Show Time (Juniper Ridge Romantic Comedies #1) - Tawna Fenske Page 0,9
to Vanessa, making the introduction I’m too much of a dumbass to remember. “Ms. Vincent is our choice to be the company’s Chief Financial Officer,” she explains.
“Vanessa, please.” She sticks out her hand and gives Colleen’s a pleasant shake. “Pleasure to meet you.”
“Same. I’m Colleen, by the way.”
“Colleen and her wife, Patti, are wildlife biologists,” Mari explains. “They were stationed here when Gabe and Dean first visited.”
Colleen laughs, and it’s a warm, booming sound I’ve come to love in the short time I’ve lived here. “We’ve been running the coffee shop, and in my spare time, I play around with computers.”
“She’s one of the top hackers in the country,” I clarify, seeing no point in beating around the bush. “And we’re very grateful she and Patti agreed to stay on as part of the team.”
“Very,” Mari agrees.
In the months we’ve known Colleen and Patti, their homemade muffins and gentle advice have filled a parental need Mari and I have never totally acknowledged. But given our upbringing, it’s not surprising we’d cling to their gentle brand of mothering.
“Right back atcha.” Colleen boots up her laptop and toggles to something on the screen. “Take a look at this.”
She angles the computer so we can see the string of gobbledygook numbers and symbols on the screen. It’s all Greek to me.
Vanessa gives me a questioning look. “I’m sorry, do you want me to go?”
I shake my head and glance at Mari. “You may as well be part of this. Not like any of us can understand what the hell that is.”
“Right, well, I actually do.” Vanessa glances at Mari. “Sorry about messing up your online questionnaire.”
That’s right, she altered the forms. I’m suddenly reminded of her answers to the questions about marriage.
And as she moves closer to make room for Colleen, I’m reminded of other things. That women smell nice and have hair that tickles pleasantly against the back of my hand. Not that I’m noticing that stuff. Or that her skin is soft where her forearm brushes mine.
“Sorry,” she murmurs. “Tight squeeze.”
“No problem.” My voice sounds strained, and Mari gives me a look.
Meanwhile, Colleen points to her laptop. “You see this string of code right here? Take a closer look at this part.”
I know I should be looking at the screen, but I catch myself watching Vanessa’s face instead. She slips on her glasses, and the graceful intelligence in her face makes my heart squeeze.
“Wow,” she says. “Someone went to a lot of trouble to hide his location. Looks like it’s set up to appear as though it’s coming from a web portal in Kansas.”
“I figure that’s the location of the portal’s data center, but check this out.” Colleen points to another spot. “He slipped up. From what I can tell, this appears to be coming from an IP address right here in Oregon.”
Vanessa peers closer and nods. “Great catch. And right below that—what’s this about?”
“I noticed that, too.” Colleen glances at me and gives a quick nod. “Nice eye.”
The two of them banter some more about encryption and firewalls and a bunch of other stuff I don’t understand. Colleen keeps glancing at me, and I’m starting to suspect she can read my mind. That despite my best intent to keep my thoughts about Vanessa professional, Colleen’s picked up on my attraction to her.
I clear my throat. “We should probably let you get back on the road.” I touch the contract in front of Vanessa, aware that my hand is inches from her arm. “It’s going to take you a while to get through that.”
Mari gives me an odd look before turning her attention to Vanessa. “You’re more than welcome to stay in one of the vacant cabins,” she says. “It’s a long drive back to Bend, and spending a night on site would give you a better feel for the place.”
“Right, yes.” I swallow hard, the thought of Vanessa sleeping close by filling my head with all kinds of thoughts I shouldn’t have. “It might help you to make your decision.”
“Thanks, but I should get back to Bend.” She grabs the stack of paperwork and stands up, tapping it once on the table. “My cousin’s hosting some fancy dinner at the resort. I promised I’d be there.”
“Of course.” Relief and disappointment wash through me in equal parts. “Let me walk you to your car.”
Dumb. What a dumb offer. It’s a job interview, not a date.
But Vanessa just smiles. “Thanks.” She extends a hand to Colleen first. “Very nice to meet you.”