HANDS SHAKING, JULIA PULLED into the parking lot of CGC. Her adrenaline kept her thoughts primed and anger bubbling. Over and over she cursed out Chris and his awful accusations. His awful words that kept filtering through her thoughts. And yet, something rang true. She wilted forward, folding over the steering wheel.
This. This was why Margaret used to shut the door in her face. Margaret had known why she was hired.
This. This was why that first day she met Chris he interceded on the sub ordering her to get him coffee and calling her sweetheart and commenting on her legs. Lloyd had said or done nothing to dissuade him. In fact he hadn’t even lifted his head up.
This. This was why the sub had even called her sweetheart and assumed he could say such things so vocally in this group of men.
Nearly foaming at the mouth she jumped out of her car and stormed into Lloyd’s office. She slammed the door shut behind her. Lloyd dropped his pen and his mouth fell open. “Julia?”
She stared at him, her eye twitching. She sauntered forward, as if she had all the time in the world and leaned over his desk. “What did you think? For a nice little salary, I’d let you fuck me? Where did you imagine it happening? Right here? On the desk? Or up against the door? Oh. I know where, in your chair. I could get on my knees, bowing down to you. Isn’t that what you really want? And ultimately fantasize about?”
Lloyd jumped onto his feet. “Wh—what is going on? What is this?”
“Oh, nothing much. I just got let in on the company secret. And the snickering joke that I am. Fuck you, Lloyd! I don’t stoop down on my knees for any man.”
Turning to storm out of there, she walked past Lloyd, who sputtered and scurried after her. “Wait! Just wait, Julia. Calm down. Just… wait…” He beat her to the door, but barely, and stuck himself against it as if he were planning to shut it on her.
She crossed her arms over her stomach and all but tapped her toe. “Move to the side, old man.”
He winced. Just as she planned. He valued his virility. Looking good for his age meant he could go on pretending not to be old. He also pretended she didn’t notice he was old.
“Where did you… who told you this?”
Her mouth fell open. “Oh, please, as if that is the issue here. Everyone knew. Right? Everyone understands what Lloyd’s assistant means, don’t they? Except me, huh? It doesn’t matter at all. What matters is what you did and were planning to do.”
He threw his hands up as if under arrest. “Okay. Okay. You’re right. That’s what I do. And what I’ve done for years. I hire women to work as my assistant and then I sleep with them. But… Wait!”
She started to push past him.
“You intend to hold me here? I will get you arrested for false imprisonment. Let me go.” She snarled at him, glaring right into his face.
He put his hands up as if he were under arrest. “I’m not holding you here. I just… give me five minutes. Just five minutes and then you can report me to… to someone, anyone and claim sexual harassment.”
That got her attention. She whipped her face up towards him. “How have you never been reported for that? Your underlings don’t owe you any sexual acts for your cooperation.”
“I know. I don’t behave that way towards any woman. Even you. Think about it. Have I ever propositioned you? Or threatened to fire you? Were you ever aware that I was checking you out? I know it’s not okay. I hire women whom I find attractive as my assistant. If I later sleep with them, it is only with their complete consent and after they welcome my advances. They all sign a nondisclosure and everything is right out in the open. Everyone knows what we’re doing and when it ends, they do not feel obligated to leave their employment here. I do not allow any sexual harassment. I swear to you.”
“Oh, well, congratulations. That makes all this,” Julia spread her hands to indicate his office and her, “so much classier. Wow. Give you a medal for such thorough planning. You seduce and use the women you hire for a job, except you ask their permission first and then make sure they sign a legal document before they claim what a douchebag you are.”
“I know. You’re right. I am. It always worked out before. But I swear to God, you’re the first one I’ve hired that actually performed well on the job. You took a real interest in doing it, and you learned quickly too. Hell, I got a kick out of it too. You’re pretty swift on the uptake and I started watching you figure things out. I must admit it was kind of an ego trip to see how much you could learn from me, but now, you’re helping me. Us. This company.”
She fisted her hands. “You hired me on to be your walking, breathing, living, blonde sex joke.”
“I did. And it never stopped you. You earned everyone’s respect. That wasn’t me changing their minds, it was you. And you also changed mine.”
“Oh, really? So when I quit, are you telling me the next young, twenty-something blonde isn’t going to be waiting in the wings?”
“Don’t quit then. This is legit.”
“It didn’t start that way. Why the fuck should I believe you?” Julia snarled just as she had at Chris less than an hour ago.
“I don’t know.” Lloyd threw his hands up in frustration. “I just know that you can do the job and I’m begging you to give me another chance. Please stay in my employment.”
She tilted her head. “That’s it? Stay in your employment?”
He nodded. “Yes, that’s it. Stay in my employment.”
Her jaw locked. “You’re such a dick. Why should I work for you?”
“I’m pretty good at my job. I’ll quit being such a deluded dick. I’ll definitely avoid being that way with you. You can tell me when I do and make me more aware. Please stay. You can learn a lot from me and go far in this company. If you train with me.”
She scoffed. “Sounds like a lame line just to get up my skirt.”
“No. It’s a lame line to get you to stay. Why? Because I like working with you. I don’t like too many people. You. Chris. Walter. Margaret. I tend to avoid people most of the time. That’s why I like being boss. I can delegate the work out so I don’t have to spend a lot of time with the less ambitious employees. But I like you four, which is why I spend more time with you guys and I like teaching you the job. Think about it.”
