“I imagine you want the NDA signed before we get into the specifics.” I grabbed a pen out of my bag, started initializing each page.
Patrick laid his hand flat on the desk.
“Have you read it?”
“Yes,” I nodded.
“Every word?”
“Yes,” I rolled my eyes. His eyes grew wide. I tucked a piece of hair behind my ear, my focus narrowing to the signature line before me. “And I also know that I am on a probationary period. Ninety days where if something doesn’t mesh, you can fire me at any time. Or, I can leave at any time with no notice.”
Why did that thought make me sad?Being asked to leave before I took them down meant I failed. Failing was not an option.
I flipped to the final page, signed, and spun the pages in his direction. There was a line for a couple of signatures. He wasn’t one of them.
On the desk, he gathered and straightened the documents. He pressed a button on the surface to his right. The desk beeped.
“Collin?”
“Yes, boss.” Collin’s voice came through the speakers in the ceiling.
“Can you come in here, please?”
We sat across from each other, sizing each other up, waiting for Collin. He popped in a minute later.
“What can I do for you?” He stood next to his boss’s desk.
“This is Ms. Stand’s signed employment contract. Can you have it executed by HR and someone in the execut... On second thought. See if Mr. Grant is available and have him sign it.”
Patrick winked. I bit my bottom lip to keep from giggling.
Shoot. Why was this man so freakin charming?
“I’m on it.”
“We’ll have a copy for Ms. Stands before the end of the day.” Patrick was stern with Collin, but underneath it he respected him. I’d have to be careful what I shared with Collin, but he could also be a good source of information.
“Of course.”
He grabbed the documents and the folder, and then dashed out.
“I imagine signing employment contracts is a little below Mr. Grant's responsibilities.” I stated.
“Yeah, well, he seems to have taken a keen interest in you; it only seems natural for him to sign off on it.” Patrick opened a drawer to his left and pulled out a notebook. “Your question is valid. Rayna is relatively new with us, Tinley too. We haven’t redefined protocol with them in mind.” He handed me a notebook, leather-bound with lined paper. The Grant logo wasembossed in gold in the lower right-hand corner. “Consider that your first assignment. Come up with a plan.”
I looked up, surprised.
“You can use this to take some notes.”
I hugged it to my chest. A strange warmth swelled inside me. They needed me. At the FBI, I was a cog, a link in a chain I never got to see the end of. This was different. This felt like it mattered.
“Like now.” Patrick's head tilted in the cutest way.
“Oh, yeah, of course.” I took out my pen and turned to page one.
“As we discussed before, you will have two main objectives.” Patrick continued to give a general rundown on Grant Enterprises, The Quadrangle Hotels, and how the organization works from a security perspective. “Maybe create some training scenarios we can run with the team for practice.”
I scribbled some notes. “Wait–you guys run training scenarios? Where?”
