Chapter Ten
Reagan
I was dying to phone Mack to find out what was going on, but I didn’t want to rush him. So when he called me on Monday morning before work I almost jumped up excitement.
“Sorry for calling you so early,” he said. “I didn’t want to bother you when you were at work. Anyway, I figured you’d be up already.”
I laughed. “You know me well. Yeah, I’ve been up for a million years already, or so it seems.”
He laughed. “I thought so.”
“I was just about to head out to the office, so you got me at a good time. So, do you have anything juicy to tell me?” I had a strong suspicion that I was about to get some big news from Mack. I wasn’t sure what it was about Josh, but he just seemed to be holding back something important.
“I must say, I was expecting to find a whole lot on this guy. I mean, most people have something that they’re hiding, and I had a feeling he’d have a whole bunch of skeletons in his closet. I know he says how he likes to tell the truth, but I thought that was just a ruse.”
“Are you saying that he’s totally clean?” I asked. I wasn’t sure why I was so surprised or what I had expected to find out about him, but I had definitely expected something.
“For the most part. I really did a lot of digging around, and he is pretty much what he says he is. The only thing that I couldn’t find anything on is about his mother.”
“His mother?”
“Yeah. There just doesn’t seem to be anything on her, which is kind of strange for a man at his level. But it could just be that there’s nothing to tell. Other than that there really is not much about him out there. He’s clean.”
“Wow. I’m surprised. I do realize that’s not a very nice thing to say about my boss, but I definitely expected to find out something about him.”
“You and me both. Well, this is a good thing, isn’t it? Isn’t this good for the election? The less bad things there are, the less you have to worry.”
“It is. For sure. And I definitely don’t agree with backing up someone who is doing things I don’t agree with so this does make me feel a whole lot better about everything.”
“Of course, sometimes things are harder to find than others, so I’ll definitely keep looking.”
“I’d appreciate that. At least until the election is over. If you come across anything, please let me know. And thanks for doing this for me, Mack. I owe you big time.”
“Anything for you, Reagan. It’s the least thing that I can do for you after everything. Anyway, hopefully there won’t be a need for me to call you. Maybe there really is nothing at all on this guy.”
“Yeah, maybe you’re right.”
I put the phone down and got ready for work, thinking about how interesting it was that Josh had nothing to hide. Maybe he really was the person he kept saying he was. That would be a welcome relief. But still, no matter what was true and what wasn’t, he could still benefit from some polish. Getting him to change was going to be the next big challenge. I chuckled as I thought about it. I wasn’t sure why, but I quite enjoyed getting under his skin. He was my boss, and I would retain a level of professionalism around him, but I’d also been hired to make sure he won, and I would do anything to make that happen. Even if that meant driving him completely up the wall.
I got to work and smiled up at the tall gray building. The place had become my second home in such a short space of time. In fact, I was in the building way more often than I was in my own home at the moment. I grinned and made my way inside, ready to start yet another crazy day. I put my bag down, grabbed two cups of coffee, and made my way straight into Josh’s office. The door was closed, so I walked back to put the coffees on a tray and then walked back and opened the door. Josh looked up in surprise. He was sitting at his desk with Ralph and Derrick. Derrick worked a few desks away from me, and the two of us got along quite well. Ralph and Derrick smiled at me, but Josh just glared my way.
“Reagan, I told you that you need to knock,” he said.
“I got you coffee,” I said and placed a cup down in front of him. I figured that a cup of coffee would make up for me not knocking. I looked at the other two and smiled apologetically. “Sorry, I didn’t realize he had company. Want me to get you some coffee too?”
“No, we’ve just had some,” Ralph said, and Derrick shook his head too.
“Thanks, Reagan.”
I pulled up a chair and sat down. “Okay, let’s talk business,” I said. “What’s going on?”
“We were in the middle of a meeting,” Josh said. What he was really trying to tell me was that they were in the middle of a meeting and he would prefer me not to be there. Now who was the one being rude?
“That’s okay. It’s good for Reagan to be here,” Ralph said. “We were all talking about the big conference coming up.”
“Oh yes, that’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about too. You’re going to need a new suit for the event.”
