Veto

Chapter 18

Chapter 18

"Well I for one am glad you decided to join me for lunch." Charlotte confesses through a mouthful of her chicken wrap.

"It's you I'm surprised about. You never leave the school grounds for lunch. Like ever." I sip at the black coffee that was placed in front of me about five minutes ago. I shouldn't have ordered the large. I'll have a caffeine buzz through the entire fortnightly meeting I this afternoon.

"I have a free period after lunch so I thought I may as well venture out. Besides, I'm not the one up to my eyeballs in work these days. You're always so busy. I haven't seen you since Niall's birthday." Charlotte speaks while trying to manage the sauce trickling over her hand from her overfilled wrap. I hand her the napkin from under my plate and she thanks me before I answer.

"Work is..." I struggle to find the right word to describe my new job.

"Hectic?" Charlotte offers and I nod with a smile.

"But I love it. I love how busy I am. I love that there's an incentive for me to push myself. The meeting I have this afternoon is full of old snotty men," Apart from Harry hut I don't mention him, "And they expect me to just sit there with no opinions of my own and to take orders but my boss Mr. Barlowe really seems to appreciate my work so it drives me to speak and give my input." I can't help but gush at the once in a lifetime opportunity this job is.

"Wow, so I take it working with Harry isn't as much of draw back for you as I assumed?" Charlotte comments and my eyes drop to the almond croissant in front of me that I've barely touched.

"Well yes, I'd say he's the only draw back though." I answer, peeling a layer of flakey pastry off. The dusting of powdered sugar melts away on my tongue and I give the piece a few chews as Charlotte looks over the table at me carefully.

"I thought you two had got along well while camping. Didn't you sleep in his tent?" She asks what is been waiting our entire lunch for her to bring up.

"He was tolerable." I don't answer her question about sleeping in the tent. I know she already knows I did.

"Well he seemed lovely. Obviously I don't know him very well though. Niall seems to have only nice things to say about him." She shrugs and I let out a breathless huff.

"Niall says nice things about everyone." I remind her and she contemplates my point before agreeing.

"I think Erika was rather miffed he didn't come to her tent. She told me she waited up till about two in the morning for him." Charlotte smirks at Erika's expense.

"Surprised she didn't go offer herself to Kate and her new boyfriend as his initiation into the group." I add and Charlotte's mouth opens in mock shock but we both end up fighting smiles.

My phone beeps and I wipe my hands to check the new email that's come through.

[You submitted potential client files for the fortnightly today? You're not a junior analyst for the board anymore. Stop distracting yourself from our work and do what you're asked.]

I don't even need to read the generic pre written email footer to know it's Harry. I had a feeling he'd be pissed that I've presented my own work on top of the personal analytic work Raymond had asked me to do for Harry's prospecting. But he had to know after my first fortnightly meeting eyes were now on me and I had to bring something forward to prove it wasn't just some fluke with the Roehagger account. I have to prove myself to them all, even if it means outshining and potentially making Harry's work ethic look bad. It's not that he's lazy, he does work a lot. I've just been taking a lot of work home and staying up till the early hours of the morning to make sure I made this fortnightly just as good as my first.