Jenny spent the afternoon quietly working; the time invested grooming Ian to be her dupe impinged on her day job. Even though her work at the hedge fund was more lucrative, being an analyst was gratifying – identifying investment opportunities was like building a complex jigsaw puzzle – once all the pieces fit together and the picture was revealed, satisfaction permeated through her; it must be what an artist feels after her final brushstroke. The $750,000 annual income wasn't bad either.
At 3 o'clock her intern arrived – Sydney was a smart, hard-working and personable finance major at NYU; she would soon earn six college credits for her work this semester, as long as she received a positive review. It wouldn't be a problem though – she got along well with Jenny; she hoped to win a coveted summer internship. She would do anything for the chance to spend the summer in New York City and working on Wall Street, especially if she had the opportunity to be mentored by Jennifer DeBeaux.
Sydney admired Jenny for her success; many young women on campus admired her – she didn't know it but Jenny had a sorority sister cult following and Sydney was the most vociferous disciple; she didn't miss an opportunity to extol her bosses virtues. And it wasn't just her intellect and success that Sydney revered – she had a crush on Jenny; she was infatuated, but no one would ever know; it was her secret and she didn't plan on sharing it.
At 8 o'clock, after everyone had gone home – even the cleaning lady had come and gone, Jenny and Sydney were still working; refinements to the pro-forma income statements and balance sheets was tedious and time-consuming, but the deadline was approaching and they had no alternative.
"Take a look at this," said Jenny pointing to the computer monitor. Sydney strode across the room, stood behind Jenny, looked over her shoulder and examined the spreadsheet. "The formula must be incorrect."
"Okay, it's not adding the column correctly; I'll fix it," said Sydney. Jenny's perfume lingered in the air; Sydney lingered over Jenny shoulder – she was momentarily frozen like a deer caught in headlights. She unconsciously peered into Jenny's blouse and flushed. She hastily straightened herself and returned to her desk.
Jenny raised her eyebrows and smiled. She watched Sydney's cute little ass wiggle as she skipped across the office – although she was 20 years old, Sydney looked much younger: narrow hips and small breasts, dark short pixie hair, bright blue eyes, and an adorable button nose. She didn't wear a lot of makeup but her lips were always pink. She looked sweet and innocent but Jenny would wager she had a devilish streak – it wasn't the first time she noticed Sydney furtively checking her out.
They were at the point of diminishing returns and needed a break; Sydney went to this snack machine for cokes and candy bars – the sugar rush would see them through. After another hour of work, Jenny found an error and summoned Sydney. "Shouldn't the databases be linked so that we see total sales by category?"
"Yes," said Sydney. She bent over Jenny shoulder and used the computer mouse to point, "No problem, I'll fix the macro."
Jenny put her hand on Sydney's and moved the mouse to a different part of the page and said, "Please fix this too." With her index finger she innocently stroked Sydney's delicate fingers; her voice was soft and supple – she knew it would rattle her but she enjoyed teasing.
Sydney was flustered but composed and said, "Ms. DeBeaux, I have learned so much from you this semester. This is been the best experience of my life."
"If you call me Ms. DeBeaux one more time," smiled Jenny, "I'm going to spank you."
It wasn't the first time Jenny said this; Sydney always blushed and never countered, but she was overworked and giddy and said demurely, "I wish."
Jenny pretended she didn't hear Sydney's desire; she resumed reading dense corporate quarterly reports and furiously scribbling notes – as much as she wanted to play, now wasn't the time, at least not now.
After another hour of work, Jenny sighed loudly, threw down her pencil and kicked off her heels; she'd reached her limit and needed distraction. She swiveled in her chair and looked at Sydney and said, "We've accomplished a lot today; it's late – I hope I'm not keeping you from your boyfriend."
Sydney turned and said, "I haven't had a boyfriend in quite a while, actually not since high school."
"Really," said Jenny with raised eyebrows. "I never would have guessed."
"I don't miss the drama of boyfriends; they are so needy, and selfish. I bet it's easier having a girlfriend."
"It can be," smiled Jenny. "Girls know better what other girls want." She seductively twirled a strand of hair.