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“You spent the night!”
“I did.”
“Did you..?”
“Jack,” I said, turning to face him. “Don’t you have work to do? At your office?”
“Don’t change the subject, Charlie! You did!”
“Please, Jack, let’s not talk about this, hmm? I’m just trying to drink some coffee; I’m tired–” this was the wrong thing to say; his eyebrows raised, annoyingly. “I mean–this ismy house,and I don’t want to talk to you about this or anything else right now.” His eyebrows raised even further. I feared they would disappear into his hairline forever. “You know what? Fuck off.” I stepped toward the door, but Jack stopped me, leaning out from his seat to hold his arm across my path.
“Sorry. Sorry, Charlie, really. I know.” I sighed, waiting for him to finish whatever it was he wanted to say. “I’ll stay out of it. I just came into town to do some work at the shop, but the accountant is there, and…”
“How dare she work in her own office,” I deadpanned.
Jack ruffled his hand through the hair on the back of his head and grinned awkwardly. “She hates it when I’m there at the same time as her. She says I hover. I think it annoys her.”
That didn’t even bear responding to. I gestured between the two of us.
“Yeah, sorry,” he said, not sounding it. “Do you want me to move this to my office upstairs?”
I took one look at the stacks of papers and business cards, and shook my head. “No, it’s fine. I’ll just be in my room, I guess.”
“Thanks, Charlie,” Jack said, but I was already out of the room. I took the stairs two by two.
I needed to find something to do.Anything.
Well, anything except Jack’s accounting.
From the Pages of the Clarion
National Report surveyed over 100 of the top-performing companies and found that while the number of women in the boardroom has been steadily growing, only six percent of C-suite executives are omegas. Consumers may be surprised to learn that brands such as Stadt Pharmaceutical, makers of the most popular heat suppressant [ed: by sales volume], all but one executive-level position are filled by alphas. The last, a beta, is the son of the current CEO.
The problem is worse in the technical fields, where omegas comprise only two percent of internet-based company founders, despite repeated calls for increased computer education for all of the nation’s children, regardless of sex, race, or status.
THE CLARION, BUSINESS, ARE ALPHAS OBSOLETE? DATA SAYS “NO”, PAGE B3
Ella
I creptinto the office late, with damp hair and an empty travel mug of coffee, desperate for more of the stuff before I had to deal with my inbox. I had hoped to sneak in unnoticed, but no luck: before I even got to my desk, Editor Stevens called me into her office.
I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment, before pivoting on the spot, lugging my bag and my tragically empty coffee cup with me.
“Yes, Editor?” I said, as I opened the door, but I knew immediately why she had called me in, even without her explanation. There was a third person in the room, a slight woman in a dark blue suit. Her features were delicate, would have been described as pretty, were they not set into a serious, no-bullshit expression. She stood, extending her hand to shake. I recognized from the CitySnaps pages: Natalie Marke.
“Booker, this is Natalie Marke,” Editor Stevens was saying, still seated behind her messy desk.
“I know our interview wasn’t supposed to be until this afternoon”--andfuck, I had forgotten all about it in the rush of last night-slash-this morning–“but I was in the neighborhood and thought I would swing by.”
“Yes, hi,” I stammered, moving my things into one hand so I could awkwardly shake the hand she was still holding out for me to take. Her skin was soft and warm, her handshake firm and confident. If she found my appearance disappointing–Icertainly felt schlubby in my sweater and jeans–it didn’t show on her face. “Thank you so much for the interview, and now is perfectly… now is perfect.”
Editor Stevens was looking between the two of us with a broad, satisfied smile, as if she had facilitated an excellent blind date. She slapped both hands down on her desk and hoisted herself to her feet. “Well then, Booker, Ms. Marke–if you’d like to use the conference room, go right ahead. Booker can show you the way.”
“Actually, if it’s alright with you, Miss Booker, I know a coffee shop down the block..?”
I nodded, trying not to look too desperate. I liked Natalie Marke already.
* * *
