Page 47 of Strings

I power down my phone so he can’t text me again. The truth is, I liked riding with him this morning—too much. I need some space from this fake romance before I start to forget it’s fake.

“So nice of you to find time for me,” Mr. Bordo says as I enter the meeting room.

“I apologize, sir. My Skype meeting with the production director went slightly over.”

“I don’t have time for excuses. The orchestra was invited to Spain last month. They leave Saturday. Now, Amy had been handling the setup prior to your arrival, but I need you to coordinate with the director over there and make sure we get an accurate itinerary. Make sure the hotel arrangements and transportation are set up. Arrange for dinners and practice areas for our staff.”

I take notes as he speaks. Amy is taking notes as well, for which I’m thankful.

“And for Pete’s sake, make sure each member of the team is made aware of their schedules.”

I make a special mark next to the schedule.

“Where are we at on the benefit Gala?” he asks as he stands and pours himself a glass of water from a pitcher in the middle of the table.

I gaze at Amy, who quickly responds. “Um, I haven’t brought Natalia up to speed on that yet. I’ll get her the details this afternoon.”

“Good. Thank you, Amy. Now if you’d excuse us, I’d like to speak to Ms. Pearson alone.”

Amy almost seems as concerned as I am. When the door closes behind her, Mr. Bordo leans back in his chair. “So, tell me, your first week is almost over. What do you think about the job thus far?”

I try to read his body language. I’m not sure why Amy had to leave for me to answer that question. “It’s been amazing. I’m still trying to get a grip on how things work around here, but I’ve enjoyed this entire week.”

Mr. Bordo holds his chin in his fingers and stares at me awkwardly. “And Amy? How has she been?”

I smile. “Extremely helpful, very knowledgeable, and a hard worker.”

He smirks. If he starts ripping on her, I may lose my shit. I try to remain calm.

“Did she tell you she applied for this position?”

I itch my ear. “No. She didn’t.”

“I lobbied for her. She’s been here ten years. She knows this job inside and out. It would have been an easy move for her.”

I agree with him, but my skin pricks. My sixth sense is kicking in. He’s going somewhere with this, and I breathe deeply, knowing I may have to get ready to fight.

“But for some reason, Mercer insisted we hire you. He didn’t have HR interview you, or me, or anyone else.”

I shake my head. “I didn’t realize he went against some kind of protocol.”

He moves a couple of papers around on his desk and lifts one that looks familiar. It’s my résumé. “It’d taken me until today to get my hands on this. You have amazing credentials.”

Lifting my chin higher, I smile as I lean forward. “Thank you. Are we meeting to discuss my résumé? I thought I was already hired?”

“I would love to discuss your prior experience, but like you said, you’ve already been hired. Derrick must have really seen something in you to hire you on the spot like that.”

“It’s nice to know that I stood out as the best candidate—to him. But you obviously have something you want to say to me. So if you don’t mind, I have a lot of work to do and I’d rather you not beat around the metaphorical bush.”

He smiles as he sets the paper down. “I simply wanted to welcome you aboard. I want you to know that we all want you to be successful and we’re here to help you any way we can.”

Uh huh. Sure you did.He wanted me to know he’s on to me. I can feel it. I stand and gaze down at him. He’s smug and smiling. “I appreciate your commitment to my success and I can assure you that I will work hard to make sure we don’t need another meeting like today.”

“That’s excellent news,” he says as he stands to face me. “There are eyes and ears all over this place. We all want what is best for the company.”

I’m certain he’s trying to rattle me, but I do my best work when I’m being underestimated. If he thinks I’m going to shrink with my tail between my legs, he’s mistaken. He just made me want to work ten times harder.

“As do I, Mr. Bordo. If you have specific goals for me, I think it would be best if you put them in writing.”