Off the Books

Chapter 1

Olivia

There is one thing about being an accountant that irks me and that is how repetitive it can be. It's been a year since I started working at Aria Property Group as their Accounting and Finance Manager and it never fails to provide me with the same monotonous workday every single day. Despite that, I could never justify leaving. There are three things this job provides me with that I would lack if I went anywhere else:

Stability, excellent pay, and some eye candy.

Given my personal life is an absolute shit show, having stability is the only way my anxiety-ridden mind can actually rest for a moment knowing that whatever comes the next day is predictable. Excellent pay and benefits allow me to afford the apartment I rent in the downtown core of Vancouver where the real estate market has completely gone off the rails. Finally, as for the eye candy...

"Olivia. I need those expenses coded by the end of the day for my review."

"Of course, Matthew," I responded to my boss with a small smile.

The eye candy nods with approval and steps away from my always open door and towards his much larger corner office. I watch him through the glass wall as he saunters his way to the large ebony wood doors at the end of the hall.

The eye candy was Matthew Rossi, the current CEO of Aria Property Group. He inherited this business just before I was hired after both his parents passed away in a helicopter accident, which was something I could relate to.

Not the helicopter accident, but the both parents being dead thing.

The enigmatic brown-haired and blue-eyed boss was in charge of a property management empire and was never caught lacking. Matthew very rarely has social conversations with staff and only ever talks business. I'm in his office quite a bit during quarter-end to finalize the company's financial statements and have never once discussed anything further than the numbers on the screen. However, with a hundred and fifty full-time staff of which only fifty of us actually operating from the head office, the lack of personal discussions allows for the company to keep running as successfully as it has.

So as I sat at my desk on the executive floor, punching numbers and coding the expenses to the right accounts to meet Matthew's deadline, I was expecting it to be like any other predictable day.

The Vancouver rain was coming down like a constant cloudburst, obscuring my exterior window view as always. My coffee was in need of a refill after having gone cold in my usual black logo-less mug. However, for the first time since I started working here, the numbers in front of me didn't make sense.

I stare at the reimbursement report at my desk and at the correlated receipt that one of the property managers sent me through email. The amount that the property manager wrote down was correct and matched his company credit card statement and the amount on the invoice. However, he coded the expense to office supplies when the invoice was for a gun range in Portland.

"What the fuck?" I whisper to myself as I do a quick search of the gun range on google to confirm. "Why would a property manager go down to Portland and spend $1500 at a gun range with a company credit card?"

"Maybe he was entertaining potential clients? But in Portland of all places, I don't know."

Recalling my knowledge when pursuing my accounting designation, I had to maintain professional skepticism and right now, I was definitely professionally skeptic. I eyed the time at the corner of the screen and took a second to breathe.

"It's almost 5 o'clock. I'll do the rest of the expenses and then talk to Matthew about this one," I reassure myself before finishing up the remaining pile of expense reports.

Come 5:15 p.m., I am knocking on those double ebony wood doors with my laptop in one hand and the expense report in question in the other. I only pull on the gold handles once I hear the deep and muffled voice uttering, "Come in."

"Hey Matthew, I'm done with the expenses, but I actually have a question about one of these reports."

"Oh?" he questions with a raised eyebrow before gesturing me over to his desk. "Let me see."

I take a few steps to his desk and I place my laptop and the report down in front of him while I stand to his side, letting Matthew take a moment to read through before I explain.

"Oliver Bailey submitted this report under office supplies. The invoice says that the expense is for a gun range in Portland."

I look out the window at the rainy skyline to give him a moment. Turning back towards him, I notice absolutely no change in his expression as he continues looking at the invoice showing up on my screen.

"Mr. Bailey was in Portland to meet with a potential client," he starts before looking up from his chair at me, "and he ended up at the range to entertain them. I believe he may have accidentally written down office supplies when it should be meals and entertainment."

I accepted his explanation because it made total sense, despite the situation where the property manager going to a gun range to entertain was odd. But who was I to judge? I was just the accountant. I grab my laptop and the report and clutch them to my chest as I step away from his desk to avoid getting dizzy from his citrus and amber-scented cologne and his watchful blue-eyed gaze.

"I'll update the report and submit the expenses for your review immediately."

"Thanks, Olivia. I'll talk to Mr. Bailey and let him know about his report. You can head home after submitting the expenses," Matthew says to me while typing away quickly at his computer, signifying the end of the conversation.

"Sounds good. I'll see you tomorrow."

Leaving his office, I head back to mine to finish up the work and submit it just in time for me to walk home with a small sunny break from the rain and leave the workday behind me.