AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Also, make sure she has a private line in that office, okay?”
Marcus nods, and to his credit, he doesn’t ask who she is or what she’s doing here. He knows he’ll get the information he needs when it’s time. “Of course, sir.”
“I don’t need my own office, Kingsley.”
I hold up my hand. “I heard you the first three times. And me ignoring you all three times should’ve told you that you do. Not only do I need privacy in my office at times but so will you.”
“But—”
“You can agree, or you can go home.”
She responds with narrowed eyes, but that’s it.
I point to the couch in the far corner of my office and hand her an empty notebook and pen. “Sit down there. Listen. And learn. First meeting is in five minutes, and we’re talking about the Hannigan acquisition. You know what that is?”
“No.”
“By the end of today, you won’t be able to say that again.”
Three hours later, my office is finally empty except for the two of us, and Luna is still sitting on the couch, but in her lap is a notebook filled with scribbled notes.
And her eyes are dancing with life and interest as she drinks from the glass of ice water that Marcus brought in.
I finish up with an email and then join her on the seat facing the couch.
“How are you doing?”
“My brain hurts.” She chuckles as she flips through her notebook. “I can’t even understand some of my own notes.”
“Don’t worry about it. You will.”
Pages flip and she stares down at them like she can’t imagine she’s the one who took the notes. “It’s mostly just funny words I’ve never heard of before.”
I laugh. It’s a perspective I haven’t heard in a long time, considering I was weaned on those words. “Well, there’s a first for everything. And you can ask me about any and all the funny words.”
“Thank you. It was interesting, though.”
“Yeah?” A soft orange heat warms me at the thought that she wasn’t completely bored by my morning. “Which part?”
“Well, I like how you run a meeting—not long and drawn out.”
“I don’t have time for long, drawn-out meetings. Nobody does. They just think they do.”
“But I like how you wouldn’t let everyone get bogged down with the details. At least, that’s what I think I got from it.”
I nod, tickled she’d picked up on those details after just a morning with me. I don’t run an unproductive meeting. And everyone who comes to my meetings knows they better be prepared or not come at all. “That’s just from practice, and everyone comes to my meetings prepared. Nothing that can be done with a two-line email, no rehashing something everyone can read in a memo before the meeting. And everyone at the meeting has a role, even if it’s just to be reporting to someone else.”
“I like that.”
I reward her observations with a smile. “So,” I say, pulling the whiteboard closer to us. “Ready?”
“For?” She looks up hesitantly.
“Your first lesson.”
“That wasn’t my first lesson? Because I’m ready for recess. I think it’s arugula and walnut salad time.”
I point to the plate of cookies on the coffee tray. “Recess. And that was just the warm-up. Now is your actual first lesson.”
