Page 19 of The Restoration Program

A blaring noise split the air, deafening her like she was standing next to the speakers at a heavy-metal concert. The sound seemed to be comingfromRyan.

A yelp ripped from her throat as she covered her ears and backpedaled, feet snagging in the cushion creases she had worked hard to avoid. She pivoted horrifically, the carpet rushing to meet her instead of the couch. Ryan’s hand shot forward, seizing her by the waist to break her fall. His sudden grasp had knocked the breath out of her, leaving her choking for words as she stared down at the carpet fibers.

“Shit, are you okay?” Ryan demanded, too startled to forget to keep his voice down.

He plucked her up to safety, making her stomach churn. Although being manhandled made her heart race as much as the fall, she felt a rush of appreciation for his grip. Perhaps sensing she might panic if he held her for much longer, he set her down in his lap. He paled when she immediately massaged her ribs.

“Did I hurt you?” he asked.

Truthfully, she wasn’t sure. She was still reeling from the sensation of his hand wrapped around her, but she couldn’t think with the ringtone blaring between them.

“Who is it?” Nicole asked loudly.

“I think it’s your office.”

Her heart lodged itself in her throat. “Answer it!” she shouted when Ryan continued to glance dumbly between her and his phone.

After a beat of hesitation, he brought the phone to his ear. “Hello?” He paused and pursed his lips. “Yeah, uh… I’m sorry for not getting back to you sooner. We just came home the other night, and it’s—” His face hardened. “Yes… Yes, I saw it in my account yesterday. We got it.”

While he spoke, she wobbled on his lap and carefully climbed down. His tight gaze followed her, one hand trailing beside her path to ensure she made it back to the cushion without breaking her neck.

“What’s in your account?” she asked.

He covered the bottom of his phone and didn’t quite look at her. “Your last paycheck.”

“Huh? Why would my money be inyouraccount?” She glared at the phone. “Who’s calling? Miller? Wilson? Let me talk to them! I need to explain—”

“There’s nothing to explain,” Ryan said, wincing. “I’ve talked to them plenty since the accident. I wanted to wait a few more days to discuss this with you. I… I didn’t know how to tell you.”

“Tell me what?”

Ryan bit his lip and uncovered the phone, lifting it back to his ear. “Mr. Wilson, you need to talk to her. Please, let me put her on.” Another pause, then he growled so fiercely that Nicole shuffled a few steps back. “Yes, itisnecessary! Jesus, it’s not like she’s an android or something! If you would see her, you’d know! Hell, justlistento her!”

Nicole’s hands shook. “Put him on speaker.”

He gave her an uncertain look, then nodded stiffly and set the phone at her feet. Straightening her shirt, she folded her hands and adopted a professional poise in hopes that it would keep her from getting hysterical.

Wilson’s voice cut in sharply from the phone. “We’re sorry for your loss, Mr. Northe, but we simply can’t—”

“Mr. Wilson? It’s m-me. Nicole.” She cleared her throat to rid her voice of its tremble. “I’m so sorry about not calling you as soon as I came home. I’m sure you can understand that things are a little hectic at the moment.”

Understatement of the century, considering she was less than a foot tall and had just finished crawling off her boyfriend’s lap like a kitten. Not to mention, she was listening to her boss give condolences about her untimely death.

“If you give me a few days to settle in,” she said, “we can schedule a call—or Ryan can even bring me into the office so we can work something out. There’s plenty of research and numbers I can manage from home. I can work with clients over conference calls, too. Really, it’ll be as if nothing—”

“Mr. Northe,” Wilson bit out. “We’ve made our position on this matter abundantly clear already. Our company will not get tangled in this NüPrint scheme.”

“But—”

“It’s stated clearly in Nicole’s official records that she tragically passed on March twenty-second. She was an exceptional coordinator during her short time working with us at Tyche Marketing, and her absence has been nothing short of painful. But I’m afraid we must move on. So again, we are truly sorry for your loss. Thank you for confirming that her final paycheck has been received. Our business is complete.”

Nicole sank to her knees, putting her face to the receiver. “But I’m not dead! I’m right here, Mr. Wilson,listen!”

There was a shuddering breath on the other side of the call. A pause. “Have a nice day, Mr. Northe.”

The line went dead. She stared in shock asCall Endedflashed across the screen. Sitting back on her heels, Nicole slowly lifted her blank gaze until she found Ryan’s eyes.

He dragged a hand down his face, puffing out a long sigh. “What an asshole. I’m so sorry, honey. I thought they’d come around after having some time to think about things.”