Josh groaned. “Oh, here we go again,” he said. He turned to look at the two boys, “Reagan here thinks I need to clean up my image.”
“That’s right,” I said. “Josh doesn’t realize how important it is to present himself properly to the public. Not only is it important to know everything that is happening and to be ahead of the game at all times, but it’s also good to understand the importance of leaving a good impression. There is so much corruption and fakeness at the moment that people cling onto anything that they found real. They want to be around someone that they can relate to. That’s what they are looking for in a leader now. I know Josh doesn’t agree with me, but it’s just the way things work at the moment. People get a few seconds to make an impression, and you have to make sure it is one that lasts. Also, people talk. Never underestimate the power of a talking public.”
“She has a point,” Derrick said, and I smiled at him.
“She does,” Ralph agreed.
“She has a point?” Josh said. “So you seriously both agree with the fact that I need to change my image? You really think that is going to make a difference?” Josh seemed bewildered by this fact, and I was so grateful to finally have some other people backing me up.
“It doesn’t hurt to try,” Ralph said. “Anyway, if there’s anyone that knows about the importance of a public image, it’s Reagan. She has a knack for this stuff.”
I smiled at Ralph. “Thank you. That’s nice of you to say. And I’m not trying to change you, Josh. I’m just trying to smooth out the rough edges so that you’re more relatable to a wider audience. I promise you that one day you will turn around and thank me.”
Josh looked like he was going to snap back again, but he seemed to change his mind as he looked between all of us. He obviously knew that he was outnumbered this time. He shook his head and sighed. “Fine. Whatever you say then. I’ll get a new suit if you really think that it is going to make a difference. I think the whole thing is ridiculous, but I’ll do it. But Reagan, seeing as though this is your idea, you are going to have to come with me to get one. If you leave me to do it on my own, you do realize I’m going to come back with something that you will not be happy with.”
I chuckled. If he was trying to put me off, then it wasn’t working. I had no problem with helping him find a suit. He was right; it was better if I was there with him, anyway. “That’s true. And that’s absolutely fine by me. Whatever helps you get the votes. I’ve got a good eye for fashion, and I know just the thing that will suit you.”
“Suit you,” Derrick said. “Suit you. Get it? Suit,” he said and laughed at his own corny joke. Ralph and I laughed with him, but Josh remained stone faced.
We turned our attention back to the conference, and then we all made our way back to our desks. Ralph stopped to tell me that he thought I was doing a great job.
“You think? I know I’m hard on him, but he’s hard on me too. And I’m just here to do a job and to make sure he gets those votes.”
“You’re doing the right thing, Reagan,” he said. “I did the right thing by calling you in.”
I beamed as I made my way back to my desk, and continued with my work. I worked solidly for the rest of the day. I barely took a break, and later that afternoon I was surprised to find that almost everyone had left the office. I shook my head and yawned. I had been so involved in my work that I hadn’t even noticed them leaving. I hadn’t been this busy in a long time. I was just about to pack up for the day myself when I saw Josh heading my way. He had a scowl on his face.
“You don’t look happy,” I said as he got to my desk. “Everything okay?”
“No, everything is not okay.”
“Why? What happened?”
“You happened.”
“Excuse me?”
“Reagan, I know that you’re here to help, but you have to remember that I’m still your boss.”
“I know that,” I said defensively.
“Do you though? Because you didn’t act like it in the meeting like that. Don’t you dare barge in like that again and undermine me in front of my staff.”
“Undermine you? I certainly didn’t mean to come across like that. I’m only here to help. This is what I was employed to do. Anyway, I tried to talk to you in private but you wouldn’t hear of it, so I took my chances when I had them.”
“What suit shop are we going to?” he said, completely changing the subject.
“I was thinking of the one in Garson Street. You know the one in the corner?”
“I know it. Fine. I’ll meet you there tomorrow at eight. Don’t be late.”
I watched as he stormed out the office and I resisted the urge to giggle. A small sound escaped my mouth as he turned the corner. I did feel slightly bad for talking that way to him in front of his staff; I knew that I probably shouldn’t have done that. But still, I was right about him needing to change his image and his attitude. And the fact that he still wanted to meet me at the suit shop tomorrow meant that he knew I was right too.