Richard
"Perhaps he's nervous of you?"
"Me?"
"Yes, you. He knows perfectly well that you could dismiss him on the spot."
I huff. “I don't need to dismiss him. He has no contract yet. It's not signed."
“No?"
“No. I held off when I first began to sense something was wrong. If I ordered James out of the building right now, he'd have no comeback at all."
“And you wonder why he might be nervous? He must have put a lot of work into what he's done for you."
“Yes, he has. And that's what's at the forefront of my mind. James may be a loser at judging people, but as engineer-architect, he's phenomenal."
She smiles. “So, are you going to tell him that? That you're keeping him?"
I take a pace or two, then sniff. “Yes, but not yet. It'll do him good to sweat awhile."
“There's no real harm do
