Chapter One – New Home

     “I think that’s everything,” Gemma smiled as they picked up the last cartons from the moving truck.

     “Thank God! I was thinking we would never get finished,” Sophia muttered tiredly. They took the boxes into the house, and Sophia fell onto the couch.

     “I can take the moving truck back?” Fred asked from his perch on the chair.

     “Yes,” Sophia grumbled. “You could have helped you know.”

     “I could have, but I just got here. You had two boxes left.” Fred said, “We can drop off the truck and head home.”

     Gemma gave him a warm smile, “Thanks for all your help, Fred.” He had helped with the heavier lifting the day prior.

     Fred went over to the couch, offering Sophia a hand. She took it, and he pulled her stand. “Come on babe, we should let Gemma get settled in her new home.”

     “Call me if you need anything, Gem.” Sophia said as they headed to the door.

     “I will, Soph, I think I can handle this part on my own.” She walked over to let Alex out of his kennel. She had left him in it, afraid he might run out the door because they were in an unknown place and they couldn’t lock the fence gate because of the moving truck. “I need to take Alex out, anyway.”

     They said their goodbyes and shut the door behind them. Gemma drew a deep breath. Alex was exploring the house, sniffing everything. She sat down and grabbing her cell phone ordered a pizza. She took Alex out and ate the pizza before unpacking her most prized possessions. The sheer amount of drawing notebooks and pencils was astounding, but it was her craft that kept her sane. She realized she would need everything in place before she’d be able to concentrate on her art. She rolled up her sleeves and got to work.

     The next morning was bright and cheerful as Gemma looked out her kitchen window with her coffee. She strapped on her running shoes, and Alex brought her his leash. Sighing, she set the coffee down and stretched her sore body. The run would be short today after all that moving. She put her ear-buds in before leaning down to attach the leash to Alex. She stepped outside the house, stopping to do a few more stretches before she set off at a quick pace toward the park that was at the end of the block. The park for Alex was one of the principal reasons she had chose to rent here. The running trails were a bonus for her.

     Once at the park, she was warmed enough to take off her light running jacket and tie it around her waist. She and Alex took off at a leisurely pace. The trail was unfamiliar, and she didn’t want to risk injury. She saw a few others doing as she was and they seemed friendly enough, giving her nod as they concentrated on their runs.

     She rounded a corner when Alex saw a squirrel and started pulling. “Alex no!” She ran into someone. She bounced back, hitting the ground, and let go of the leash. Dazed, but keeping her wits about her she apologized to the man. “I’m so sorry. He saw a squirrel. I really need to go after him.” The man nodded in understanding as she took off trying to trace Alex’s path.

     She found him by the pond next to an elderly old man who was feeding the ducks cracked corn. Alex’s entrance had scared them all away. “I’m so sorry he bothered you.”

     The man smiled at her, “He’s been a perfectly friendly dog. I thought someone would be along for him. What’s his name?”

     “Right now it should be Trouble,” Gemma said wryly with amusement, as Alex wagged his tail at her, “his name is Alexander Von Wigglebottom.”

     “That’s a mouthful,” the man chuckled, “I’m Richard nice to meet you Miss?”

     “Gemma,” She offered, “and you can call him Alex for short.”

     “Meeting you and Alex is a pleasant surprise on this lovely day.” Richard said. “You are new to the area?” He handed her Alex’s leash.

     “Yes, we just moved in nearby.”

     “I hope to see more of you and Alex in the future.” Richard said rising from his bench. He tipped his hat, “Have a lovely day, Gemma.”  

     “This is where you ran off to,” A voice behind her said as Richard walked away. Gemma turned around to see a rather handsome man, who appeared to be in his late twenties or early thirties, walking toward her. “I see you found him.” 
Gemma recognized him as the poor guy she had run into. 

     She gave him a slight smile, “I did. I apologize again for running into you.”

     He smiled, and his eyes crinkled with humor. “I think you got the worst of it, you’re the one who ended up on the ground. I wanted to make sure you were all right.” His gaze roved over her body appreciatively. She wore sports bra and running shorts that left her midriff bare. He could tell she worked enough to keep herself in shape. Her muscles were defined but not as much as a gym rat. Her hair was jet black as it fell in disarray around her face the ends were strategically painted in a copper color.

     “I appreciate you checking up on me. As you can see, I’m fine.” Gemma replied, reaching to untie her jacket before slipping it back on. She gripped the Alex’s leash a bit tighter. “I should go before he causes anymore trouble today.” She turned and walked away. 

     He realized as she walked away he was still holding the hair-tie he had found on the ground. He thought about going after her to return it but shook his head. She was nervous around him. 

Chapter 2 – First Day

     Gemma walked into the huge building office building downtown. It was within walking distance of her home a few blocks if the weather was terrible she could drive or take public transit but she preferred the walk. She walked to the front desk and introduced herself. The receptionist glanced at her and waved her to the side. “Please wait in the lobby. Mr. Fuller will be here shortly. He is your new boss.”

     “Thank you,” Gemma said as she stepped away.

     In a few minutes, an older gentleman in a suit stepped toward her. “Miss Plumb?” 
     Gemma gave the man a smile, “Yes…”

     “I’m Mr. Fuller. This way please and we’ll get you a key card and your office situated. I’ll also explain your duties.”

