last. She would have felt a lot more confident if she had heard from him by now, but nevertheless gave Robert a glowing run-down of his experience.

Robert picked up the CVs and flicked through them.

‘Well, okay, Ginny. Good work.’ He looked across at her. ‘Not as many applicants as we’d hoped for, but …’ He shrugged, evaluating her. ‘That’s what you’ve been retained for — to look at the market and tell us what’s out there. And if this is what’s out there, then let’s keep moving.’

She breathed out a sigh of relief.

‘What do we do from here?’ he asked.

‘I’ll set up interviews with the top four as soon as possible.’

‘Okay.’ He rose, and she followed suit. ‘Sounds good, Ginny. I look forward to the shortlist.’

Mac told himself to give it a couple of days; if he laid off a bit, whatever had flown up between them at the bach would sort itself out. But by Tuesday he was antsy. Wanting a good-enough reason to call, and aware that he’d made all of the contact since he’d got back, he picked up the phone and dialled.

Ginny sounded breathless, a bit rushed.

‘Hiya — it’s me, Mac.’

There was a pause before she spoke. ‘Hi. Why are you calling my mobile? You always call the landline.’

‘Yeah, well. I thought that even a workaholic like you would have shut up shop by seven.’ When she didn’t reply, he went on. ‘It’s a pretty miserable night — fancy a movie?’

This time, the pause was longer. ‘Um — thanks, but I can’t. Not tonight. I’ve um … got a date.’

A date? Mac considered himself relatively clued up about women. He wasn’t being big-headed; nor was he foolish enough to assume he would ever work them out — hell, part of the attraction was the mystery — but he was pretty sure there had been something there with Ginny. A few little sparks, a couple of moments — enough to get him thinking he wasn’t completely off track. But a date? What the fuck?

‘Right.’ It was all he could manage.

‘I’d better go, Mac. I’m running late.’

‘Sure. Have fun.’

Mac threw his phone onto his bed and changed quickly before heading upstairs, two at a time. He banged into the lounge where his dad was flicking through the paper as Jen made dinner.

‘I’m going for a run.’

‘It’s absolutely hosing down.’ Jen looked up and saw the expression on his face. ‘What happened?’

Ignoring her, he started down the hallway.

Andrew made to go after him. ‘Mac. Watch that knee, son. Don’t push it.’

‘The knee’s fine.’ He slammed the door behind him. ‘It’s fucking fine,’ he muttered as he headed out into the rain. ‘Absolutely fucking fine.’

By Wednesday lunchtime Ginny was feeling very nervous. She’d tried Daniel Baire at least half a dozen times and hadn’t heard a whisper from the man. By comparison, the other RK candidates were playing ball nicely. She was meeting Stella, the candidate Julian had recommended, the following morning, and had telephone interviews lined up with the Aussies for Friday. Things were falling into place — except for mystery man Daniel.

On cue, her phone rang and she lunged for it.

‘Hi love, how are you?’

‘Mads. Hi.’ Ginny sighed, leaning back in her chair.

‘Not who you were hoping for? New man on the horizon?’

‘You have a one-track mind but as a matter of fact, I did have a date last night. I’m waiting for a candidate to call. How are you anyway? How did the chat with Paul go?’

‘Very well. He agreed, of course, which is what men do when they’re scared and know they’re wrong. He’s pulled out all the stops and booked a flash restaurant for Friday night … Can I take you up on your offer to babysit?’

‘Of course. I’ll come over for the dinner rush so you guys can squeeze in a pre-dinner drink or three.’

‘Thanks, Ginn.’ Madeleine paused, and then continued, fishing. ‘So I won’t be asking you to give up on another hot date? You could always bring him with you and eat all the ice cream and make out on the couch like a proper babysitter.’

Ginny heard the office door open, and looked out to make sure Ange was on reception.

‘Noooo.’

‘No go?’

‘Nup. Tepid would be an overstatement — certainly not hot.’

