Break the Rules (The Flanagan Sisters Book 1) Read Online Free Page B

boss. In one carefree moment
she’d broken both her dating rules. This was why she had the damned rules in
the first place.
    Pushing
aside her shock and regret, Bridget stepped forward. She didn’t have time for
self-pity now. She needed to act professionally, and the minute she got Jack
alone, she had to swear him to secrecy. Saturday night never happened.
    She
smiled, her hand outstretched. “Nice to meet you.”
    * * *
    Jack
took Bridget’s hand automatically, shaking it as he tried to process what he
was seeing. The gorgeous, feisty woman who had captured his thoughts all of
yesterday was now standing in front of him, and she was part of his new team.
    “Likewise,”
he replied.
    Her
hair was tied back in a messy bun and she was wearing a high-visibility yellow
long-sleeved shirt with cargo pants and steel-toed boots. Not the sexiest
attire, but she made it look good.
    In
the next breath he remembered part of the conversation they’d had on Saturday
night. She’d been angry about not getting the job she’d applied for. His job.
    Shit,
this was messy.
    Why
hadn’t Anthony mentioned that one of his team had applied for the job? Surely
he knew there could be disgruntled feelings Jack should be aware of.
    “I’ll
leave you to bring Jack up to date with the safety department,” Anthony said.
“And I’ll see you at the manager’s meeting this
afternoon, Jack.”
    He
acknowledged Anthony with a nod as he left and then turned back to Bridget. She
brushed past him and closed her office door.
    “You
can’t tell anyone about Saturday night,” she said. Her eyes were fierce.
    “No, of course not.” He wasn’t the type to kiss and tell.
    “Good.
It never happened. We need to pretend we don’t know each other.”
    He
frowned. “Why?”
    “It
won’t work. People talk.”
    “It’s
all right, Bridget. Colleagues get involved all the time.”
    “Not
me. I have my rules.”
    That’s
right. Her second rule was not to date co-workers. Jack hadn’t given it much
thought, hadn’t imagined it would be a problem. He smiled, trying to make it as
relaxed and casual as he could. “You broke one rule on the weekend.”
    “And
look where it got me.” She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Jack. I won’t deny I
enjoyed Saturday night, but it can’t go any further. I won’t break my second
rule.” As if sure of his acceptance, she indicated the small meeting table in
her room. “Have a seat. I’ve written a short report on the latest issues.” She
handed him a document before opening her door and calling, “Ken, department
meeting in half an hour. Can you book a room and tell the others? I’ll
introduce our new boss then.”
    “Sure
thing, Bridge,” came the reply.
    Bridget
came back inside and closed the door behind her. “If I leave it open, we’ll get
disturbed.”
    She
was very businesslike, not at all like the woman he’d met on the weekend, the woman he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about.
    He
couldn’t be quite so businesslike. “I think we need to talk more about the
other night.”
    “There’s
nothing more to talk about. I won’t date a colleague.”
    “What
if I’m not happy with that?”
    She
frowned at him. “Then you’ll have to learn to deal with it. We didn’t know we
were colleagues at the time. It can’t happen again.”
    But
that was the problem. He wanted it to happen again.
    “Now
let me explain what’s been happening in the department.”
    Jack
had no choice but to let the matter drop, for now. He would find out the reasons
behind her rules later. At the moment he had to focus on his new job.
    * * *
    By
the end of her overview, Jack felt sick. The safety situation in the plant was
appalling. The company safety audit had issued a number of corrective actions
at their last inspection, some of which were now urgent. The problem was they
only had a set amount of funds with which to fix the issues, and they all
seemed to be priority one to him. But despite the audit