     Gemma immediately felt comfortable with the older man. They spoke of her duties, which were normal for an executive assistant. She was to support and assist with his daily responsibilities. This included basic clerical duties such as answering phones, taking messages, welcoming visitors, scheduling meetings, and making travel arrangements. He admitted he might ask her to pick a personal gift for someone from time to time.

     They visited personnel where they added her to the system and gave her a key card. Then Mr. Fuller took her to her office. “Feel free to change the arrangement to suit your needs. You won’t have any duties until after lunch.”

     Gemma turned to thank the man, but voice interrupted her. “Fuller is that your new executive assistant?” The owner of the voice soon walked into the doorway. Crap! It was that guy that Gemma had run into in the park.

     “Yes, this is Miss Plumb.” Mr. Fuller said taking charge of introductions. “Miss Plumb, this is Mr. Saxe the CEO of Thomas Unlimited.”

     His gaze flickered for a moment in recognition, which he quickly schooled. "It’s a pleasure to meet you Miss Plumb.” Mr. Saxe held out his hand for her shake it.
     “Likewise,” Gemma said reaching for his hand. She saw the disconnect and went along with it. It was better that way anyhow.

     “I’ll see you after lunch, Miss Plumb.” Both men walked out of the doorway. Gemma could hear them chatting about their latest project as they headed back to Mr. Fuller’s office. She shut the door and breathed a sigh of relief.

     By the time she got her office in order, it was lunchtime. She noted on the walk to the office there was an Italian restaurant nearby. She collected her clutch and her blazer, which she had draped over the chair, and headed out.

     Mr. Fuller was true to his word, and after lunch she was hard at work. Near the end of a busy but productive afternoon, she knocked on Mr. Fuller’s door. “Come in.”

     “I’ve brought you the files you wanted.” Gemma said. He gestured to the clean side of his desk absentmindedly. Worry puckered his forehead.
“Is there something I can do?” She asked.

     “I don’t know, but another set of eyes is always helpful,” He replied, gesturing for her to come look at his screen.

     She walked around the desk and saw the issue. There was a discrepancy of a couple thousand dollars on the spreadsheet. “Mr. Fuller, what kind of printer paper does the human resources department use?”

     “I’m not sure. Why do you ask?” He looked at her curiously.

“I noticed when we set up payroll they were using thirty-pound. Most companies use twenty to twenty-four pound for documents that don’t need to be printed on both sides. One second…” She hurried to her office. She collected her copies of her paperwork from the accounting department and rushed back to his office.
“Here, feel the difference,” she grabbed her papers and one of his spreadsheets that was on the desk. Mr. Fuller took the paper and nodded. “Thirty pound is thicker and you can print on both sides without it bleeding through.” Gemma explained.

     “I can’t imagine it would cause that much of a discrepancy though.” He said thoughtfully.


     “If they order for the department for a year at a time, they probably get a discount but if they accidentally ordered the wrong paper, it would cost a lot.” Gemma stated.

      Mr. Fuller picked up the phone. “Nancy, did you order paper for the year for the human resources department?”

     “Yes sir, It came in last week.” Nancy said.

     “What did you order?” He asked.

    “The usual paper,” Nancy replied.
     “Nancy, please go check, I think there may have been a mistake.” Mr. Fuller said.
     “Yes, sir.” Nancy cut the call.

     “The shareholders want to nix the human resources and outsource. I’ve been trying to keep that from happening. Nancy and I grew up in the same neighborhood together.” He explained. “This might tip the scales in the shareholder’s side.”

     Gemma’s mind ran. “Perhaps you could tell the shareholders that you are trying a new format for things to reduce paper waste by using the front and back.”

“I don’t think…” he started to say before turning to look at her. “You know that’s not a terrible idea.”

Chapter 3 – Disturbing

     It was a sunny Saturday morning and Gemma was at the park with Alex. They had spent some time with Richard before heading to the running trail. Gemma was halfway through her run when a person she never wanted to see again stepped directly into her path. For a moment she considered running around him, but she knew he would just follow and create a scene. So she stopped, “Luke, what do you want?” Her voice was cold detached as if he weren’t a person.

     “Is that any way to greet me?” He said ignoring her obvious dislike. “After all, it’s been months since I’ve seen you. Not even a hug.”

     “Not long enough.” Gemma said. A couple runners came through, giving them a curious glance. “What do you want?”

     “Come home.” Luke cajoled, “You know you can’t live without me.”

     “I am living just fine without you.” Gemma said, “I don’t want you. I don’t need you. Just leave.” She grabbed Alex’s leash tighter and walked away.

     “Gemma your resistance is pissing me off.” Luke growled stepping toward her. “I know what’s best for you.”

     “Like, was it in my best interest you fucked everything you could charm the pants off of.” Gemma retorted, “Or perhaps it was in my best interest that you lied to me about it. You are a skilled liar. The best I’ve ever met.”

     “You had no right to leave.” He shouted.

     “New flash.” Gemma hissed, “You might want to get over yourself, because I have.” Alex growled and Luke lunged at her. Gemma took off running with Alex. She was frightened now, she knew he was possessive, but this was different. She ran toward the center of the park where people had gathered. There was safety in numbers.

     Gemma expected he would try to get her back at some point. But she knew she could outrun him Luke wasn’t into fitness. As she entered the clearing near the center of the park she heard footsteps behind her. Frightened that perhaps Luke had picked up running since she left. Gemma hastened her speed but someone suddenly grabbed her. She screamed, striking out at the person.

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