‘Oh,’ Mads sounded genuinely disappointed. ‘What happened?’

Ginny frowned; she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Megan’s colleague had been friendly, polite, good-looking, funny. Had lots going for him, actually. And Ginny had tried very, very hard, even going along with a few goodnight kisses at the end of the evening, but there was just no spark. Nothing. Nada. Zilch.

‘Not sure …’ Ginny stopped as Ange gestured in the doorway. ‘Look, Mads, I’ve got to go. Sorry. See you on Friday.’

‘What is it?’ she asked Ange.

‘It’s him!’ Ange stage-whispered, nodding toward reception. ‘The mystery man!’

‘Who?’

‘Daniel Baire, you dummy!’ Ange all but dived aside as Ginny pushed past her.

Well, he certainly looked the part, Ginny thought, as she greeted him. Tall and lean, the well-cut suit hung off him perfectly. His light brown hair was cut long and bright blue eyes smiled out at her. It was a handsome face, she admitted to herself, but perhaps a bit too pretty for her liking.

‘Ginny, hi.’ He offered a megawatt smile as he shook her hand. ‘Good to meet you at last.’

‘You too, Daniel. I was starting to think you’d disappeared back into the bush.’

He laughed, eyes twinkling. ‘No, I just needed to sort a few things out once I got back to Auckland. I hope you don’t mind me dropping in like this?’

‘Not at all, although I’m afraid I don’t have much time right now. I have a meeting.’

‘Of course.’ His smile dimmed. ‘I just wanted to stop by, introduce myself. See if you can tell me any more about the management consultant role? At RK Investments and Strategy?’

She looked at him, gobsmacked. ‘How did you find that out?’

The wattage increased yet again — he was obviously pleased with himself. ‘I did a little digging; it wasn’t too hard, really. I … ah … gave them a call but was directed back to you. So here I am.’

Ginny considered him. She didn’t like the sound of what he’d been up to; trying to circumvent the process was cheeky. If she was going to do her job properly, she needed to have control at this stage in the proceedings. ‘Who did you speak with?’

‘Camilla someone? I didn’t get her surname.’

Ginny relaxed. He hadn’t been able to get past ‘Go’. It wasn’t that surprising; Camilla was a tough cookie who protected Robert extremely well.

‘I’m not surprised you got sent back to me.’ She kept her tone light. ‘I’m running things. So if you’re interested in the role, you need to come through me, alright?’ They looked at one another for a bit before he nodded and she went on. ‘Saying that, my client is keen to progress your application.’

Deadlock broken, his grin went up another notch. Smiley man.

‘Great! What does that mean?’

Ginny laughed. Despite or perhaps because of his cheek, Daniel’s abundant enthusiasm was infectious. ‘Interview. With me. Tomorrow afternoon any good? One p.m?’

‘No problem.’

Ange stuck her head up over her computer and watched him leave. As the door closed behind him she turned to Ginny.

‘Shine doubling as a male modelling agency?’

‘What?’

‘We’ve had a run of yummy men through the doors lately. I just wondered if you were developing a new revenue stream.’

Letting out a snort of laughter, Ginny went into her office to get ready for her meeting.

Chapter 16

Ginny kicked off the interviews for RK Investments & Strategy with Stella Harrison, the candidate her brother had referred to her. She answered Ginny’s questions well, providing convincing examples in a practised, knowledgeable manner. Although she was a strong candidate, Ginny struggled to warm to her and finished the interview underwhelmed.

And now to Daniel, Ginny thought, with a little ping of excitement in her belly. It was always a buzz interviewing a star candidate, particularly for a role like this that had set her teeth on edge more than once.

Ange stuck her head into Ginny’s office right on one to tell her Daniel was waiting in an interview room. Ginny gathered her folder, slicked on a coat of lip gloss and went to meet him.

He was dressed impeccably again, and rose as she entered the room. He shook her hand, held it just a beat longer than necessary and shot her a grin and an eye meet that had her smiling to herself as she turned to close the door. He waited until she sat down, then eased into his own seat.

