Chapter 7
Stellar Energy Corporate Office - Finance Unit
Extraordinary. Is the one word to describe last Sunday's reunion. All of Lucy’s troubles the previous night went down the drain the moment she saw Kate standing by the porch. She slapped her cheeks to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. And sucked in slow deep breath before getting out of her car to mask her giddiness.
Extraordinary. Because none of her troubles manifested that day. Kate must have been that lucky charm that kept her siblings at bay. None of Liam’s reprimand over her disinterest in his wedding or that of Lauren’s continuous positive reinforcement on her choice to endure working at Stellar. None of Lenny’s endless attempts at haggling his version of the truth on the SuperNova incident. Even the beast that is her father’s fury was nonexistent.
Extraordinary. How easy it was to let Kate in and see her in one of her emotional states not even her family gets to see often. The look in Kate's eyes when she brushed her tears away. It was not a look of pity or sorry or ‘you’re pathetic for crying’ look. Kate looked at her like she understood her pain. The gnawing pain of losing someone you love so dearly.
Extraordinary. How Kate can summon a kaleidoscope of butterflies to flutter in unison in the pit of her belly at the slightest touch of their skin. There’s no doubt the swarm of butterflies are now permanent residents in her stomach. Waiting for the right moment to dance through her chest. She could’ve kissed Kate right after Carmen’s hasty exit from the backyard but the magic of the moment was gone and she didn’t want to force Kate into it. Even if Lucy heard her clearly giving her consent.
It could’ve been the start of something extraordinary. If only Kate is not leaving Fort Worth soon. Not that it matters. Lucy will find her way to her. But Kate already made it clear that she didn’t want a relationship. Sure, there’s that undeniable electrifying attraction between them. But even if her heart is all set to take the risk and do something about it, the last thing Lucy wanted was to put Kate in an uncomfortable situation.
Monday after lunch with the Taras, Kate was back at evading Lucy. She found herself alone once again on the elevator ride to the finance unit. Kate was not by her desk when she dropped the cup of chagaccino. All the accounts she wanted Lucy to look into were sent through emails. When Lucy came back from lunch break, she found Kate’s note on her table: I can buy my own cup of coffee. Thanks. -Kate R.
Lucy opted to try and talk to her at Boone’s the following morning but Kate was a no show. The rest of the day, Kate was occupied by an account that kept her walking to Jane’s office. That went on for another day. Lucy had set out of her desk to stop Kate on her tracks to Jane’s office and asked if she could help them with anything. Kate shook her head, pushed her chin up, continued walking and not once bothered to look at her. Ouch.. But God… How she missed Kate.
Lucy drank herself to sleep that night. She wants to respect Kate’s boundaries but she doesn’t like the cold shoulder treatment. So, she’s gonna give Kate the space she needs until she’s comfortable enough for them to have a proper conversation. And if friendship is truly their only middle ground, she’ll be content with it rather than not have anything with Kate at all.
On Friday morning, Lucy got called into Jane’s office. Worried at first for getting caught clocking in half an hour late for two consecutive days. She went in with the widest grin on her face instead. Kate was seated across Jane’s desk. Both women were waiting for her.
“Close the door, please, Lucy.” Jane uncrosses her legs. She rises from her seat and pulls down all the blinds surrounding her office.
“In trouble already? I know it’s two, thirty minutes tardy in a row. But shouldn’t I get a third one before a call for corrective action? I’m sorry. It’s been a rough couple of days,” Lucy sighs. Her eyes flitted around the room.
Jane offers a bemused smile. “You’re not in trouble. I wouldn’t even know you’ve been coming thirty minutes late if you haven’t said it.”
“Then why the closed door and the…” She points at the drawn down blinds.
Jane taps the backrest of a chair next to Kate. “Take a seat, Lucy,” she says, then circles back to her desk. Once seated, she pulls her chair closer to her desk. She leans forward and places her hands in a steeple. “Someone is stealing money from Stellar.”
It’s the reason Kate has been frequenting Jane’s office the whole week. Kate was able to trace the discrepancies on the company’s general ledgers from 2019 and she isn’t done yet. This is why Jane has called her in. It’s the same scheming account Lucy had accidentally discovered when Jane had finally let her loose to do actual forensic accounting before. Back then, Lucy had traced the discrepancies started in 2012. She was buried deep in the ledgers of 2014 when Lauren came from the legal department to collect her for a family emergency after the SuperNova drilling incident broke the news.
