“Look at you! Long time no see.” He smiled widely, taking several steps until he was standing in front of me.
I’d hug him if he wasn’t showing so much skin. When I took the trip back to Lakewood, the last thing I expected to see was my future boss looking like a thirst trap. And while I knew he had no idea what he was doing to me, it was still hard to come to my senses.
“Allison said you’d be expecting me,” I said, giving his body a once over and trying to look nonchalant about it.
“One minute,” was all he said before disappearing into the house.
It was a lot longer than one minute when he came back outside with less skin showing and no sweat. “I’m sorry. I thought I’d have some more time before you showed up.”
Half-naked or clothed, the man was still a danger to my health. I cleared my throat again and offered him a small smile.
“I got excited about working for you, so I came over a little earlier.”
I saw him now that there were less body parts to focus on. His brown hair was slicked back, and his jaw, defined like it was sculpted by some god. The corners of his eyes crinkled when he smiled. As if I didn’t already have a crush on him; I needed to forget about that.
And because he smiled at me, it was only natural that I smiled back. My heartbeat was going off the charts, and I attributed that to the fact that we hadn’t seen each other in so long. I was thrilled to see him. And if the butterflies in my stomach took off after he hugged me, it was all because of the immense happiness I was feeling.
“How are you doing?” He asked. The scent of his cologne wafted into my nose. Talk about manliness.
“I’m doing fine. I was actually trying to figure out your address.”
“ Oh, you found it.” He pointed at the duplex that was just adjacent to my house. A couple of houses past my house, but it was so close that I could see my house from where I stood.
“Ah, I didn’t know we were neighbors!” I wryly chuckled.
“I didn’t know either.” He grinned.
His teeth weren’t perfectly aligned, but they were white and pretty. Christian Carr had pretty teeth.
“It’s fine. I’m glad I didn’t have to walk too far.”
“Really?” he asked, tone teasing.
And I took the bait and nodded. “I’m just down the street. Anyways, I’m thrilled to be working with you.”
Christian grinned in response.
“Yes, about that. Can we go in so I can put you through some fundamentals?” He said, tucking his phone in the left pocket of his maroon pants.
My response must not matter, or he must trust me to follow instructions because he turned on his heels and started walking into the house.
I was impressed, but I was even more so when we got inside the house. The living room was so large, I wondered how he wasn’t lonely living alone. An exquisite chandelier dropped graciously from the center of the ceiling, and the velvet upholstery was sure to catch anyone’s attention.
I made myself comfortable on the sofa while he excused himself to fetch some things. I had known the Carrs to be very wealthy since I was a child. And presently, their business is flourishing more than ever.
Though Allison was hardly home, she still reached out to me whenever she could, and I was grateful.
Christian’s smell pervaded the house’s atmosphere, penetrating my senses. I could tell that I was being swayed by it. However, now I was no longer the bashful young girl I used to be. I was a twenty-four-year-old woman capable of having a job and keeping it.
I admitted Christian Carr was a man I always admired. Everything about him charmed me; he exuded this chivalry that most men did not possess. It made me appreciate him more. From what I had always known about him, he was kind, tender and supportive.
Now, here I was in his living room, almost unsuccessful at concealing my childhood emotions.
“I’m back,” he announced as he walked into the living room. It was almost like it was his runway. “I’m not sure if Allison told you everything about what we do, but Robust Technology is a tech company that uses AI to improve people’s health. Through food, but we’re trying to branch into pharmaceuticals.
He handed me a couple of documents. “Here’s a brief report on what we do.”
I nodded slowly as I took the documents from him. He considered four documents brief? Looked like I’d be doing more studying.
“Thank you,” I said, and then Christian was off to work while I had ‘brief’ documents to go through and find out what the company was about and what was required of me.
*****
On Christian’s insistence, I resumed work the following morning.
Robust Technology had high ratings and, therefore, was top-notch. The employees were so uniform in their professional attitude that you would easily recognize them amidst clients and strangers. They strictly followed the company’s code of conduct and were very diligent at their respective departments.
I heard that Christian was recently appointed CEO, and his father, the Chairman Sebastian Carr, was retired.
His office was situated in a long, quiet hall conducive to treating critical matters in the company. My desk as PA was just outside his door, and an intercom buzz called my attention to him whenever he needed me.
I totally fell in love with my desk on the first day of work. Christian had asked for a vase of fresh flowers to be placed on it. It added a touch of color to the polished, monotone surface, and I was thankful for his thoughtfulness.
When the intercom buzzed for the second time that morning, I gently stood up from my seat, smoothed down my skirt, and quietly walked inside his office. His office was like a study with books stacked on shelves. His cologne overwhelmed the entire space, marking it as his territory.
The walls around the room were paneled in rich mahogany, and a thick, plush carpet ran endlessly across the space. Towards the end of the room, Christian’s desk backed the window from which light rushed into the room. It had a sublime view.
“You called for me, sir.” I stood in the middle of the room and kept my arms by my side. The etiquette class I took on YouTube taught me this much. I’ve lost so many jobs; it was only a matter of time before I started looking for help and I started online.
