Corporate Secrets

CHAPTER 9

COLE

"What do you mean she's asking questions?" I ask, rising up from behind my desk and pacing towards the windows that look over the Chicago skyline.

"I meant what I said, and I said what I meant," Leah says. It's a doctor Seuss quote, and it makes me smile. But when I turn back from the window, the smile is gone and I'm raising my brows instead.

"I don't know what the specifics are. Neither Willow nor Matt is sure. Like I told you, somehow people caught on to the fact that they are with us from the New York office so people aren't speaking so openly where they are anymore. It's only the little tidbits they catch that they can report, obviously."

Richard only shrugs when I turn my gaze at him. "I told you hiring her was a bad idea in the first place. Now that she's here, the best we can do is just watch her. Are you still having her emails monitored?"

"Yes," I say shortly. The electronics department of Barnes and Gabe is handling it for me. "So far there hasn't been much suspicious activity there. A weird email, but there has been no follow-up so we aren't sure where that will lead yet."

"Any info on Manning?" Leah asks, reaching for one of the files she just brought into the office. She has been handling things related to the renovations of the building, and from the reports I'm getting, the people who lease space in the building are very happy with the speed and quality of the work going on.

"Nothing much yet." Charlton and I have been looking into the stocks on the down low since we discovered that there was an outside player. Currently, we have tracked down about seven percent of the company that is in this person's hands. That's a huge amount already, and I know that Charlton is getting worried.

Once we are done with our daily briefing of the things going on in the firm, I give them my news. "I'll be traveling this weekend. To France."

"Celine's graduation!" Leah exclaims. "I should send her a text and some flowers. She deserves it. Eighteen whole months. You'll give her my regards, won't you? I mean, I would go too, if my ogre of a boss would foot the bill."

I roll my eyes at her, and she smirks, standing. "Well, Rick and I have news of our own."

"What? Now?" Richard asks, staring at his wife in shock. Then he raises his head to the heavens as if asking for strength.

"What? You're pregnant?" It's dry, and I meant it as a joke. But seeing their stunned faces makes me take a giant step back. "No, you're not!"

"How did you guess?" Leah says, grinning from ear to ear.

"I didn't guess! I didn't expect that. It was a joke!"

"Well, Leah's pregnant." Richard is also smiling, looking so proud.

I swallow, telling myself to get over my surprise and congratulate them. I hold out a hand to shake Richard, but Leah rushes to hug me. I put my arms around her briefly, then let her go. "Well, I wish you both... Is there some kind of wish that is given to pregnant people?"

"Well, a safe delivery and a healthy baby would be nice," Leah replies, still beaming.

"Okay, I wish you all of that then." I watch them as they walk out, arm in arm. It's one of the weirdest things I've had to think about. Leah, pregnant. I never would have expected that, not in a thousand years.

Shaking my head, I focus on the work on my desk. There's quite a pile of work on there. I would never tell Tim, but as soon as he and Anne left on Friday, I told her to cancel the rest of my meetings for the day.