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“Okay, then I’ll just tell you. You give off this bad energy. I felt it when I had that botched interview with you on Monday, and I feel it now while I’m stuck in this elevator. The energy you give me, I pretty much toss it right back at you. That’s why you think I’m annoyed all the time, but I’m really not.”
“What makes you think the energy I’m giving you is bad?”
“What else is it if it’s not bad?”
I smile.
She rolls her beautiful, dark brown eyes and says, “Listen…I don’t know you, and you don’t know me. Let’s just keep it that way.”
“I would tend to agree, but we have to work together. You’re my employee. I need to be able to talk to you whenever and wherever I need to.”
“Really, because when I took the job, you said I wouldn’t be working with you—”
“No, what I said was you wouldn’t be working directly with me, and you won’t be. I have a meeting with your team once a week. That’s probably the only time you’ll see me.”
“Yeah, that and whenever you decide to wait for me outside the building or trap me in an elevator.”
I smile and slide my left hand into my pocket. “You’ll have to learn to work with me, Ms. Bailey.”
She shakes her head, releases a deep sigh, and says, “Okay, fine. What else?”
I press the button to get the elevator going again and before we get to her floor, I say, “You could at least be cordial.”
She smirks. “You sound like a hypocrite.”
“How so?”
“How are you asking me to be cordial when you’re not cordial in the least? Shouldn’t the boss lead by example by practicing what he preaches?”
“Everything doesn’t have to be an argument, Ms. Bailey.”
“And, from what I understand, only the executives speak to you. Everyone else wets their pants when they see you coming.”
When the doors open to the sixth floor, she says, “Thank goodness,” and gets off without saying a word more, walking as fast as she can to get away from me.
On the way up to twelve, I revel in the few minutes I had to talk to her alone, knowing I wouldn’t tolerate this kind of insubordination from anyone else. With her, I welcome it. It allows me to relearn her personality, but once she’s a couple of weeks in, she’ll know who’s really in charge around here.
After working a few hours, I inform Ms. Davison I’ll be out for the rest of the day. It wasn’t in my plans to leave work so soon, but Quintessa hasn’t left me much of a choice. She doesn’t have a suitable jacket and being the gentleman I am, it’s my duty to provide her with one. I could’ve sent Ms. Davison to do this for me, but this isn’t business. It’s personal. Very personal. I know Quintessa – know her style. I want to choose a jacket she’ll like.
Cooper pulls up at the mall. I run into Nieman Marcus and browse the women’s coat section, settling on a six-thousand-dollar, mixed-media jacket by Alexander McQueen. After paying for it, I go back to the office, place the bag on the trunk of Quintessa’s car, close to the driver’s side where I’m certain she’ll see it. Then I call Ms. Davison’s cell.
“Hi, Mr. DePaul. What can I do for you?”
“How’s orientation going?”
“It’s going well. She’s watching a few more videos and we’re going to wrap up,” she says discreetly, so I know she’s in the conference room with Quintessa.
I glance at the clock. The time is 3:45. I tell her, “It’s Friday. Go ahead and let her leave early. I don’t want to overload her with videos. We want to make sure she comes back on Monday.”
“Oh. Okay, sir. Will do. Is there anything else I can do for you?”
“No, that is all.”
Still in the parking lot of my building, I hang up the phone and instruct Cooper to park somewhere inconspicuous so I can see Quintessa walk to her car. Ten minutes or so after I hang up with my assistant, Quintessa comes out, walking hurriedly to her car. When she gets there, she frowns upon seeing the bag on the trunk. She picks it up, studies it, looks around and throws it in the back seat. And then she’s on her way, nearly leaving on two wheels to get out of there.
