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“Tell me about yourself.” Roman’s eyes bore into me and I have to swallow some of the panic creeping up. I mean, I’m good at my job, but I still don’t know why he’s here.

“Yeah, um, I started with Hamilton Group almost a year ago. Paul Raider, a friend from high school, reached out and trained me. Then I applied for the opening here. I’m from Boston originally and wanted to be closer to my mom and sisters. To be honest, I’m still surprised I got the promotion.”

Scout’s honor there. I hadn’t expected to get it with the little experience I had, but everything Gordon Summers, my direct boss and the one who hired me, said was that I had the potential and needed to live up to it.

“I’ve been hearing some great things about you here,” Roman says, crossing his ankle over his knee. This guy is a billionaire and he’s acting like sitting in one of the stiff board chairs isn’t a big deal.

“Oh, really?” I say, glancing up to make sure he isn’t trying to bait me into anything.

He nods. “Gordon says you’ve done an amazing job in the past eight weeks. Your team’s numbers are the highest in the branch over the past month.”

His words are a relief. At least I’m not in trouble. Trying to keep my mind focused and my expression calm is a lot harder than I thought, but I don’t want to portray that I’m inwardly freaking out about talking to the CEO. It’s a good thing I didn’t cause trouble as a teenager because I would’ve cracked under pressure in the principal’s office.

“Relax, Landon. I’m a human too. I know it’s hard having the owner drop by unannounced, but I figured it would give you time to get ready.” Is he reading my thoughts?

“Ready for what?” My mind is blank. Like a chalk board where I’m supposed to have the answers but they’ve been erased.

Roman leans forward. “I would love to have you join us on the company cruise, you and a significant other. Wife or girlfriend, perhaps?”

Alarm bells are going off in my mind and I’m pretty sure a fire has started in one corner. All my brain cells are working to contain it. I’m sure I look like my brain shorted out, which it definitely has.

“Cruise, sir? You want me to go on the company cruise?”

“Yes, I think it will be good to have you meet some of the upper managers from the other branches. It will be like a meeting of the minds, if you will. Are you game?”

I nod robotically. “Sure, um, when is it? And for how long?” I tap on my keyboard, hoping my computer screen will wake up so I can check my schedule.

“We set sail Friday. You’ll come back the following Thursday.”

“Fr-Friday as in, the day after tomorrow?” I say. The screen is lit up and I see the multiple colors of my calendar staring me in the face. Next week is slammed with appointments.

“I know it’s short notice, but I think it would be a great intro into what we do in this company, and help you understand how to continue leading like you’ve been doing. And this is the best time to pass a few things off to your team. I hear you went paint balling yesterday. Way to be innovative with team bonding activities.”

I blink several times, unsure if I’m in some kind of time warp already. Praise for my ideas isn’t something I’m used to. My previous experience working for my grandfather’s company was very rigid, and if I strayed from any of the systems they used, I was usually disciplined for it.

Those thoughts bring up my time with Rachelle. If only I could fix my relationship with her or go back and not screw things up.

Then again, I probably wouldn’t be where I am now. I’d still be sweating at the machine shop my grandfather still owns, trying to complete the orders in time.

“Thank you, sir,” I say, swallowing hard. “I’m not sure how effective paint balling was to actually bond us together, though.”

Roman nods and smiles. “Sometimes what we try doesn’t always work, and that’s okay. It’s about the journey and using past experience to better ourselves in the future.”

I smile, hoping my blank slate of a mind can at least remember that piece of advice.

“So what do you say? Are you in?” Roman leans forward, and I’m trying to compile a list of things to get done before Friday. There’s no way to turn him down. Going on a cruise with all the managers is like learning from the masters. And I can use a vacation.

“Yeah, for sure. I’ll start getting my schedule rearranged to be there.”

Roman stands and turns toward the door. Before he exits, he says, “And is there a lady who can accompany you?”

My mind goes straight to the mental image of Rachelle, her face taut as she pulls the trigger on the paintball gun.

“No, I’ve been staying with my sister since I got back to town.”

“Bring her along. We love rewarding the support system of our people.”

“Okay, I’ll call her and see if she’s up for it.” At dinner the night before, she’d said something about school, but my mind had written over it with thoughts of Rachelle.