Read Romance: Dedication - A Workplace Romance (Dedication Series, Romance, Contemporary Romance Book 1) for Free Online

assistant was tossing big stacks of files onto the long table before them. Jane opened one, seeing a dizzying page of figures and sums that she immediately identified as at least an hour of work. ‘We’ve had a drop in project. This client would like a new financial plan, from scratch. New method new models, everything. Turns out their CEO was siphoning a little of the top for himself, and they want a new plan in place before the news becomes public.”             
                  “How long do we have,” McKinnon asked, “Some of this stuff will take at minimum...a week?”
                  “I’ll give you a week. But for the entire project. I’m sending over a few other analyst to help you, and I’ll be here myself. But they need this done.” Belmore lowered himself into a chair, his face suddenly looking tired. “Look, I’m not going to sugarcoat anything: This is going to be a tough job. But, we are more than capable of seeing it through, and making it good. Do this for me, and doors open up.” He smiled gently, “Fuck it up, and I may just throw you off the helipad.”
                  The team that came in to assist happened to be a group of junior analyst that had been with the company for a couple of years. They came in, not so fresh faced, and got right to work with a vigor that even Jane was impressed by. As much as stress sucked, Jane was thrilled by the prospect of a new project: She worked better on a time crunch, and it had been a long while since her job had made adrenalin pump through her veins.
                  McKinnon she found, thrived under pressure. Though they were the most junior people in the room, he took charge and commanded with a grace that Jane had no choice but to respect. He was strong, competent, and if someone forced Jane to admit it, she would say damned sexy. Not that Jane had much time to admire him. With their workload, it was a wonder that she even had spare time to catch her breath. Still, actually seeing him everyday for a week made her change her first impressions about McKinnon even more. Every morning, at 6AM when she walked into the office he’d be there. Work and coffee in hand, computer already spitting out new figures and projections. And he always brought an extra coffee just for her, a small gesture that, two days in, Jane came to greatly appreciate.
                  “Whats’ this for,” Jane would ask, every time.
                  “Thought you’d look tired,” Franklin would say, without even looking up from his work. They never argued as much. Instead, it was a matter of using the other to get the job done. Franklin had his strengths, Jane had hers, and by working in tandem they created something that made them both very proud.
                  In the end, their long days and even longer night paid off, with the project done. Belmore practically sung their praises as he was going over the last of the figures. Jane was too tired to even hear them though. She sat on the leather wingback in his office, curled into a rather unladylike slump. For ten minutes, she listened as he poured over one particularly complex model, relaying information that her tired mind wasn’t up to processing. Franklin sipped at some celebratory aged whiskey beside her, looking tired, but not nearly as wrung out as Jane was.
                  “You two go home. You’ve worked your selves to the bone, and deserve some time off. Take tomorrow and enjoy a nice long weekend. “ Those words were uttered in such a dismissive tone, that Jane didn’t even try arguing. She got up, followed close by McKinnon, and went out into the brightness of the office. It was being lit by the high Thursday sun. In her triumphant state, Jane hardly noticed how the light looked different in the office. It was brighter, more promising. Just maybe hinting at the future she knew without a doubt would be