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‘Oh. And if James McCarthy has anything set up, like any info packs or conference deals for client meetings, let me know. I got those slides you sent through and they were very useful. Or I assume they will be. My work brain has gone a little soft recently.’
‘I’m actually, probably, going to be meeting up with James for a coffee tomorrow, so I’ll ask him then.’
‘Really?’ Her tone is pure shock. ‘How did you finagle that?’
‘There was no finagle-ing involved. I talked to him after his presentation, he talked to me after mine.’
‘Does he still wear jackets with the patches on the elbows? He always reminded me of that nerdy linguist guy from the animated film. You know the one?’
‘Yes to both.’
Samantha laughs. ‘I guess academia never goes out of style. Hope he’s not trying to poach you from us!’
‘Uh … No? No.’ Is it poaching if she’s the one pursuing a position with his company?
Samantha hums. ‘That’s not a comforting response.’
‘Sorry. He’s not trying to poach me. But, um …’ Jules clenches and unclenches her hand. Should she go for broke? Make this a Jules-takes-big-risks day? She’s had a one hundred per cent success rate so far.
‘Jules?’ Samantha prompts.
‘I am thinking of looking for another job,’ she rushes out. ‘Leaving Infinity.’
The silence on the other end of the line quickly cuts through the momentum of her announcement, and fill-in-the-silence Jules emerges.
‘I mean, obviously I’m not handing in my notice right now. But I was thinking, when you get back full-time, once you find your feet again, I’ll let Patricia know. It’s not because—I’ve loved working at Infinity, really, but I’ve been there for almost seven years now, you know, there’s not—’
‘Jules, hey. Jules. Stop.’
She sucks a breath in past the lump in her throat and holds it.
‘You sound worried,’ Samantha says. ‘Honestly, I’ve been waiting for you to tell me this for a while.’
‘You have?’ Jules folds her arm around her torso and squeezes.
‘Yes. I can tell you’ve been restless.’
Jules lets the breath go finally. ‘Why didn’t you say anything?’
‘I didn’t want you to feel like I was forcing you out. Besides, you’re a great employee and a real asset to the team. Losing you will be tough. But I don’t want you sticking around if you don’t want to. There’s no faster way to kill passion or enthusiasm.’
Jules exhales and slumps back into her seat. Samantha’s words are a year too late. She already feels that way, and now she’s wondering if she should’ve had this conversation ages ago and saved herself the tension and energy depletion. And resorting to reading erotica at work.
‘Thank you, Samantha.’
‘No worries. Thank you for giving me the heads up. And to save you from asking, I will very happily provide a letter of recommendation for you.’
‘You’re amazing.’
‘I know,’ she laughs. ‘Enjoy the rest of the conference. I know I’ve still got another while of maternity leave but when you get back to Canberra, let’s grab a coffee and chat. It’ll be my baby break for the day.’
Jules hangs up and stares at her phone. She told her boss she was thinking of resigning and the sky didn’t shatter around her. She got her blessing, and the promise of a recommendation letter. Holy shit. That’s two-for-two now.
She hopes her success rate holds steady after her confession to Cameron.
Chapter 25
Cameron checks his outfit in the bathroom mirror one more time. Buttons all done up. Tie straight. Collar flat. His hair is sitting neatly and his jaw is clean-shaven. He takes a long breath in through his nose, then pushes the air out slowly through his lips.
