Barbara McMahon - The Boss's Little Miracle

Closing the folder he put it to the left side of the desk where a stack of folders rested.

“I’ll review this in greater detail tonight. If I have further questions, I’ll call.”

Taking that as a sign the interview was over, she rose swaying slightly, feeling light-headed. She gave a polite smile and turned to go. Her hand was already reaching for the knob when he spoke again. Glancing over her shoulder she saw he’d risen and was leaning casually against the side of the desk, resting on one hip.

“How are you really, Anna?” he said in that low, sexy voice of his.

She shrugged, turning slightly to better see him. “At the time I wondered why you didn’t call. In light of today’s events, I understand perfectly.”

“If there had been any other way—” he began.

She shook her head. “We wouldn’t have had that long together anyway. I’m headed for Brussels in January.” She looked at him closely. “I am still headed for Brussels, right?”

He nodded. “From what Thomas Ventner and Allen Taylor have said, you are by far the best person qualified for the position. I haven’t seen anything to contradict that.”

She turned back to the door. Suddenly she almost doubled over in pain. Her stomach was cramping. Please don’t let me be sick in Tanner’s office!

“What the hell?” Tanner dashed around his desk to get to Anna. She clutched her abdomen, almost bent in half. The pain was sharp, but already beginning to ease. She tried breathing again. She’d be mortified if she threw up over her new boss’s shoes.

“Are you in pain?” he asked the obvious.

“I need a rest room. I think I’m going to be sick again. I’m sorry!” So much for looking professional. With the way her luck was going, she’d infected him and he’d have the flu by the end of the week.

“Ellie,” Tanner said, opening the door. “Can you take Anna to a rest room?”

“What’s wrong?” she asked. Seeing Anna with her hand over her mouth, she swiftly put her arm around her shoulders. “We better hurry, right?”

Anna nodded.

Five minutes later Anna was splashing cool water on her face.

“You should go home,” Ellie said, patting her back.

“You’re right.”

“Call your doctor and see if he can recommend anything to ease the symptoms.”

Anna mumbled, “Nothing the doctor can do.”

“Have you eaten anything today?” Ellie asked.

“I had some soup for lunch. I felt better after that. Guess I was fooling myself.”

Anna hated all the fuss that was being made. All she wanted to do was slink away to her apartment, pull covers over her head and sleep the clock around. Instead she’d made a spectacle of himself in her new boss’s office. Even more, she was worried Tanner would hold this against her when considering making her head of the European division.

“Still, call your doctor. It can’t hurt,” Ellie suggested.

Anna nodded reluctantly. “First things first, though. I’m taking a cab home. And then I’ll call the doctor. But you know, the most he’ll tell me is to drink plenty of fluids and get a lot of rest.”

“You tried to do too much today,” Ellie said. “Don’t come in tomorrow unless you’re feeling fit again.”

“Now that’s something I can easily comply with.”

Within a half hour Anna was home. She gave her doctor a call, but as she suspected, he was already booked for the remainder of the day. The nurse agreed to squeeze her in early the next morning. And as Anna had predicted, the recommendation was to drink lots of fluids and get plenty of bed rest. Not a hardship. She put on her warmest nightie and made sure her cat, Mitzie, had fresh food and water then crawled into bed and pulled up the covers. In no time she was fast asleep.

The telephone woke her. It was dark. How long had she been asleep? Anna fumbled for the phone. “Hello?”

“What did your doctor say?” Tanner asked.

ANNA leaned back against the pillows and groaned. She didn’t want to talk to Tanner. It had been hard enough today to face him. Why was he calling? Would he do this with all employees?

“Just what I expected him to say, drink fluids and rest. What does your doctor say when you have the flu?”

“I rarely get the flu,” Tanner said.

It figured, she thought.

“I’m seeing him at nine o’clock in the morning,” she said. “He couldn’t see me earlier. And quite frankly I wanted to be in bed and not in the waiting room the way I felt this afternoon.”

“It’s after nine,” Tanner said. “Have you have dinner?”

She shook her head, then realized he couldn’t see. Actually she didn’t feel as bad as she had that morning. Maybe she was already getting better.

“I can heat a can of soup,” she said.

“I’ll bring a carton of soup from the deli near my place,” he said.

Her eyes opened wide. “You can’t come over here.”

“Why not?”

“Because…because, you’re now my boss.”

“It’s not a date, Anna, I just want to make sure you’re okay. A good leader makes sure his people are in fighting shape.”

“So are we fighting?” she asked, confused for a moment. She really wanted to slip back down and go back to sleep.

“No. I’m just bringing soup.”

“I’ll be fine. I don’t want to be entertaining guests.”

“You won’t be entertaining me, you’ll be eating the soup from the deli. You still like vegetable and beef?”

“You know it’s my favorite.” She cringed as soon as the words left her mouth. She was not trying to reinforce the relationship they had at one time. Anna held her breath waiting for his response.

He merely said, “I’ll be there within a half hour.”

Hanging up the phone, she gingerly got out of bed and went to use the bathroom. Then she brushed her hair, rinsed her mouth with mouthwash and tried to see if she looked better for having slept half the evening away.

She checked the living room to make sure it looked presentable and then continued into the kitchen to heat water for tea. Her fleece robe and fuzzy slippers kept her warm. She could hear the rain still falling outside. The thick robe was not the kind of attire she would have worn had Tanner been coming over for any other reason. That alone should clearly emphasize to him that she no longer considered them a couple. Not that he would think so. But she didn’t want any wrong impressions from this visit!

Still, she checked that she had on some lipgloss before he arrived. No point in looking as bad as she felt.

When the doorbell rang a short time later, she tried to calm her nerves as she went to open the door. Raindrops glistened in his hair and on the shoulders of his jacket. Tanner carried a large bag with the deli’s logo. The aroma of the hot soup immediately had her mouth watering. She took in a deep breath. Suddenly she was ravenous. She held out her hand for the bag.

“Thank you,” she said.

He pushed past her and walked into the apartment as if he had every right to be there. He had visited several times when they dated so he knew his way around. Without hesitation he headed for the kitchen. Anna followed him reluctantly. She paused in the doorway and watched as he swiftly poured the hot soup into a bowl and found a spoon. She gave up and went to sit at the table.

“Eat up,” he said a moment later, placing the bowl in front of her.

Anna took a taste. It was wonderful. Tanner waited until she began to eat, then rummaged around in the bag and withdrew some hot rolls. He took a plate down and put them beside her, along with a handful of wrapped butter pats.

Anna looked at him. “Did you eat?”

He nodded. Leaning his shoulder against the archway he watched her.