Hearts Under Construction. Diann Hunt

      Ellie had worked hard to prove herself in the past couple of years. In her opinion, the other salespeople didn’t seem to care as much about the company. It seemed logical for Jax to pick her for the position.

      Arriving at the coffeemaker, she poured herself a cup of the hot liquid. She had always liked the smell of coffee better than the actual taste, but like the masses, she had learned to acquire a tolerable acceptance of the brew. From the counter, a cream-filled doughnut called to her, but she ignored it, deciding her nervous stomach couldn’t handle it this morning.

      Turning from the doughnut, she leaned her back against the counter and took a sip from her mug. Ellie mentally reviewed her wardrobe and thought of the new clothes she might purchase. Her things were growing threadbare, after all. A slight movement in the hallway caught her attention. The stranger was walking toward her.

      She straightened herself, placed her mug on the counter, and turned to the man whose woodsy scent reached her before he did.

      “Good morning.” Tall and confident, he thrust his hand toward her. “I’m Cole Preston.” She liked the way he said that. Confident and…soothing. Definitely soothing. Like raindrops pattering against a rooftop on a chilly afternoon.

      She pulled out her best smile. “Ellie Williams.” Eyes the color of coffee beans gazed down at her. His warm hand dwarfed her own. Something about him made her want to snuggle into a blanket by a roaring campfire and sing “Kumbayah.”

      He nodded with recognition. “I’ve heard a lot of good things about you.”

      His comment surprised her. She wondered why Jax would talk about her to this man. Still, strains of “Kumbayah” persisted. “Oh?”

      “Um-hum. Jax says you’re a great employee.”

      They stood silent a moment while Ellie tried to figure out where this whole conversation was going.

      “Guess partners discuss such things.” His teeth sparkled like a toothpaste advertisement.

      She stared at him, wondering if she had heard right.

      He kept smiling. “I’ve just signed on as Jax’s new partner,” he announced, practically rocking on his heels. “I guess I shouldn’t have announced it until he does, but since you’re his right-hand gal, as he puts it, I thought I could tell you.”

      “Kumbayah” came to a warbling halt. “P-p-p-partner?”

      He shoved his hand into his pocket and nodded with an air of superiority. Before she could utter a word, Jax strolled up beside her. “Good, I see you’ve met Cole,” he said with a nod and a grin. Jax looked at Ellie, then Cole, then back to Ellie. He raised his eyebrows, his smile faded. “Everything okay?”

      “Everything’s fine,” she managed through clenched teeth.

      Cole just stood there. Smiling. “I told her the news.”

      Jax gave a hesitant nod. “Oh.”

      Cole kept smiling.

      Ellie wanted to cry, but Cole’s gloating pushed her to anger, keeping her tears in check.

      “Do we have a meeting, Ellie?” Jax asked, glancing at his watch.

      “Yes,” Ellie said with as bright a tone as she could muster.

      “Could we scoot that back an hour? I have a few things to attend to.”

      “Sure, no problem.” No hurry to get to the meeting now. Ellie reached deep within herself for some semblance of civility and turned to the new partner. “Well, Mr. Preston, welcome aboard.”

      “Please, call me Cole.”

      She wanted to call him something else all right, but Cole wasn’t it. “Cole,” she said with all the warmth of an iced mocha.

      Ellie made a beeline for the bathroom. Her hands trembled and her chin started to quiver. She couldn’t let anyone see her like this.

      Once inside the empty bathroom, she locked herself in a stall, allowing silent tears to drop. How could Jax betray her? Why didn’t he give her a chance? Father, I thought this was all settled. Her heart told her she had settled the matter. God had not. It took a few moments for her to swallow that revelation. Once again, she had jumped ahead of the Lord. Still, how could this not be the best thing for her? Hadn’t she earned it?

      What did her reading in I Samuel 15 say this morning? She strained to remember. Feeling puffed up with a victory in battle, King Saul decided he knew best and disobeyed the Word of the Lord.

      Pride bred disobedience.

      Like Saul, had Ellie taken matters into her own hands? She prayed a rote prayer for forgiveness, barely aware of the proud seed of bitterness that took root in a corner of her heart.

      She yanked some toilet paper from the roll and dabbed at her face. Thankful that the room was empty, she stepped out of the stall and checked her makeup in the mirror. Tidying her hair, she looked at her reflection. “Well, it’s time to buck up.” She took a deep breath and walked through the door.

      Morgan Somerville, another sales associate, approached. “Hey, Ellie, did you meet the new partner?”

      Ellie nodded and kept walking as if she had an important meeting. Which, of course, she did not. Her meeting wasn’t for another hour and the partnership news was already out.

      Morgan whistled. “He can be my boss any day of the week.”

      Ellie looked at her with a forced smile, then turned and walked toward her desk. She groaned when she realized she had left her mug in the kitchen. Jax and Cole had been standing near the counter by her mug when she left. She decided to get her spare mug from the drawer so she wouldn’t have to talk to them. Pulling out the bottom drawer of her desk, she reached in and lifted out a spare. Today, she decided, she needed her coffee more than ever. Mug in hand, she headed for the kitchen.

      She couldn’t understand why Jax hadn’t considered her for the position. Perhaps he had, but why then had he chosen Cole? She tried to deny her wounded pride. This would not be a simple hurdle to overcome. The more she thought about the whole thing, the angrier she got. With her mind fixed firmly on the matter, she didn’t notice someone else in the kitchen. Lost in thought, she all but plowed into the source of her distress and nearly bowled him over. Her coffee mug dropped from her hand, scattering into chunks of splintered fragments across the ceramic tile. As she teetered, Cole’s hands clamped around her upper arms. “Are you all right?”

      She wanted to plant her fists on her hips and say, “No, I’m not all right. If I were all right, my coffee mug would be in my hand, not shredded across the kitchen floor.” Instead she said with more calm than she felt, “I’m fine.” She brushed the flecks of white glass from her pantsuit. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking.” Okay, maybe she did know what she had been thinking. Confident she had picked off the last speck, she glanced up. Cole smiled. That unnerved her. “I’ll just get the broom and dustpan.”

      “Here, let me help you.” He followed her toward a kitchen closet.

      She hurried to the door ahead of him and said firmly, “Thank you, no.” She had lost enough dignity for one day and didn’t care to appear the helpless female.

      “Oh, the independent type. Remember, we’ll have to learn to work together.”

      Searching for, but not finding, a civil way to respond, she clamped her mouth shut.

      “Excuse me, Mr. Preston. Jax would like to see you in his office.” Alexandra Cassle, or Alex, as she preferred to be called, pasted on her most beautiful smile. Now there was a woman who never had to diet. Alex could eat a full plate of fettuccini smothered in Alfredo sauce every day of the week, and it would never affect her slender figure in the least.

      Ellie struggled to keep her thoughts Christian.

      Watching Cole look Alex over with appreciation, Ellie expected him