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‘Appropriate.’ She always thought there was a whiff of pongy cheddar about Malcolm – probably her imagination. Or maybe it was something to do with his cheesy flirtations.
    Raychel gave a little snort trying to hold a giggle in.
    Anna said nothing, just nodded in agreement. In the months they’d been working together, she’d barely spoken. She was a grafter not a talker, the others had each decided.
    ‘It’s so lovely to meet you all and share a coffee and break the ice a wee bit,’ said Christie, smiling at each and every one of them. ‘I like to run a nice cheerful ship. We spend a lot of time on board at work so the last thing I want is for it to be a miserable experience.’ She stood up and the others followed suit. She grinned rather mischievously. ‘Business Unit Manager – the acronym for that is B.U.M., isn’t it? How unfortunate to be known as Cheese B.U.M.’

 
Chapter 6
    Niki was chopping carrots into batons when Christie got home that night.
    ‘Salmon steaks and assorted veg for tea,’ said Niki. ‘Thought I’d push the boat out a bit seeing as it’s your first day.’
    ‘Lovely!’ said Christie, kicking off her shoes and wriggling her toes.
    ‘Well?’ prompted Niki. ‘How was it?’
    ‘Lovely!’ said Christie again. ‘The women I’m working with are all incredibly nice people and I think I’m going to like it very much.’
    ‘Smashing,’ said Niki, pouring out two glasses of crispy and cool Sauvignon Blanc and then adding a big splash of it to his sauce mix. ‘How was James?’
    ‘James was James,’ nodded Christie. ‘Sweet as always although it’s very funny to see him through other people’s eyes. I get the impression everyone’s a little scared of him. They’re all in awe of him, that’s for sure.’
    ‘Well, he’s an impressive man,’ said Niki. ‘He pays over two thousand people’s wages, doesn’t he?’
    ‘Oh, much more, Niki. There are now two and a half thousand people working at Head Office alone!’ replied Christie, taking a long swallow of wine and giving a contented sigh.
    ‘Bet he’s on an honours list before too long as well,’ said Niki.
    ‘I think everyone is wondering what my connection is to him,’ smirked Christie.
    ‘Let them,’ replied Niki. ‘Anyway, are any of your girls attractive enough for me?’
    ‘They’re all very attractive.’ Christie topped up her glass with more wine. Niki hadn’t even touched his yet. ‘And they’re all either married or engaged – no empty ring fingers, alas.’
    ‘Damn!’ said Niki with mock frustration.
    ‘Raychel and Dawn are far too young for an old geezer like you anyway. Don’t think Anna would be your type either. Now Grace is about five years older than you but stunning. You’d make a very striking couple.’ Christie smiled playfully.
    ‘Great,’ said Niki. ‘I’ll wait around until her divorce comes through.’ He dropped the salmon steaks onto the grill. ‘If you’re changing out of that suit, you’ve got five minutes to do it in. I’m not overcooking salmon for you or anyone.’
    Christie laughed and headed quickly for the staircase.
    ‘I’ll be down in four!’

 
Chapter 7
    None of them mentioned it, but all four women felt the change in atmosphere the next day when they walked into the department. It was as if someone had filtered out the air and made it lighter and fresher. Christie was sitting at her desk and greeted them all with a hearty ‘good morning’. Brian might have smiled a hello, but Malcolm used to dish out ‘to do’ lists before they’d even got their coats off.
    Christie was introduced to a lot of people over the next couple of days. She was all too aware that many of the Unit Managers were curious about her personal connection to James McAskill. But they also knew that he wasn’t a fool and would not have brought anyone into the business to head up such a coveted department if they weren’t highly qualified. It became obvious to anyone who had