Claudia stretched her bare feet under her desk at home, awaiting another Zoom call. She looked out the window, feeling restless. The pandemic had upended her social life a few months earlier and deposited her into a basket of solitude. Another Friday night without dancing. At least she still had her job, she thought, as she searched for a silver lining in the cloud of boredom swimming around her thoughts.
"Hello, Claudia?" boomed Rose's voice over stereo speakers.
Lunging to turn down the volume, Claudia answered, "Hi Rose, I'm here."
"Yeah, I see you flying across the room," Rose laughed, giggling. "Nice pants. You go, girl. Just don't let Mr. Jenson see you in those."
"Oh," Claudia blushed as she was wearing a business suit top with black booty shorts. "Don't worry. I won't be getting out of this chair," she continued, tapping the contoured fabric arms of the fancy gamer's chair she'd received a month ago.
"Good. You don't want to give Mr. Jenson any reason to second-guess his decision to keep you on," Rose declared. "Not that you don't look good in those."
"Thanks, Rose. Too bad you are the only one who is going to see me in them," Claudia said with a sigh.
"Where's Alice?" Rose asked.
"She's over at Jeff's place," Claudia voiced with a rising tone of jealousy. "Some people get all the luck. Those two hooked up a couple of months before we went into lockdown. Now she's over at his place all the time."
"Doesn't he have any friends he could introduce you to?" Rose countered, trying to brighten Claudia's spirits.
"I've met them all before. Nice guys, just not my type," Claudia asserted with a hint of frustration.
"Well, I almost forgot to tell you the client, Mr. Franklin, will be on the call," Rose said excitedly. "He's hot."
"You met him in person?" Claudia prodded.
"Yeah, a couple of times," Rose whistled as she motioned a peace sign pointing to her eyes and then down towards her waist. "Fine and sexy as hell."
"You better get some ice and cool yourself down," Claudia laughed. "Being locked down is getting to the both of us."
"Good morning ladies," Mr. Jenson's serious voice chimed in, slowing down the rhythm of the conversation. "Rose will put us into one of the breakout rooms and give us a couple minutes' heads up when Mr. Franklin arrives."
"Sure thing," Rose responded, trading her giggles for business tones.
"I see you got the chair," Mr. Jenson observed.
"Oh yes. Thank you for sending that over," Claudia responded smiling. She was proud of her recent work for a large furniture chain that had recently branched out into gaming and business chairs. The furniture company had contracted with Claudia's firm to create a marketing blitz in order to capitalize on surging pandemic induced demand.
"They are really pleased with your work. Those clever social media ads have led to a bonanza of sales. They're doing so well Mr. Franklin insists on meeting you," Mr. Jenson explained.
"That's great to hear," Claudia responded. "That's not a problem with protocol, is it?"
"This is a special situation," Mr. Jenson noted. "Generally speaking, here at S & H, we like to maintain a barrier between our junior staff and our clients to prevent poaching. However, Mr. Franklin is not a typical client. He is a liaison of sorts for several businesses. We do a lot of business with him."
A message from Rose appeared in the chat window. "Mr. Franklin is in the Zoom lobby."
"Greetings, Mr. Franklin," Mr. Jenson uttered, addressing a blank screen. "We can't see you."
Claudia squinted and leaned forward, her eyes narrowing in curiosity. As the screen flickered, Mr. Franklin's face appeared, basking in the golden light of what looked like the sun's rays on an outdoor terrace. For a split second, she forgot where she was.
'Wow, Rose wasn't kidding,' Claudia thought, her pulse quickening despite herself. His broad shoulders and well-groomed beard. He was striking. And that smile, the way his eyes sparkled even through a screen, made her feel like she was the only one in the room. She had to remind herself this was still a work call, but it didn't hurt that he was handsome.
"I am with you now, I hope," Mr. Franklin announced. "Good to see you, Jenson." His eyes lit up with a sparkle as he observed Claudia and nodded slightly.
"Mr. Franklin, this is Claudia," Mr. Jenson announced. "She was one of the lead designers on the chair ad campaign."
"Nice to meet you Mr. Franklin," Claudia interjected.
"Pleasure is all mine," Mr. Franklin responded gracefully.
"Claudia, Mr. Franklin wants to discuss details concerning the social media campaign for the chair. Feel free to work with him directly. Arrangements have already been made with upper management," Mr. Jenson clarified.
"I understand you have been with S & H for two years," Mr. Franklin inquired, his voice even and professional.
"Yes, I got the position right after getting my degree," Claudia confirmed, her eyes focussing on the corner of her screen where his face was framed by sunlight, his posture suggested quiet and abundant confidence. She couldn't help but feel a little warmth creeping up her thigh.
"That's impressive," Mr. Franklin said. There was a slight pause. "I've heard good things about your other work. It's clear you have an eye for detail." Mister Franklin then gave Jenson a slight nod.
"I have to go," Mr. Jenson announced. "Let me know if you need anything."
"Sure thing, Jenson," Mr. Franklin declared as he flashed Jenson a thumbs-up.
Claudia waved 'laters' to Mr. Jenson and continued her conversation with Mr. Franklin. They got along well. Mr. Franklin was very interested in how Claudia approached the social media components of the ads for the chair. He appreciated how she integrated a changing color scheme into the ads to make them more dynamic. He mentioned he had some other products that he thought would benefit from a similar treatment. While they talked Mr. Franklin couldn't help noticing how Claudia's flair for using color in design extended to her appearance. His eyes bounced from her blonde hair with red highlights in high pigtails to the dark lipstick on her plump lips.