“I didn’t have the clearance to pursue this back then. Now that I do, I need both of you to work on this.” Jane shifts her eyes between them. Kate groans, unable to hide her disagreement on Jane’s proposition. “Is there a problem, Kate?”
Kate leans back in her seat and folds her arms across her chest. “All due respect, Jane. But I am efficient working alone.”
“It’s still four or five accounting ledgers in between, Kate. I want a second pair of equally efficient eyes on this.” Jane swings her chair to face Lucy. “What do you say, Lucy? Are you up for it?”
Lucy offers a frozen smile. “Yes, boss.”
“That settles it then.” Jane purses her lips. “Since this is a delicate matter… I want it done away from possible prying eyes. I can have the books open as part of a routine audit and you two can do it in the afternoon. Away from here.”
“I can do that. But away from... here?” Kate tilts her head and points her index fingers down the floor.
“How about Boone’s?” Lucy suggested
“The coffee shop?” Kate asks quizzically.
“It’s perfect. But the owner…” Jane says.
“Jesse is on a hunt for the best coffee bean somewhere for two weeks. I'll let him know. And will ask for an extension in case we’ll need more than two weeks.” Lucy assures them. “Uhhh, boss…”
“Yes, Lucy?”
“Does Lauren know?”
Jane shakes her head. “Not yet. Keep it between us until we know for sure, who’s doing it.”
— — —
Longhorns’ Fit and Alterations - Fort Worth, Texas
Unexpected. Is one word Kate Whistler is not used to. Sunday lunch with the Taras is everything she didn’t expect to happen. She came in prepared. All metaphorical knives sharpened and ready to be hurled at the perfect opportunity. Lenny’s piercing look on her from the moment they were introduced has thrown her off her game.
Unexpected. The lunch served to them was no ordinary meal. It was a grand feast. The warm bond among the Tara siblings was palpable the whole time despite whatever family drama they have. It’s the total opposite of what she has back home for the last six years. Whatever familial vibe she had over family meals died along with Noah.
Unexpected. Lenny’s question of where he met her. She had no idea where that came from. Where could he have seen her? And she would definitely remember if they met. So, she had to hurl one knife, ask a question or she’ll never get the answers she came for. Lenny’s face was ridden with guilt as he answered. Strike!
Unexpected. Lucy’s minute of grief over her mother’s death. She’s been carrying a false bravado all these time. Those tears in her eyes were enough to rock Kate’s mantra for that day: not to fall for any of Lucy’s charms. But at that moment, Lucy wasn’t charming. She was in deep pain.
And the most unexpected of all, Lucy’s blatant confidence in showing her siblings (and Carmen) that she cares for Kate. So confident. So proud. It made Kate lower her defenses and forget that in this life, the possibility of being ‘them’ is not acceptable. Even if they have this undeniable inexplicable pull towards them. ‘They’ can never be.
Kate was hell bent on going against whatever is that pull between them. Avoiding Lucy at all costs the following week. She loaded them both with financial accounts that will keep them glued on their respective desk. She musters all self control not to look or talk to Lucy every time she passes her by. She took extended breaks, chose the stairs over the elevators and fixed herself a cup of coffee at Abbie’s to get her daily dose of caffeine. And finally, opted for Jane’s consultation on the trail of the missing money she had uncovered. So she can have Jane open previous accounting books for her.
That move created an unexpected outcome. She and Lucy were teamed up in reviewing Stellar’s remaining general ledgers for two weeks. Two weeks. It’s impossible to come up with a report in two weeks for a considerable number of general ledgers. And she can’t be breathing the same air with Lucy in one room. So, she might eventually ask Ernie’s help on it and be done in two weeks. Be done with this undercover mission. Be done with what she really came for in Fort Worth. And be done with Lucy.
She pulls her car to park and crosses the street to Longhorn’s. Liam and Abbie’s chosen couturier. Her steps were frozen by the boutique’s entrance. She finds Lucy in the customers’ waiting area. Her curls are loose under her cap. The muscles and skin on her arms were exposed by a white tank top and a green flannel shirt tied around her waist.
“Hi!” The receptionist behind the front desk greets her. “Do you have an appointment with us today?”
Kate nods. She moves close to the front desk. Her eyes are still on Lucy. “Kate Rhewlits, for the Preston-Tara nuptials.” The receptionist confirms her appointment, directs her to sit on one of the couches and wait for her turn to get fitted. Kate takes a few steps forward.
