Free Flash by Jayne Ann Krentz

smiled. “Hello, Eleanor.”
Wow
. She was on a first-name basis with the woman who would very likely be the next governor of the state, she thought. A first-name basis with the woman who might well become president. “I was just about to leave. I know you folks are busy. I only stopped by to talk to Todd for a few minutes.”
    Eleanor smiled her easy, charming smile as she took her seat. “Todd tells me your new business partner finally arrived in town this afternoon. I understand he’s very big-time and low-profile. That’s usually a dangerous combination. What’s the verdict?”
    Olivia mentally crossed her fingers behind her back. “No sweat. I can handle him.”

7

    â€œWhat the hell do you think you’re doing, Jasper Sloan?” Olivia slammed the door of Glow’s executive suite and whirled to face him. “How dare you fire Melwood Gill? He’s run the Glow accounting department for longer than I can remember.”
    Slowly, deliberately, Jasper put down the marketing report he had been examining. He set it aside. It was the only document on his otherwise pristine desk.
    It had been three days since he had met Olivia at the Light Fantastic studio. Nothing had changed, he decided. If anything, the impact she made on his long-dormant libido this time around was stronger than it had been the last time.
    Maybe it was the temper, he thought, trying to be analytical. It did things to her hazel-green eyes, made them even more vivid. It affected her cheeks, too. They were flushed. She glowed brighter than the new generation of experimental electroluminescent devices he had examined that morning in the new R&D lab.
    The overhead lights danced on the red in her auburn hair. She wore another pair of flowing menswear trousers, gleaming oxfords with chunky stacked heels, and a rakish pinstripe jacket. She looked as though she had just stepped out of a 1930s gangster film. Fortunately he could tell from the fit of her jacket that she was not wearing a concealed shoulder holster.
    Energy crackled in the air. He wondered again if Olivia was oblivious, or if she was just very good at concealing her reactions.
    â€œI did not fire Gill,” Jasper said. “I transferred him to a different position within the department.”
    â€œBut he’s always been the head of accounting and the chief financial officer. Transferring him to a lower-level position is the same as firing him.”
    â€œNo, it’s not the same thing. He’ll know he’s fired if he finds himself on the street looking for another job.”
    She gave him a fulminating glare. “He’d never find one at his age. You know how much discrimination there is against older workers.”
    â€œRelax. I’m not letting him go. Not yet, at any rate. But I want someone else running that department.”
    She came to a halt in front of the desk and crossed her arms beneath her high breasts. “Why? What’s wrong with Melwood?”
    â€œSit down, Olivia.”
    She made no move to take the chair he indicated. “Rollie used to say that no one knew Glow the way Melwood did.”
    â€œThat may have been true at one time. But things change.” Jasper opened a drawer and removed one of the financial printouts he had ordered from the accounting department. “From the looks of these, I’d say they started changing around here about three or four months ago.”
    She tapped her fingers on her arms and shot a wary glance at the printout. “What do you mean?”
    â€œI’m referring to the fact that these reports from accounting are out of date and somewhat less than accurate.”
    Her eyes widened. “Are you accusing Melwood Gill of incompetence?”
    â€œI’m not accusing him of anything.” Jasper decided not to mention the suspicions that were beginning to take shape in his mind. “I’m saying I need someone in charge down there in