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I remember standing there, watching like a deer in the headlights while the bouncers kicked Amber and her party out. Owen was with Mr. Rossi, the potential investor, so he wasn’t going to back down. She shouted at him. He laughed and gestured dismissively. And just like that, I lost any chance I could have had with the girl.
And then she showed up to the job interview today.
Hope ignited inside of me, like a row of computer monitors turning on for the first time. I was eager to see her again.Hungryfor it. And as if I had rubbed a magic lamp and wished for it, here she was in the brainstorming conference room.
Somehow, I played it cool. I jerked my eyes in the direction of Melinda and pretended like this was the first time Amber and I were meeting. She got the hint. We proceeded with the interview as if nothing was amiss.
In the back of my head, I was already imagining how things could go. Amber and I could work together. We would become friends, or more than that. We had a lot in common. The best part? She was extremely qualified. Hiring her was absolutely the best move, even ignoring the fact that I was already smitten with her.
And then, just like last night, Owen appeared and ruined it.
He marched into the conference room the way he always did: with his usual charm and winning smile. Owen was used to being the center of attention in any room he entered. He had a knack for it. Amber’s eyes went wide. I held my breath, waiting for Owen to say something dumb.
But he didn’t recognize her.
I think that was the final straw. The thing that pushed Amber over fromshocktofury. The anger filled her wide eyes like a lamp being turned on, brighter and brighter until it was as blinding as the sun.
I closed my eyes and sighed as she went off on him. When I spoke, she turned her wrath on me. The intensity of her tirade would have been quite a thing to behold if I wasn’t one of the targets of it. Ironically, it endeared me to her even more.
Then she stormed out, leaving us sitting in our chairs, too dazed to move.
Melinda blinked first. “Who wants to fill me in on what just happened?”
“We… sort of met last night,” I began.
Melinda’s jaw tightened. “And you didn’t find it important enough to mention?”
“It was only for a few minutes,” I argued. “AtMarcello’s. It was polite and friendly, until Owen stole the rooftop deck from her.”
Owen scoffed loudly. “Watch it, Boston. That’smyrestaurant. I can’t steal something that’s already mine.” He flashed a smile and made his tone more amiable. “Besides, she’s the one who acted crazy. I offered her some booths downstairs. Prime real estate on a busy night. Instead, she lost her mind over it. It’s probably a good thing we don’t have someone like that working for us.”
“She was qualified,” Melinda grumbled.
“Veryqualified,” I agreed.
Owen ran his hands through his hair and reached for Melinda’s stack of papers. “How many other interviews do we have today? Six?”
“Four in person, two virtual,” she confirmed.
“There you go.” Owen gestured like the problem was solved. “It’s a wide talent pool, Boston. We’ll have no problem finding someone else.” He glanced at his BVLGARI Octo Finissimo watch. “Ping me when we’re ready for the next interview. Hopefully it’s not someone I’ve had to kick out of my restaurant recently.”
I watched him leave before turning to Melinda. “Sorry for blindsiding you.”
She smiled ruefully. “Iknewyou were acting strange. Like you had a crush on her, but were trying to hide it. You two must have really hit it off last night.”
I felt my cheeks grow hot. “Maybe so. I guess. Until, you know, Owen happened.”
“He certainly has a way about him. Sometimes he reminds me of my boyfriend.” She grimaced. “This is probably for the best. You don’t want to get involved with someone who works for you. Especially a direct report. That’s a recipe for disaster these days.”
I nodded along. Melinda was right. In the month since we had hired her, that was a common theme: more often than not, she was right about things.
Yet as the next candidate arrived and we began the same series of interview questions, I couldn’t stop thinking about Amber. The introverted attitude, and the fiery spirit she had when shedidcome out of her shell. The way she bit her lip while thinking of how to answer one of the questions. The smiling confidence as she explained her experience working with crypto.
There was one thing that bothered me, though. Her resume seemed incomplete. There was a gap in her experience where she didn’t really have anything going on. Just a vague period of “freelance work” that she hadn’t elaborated on during the interview.
While Melinda and I interviewed one of the virtual candidates, I alt-tabbed over to a browser and started searching.
Amber Moltisanti. Let’s see who you really are.
