After embellishing her resume, Valerie-a single mom-lands a job as an administrative assistant to the hottest, most entitled and obnoxious man she's ever met: Preston Cartwright, the CFO of the prestigious Cartwright & Sons Enterprises.
Several yea...
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"Tommy, I will write you a check, but can you please wait to cash it until Friday?" Valerie had said into the phone.
My mouth had fallen open in shock, and I stopped short.
Who does that?
Is she so careless with her personal finances she needs to ask someone to hold on to the check until she got her first paycheck from Cartwright & Sons?
I get that she's not as well off as I am. Few people are. But I'm not judging the assets she has or the amount of money she makes. I'm judging the way she handles them.
It concerns me she owes someone money. And I'm hoping that's all it is, and that she doesn't have a gambling problem.
We can't have someone who's irresponsible with money working here. Especially not when she reports to me, the Chief Financial Officer. My dad would never allow it.
I take a step back, so I'm out of her sight, but continue to watch her on her phone. She closes her eyes and nibbles on her bottom lip and it's obvious she is nervous or upset about something as she listens to whoever is on the other end.
It's not like she is trying to scam someone or trying to get out of something. It appears she genuinely wants to resolve whatever the problem is but needs time to do so.
I let out a breath, and my shoulders relax.
I guess bookies could have a similar effect on someone. But I can't see that being her problem. Valerie seems too conservative. Frugal even. I can't picture her gambling with whatever money she has. She always brings lunch and doesn't seem to spend money on nonessentials. I mean, just look at that piece of shit car she's driving around.
And then I feel bad. Maybe she's in trouble. If that is the case, I'd like to help her.
"What?" I scoff to myself.
Just the thought is surprising and a definite first for me. I've always tried to keep my professional life separate from my personal life as much as possible. It's not always easy since it is a family business, but being able to say it's just business makes it easier to justify decisions that affect others.
But there is something about Valerie that affects me, and as much as I figured it was just her sinful body eliciting unholy thoughts, it's more than that.
The concerned but determined expression on her face stirs my protective instincts. It makes me want to help.
I'm just not sure what I can do, or how to go about it? I can't exactly tell her what I overheard when I listened in on her conversation. And that brings me to the second issue. Her dinner plans.
From the sound of her second phone call, she's planning on having someone stay for dinner... which is going to include a bottle of wine. So maybe she already has someone in her life that helps?