‘Daniel. Before we get started on the interview, just a couple of initial questions, if that’s okay?’

‘Sure. Fire away.’

‘You left London nearly a year ago. What have you been up to since?’

‘Travelling. Spent some time in Asia. Vietnam and Thailand mostly.’

She glanced up from her notes. He didn’t look like the backpacking type but that didn’t necessarily mean he wasn’t. ‘And your old employer. I did a quick look online and couldn’t find out much about them …’ She left it there, waiting to see how he’d react.

A corner of his mouth lifted in a small smile. ‘Thorough, aren’t you?’

She inclined her head in acknowledgement.

‘Well …’ He leant back in his chair. ‘They shut up shop, basically. Two guys owned it and they were pretty keen to wind it up and retire. I was with them until the end — good experience really. They sold off what they could, and that was that.’ He shrugged, and smiled again, meeting her eyes.

She nodded. It sounded reasonable enough. ‘Great — well, let’s get started, shall we?’

The interview was superb; the kind that reminded Ginny why she was still in the game. It wasn’t just that he was spot-on for the role, that his experience matched her client’s needs so well, or even the subtle flirty vibe he was putting out. It was the verbal sword play, the way she could step in, challenge him part-way through a response to her question and he’d meet her, take her up on it and give her more, signalling time and again that he was the candidate she was after.

After ninety minutes she wrapped it up. She smiled and asked Daniel if he had any questions.

‘Not really. I was keen to know who your client was but since I worked that out we can take it as covered.’ He smiled back. ‘So what’s next? When do you shortlist? And am I on it?’

Atta-boy, Ginny thought. Keen as mustard — just the way she liked them. ‘Tomorrow and yes. Most definitely, in fact.’

‘And from there?’

She quickly ran through the likely sequence: her verbal report to Robert late the following afternoon, followed by her written shortlist on Monday. From there, the ball would be in Robert’s court as to whom he wanted to interview.

Daniel nodded. ‘Well, if that’s how it works, then that’s how it works. Nothing more you need?’ He gave her another look and she smiled to herself. Was he genuinely hitting on her, or just trying to get onside so she’d promote him to her client?

‘No — I’ve got all I need for now.’ She rose, keeping the smile and handshake professional. ‘I’ll be in touch.’

Sending him back into the rain that had returned that morning, Ginny sighed in relief. Even if the Aussies she had lined up for the next day bombed, she had two strong candidates.

Ginny woke to still more rain. You had to hand it to Auckland, she thought, getting out of bed — when it rained, it rained properly. A run was out of the question so she grabbed her togs, towel and goggles, and hot-footed it to the carpark.

Arriving at her car, she swore. Both back tyres were flat. You wouldn’t read about it, she muttered. One was bad luck, two catastrophic. There was nothing to be done about it at such an early hour. Walking through the rain, she contemplated the distance to the pool. Slinging her swimming bag over her shoulders, she set off down Queen Street.

The first Australian was a shocker.

‘No, no, no, no,’ Ginny said out loud when she finally hung up after the telephone interview.

‘No good?’ Ange called out.

‘Appalling. Great CV but nothing underneath it.’

‘Bugger!’ Ange appeared in Ginny’s door, looking sympathetic. ‘At least you’ve got Stella and Daniel.’

‘Yup — and one more interview this afternoon. It would be nice to have three to put through to Robert.’

‘Well, maybe this will cheer you up.’ Ange handed over a message slip. ‘The uni want you to call back as soon as possible.’

Ginny was delighted to be asked for a referee to back up her proposal. Excellent. She was through Round One. But who could she ask? A couple of established clients came to mind, but her work for them didn’t have the commercial clout to impress the decision-makers at the university. What about Robert Kendrick? Would he do it? Not only was he clandestine, she still wasn’t sure how he rated her. Only one way to find out. She shot him an email.

Now the bloody tyres. She went and perched on the edge of Ange’s desk.

