Introduction
Marcus Brown cursed and hung up. How hard could it be to find a P.A.? Here he was the CEO of a small technology firm, which had a great reputation, but no one suitable wanted to work with him. God almighty did people not want a job these days? Three months of searching and he had turned up the grand total of four applicants, three idiots and one who wanted stupid money. Even the temp he had requested had failed to turn up. Not even a phone call to say she was not coming.
His friend George had been nagging him to try a solution to his problem that George's company was working on bringing to market. George as he so often reminded Marcus had a much larger and much more successful company. The idea though sounded more trouble than it was worth and Marcus had no wish to be a guinea pig. However the more time he wasted on his search, the more desperate Marcus became. Maybe he should give it a try he thought. Especially as George had said there would be no charge for the trial period. It would be like having an intern George had said, and maybe he was correct.
He slowly pondered the offer his friend George had made. It still sounded like a risk to him and he was not sure how he felt about it. However, right now he had no other options. Sod it he would give it a try. At least it would not cost him anything and apparently there would be some fringe benefits. That at least would make it fun; working as hard as Marcus did, fun was a rarity. George claimed that was true for all top execs hence the fringe benefits. This was the piece Marcus was really not sure about.
In the end he decided to go see George, go through his proposal in detail and then maybe give it a try. Knowing George he would not take no for an answer.
Part one
When Marcus walked into his office he found her sitting at his table waiting. He nervously looked around his office and outside, but there was no one else around. Oh great I am on my own he thought sarcastically. He called her quietly by her name; "Dai Tobor," then he sat down, and waited patiently for her to get her bearings. Marcus had been warned it might take her a few moments to understand where she was.
To pass the time he focused on assessing the girl in front of him. She was 30-years-old or said to be. She wore a figure-hugging long green outfit. Her beautiful corduroy dress featured a bow and a belt at the waistline. The belt pulled in her waist and that did a lot to show off her curves. When Dai had walked in he noticed her red heels, these added a splash of colour to her outfit. The low cut neckline, had a big bow that helped emphasised her large breasts. Her hair was in a side parting, styled in loose waves. Her red lips caught his eyes along with the Diamond earrings. There was no question she was very attractive and had been taught to dress with style.
At first though she just sat there and did not respond. Her eyes were blinking rapidly, a blank expression on her face, as she looked all around. It was the sort of behaviour that made others think you were stupid. It was this thought that made Dai put a smile on her face, in an effort, to look as relaxed as she could. It was right to come across as calm at interviews right? Her hands had been gripping the sides of the chair, very tightly, as though she might fall off it. So she placed them on her lap. Her expression changed from relaxed to quizzical, that felt the right thing to do. She waited to see what would happen next.
To be fair though, it wasn't like she didn't know where she was. She knew the man sitting opposite her was Marcus Brown CEO of Quantum Leaps, a small, but ambitious technology company. She understood all of that, even if she was not sure how. Most of all she knew she was there to get the internship, that George had found her and she so desperately wanted. All that was clear to her.
It was at this point she suddenly started talking, telling Mr Brown how great it would be to work with him, streaming out endless facts about the company that she had researched. When Mr Brown spoke, two things were immediately clear to Dai, she had spoken for too long. George often told her that was a bad habit. The second and most important thing was she had succeeded.
"Enough, enough!" Mr Brown said, holding his hand up. "You can have the job." Dai could really sense he meant it, but he was strangely uneasy too. It seemed odd to her that he would be nervous about the appointment of an intern. Of course she was going to be working with him, but he must work with new people all the time right? Anyway all that mattered was he had offered her the post.
They chatted for a while about her new role. Dai would be responsible for managing Mr Brown's diary and working life. He travelled a lot so there would be a lot of arranging of flights and hotels to do. In fact he was about to take Dai with him on a tour of suppliers. This would mean they would be away for a few days. In the corner of Mr Brown's office was a large tree in a pot. It was green, and very healthy looking. Clearly it was well cared for. As Dai studied it she worked out it was a Citrus limon or a lemon tree to most people. Why would you keep a tree in your office? She guessed many people who couldn't be outside, liked to bring a bit of nature indoors with them. Now Marcus was thanking Dai for sending him her passport and was handing it back to her. She had no memory of giving it to him, and did not even recognise the document. Deep down though, she knew she had given it to Mr Brown.
A voice in her head seemed to say. "You have the job." And of course that was all that mattered.
The next few days were a bit of a blur. Dai spent them sitting at her new desk learning the locations of all the sites they were to visit, researching how best to visit them, in the most efficient and timely manner. Next she had to book all the meetings, and then arrange the flights, plus hotels to ensure everything went smoothly. Mr Brown instructions were they were always to stay in a suite. This was an unusual request. HR had given Dai a company handbook and she had eagerly memorised it. So she knew it was company policy for employees not to share rooms. However, Mr Brown reassured Dai. In this case, he said, it was right to make an exception. He did not say why, and oddly for one so inquisitive, Dai felt something stopping her from asking. All that mattered though was their business trip was all sorted. To Dai it felt like it had only been a few hours work, but somehow four days had passed.
There was an odd moment when Dai went to show Mr Brown the plan for the trip. As she walked in, she found Mr Brown was on the phone to their friend George. She could not picture George in her mind, but she knew he was her friend and had kindly got her the interview. The two men were deep in conversation. Dai waited just out of sight. It was not her plan to listen in; she just knew it was rude to interrupt. Unfortunately though there was no way to avoid hearing everything they said.
The conversation seemed to be about the supplier trip and Mr Brown seemed to be quizzing George.