AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I’m her boss, apparently, though I can’t exactly remember hiring her. She’s probably new. I do believe HR recently hired a few new people to the Shipping Department. I have only a vague recollection of seeing her around, perhaps in the hallway once or twice.
“I have some sort of… um… bad news,” she whispers.
“Speak up.” I don’t have time to stand here, straining to hear her. I have a massive to-do list today, plus that big meeting with my designers at noon. And so much research on trends to catch up on. Research that Amanda was supposed to send me, which I have not yet seen in my inbox.
This woman before me… she’s making me feel impatient. Her long pauses feel extra drawn out, given the work I feel piling up on my shoulders as we speak.
I clench my jaw and resist the urge to snap my fingers.
Hurry up already.
Get to the point.
Time is money, and we’re losing too much of it right now.
Though the tips of my fingers itch, I don’t snap like I want to. I heard her call me a monster already. No need to reinforce the label by acting like a jerk. With great effort, I push down my impatience.
She swallows hard, then slides the cell phone across her messy and cluttered desk toward me. Next, she scoots the tablet forward. “Your assistant walked out about ten minutes ago. I think she quit for good. At least, it sounded that way.” She glances nervously over at Elizabeth Rixon, seated beside her.
Elizabeth, I know, at least. She came highly recommended, and she’s met with me once a week since she started. Her Human Resources updates are always succinct, brisk, and efficient, which I appreciate.
“Elizabeth, what’s going on?” I ask.
“It’s like Gwen is saying, Mr. Benson. Sorry to be the ones to give you the news. Amanda Lackey walked out of here minutes ago after telling all of us her intentions to quit. I can reach out to her to confirm and get an official notice, but I believe she meant every word of it. We should move forward as though she’s not coming back.”
I swallow down a curse word.
I am not a guy who gets slowed down by obstacles like this. In my experience, it’s better to do exactly as my Head of HR suggests and move forward.
“Hire a replacement,” I say.
Immediately, a bunch of worries bubble up. Amanda Lackey wasn’t good at her job, but she did juggle a lot of things all at once. Now I feel those balls dropping out of the air, bouncing chaotically around me.
I hate chaos.
The research is for the clothing design meeting. Where is it?
Did she mail out Vanessa’s swimsuit, like I asked?
What’s the status of this week’s podcast editing? Did she contact Pete, or must I delegate that to someone else?
I like to be on top of things. I can’t stand when plans go awry. Amanda was supposed to handle all of those things. And now… what? Getting a replacement on board and trained up will take at least twenty-four hours.
Maybe longer.
The cell phone that the timid woman pushed toward me starts to ring.
I wait for her to answer it again.
She actually did well on the phone, her long pauses aside. She was polite and friendly and seemed to handle the incoming issue regarding my travel plans competently.
That’s more than I can say for Amanda, who often had a negative attitude when on the phone, as if every call was ruining her day. That always irked me. Answering that phone was her job. What I paid her for. She should have owned it and not gotten so offended every time it rang.
The shy, messy-haired woman peers wide-eyed at the phone.
What did Elizabeth call her?
Gwen, I think.