Lucy is sitting on a long couch, leaning on her forearms, her eyes growing wider as she shares a laugh with a woman. The woman, whom Kate has never seen before, is sitting on a narrower couch beside Lucy. She tucks strands of her wavy raven hair behind her ears with her tanned fingers then playfully glides her left palm along Lucy’s right arm. Kate’s eyebrows shoot up her hairline. Her upper lip curls. Vomit threatened to form behind her throat.
I’ve had enough. “Hello, Lucy,” Kate says, aware of the twitch on her jaw.
Lucy’s eyes bug out, mouth falls open. “Kate!” She jumps off the couch. “You’re here. Of course. You’ll be here. Uhh… This is…” She extends her right arm on the woman seated on the narrow couch, “Marcella. She’s.. Uhh.. a family friend. We’re.. We’re just catching up.”
“Mmhhmm..” Kate folds her arms across her chest.
“Uhm.. Marcie, this is Kate.” Lucy extends both arms to Kate. “We work together. And she’s the bridesmaid.”
Marcella rises to Kate’s height. “Hi, Kate,” she gives Kate a small hand wave then tucks it behind her back. She reaches for Lucy’s right upper arm, slides her hand slowly, “it’s nice to see you again, Luce.” She grabs Lucy’s hand in a grip. “I’ll see you at the wedding then,” she lets go of Lucy’s hand, turns her head to Kate, grins at her, then walks out of Longhorns’.
— — —
Boone’s Cafe
Clocking in for work at Stellar has been a blast for Lucy since she re-trained with Kate. At first, her drop dead gorgeousness of a mentor was enough to keep her showing up at the finance unit. Later on, Kate’s ‘no special treatment’ rule and her trust in Lucy’s skills has amplified her self-confidence. The meeting with Jane last Friday though, was an exemption. Kate’s insistence to do the auditing on her own had once again purported the shadow of doubt in her chest. That hurts. A lot.
Now with Jane’s proposed resolution of the ‘missing money’, Lucy is more determined to find out who’s the culprit behind it and prove that she’s more than her last name. That she’s good enough to do this job.
Jesse’s office is spacious to fit one of the tables from the cafe. A white board is nailed on a wall opposite Jesse’s desk. Lucy had asked Allan’s help to move some of Jesse’s things to accommodate a table, two chairs and the boxes of files she and Kate will be working on for the next two weeks.
She finds Kate in Jesse’s office already hunched over three printed worksheets. Her eyeglasses wedged at the tip of her nose. Today, she’s wearing a powder blue floral long sleeve shirt tucked in a dark blue pencil cut skirt that snugs her shape perfectly from the waist down. Her blonde wavy hair pulled back in a half ponytail sways over her collarbones as she turns her neck between the printed worksheets spread on the table. The sight had completely taken Lucy’s breath away.
“Lucy!” Kate snaps her out of trance. “You’re not listening!”
Lucy’s eyes grew wide. “I am looki– listening. Respectf– intently.” She rolls her lips in and slightly twists her neck.
Kate eyes her skeptically. “This is why I would rather work alone. You’re not committed.”
Lucy waggles her eyebrows. “Trust me. I am a hundred percent committed. How are your arms? Are your wounds healing nicely?”
Kate rolls her eyes, “my arms are fine.” She clenches her teeth. “Why are you still standing there? Get to work. We’ve got a lot to cover and you’re already late.”
Lucy walks over to where Kate’s standing, “hello to you too, gorgeous! Here,” she hands her a cup, “chagaccino. The extra espresso shot might brighten up your mood.”
Kate takes the proffered cup. A note scribbled on it reads: Hello Kate, I missed you a latte.- Lucy
Lucy winks, pivots to the box labeled 2014, pulls out several papers and makes her way to sit at the end of the table across from her.
Kate turns her back on Lucy to hide a smile at the funny zing that shot through her chest from reading the note. Dammit!
— — —
The mushroom coffee had done wonders to Kate’s mood. Lucy let her take the lead on how they were to go through the task entrusted to them. They started putting together the data they have gathered individually. Looking through accounts receivables, earnings before interest, administrative expenses, tax, depreciation, supplies and other expenditures and stops only when they’ve heard a rumbling noise.
Lucy drops a pen on the table and covers her stomach with her hand. “I’m sorry, that’s loud.”
Kate laughs and checks the time on her watch.
"We have subs and sandwiches and serve breakfast all day at the cafe. What will you have?” Lucy asks. “Don’t worry about paying. I gotcha.”
“I can pay.”
“No. No. You’re doing Stellar a great service. Let me at least buy you a meal.”
“Ok… I’ve been wanting to try the ultimate clubhouse. And a blueberry muffin, please.”
