Too Close to Touch Read Online Free PDF Page A

today.” She hung up the phone without another word, shocked that the handset wasn’t frozen over with ice. Turning to her computer and the usual overß ow of e-mail, she muttered, “Fuck with me, will you? Bitch.”
    Nearly an hour went by before there was a hesitant rap on her door frame. The ofÞ ce had quieted considerably once Þ ve had come and gone, and the knock seemed offensively loud. Gretchen looked up to see Kylie in the doorway.
    “Sorry to interrupt.” She seemed a little uncomfortable. “Your boxes are here.”
    “It’s about goddamn time.” Gretchen stood up as the end of a box on a handcart was wheeled into view, followed by the other two boxes stacked on top of it, followed by Michelle Ramsey, who was pushing it all.
    Oh, shit .
    Gretchen was momentarily speechless and wondered if the shipping manager felt the same way.
    Kylie looked from one woman to the other and back, obviously confused by the discomfort in the room and assuming it had to do with the shipment. “Um…Gretchen Kaiser, this is Mick Ramsey. She runs our shipping and receiving department. Mick, Gretchen is our new regional sales manager.”
    “Oh,” Mick said hesitantly, smiling with recognition. “ You’re the new RSM.”
    • 28 •
    TOO CLOSE TO TOUCH
    Gretchen recovered quickly and cleared her throat. “Right there in the corner is Þ ne.” She kept her voice cool, determined to remain on top despite the fact that Mick’s presence took up so much of the room.
    She swallowed when she saw Mick’s smile dim several watts and her green eyes harden. Pulling her own eyes away, Gretchen sat down and went back to working on her computer, effectively dismissing both Mick and Kylie. When she heard the wheels on the handcart squeak away down the hall, she let out a quietly relieved breath. Several minutes went by before a small cough called her attention away from her monitor. She snapped her head around to Þ nd Kylie still standing in her ofÞ ce.
    Gretchen raised an aggravated eyebrow. “Yes?”
    “Um…do you need anything else from me before I pack up for the night?”
    Gretchen glanced at the clock in the corner of her computer monitor. It was going on six. “No. You go on home.” She went back to reading her e-mail.
    Kylie hesitated. “Are you all right?”
    “I’m Þ ne.” She didn’t look up from her work. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
    “Okay. Have a good night.”
    Gretchen heard Kylie getting her things together, the sound of her footsteps clicking down the hall. She inhaled with effort, and exhaled slowly. One day , she thought. I’ve been here for exactly one day and I’ve already had to wear my bitch hat. That’s got to be a record.
    • 29 •
    • 30 •
    TOO CLOSE TO TOUCH

CHAPTER THREE
    So that’s how it’s going to be, huh? Goddamn fucking bitch.”
    Mick couldn’t remember the last time she’d been so pissed off. Or so disappointed. The Gretchen she’d met at the Widow on Saturday and the Gretchen she’d met on the fourth ß oor half an hour ago certainly looked like the same person, but wow…if she didn’t know better, she’d think the woman had a split personality.
    “Goddamn fucking bitch,” she muttered again as she maneuvered her SUV along the expressway. The late April weather held hints of spring, but the lawns were brown and the roads were dirty, perfectly suiting Mick’s mood. “Who the hell does she think she is?”
    She picked up her cell phone and pushed two buttons, speed-dialing the same number she called daily, sometimes half a dozen times.
    Kylie picked up after half a ring. “Hey.”
    “What the fuck is the matter with your new boss, Ky?”
    Kylie sighed. “I don’t know what to tell you, Mick. I don’t know her yet.”
    “Well, Jesus Christ. Could she be more of a bitch?”
    “I guess she just wanted her stuff.”
    Mick bit back a snide comment, not wanting to transfer her anger at Gretchen onto her best friend. “Then she shouldn’t have shipped her