Free Home Is Where the Heart Is (Welcome To Redemption) by Donna Marie Rogers Page A

with Drew last night? You two seemed to be getting along when I left. Which, by the way, is why I left.”
    “Mind your own business.”
    “PMS?”
    “Do you want to get slapped?”
    Matt chuckled. “Okay, okay, I’ll quit. I’m just worried about you, Lin.”
    She softened. “I’m fine, really. I woke up with a killer headache, and the ibuprofen hasn’t kicked in yet.”
    “Do you want me to drive you to the plant? Jenny’ll be here in half an hour and Carrie can handle this place by herself blindfolded.”
    “I appreciate the offer, but no. Again, I’m fine.”
    “Do you remember how to get there?” he pressed.
    “I do. But if I forget, the new Caddy has built-in navigation.”
    “Good. Just remember to watch for that first left after the bridge. It’s a little difficult to spot the first time. And give me a call after you meet with the plant manager. I’m curious to know what you think of him.”
    Matt’s smile was oddly self-satisfied.
    “I will,” she promised. “See you later.”
    The plant was roughly a twenty minute ride north of Redemption, and Lindy used that time to focus on business and exorcise a certain jackass from her mind. She’d cried a few tears, tossed and turned most of the night, and now she was done. Period.
    The lot sat nearly empty since they only had a skeleton crew working at the moment. Once the plant reopened, which they estimated to be May 1 st , it would take over three hundred employees to run it twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Matt had hired most of the upper management team, and as soon as Lindy made sure everything was running on course, she’d hire a full personnel team to help her fill the rest of the positions. Already, she had close to five hundred applicants, many who’d sent their resumes via email.
    Lindy parked in the small lot next to the offices and glanced around with reluctant admiration as she carefully made her way across the snow-packed blacktop. Clear blue skies blanketed snow-covered pine trees for as far as the eye could see, giving the area an almost storybook enchantment. And that fresh air...she took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and frowned. Damn, she was going to miss fresh air when she headed back to the city of smog.
    She unlocked the security door and stepped inside the office foyer, anxious to meet the plant manager Matt was so proud of himself for hiring. She tossed back the last swallow of her espresso macchiato, dropped the cup in the lobby trash can, and stopped to take another deep breath—this one to calm her frazzled nerves. She wondered if the plant manager was even in yet. Funny, Matt forgot to mention the guy’s name, and she’d been too preoccupied to ask.
    “Lindy?”
    The familiar, high-pitched feminine voice came from her right. Lindy spun around and racked her brain as a gorgeous brunette strode her way, hand outstretched, smiling from ear to ear. Suddenly, it dawned on her. “Bernie?”
    “I wasn’t expecting you until next week!” Bernadette Mitchell, Lindy’s new executive assistant, clasped her hand and nearly pumped her arm off. “It’s so great to finally meet you in person.”
    Lindy smiled with genuine pleasure, liking the spunky woman immediately. Bernie didn’t look anything like she’d imagined. Somehow she’d pictured a blonde with a beehive hairdo and big glasses.
    “It’s nice to meet you, too. And I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I was arriving early. It was sort of a last minute decision.”
    Her worries were quickly waved away. “Please, no problem at all. So, what are your plans for today? Want me to start setting up interviews?”
    “I’d be grateful if you did, thank you. But first I need to hire you a couple of assistants, so set those up first.”
    Bernie grinned. “Much appreciated.”
    “I’m about to go meet with the plant manager, then I have some running around to do. Any chance we can meet for dinner tonight? My treat.”
    “I’d love that, though you don’t