She squinted at him as if she were using laser vision to see into his heart, and cut through his bullshit. He could spin anything, she guessed, and was a perfect salesman. But he did spend a lot of extra time with Chris and Walter. Margaret masters her job so he could let Margaret be.
He sighed. “Sit. Please? Let me tell you about something before you decide to leave or not. Sue me or not.”
She did, but was careful not to cross her legs or give off any inadvertent feminine signals. “What?”
“Someday, I want to slow down. Not fully retire, but maybe only work half days or two days a week. I like overseeing it all but not doing the nitty-gritty jobs that I do now. In order to do that in a way I feel comfortable, I’ll need only the best people to fill in for me. This…” he twirled his hand around, “this is all I have in the world. What you see around you is all I have to show for my life’s work. It’s the only decent thing about me. I have three failed marriages and no kids. No son—”
“Or daughter,” she interrupted.
He nodded. “Or daughter, no one to leave this place to. So I either work forever or find a way to gradually let it go. I work ten-hour days just to keep it out of the red. I’m getting tired of that. I’d like to slow down. Just a little. And I have a plan. I’ve been looking around for the last few years to find people I can trust. And like. People I want to work with and teach. Their experience is not as important as natural talent, leadership, loyalty, ethics and the desire to solve problems. Ethics are very important to this company. As you no doubt, know, there are a lot charlatans in this business. I’m not one of them. We run an honest, forthright, and quality business and provide only the best end product. I want to see that continue. My reputation has to be upheld, even if I’m not always at the helm. So I need people I can trust.”
She scoffed. “Reputation?”
“Okay. I don’t have one in my personal life. But professionally? Come on, you know I do.”
She grudgingly admitted he did with a silent nod.
He cleared his throat. “So anyway, when I met Chris, something sparked between us. He’s young, sharp, ambitious, and hungry. He moved up swiftly, and far faster than most employees and I believe he’ll continue that steep trajectory. And I know I can trust him.”
“What do you want from Walter?”
“He’s my business partner. Chris will be my construction man. By the time I’m finished with him, he’ll successfully run, build, budget, and bid any building he comes across. Margaret will be able to project manage anything. And Walter? He’ll handle the business side. Meet with clients. Do all the wheeling and dealing. He can handle things like the accounting decisions, as well as the forecasting the big picture in five years. He knows how to invest profits and minimize losses. He’ll decide what jobs we should take and determine how big or little the employee pool needs to be for the upcoming year. You know, the business end. Chris and Margaret construction. Walter, business.”
She folded her arms again. “What are you implying? Got a bit of an ego?”
“Yeah, I do. But it takes three guys to fill in for me and everything I have to do.”
She squinted at him. “What now?”
“You. You’re the final piece to the puzzle, the only one I was missing. I started working with you and noticed your quick mind, hard work, tenacity and honesty. All the qualities I recognized in Chris. Plus, you two work so well together. I soon realized you two and Walter could be a very successful, dynamic, powerful team. Because Margaret isn’t going to work much longer than me.”
“And all because I’m blonde and young, you manage to find this?”
“Yeah. At least, that’s how I started to work with you.” He shrugged, looking sheepish. “I realize that is pure chauvinism and wrong. But even if I hired you for the wrong reasons, I now want to employ you for all the right reasons. I respect your work and I want to groom you and Chris and Walter. Think about it. I spend as much time working with Chris and Walter one-on-one as I do with you. I really am not just coming onto you. I hope you see that.”
Her lips twitched. “Well, I suppose not, unless you’re going after Chris too.”
“No.” He smiled, relaxing his shoulders as if he thought maybe she would not have him arrested before she quit. “I must ask that you don’t share my plan with anyone, especially Chris and Walter. First of all, I don’t know if my plan will begin in a year, or five or ten. You know? I don’t know what I want. Sometimes, I’m tired and simply want to slow down, and enjoy the success I already have. Then I have to wonder if this is what I truly enjoy. Working. I’m not sure where it’ll lead me yet. And until I know, I want to continue the subtle grooming I’ve been doing. If people think I might retire or start sniffing around to see if they could have more investment control in this company, it might change our relationship. I hope it continues to move forward until I’m ready. Does that make sense?”
She puckered her mouth. “I’ll keep your intentions quiet because it’s none of my business or concern.”
“Will you still work here? And come with me today?”
“Why? So you can groom me some more?”
“Yes. For work. For here. Not for my personal purposes.”
She squinted at him. “I hope you mean that, because I do.”
“If you won’t quit, I swear I’ll teach you all that I know as well as the work I should have hired you for in the first place. If I don’t keep my word, sue me.”
He stuck his hand out. Against her better judgment, she tucked her hand into his. Scowling, she added, “I should not stay on here. Half of the reason I will is because I like the job and the people I work with. But right now, that doesn’t include you. And if you make one improper move…”
“I understand.”
She flipped her hair over her shoulder and held her head high as she marched out of there. Some of the dramatic effect was lost because she had to go to her office to grab some paperwork to take with them.
She wasn’t sure she was making the right decision. Lloyd spun a believable story. She’d hold her judgment if she believed he’d gone from hiring her as a joke to being so impressed with her he had to consider grooming her for what? Being part of a team that would take over his business? Ha. She didn’t believe him.
But she had no other offers or prospects and she didn’t want to quit. So she could look at it as she was eyes wide open walking into this situation and taking the power back or being hoodwinked to be made more a joke of. She wanted to believe it was the first. Time would tell. And she had plenty of that.