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Chapter Three
Though the office didn’t open until 8:00 a.m. on Monday, Elizabeth chose to arrive a couple hours early. She wanted to make a good impression and be settled in her over-sized office before anyone else arrived.
It’s location on the 8th floor provided her with an excellent view of Lake Michigan. The bright morning sun beaming through the window warmed her as it boldly reflected off the lake, and mesmerized her as her mind raced to mentally organize her day.
Much to her delight, she managed to get her office in order before the others clocked in. Her pencils were freshly sharpened and placed neatly in the leather holder along with the pens, four pencils and four pens. And her files were all stowed tidily in the file cabinets, categorized by color, and labeled to perfection.
She glanced at herself in the large decorative mirror hanging on her office wall, adjusted her hairclips, tucking the stragglers back into place, then she smoothed out her long-sleeved, double breasted, black silk suit. Taking note of a smudge spanning the tip of her right black leather pump, she plucked a tissue from the box in her desk drawer and brushed it lightly across her shoe until the smudge disappeared.
As she took another glance out the window at the relaxing scenery, she drew in a couple of slow, deep breaths, and let them out.
She was ready for her new beginning in the Chicago office. Go time.
A short, stout, woman, wearing a drab brown wrinkled suit, stepped off the elevator. She carried a doughnut box in one hand.
“Ms. Shaw, I presume, I’m Darcy, your assistant. It’s so nice to meet you.” The woman extended her hand toward her.
“It’s nice to meet you, too, and please, call me Elizabeth.”
The unprofessional looking woman set the box on her reception desk, opened it, and dug into one of the fruit-filled pastries.
“Do we normally eat in the reception area where our clients can see us?” Elizabeth asked, intentionally allowing the disapproving tone to radiate in her voice.
Darcy’s sheepish gaze returned to her. “Ah, well, we have in the past, but we can change that if you want us to. We do have a lunch room right down the hall.”
The woman quickly covered the pastries, picked up the box, and headed for the corridor.
“Good morning,” sounded a male voice from behind Elizabeth.
She spun around, nearly twisting off of her feet. “Mr. Kent, I didn’t hear you come in. How are you this morning?”
He smiled pleasantly. “Great. I’m glad you’re finally here. I was beginning to think the New York office wasn’t going to send you my way. Why don’t you take an hour or so to get settled with your assistant, and then come to my office so we can get you up to speed on your client accounts?” His smile widened. “You have no idea how happy I am to get some help around here, especially the kind I know I can trust to do a good job.”
Sheer excitement shot through her veins at the sound of his compliment. She nodded and watched the distinguished, gray-haired gentleman walk down the hallway. She had met with Mr. Kent on several occasions when he’d visited the New York office, and she’d been immediately impressed by his self-assurance, intelligence, and professionalism, yet he was slightly different from the other executives. Though he possessed the same go-getter qualities as they did, he didn’t seem to have the same brazen demeanor as the other Managing Directors. It wasn’t that he was soft; he just seemed more personable, and principled. She desired to be just like him in all aspects, but knew she couldn’t. Unlike a man, a personable woman in the workplace would be viewed as soft and weak.
After spending a short period of time with Darcy, detailing what was expected as her assistant, and then covering office policies and procedures, Elizabeth reaffirmed her initial impression of her assistant. The woman was unprofessional and unorganized. And for the life of her, she couldn’t help but wonder how her predecessor, Maddie, fared with the woman.
Maybe with some training, she’ll improve.
Once Elizabeth was situated with her assistant, she walked down the long, narrow hall toward Mr. Kent’s office, taking note of all the other offices and staff along the way. She paused at his assistant’s desk and introduced herself.
Ms. Bennett wore an expensive looking navy blue suit and designer-framed glasses. Her desk was tidy, and she carried herself in a polite, professional manner.
Now that’s the way an assistant and her area should look.
Elizabeth entered her boss’ office and took a seat on one of the leather chairs on the opposite side of the elegant cherry-wood desk at which he sat. Shooting a glance around his sophisticated office, she knew he’d be the ideal mentor for her, and she couldn’t be happier.
