Cancelled by Elizabeth Ann West Read Free Book Online Page A

office. He nearly ran to catch her, almost wiping Eric out in the process.
    “You're here. Are you avoiding me?”
    Alexis and Eric turned to look at Johnathan.
    “No. I'm not avoiding you, Johnathan. Why on earth would I do that? I met an old friend for lunch and became mesmerized by my paperback on the treadmill.”
    Eric glanced from Johnathan to Alexis, then back to Johnathan.
    “You didn't tell her did you?” Eric asked Johnathan. He addressed Alexis with his explanation, “See, I didn't know...”
    “ I forgot the hydraulic cables for the Hedis prototype, remember the ones left over from the other job, were allocated for another project.”
    Eric's mouth hung open at Johnathan's lie to cover for him.
    “What do you mean you forgot? You never forget. How could you promise these cables for free when we don't have them?” Alexis stood up from her desk and walked towards Johnathan, with her back to Eric. “We're expecting approval to start building today. How do we do that without the cables?”
    “I took care of it. I bumped the numbers in the discretionary spending on the contract to make up for it. We're still 12.5% under budget, protecting our margin. I called the manufacturer and put in an order. They'll be here Thursday.”
    “What purchase order did you use?” she asked.
    “10301-1.”
    Alex groaned. “I already used 10301-1 and 10301-2 this morning for other projects. POs go through me so our accounting isn't all screwed up. Why didn't you bring me the purchase order?”
    “You weren't here all day. You left for lunch without me and didn't say anything. I need the parts as soon as possible.” Johnathan and Alexis were nearly nose to nose.
    “Um, is something going on between you two?” Eric interrupted the argument that was uncharacteristic of both of them.
    The Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Operations Officer stared at the Chief Creative Officer. They had forgotten he was standing there. Johnathan figured it better to be upfront than keep things in the dark, but Alexis beat him to the punch.
    “Of course not. No, there's nothing going on. I'm just stressed. That's all.” Alexis reinforced her statement by opening her left top desk drawer and shaking medicine into her hand out of a green, over-the-counter brand bottle for migraines.
    All three jumped at the sound of Alex's phone ringing.
    “Hello, Alexis Rodriguez. Hold on, I have Johnathan and Eric right here, let me put you on speaker.” Alex pushed a button and hung up her receiver.
    “Hey guys! Great news. I'm faxing over final approval right now. Start turning those wrenches!” Bob's voice could be heard out in the cubicles. Eric shared a look with Johnathan. He was never a Bob fan, finding the man stupid and a waste of time. He sidled across Johnathan, forcing him to unblock Alex's door.
    “We've been waiting for this Bob, we're all ready to go! Eric just left to start directing our technicians.”
    “Fantastic! Keep up the great work, Johnathan. I knew we'd work it all out in the end.”
    “Bob? I'll go ahead and send over the first invoice per the contract. Should I send it to you or forward it to Sydney?” Alex's sugar-coated customer voice rejoined the phone conference.
    “Send 'em over to me first, alright? Sydney likes her reports in a specific way and I'll take care of all that.”
    “Right, I'll send the first one today.” Alex ended the call and started working on her computer. Johnathan sat down and waited an agonizing minute before interrupting her.
    “Are we going to talk?”
    Alex continued to type away. “You apparently fixed the part problem, what do we need to talk about?”
    “I know your MO. Are we going to talk about your lie to Eric?”
    “I didn't lie to him. There isn't anything going on between us. Not yet.”
    Johnathan leaned back in the mahogany framed chair across from Alex's desk. He pushed his tongue against the back of his teeth and furrowed his brow. “What do you call Saturday night? I