‘How do I get my tyres fixed, or changed or whatever has to be done when they go flat?’

‘You don’t know much about this sort of stuff, do you?’

Ginny scowled. ‘I can write a recruitment ad with one hand tied behind my back and cut through sixty CVs in twenty minutes. No one can be expected to do everything. We all have our strengths.’

‘What about your friend Mac? He strikes me as someone who’s good with his hands.’

Ginny gave her a look. ‘No go.’ Ginny hadn’t spoken to him all week and wouldn’t call out of the blue asking him to sort her tyres.

‘Well,’ sighed Ange, fishing in her bag, ‘a far less attractive option is the Automobile Association.’ She handed a card to Ginny. ‘I take it you’re not a member?’

Ginny shook her head. On the to-do list, not yet actioned.

‘Well, give them a call, join up over the phone, and get them to come and help.’

Ginny frowned at the card.

‘There.’ Ange pointed to the phone number. ‘Would you like me to write down those instructions for you, Ginn?’

‘Bugger off, you cheeky cow.’ Ginny grinned, and returning to her own desk, picked up the phone.

It was a horribly annoying imposition, having to wait an hour in a carpark for the friendly AA guy to arrive. It ate into valuable time Ginny didn’t have to spare. She looked at her watch again; she had to get back for her second telephone interview.

‘I’m sorry, love,’ the AA man said, ‘but they’re all flat. The back two have been cut, which is why you noticed them straightaway, whereas the front ones have just had the air let out, so they took longer to go down. Annoyed someone, have you?’ he asked, more jovially than the circumstances warranted.

She shook her head. ‘Haven’t got a clue. Probably just some idiots having a laugh. What happens now?’

‘I’ll have to organise new tyres for you, but I should be able to get someone out to put them on for you today. Hopefully, we’ll get it done before the weekend, eh?’ He laughed, and she held back the urge to thump him.

‘Do I need to be here while you do that? I have a meeting.’

‘No, I’ll sort it. I’ve got your number. I’ll let you know how I get on.’

With a muted thank you, Ginny left him to it.

Ange was packing up for the day when Ginny returned.

‘But that’s horrible!’ she exclaimed when Ginny told her about it. ‘Are you going to call the police?’

‘I don’t think so — I mean, what can they do? I had a quick word with the guys at the carpark but they pretty much laughed at me. My space is not exactly prime real estate, and that part of the building doesn’t have much surveillance.’

‘Four tyres is more than bad luck, Ginny.’

‘Well, I don’t think so. I’ll get new tyres and forget about it.’ She smiled at Ange. ‘Thanks for your concern but it’s all good … have a great weekend, okay?’ She waved her off, and as the street door closed behind her, Ginny locked the office doors and returned to her desk.

She flicked through the CV of the candidate she was due to call, but wasn’t taking it in. She really hoped that she was right, that this had simply been a random act of nastiness. The alternative made her queasy. Cancelling a meeting, hassling her on the street a couple of times was one thing. But cutting tyres? Letting them down like that? Surely Miles wouldn’t have gone that far? She shuddered, then forced her attention back to the CV in front of her.

The second phone interview went well. Finishing up just before four, Ginny breathed out a contented sigh. She had her three for the shortlist, a good mix of skills and backgrounds for Robert to consider. She called him as arranged, gave him a brief summary and promised him the shortlist reports first thing Monday. She was also quietly flattered when he agreed to act as a referee for the uni role.

Then, knowing she couldn’t procrastinate any longer, Ginny called Mac. She’d felt uneasy all week about how things had been left between them, and his call on Tuesday when she was flying out to meet Joe was spectacularly badly timed. His silence since was ominous and it didn’t take long for her to get jumpy; he was too good at disappearing.

She’d quickly become used to his casual phone calls, or his popping over to check this or do that. He’d only been back a few weeks but he’d transplanted himself back into her life completely. Not that she was complaining. The unsettling way she had … reacted to him last weekend notwithstanding, Ginny was over the moon that he was around, and relieved that the ease of their old friendship had returned. And it was because of that friendship, Ginny told herself, that she needed to call him. If she left it any longer it might get weird.

