“No. She hasn’t been involved in the daily operation of this place for years. Besides, she and I don’t speak.” His thick fingers drummed on the desk three times. “Are you willing to speak to me after I pissed you off a few minutes ago?”
Such a question must’ve pricked his pride, but Jaye saw no bitterness within the cobalt flecks of his blue eyes. She rose from her chair. “You didn’t hold a grudge when I hit you in the groin, so it’s only fair I don’t hold a grudge now.”
He extended his hand, palm up.
Jaye glanced at the smudge of smoke darkening the base of his thumb and slid her palm into his. Warmth pooled in the well of his hand, a welcome counterpoint to her cold office. A faint callous roughened his skin—proof he worked hard at his craft. Now that her hand was in his, a secret thrill coiled up her arm.
His long fingers delivered a gentle squeeze. “I owe you, Jaye.”
“No, you don’t. This one is on the house.” She followed him into Nick’s office and settled into the chair beside his. “What was your original password?”
“Blakeglass. One word. No caps.”
“Try it again. I want to see the error message.” She studied the results and sighed. “I’m afraid you’re right. The password has changed.”
“I’ve tried every variation of blakeglass I can come up with.” Mitch looked at her. “Nothing worked.”
This close, she could see the grief just below the surface of his gaze. An answering twinge pierced her chest. “Did you try the original password with a combination of numbers? Maybe a birthday or the year the factory was built?”
They spent a half hour sifting through a number of possibilities. Jaye was able to stop the software from locking them out, but the error message stayed on the screen.
Mitch rubbed his hands down his face. “My father has never changed the password. Why now?”
“Some software updates require users to improve their passwords in order to cut down on the chances a hacker can access your information. Perhaps that’s why he changed the password.” She stood to stretch. Noticing the rigid set of Mitch’s spine, she placed one palm against his back.
He glanced over his shoulder. “God, I’m glad you’re here.”
Moved by his heartfelt admission, she gave the ridge of muscle between his neck and shoulder a reassuring squeeze. Beneath the soft red cotton of his t-shirt, she could feel the whipcord strength of his upper back. He possessed a solid heft unlike any of the slender geeks she normally worked with, but salivating over his muscled torso wouldn’t do either of them any good.
She paced between a filing cabinet and the door. “High tech programmers like me use passwords which contain a mixture of letters, symbols, and numbers. We’re so obsessed with preventing anyone from hacking into our systems, we come up with complicated passwords. Laymen, on the other hand, pick passwords with meaning so they’re easy to remember.”
“Makes sense.” Mitch rested his elbows on his knees.
The avid way his gaze followed her made her feel like every ounce of his formidable energy was focused on her.
Warmth unfurled inside her. This man was listening to every word she said, something her father never did. She came to a standstill by the window and gazed at the field. With the morning sun behind the clouds, the long rye grass looked a faded blonde, like a pageant queen inching her way into the winter of her beauty. The scene was breathtaking. No wonder this place was so important to Mitch.
The notion sparked an idea. “What’s the most important thing to Nick right now?”
“Elise.” He raised an eyebrow. “Do you think that’s the new password?”
“Maybe.”
Mitch typed Elise and hit return.
The menu sprang onto the screen. He spun the chair and grabbed her waist. “It worked!”
She felt herself being pulled toward his lap, but his hands abruptly lowered to the desk.
“Now comes the moment of truth.” Mitch accessed the file.
Not wanting to view the company’s financial data, Jaye stood by the filing cabinet. “I’ll wait a minute in case you have any questions.”
The light from the monitor painted his solemn expression in blues and greens. Mitch cursed softly. “You told me you researched Blake Glassware online. Is there something I should know?”
“The Buffalo News reported someone was interested in buying Blake Glassware.” A prick of guilt needled her for not telling him this sooner. “The article was printed in August.”
Mitch leaned back in the chair with a gruff laugh. “Let me guess. Jack Burke.”
“How did you know?”
He slid one hand over his short pelt of blond hair. “Jack’s offered to buy our factory for years. Every so often, he proposes to Dad like some lovesick suitor.”
“Nick said he thought about taking Jack up on his offer this time around.”
Mitch’s mouth formed a tight line. “Instead of looking for easy ways out, Dad should be paying the bills to keep us in business.”
“You can fix this,” she offered, believing every word.
He looked at her, his expression grave. “Tell me what we owe you so I can set aside enough money to pay you at the end of your contract.”
She thought of the arrangement and shook her head. “Your father asked me to keep the terms of our contract confidential.”
He gestured at the mound of paperwork in front of him. “Your contract is somewhere in this mess. I’ll find it.”
“Do what you have to do. I can’t break my promise to your father.”
Mitch glowered from under lowered brows. “I’m not sure he deserves such loyalty.”
“Maybe not, but you do.” She took a long breath, unable to keep the truth inside any longer. “You’re the soul of Blake Glassware, which is why every one of your employees is glad to be here…including me.”
“I’ve let you all down.” He scowled at the unopened letters scattered across the desk. “I knew my father hated paying the bills, yet I refused to
