[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
. Anytime you re ready to tell me whatI m here to actually do. I said,gesturing at my desk and computer. Ididn t get all dressed up for nothing. No. Anton chuckled, coming aroundthe side of my desk. You certainlydidn t. Continuing past the desk, heopened the door to his office andsauntered in.When he got to his desk, heglanced back at me where I hovered at thedoor. Anytime you re ready for me to tell you what you re actually here to do. He gestured at the chair in front of hisdesk and waited. I didn t realize we were playing tag, I muttered, just loud enough for him tohear.He smiled and fired up his laptop.Anton s office was posh if you wereinto the modern twist on 1960s cool.LikeIndia had said, it was a scene pulled fromMad Men, right down to the fancy crystalbottles of liquor displayed on a shelfbehind his desk.Like his little sister,Anton had expensive taste.I took a seat in the chair across fromhim and waited. Do you know much about what we dohere in this office? he asked, his eyes fixed on his laptop, all business.He couldflip the on and off mood switch as fast as Icould.Should I have done research? It wastoo late now. Nope. Super.Real intelligent-sounding, Lucy. I love an honest woman, he said, hiseyes flicking to me. And one who isn tashamed about it. From business to banter in twoseconds time.Anton was going to keepme guessing. And I love a man who getsto the point, I said, sometime today. Getting back to his laptop, he startedtyping. Here s the quick rundown onXavier Industries White Plains branch, he said, typing furiously.His fingers were almost a blur over that keyboard. We rea customer-support call center here.Wehave twenty employees and triage close toeight hundred calls a day. A call center? I was confused. Xavier Industries is a board gamedevelopment company, right? I couldhave sworn that was what Indie said. That s right, but developing,distributing, and selling the board gamesis only half the battle.The other half iskeeping those retailers and customershappy. His war with the keyboard cameto an end.Punching one final key, heleaned back in his high-backed leatherchair.Thank the heavens I wasn t majoring inbusiness, because this made no sense to me. Happy? Isn t that the reason they rebuying one of the games? So they ll be.happy? Yes, happiness is definitely a desiredside effect.However, humans as a specieshave this need to report or review or ventor share their opinion to someone whocares. He waved his hands beforefolding them over his desk. That s whatwe re here for. To care? Anton looked at me like my confusionwas cute. To pretend to care. Oh-kay, I said, shifting in my seat.Iunderstood why so many politicians camefrom business backgrounds.They d beenbullshitting their way to the top fordecades. And my job is to pretend to care? No, you won t be taking any of thecustomer calls.You re working for me. He leaned forward. So your job is toenthusiastically care. The more he said, the farther down therabbit hole I fell. Can you define care in basic jobduties? I asked. Like sharpeningpencils, making copies, that sort of thing? Sliding a drawer of his desk open,Anton dropped a thick folder in front ofme. For starters, I d like you to gothrough these call sheets and make note ofhow long each call lasted, along with howmany minutes the caller had to wait onhold before reaching an associate. I gawked at the folder it was larger than any college textbook I d ever seen. Is this supposed to take me all summer? That slow smile of Anton s slid backinto place. I ll give you until lunch. I was earning my pay here at XI.I d been sure I d been on the receivingend of a good deal, but I realized bylunchtime that it was Anton who d been onthe better receiving end.I didn t know how I did it, or who dslowed time down in order for me to get itdone, but I was on my last sheet of thatdictionary-size folder when Anton s doorwhooshed open. Lunchtime, he announced, slidinginto his jacket that had just enough sheento it for me to know it had cost a small fortune.Glancing at the time on my computer, Ifelt my eyes bulge.It was almost oneo clock. Oh, man.I m sorry, Anton.I gotso caught up in this project that I didn teven realize what time it was, I said,spinning in my chair to face him. What doyou normally get for lunch? I ll run outand grab it right now. His eyebrows knitted together like hewas insulted. If India found out I dreduced you, in any way, shape, or form,to a glorified coffee runner, she d skin meand leave me in the woods for the bears. I capped my pen and dropped it backinto the holder. And if you ever give meanother project like that and expect me tofinish it before the year is up, I might just do the same to you. I smiled sweetly. Have you talked to all your bosseslike this? he asked, leaning into my desk.I raised an eyebrow. Only the oneswho deserved it. Shaking his head, Anton motioned forthe door. Come on.Time for lunch. Huh? Another brilliant gem from themouth of Lucy Larson. Food.Sustenance.You.Me. Hemotioned to the door again. Now. Two things stopped me short fromaccepting Anton s invitation right then.The first being Jude.And the second beingJude.He was about as territorial as I was,and I knew I wouldn t have been okaywith another woman taking him to lunchon a whim. I think I ll stay and finish this up, Ilied. I brought a snack with me. Enough with the protesting already.You ve put up a good fight, but it suseless, because I always get what Iwant. Anton s eyes gleamed, while I feltmy temper switch begging to be flipped. Plus, it s a company tradition passeddown from my dad.Rule number two inthe business world: You always take anemployee out to lunch on their first day.That s just good business. There d been a lot of times in my lifewhen I d felt like an idiot.This being oneof those times.Hoping Anton didn t think Iwas acting like too much of a nut, I slidback into my heels and stood up. Far be it from me to stand in the way of time-honored traditions and goodbusiness, I said, grabbing my pursebefore coming around the desk.Anton had the door open and waswaiting.Almost everyone in cubicle citywas back from lunch, and just like thismorning, whenever I d looked up from myheap of paperwork, they were watchingme.Staring was perhaps the better word. I ll have my cell if anyone needs toget hold of me, Anton announced beforeclosing the door behind us. Don t worry.They ll get used to you in a few days
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]