“Great choice. I’ll be right back,” Lucy dashes out of Jesse’s office.
When Lucy returned, she took her seat beside Kate and they shared a tray of clubhouse sandwiches, blueberry muffins and cranberry oatmeal cookies.
“What’s your brother’s name?” Lucy asks in between bites.
Kate nearly chokes on a piece of her sandwich. “Noah…”
“He taught you well. That break on a fall from roller blading saved your pretty face.” Lucy snorts.
Kate grimaces. “I’d rather have the bruises than get a nasty bump on my head.”
“That’s what the helmet is for.”
“I know.” Kate smiles brightly, warmth spreading across her chest. “It’s probably muscle memory by now. We don’t use helmets in street hockey. Noah made fun of me getting head bumps. There was a time I got knocked out and he got scared I’ll never wake up. So, he taught me ways on how to break a fall and bought me a helmet for the next game.”
“You should do that more often,” Lucy grins, pointing her chin at Kate.
Kate pats her head. “Wear a helmet?”
“Smiling.” Lucy lays her hand on Kate’s back. “It really looks good on you.”
— — —
Kate’s admiration for Lucy’s determination on the task at hand has doubled over the few days they’ve been working together. Once Lucy starts pulling out files from the boxes, her game is on. Only taking a breather to eat or make a quick trip to the bathroom. There are moments, like now, Kate catches Lucy’s lingering gazes at her that get her cheeks hot and that pesky zing swishing through her chest again.
“What got you into accounting?” Lucy asks, breaking the sudden awkward silence between them. “You look more of a lawyer to me than a financial analyst.”
A grin grew on Kate’s face. “It’s easy. Mundane and I’m good at it. What made you think I look like a lawyer?”
“Are you fishing out for compliments?” Lucy chuckles.
Kate thrusts her chest then dips her head on her right shoulder.
“Well, you seem to have a wealthy knowledge of contract laws, tax law, security law and the likes and you don’t mind sitting all day surrounded by a bunch of business files and looking good while you’re at it.” Lucy winks. “It’s probably a few more units but you’ll be a perfect addition to the legal team. Stellar pays them a lot too.”
You’re giving me a reason to stay, aren’t you? “I think I’m done with school and there are great things out there that money can’t buy.”
“Sure. Of course. But consider the possibilities, Kate. Whether here in Fort Worth or outside Texas, I promise you, it’ll be worth it.”
“Lucy, I’m still going—”
“Let’s continue, shall we?” Lucy cuts her off, deflecting. “Those boxes are waiting for us.”
By the end of the week, Kate and Lucy were able to make a breakthrough in their joint task. They’ve singled out an invoice, Charlie One Manufacturing, a shell company that was used to funnel out expenses from Stellar. They’ve found a suspicious pattern of numbers printed as ‘amount paid’ on the invoice for every payment made out to it.
Kate was wrapping up on the final pages of a ledger when a roll of paper hit her on the forehead. “What the hell…” She lifts her head in time to see another ball of paper landing on her nose. “Lucy! What is wrong with you?!”
Lucy’s holding her belly in laughter. “You’re wrinkling your forehead too much. It's gonna start forming permanent lines.”
Kate glares at her. “Did you find anything—”
Riiiiing! Riiiiing!
Lucy raises her right index finger and answers her phone. “Hey, Marcie! What’s up?” Lucy leaves her seat. “No. No. Not a bad time. I’m on break. What can I do for you?”
Kate growls as Lucy takes the call outside. She mutters, “hey, Marshie. Wasshup?” then she pushes her tongue out as if she's gonna throw up.
By the time Lucy was back from her phone call, Kate’s foul mood was evident. She’s flipping pages of files, almost tearing them off the binder. Slamming books on the table. Clicking the pen ever so often it could break. The crease on her forehead went deeper.
Lucy crosses the gap between them, cups Kate’s face and rubs her thumbs along Kate’s forehead. “I’m sorry. If you’re really pissed at me, I can ask Jane to give this to Hina or BamBam.”
Kate shakes her head quickly. “No!” It’s not about work.
“No?!” Lucy drops her hands on her side. “Then why are you mad?”
“I’m not mad.” Kate bites her cheek. “Just, hungry. We should eat.”
“Ohh..kay. You should’ve said so,” Lucy takes a step back. “Geez! And I thought I’m the only one who goes feral when hungry.” Lucy throws her hands in the air as she walks out of Jesse’s office.
Once Lucy is out, Kate slaps her cheeks, plants her elbows on the table and screams in her head. I’m not…? I’m not! No... No... No!
— — —