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Before she could dial an extension number, another woman emerged from a side door in the reception area. “Ms. Randall?” The woman was willowy with wavy blond hair. She offered her hand. “I’m Haley Shaw, Mr. Lowell’s assistant. We’re so glad you’re here. Especially considering everything you’ve been through. I still can’t believe you were able to keep this appointment.”
Allison shook hands with Haley. “It would’ve taken more than some bad weather to keep me away from this opportunity.”
“Come on. I’ll give you the lay of the land and show you where we’ll be conducting the interviews.”
Haley led Allison upstairs to the second floor and a conference room right outside Joshua Lowell’s office. The one thing that struck Allison about Black Crescent was that no expense had been spared. Every detail was of the finest quality. It did make Allison wonder if the rumors about Vernon Lowell were true, that he’d never actually left Falling Brook and had merely been in hiding this whole time. If that was ever proved to be the case, she could imagine Zane blowing his top. Another lie from Vernon Lowell would only reopen Zane’s deep wounds. Plus, Zane was the sort of the man who wanted to get even. Knowing he could have hunted down Vernon all these years would at the very least eat at him.
“Please, make yourself at home,” Haley said, gesturing to the gleaming mahogany meeting table. “Mr. Lowell should be here in a few minutes. He’s just finishing up a phone call.”
Allison set down her Louis Vuitton bag and pulled out her laptop. “Great. We’re seeing three candidates today. Ryan Hathaway, Chase Hargrove and Matteo Velez.”
Haley pursed her lips in a particularly odd way. “Chase Hargrove, huh?” Her voice was dripping with doubt, something Allison wanted to get to the bottom of before Joshua arrived.
“Yes. He’s highly qualified for the position. And I was impressed with him when we spoke on the phone.”
Haley nodded, but seemed unconvinced. “I’m sure he has the right credentials. I just don’t know if he’s a good fit for the office.”
This was an interesting development. Allison had never had an assistant offer her opinion of a candidate, and especially not before the interview had even taken place. But in her experience assistants seemed to always know more about everyone and everything than the majority of their bosses. “Can you tell me why?”
Just then, a young man poked his head into the meeting room. “Ms. Shaw. Chase Hargrove is here for his interview.”
“Can you let Mr. Lowell know? And can you ask Chase to hold on a minute?” Haley asked.
“Sure thing, Ms. Shaw.” The man darted back into the hall.
“If there’s something I need to know, now would be a great time to mention it,” Allison said. She couldn’t afford to mess up when it came to Black Crescent. She had to nail this job. On paper, Chase was a highly qualified candidate, and Allison had found him charming and affable during their one phone conversation.
Haley seemed deep in thought for a moment, as if she was calculating her response. “I’m afraid I don’t have a specific reason for feeling that way about Chase. It’s more of a hunch.”
The meeting door opened again and in walked Joshua Lowell. Allison had never met him in person, but she’d seen his pictures all over the papers and in business magazines, especially the last few years. “Mr. Lowell, I’m Allison Randall.” She offered her hand.
“Please. Call me Joshua. It won’t be long before I’m not the boss around here anymore.”
“That’s why I’m here, right?” Allison wondered if that aspect of her job might help her smooth things over with Zane whenever he discovered she was working for Black Crescent. So much of his hatred seemed aimed at Joshua, and she was in charge of finding his replacement. She tucked the idea away in her head. The idea of needing to explain herself to Zane, all in the name of making a case for them as a couple, was a stretch. She was sure he didn’t see her as anything more than a fling.
“Absolutely,” Joshua answered. “So, please, let’s bring in these candidates.”
Allison asked Haley to go ahead and bring Chase in for his interview. The instant he walked through the door, the energy in the room changed dramatically. Tall, handsome and completely self-assured, Chase was a formidable presence. With Joshua also in the room, it was no easy task to take center stage, but Chase seemed to do it at will. Was this the reason for Haley’s hesitancy when it came to Chase? Was he simply too much to deal with?
Chase sat opposite the three of them at the conference table and Allison wasted no time conducting the interview. This was not about putting the candidate on the spot—she’d already gone over these exact questions with them over the phone. They’d also already been fully vetted by Allison and Kianna. This process was all for the client. This was Chase’s chance to put his well-honed answers on full display for Joshua.
When Allison was finished, she was fairly certain Chase could not only land the job, but could perform the duties with aplomb. But she wasn’t done with showing off the product of her hard work—Ryan Hathaway and Matteo Velez were up next.
“Thank you so much, Chase, for coming in today. We’ll be in touch,” Allison said.
All four of them stood and Chase began to round the table.
“I’ll fetch Mr. Hathaway,” Haley blurted, darting out the door before Chase had a chance to shake her hand and say goodbye.
Chase took notice, watching as she disappeared. “Ms. Shaw sure is on the case, isn’t she?”
Joshua extended his hand to Chase. “She’s the best. No matter who comes in as CEO, Haley needs to stay. She makes this office run.”
“Believe me, if I get this job, Ms. Shaw is the last person I’d dream of replacing,” Chase said. Allison couldn’t ignore the glimmer in his eyes.
Just then, Haley walked in with Ryan Hathaway, who Allison recognized from his headshot. Typically, Allison did not want the candidates for a position to encounter each other in the interview room, but what was done was done. She made the introductions, and Ryan seemed immediately suspicious of Chase.
“I suppose this is my cue to make way for your interview,” Chase said to Ryan before turning to Haley. “And, Ms. Shaw, I hope to see you again very soon.”
