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Liz smiles at me, and I relax a bit. Liz seems to have a quiet and calm presence that I can’t help but admire. I take an instant liking to her.Her hair is up in the tight bun again, but it no longer gives off the drill-sergeant vibe.
“That sounds great. I’m ready to get started whenever you are,” I tell her. There is no obvious, quick exit for now. I might as well stick around and see what happens.
“Perfect! Let’s get started.” She hands me a one-inch thick binder. “I know this is old school, but it’s the best way I could think of to help get you trained. Mr. Anders is very particular about how things are done and is pretty resistant to change. So, I’ve made you instructions, notes, and lists on everything I could think of. As long as you follow the binder, you’ll do great.”
I stare at the binder for a good ten seconds. Liz sure is thorough. And very organized. Pretty much the exact opposite of me. My usual method of organization is to have about thirty multicolored Post-its all over my monitor and desk.
“Liz, this is really impressive. It must have taken you forever to put this together,” I tell her.
“I just want to make sure you have everything you need.” She nods at me. “This position can be very fast-paced and challenging, and I don’t want you to get overwhelmed. I took on the position soon after Mr. Anders moved up as CEO. Through the years, I’ve figured out what works and what doesn’t work. I want the transition to be as easy as possible for both you and Mr. Anders.”
“I appreciate that,” I say sincerely. I look down at the binder with some trepidation. “Where should we start?”
“Might as well start with the first tab.” She flips open the binder. “Important contacts,” she begins.
I look down at the notes as she begins reading and have to stop myself from choking. Thorough doesn’t even come close to describing what I am seeing. Liz has listed the contacts, of course. But she also has info about their companies, families, birthdays, anniversaries, likes and dislikes, restaurants they frequent, and on and on. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that Liz works for the CIA. I bet if I asked her for blood types, she’d have that info, too.
As she begins flipping through the pages, I’m amazed at the sheer amount of information she has collected. If I am going to succeed at this job, I will need to learn all of this. It won’t be quick, but I need to make myself invaluable to Mr. Anders. He needs to trust me. That’s the only way I will be able to find a way to save my uncle’s business.
I shake my head and try to focus on what Liz is telling me. We spend the morning going over the job details. I’m becoming convinced that Liz is some sort of superhero or a robot or something. Clearly, no human mortal could ever do this job.
After a few hours of work, Liz suggests we break for lunch, and I’m all for it. It’s barely noon, and I’m already mentally exhausted. We walk a couple blocks to a cute little Italian restaurant that Liz likes.
The restaurant looks like something right out of Tuscany. The brick walls and beautiful wooden floors give the place a rustic, cozy feeling. The sound of softly playing Italian music can be heard throughout. Apparently, my stomach detects the delicious smells coming from the kitchen because it lets out a loud growl.
Slightly embarrassed, I tell her, “I must be hungry!”
Liz laughs. “Well, I’m starved! I don’t usually do pasta, but I’m really craving it today,” she says as we are seated.
I look down at my new silk blouse and imagine it with red sauce all over it. Nope. Not happening today. “I’m thinking of a nice salad. Besides, after my carb-filled breakfast, I feel like having something a little lighter for lunch.”
We settle into a comfortable conversation. Talking to Liz is effortless. It’s easy to imagine that we could even be friends if this were a normal situation. Her outward appearance gives a stay-away vibe. But after working with her this morning, I find that she is social and outgoing. When lunch is almost over, I finally get the nerve to ask about my new boss.
“What is it like to work for Mr. Anders? You’ve mentioned some challenges and that he doesn’t really like to deviate from his usual way of doing things. I just want to know what I can do to make the transition as easy as possible.”
Liz hesitates before replying. “It’s not that Mr. Anders is difficult. Don’t get me wrong, he has his moments, of course. It’s just that he is extremely busy. He is a bit of a type A personality and wants everything to go according to plan. He relies heavily on his calendar and will rely on you to keep everything running smoothly. He doesn’t like excuses. If you make a mistake, own up to it. But also, be ready to solve problems on your own. He can be impatient, so he can get aggravated when things don’t go the way he expects they should. However, as long as you are doing what you are supposed to do, he is very easy to get along with.”
“Thanks for the insight. That helps,” I tell her.
“Happy to help,” she says. Her phone beeps, and she reads the text message. “Speaking of Jake, it looks like you’ll get a chance to meet him in about thirty minutes. We better get going.”
As Liz and I head up the elevator to our office, I’m feeling grateful that I only had a salad for lunch. My stomach feels a little queasy at the knowledge that I’ll be meeting Jake Anders in a few minutes. For the last month, I’ve gone through all of the scenarios of what I’d say when I finally met him. But nothing prepared me for this. What should I say?Hey, why are you screwing over my uncle? Why are you taking his business?No, definitely not the best opening lines to give my new boss.
Other than Jessica, my uncle is the only family I have, and it breaks my heart to see him hurting. His business means everything to him.
I follow Liz as we come out of the elevator. She walks over to the door next to her office and knocks before opening it. I take a calming breath as we walk into Jake Anders’s office. Deep breath in, deep breath out.
Jake Anders’s office is nothing like I pictured it. Instead of the modern decor found in Liz’s office, this room is more traditional. Upon entering, the first thing I notice is the scent of leather and wood. There is a stocked bar over to the left side of the door and a cozy seating area with walnut-brown leather chairs beside it. The walls are a charcoal gray which should make the room feel smaller. However, the enormous windows provide the needed brightness, and the Manhattan cityscape gives a sense of openness to the room.
My eyes finally settle on the man sitting behind the large mahogany desk. He is listening to someone on the phone, his eyes on his computer screen. He motions for us to come closer without looking our way.
“How the hell did you make such an error in these numbers? And you sent it to the client without verifying! I need to look into this and see what can be done to fix this without costing us the client. Unbelievable.”
I cringe at the rancor in his voice as he slams down the office phone. He swings his eyes up to meet mine. Instantly, I see a changein his demeanor. His face goes from a scowl to a smile as he looks from me to Liz and then back to focus on me.
“You must be Lana Jacobs?” he says as he rises to his feet, his height seeming to fill the room. He walks around his desk and brings out his hand to shake mine. I smile as I take his hand. His handshake is firm, and his voice is tinged with dry amusement as he continues. “I’m sorry that you had to hear that conversation. I promise I’m not always like that.”
“I’m Lana,” I respond. “And it sounds like you may have had good reason to be irritated.”