His mobile went straight to voicemail. Ginny hung up without leaving a message, then called his dad’s firm and asked to be put through to him.

‘James MacNamara.’ He answered at once, sounding shitty.

‘Mac — hi. It’s me, Ginny.’

There was a pause, and Ginny heard him whisper something, then there was a laugh — a woman’s laugh — before he came back. ‘Hi, Ginn. How are you?’

‘Good. You?’

‘Fine, thanks.’

‘Um — just thought I’d give you a call, see how your week’s been. Sorry I couldn’t make the movie the other night. Any good?’

‘I didn’t end up going.’

‘Right.’ She hesitated. ‘Do you still want to see it? What about tomorrow night?’

Mac beat his pen double-time on the notepad in front of him, thinking about the date he had with some bathroom tiles and a chisel.

‘Sorry, Ginn — I’m heading down to the bach again this weekend. Dave’s giving me a hand with the downstairs bathroom.’

‘Oh. Of course.’

He paused, then made a decision. ‘I’m not leaving until first thing tomorrow, though. What about tonight?’

‘Sorry, I’m babysitting.’

‘Babysitting?’

‘Yeah, you know.’ She laughed at the surprise in his voice. ‘Madeleine and Paul. I do it from time to time.’

‘Do you want company?’

‘Sure,’ Ginny was a little surprised herself. ‘If you want to. I have to be there about six — but you could meet me whenever.’

‘Sounds good. Dad’s been working me like a dog this week. He owes me a reasonable end time on a Friday. Need a lift?’

‘Yeah, that would be great. Do you want me to come up to your office?’

‘Sure. I’ll need to swing by home to get changed first …’

‘No problem. I’ll see you soon, yeah?’

‘Great.’ Mac hung up the phone and looked at it, wondering.

After a wet week inside with two kids, Madeleine was more than ready to hand them over to Ginny when she arrived with Mac soon after six.

‘Paul,’ Mads hollered. ‘Come on! Let’s get outta here.’

By the time Ginny took the kids to bed an hour and a half later, Mac was exhausted. Having done the dishes as instructed, he was still trying to work out how two children could use so many drink bottles and small plastic containers in one day when he landed with a sigh on the couch.

Ginny joined him soon after and laughed at his expression.

‘You wuss! I thought you were meant to be tough?’

‘I am tough. But that was full on.’ He looked at her. ‘What are we eating? And when?’

‘Do you ever think of anything else?’

Regularly, he thought, but I’m trying hard to keep a lid on it. ‘No, not really. Thai?’

After they’d eaten they returned to the lounge and, side by side on the couch, kept half an eye on a bad television movie.

Ginny yawned. ‘So your dad lulled you into a false sense of security?’

‘Yep. I should have known. He’s got a new client on board and is using me as cheap labour.’ He turned to look at her. ‘I haven’t forgotten your floors, though.’

She flapped her hand. ‘No bother. Having my bedroom done is great, thanks.’

‘How did you get the furniture …?’

‘Bruno and Marco. I gave them no option but to lend a hand and they obliged.’

He nodded and took a drink of the beer resting on his stomach. ‘Heard anything from Miles?’

Ginny hesitated. ‘Nup. All quiet on the western front.’

He turned to look at her. ‘You’d tell me if he was hassling you?’

‘Course. But it’s all good.’

He waited a minute or two. Trying to keep his voice neutral he asked, ‘How was the date?’

‘Not worth mentioning.’

He laughed. ‘Poor bastard.’

‘Yeah, well, I’m going to end up bitter and twisted and surrounded by cats if I don’t at least get out there.’

Mac looked at her again. ‘You’re after this?’ He gestured with his bottle at the room, the house, the life that was lived there.

She met his eyes. ‘What? A mortgage I can’t afford and a husband who’s never around?’

‘Cynic.’ He grinned.