The Arrangement | Book 2 | Completed

5

Matty's POV

Melissa leaves early the next morning, waking me as she gets up to leave.

"Lock up before you leave, okay?" She says, giving me a quick kiss before scurrying out the door.

"Okay. I love you." I say, but she doesn't even have time to reply by the time she is out of the door. "Okay then." I mumble to myself before drifting back to sleep.

When I wake up a few hours later, I shower and change into the set of clothes that I keep over at her house for moments like this. When I go to lock up the house, I stop at the plant that is by her front door. The soil is dry as fuck, so I grab a cup and water it before I lock the place up. I swear, she could kill a cactus. She is terrible with things like this. When I had mentioned wanting a dog, she shut the idea down almost immediately. This is exactly why, and I don't blame her for that. I mean, at least she knows.

When I get to the office, Holly is waiting for me at the door with my juice and a bagel. I smile gratefully at her and wait for her to ramble off the list of things that need to be done.

"Good morning, sir. I have a list of things that were moved from yesterday to both today and tomorrow. First, Mr.Frailey called last night and wants you to call the office when you get a chance. Heath also got back to me via email and wanted to know if today would work for you? He said around three would work for him, but he can adjust some things if need be. Melissa faxed over the month's paperwork with instructions for her department, but wanted you to look over them before sending them to her floor. Oh, and MagMedia called and said that their foreign exchange program was in effect, and was wondering if we would like to participate." She spills off.

"What the hell is MagMedia?" I ask. "Well, I know what they are, but what is their program?" I ask. MagMedia is basically the exact same company as Fain&Frailey. The only difference is they are out of the country...well, they're on the opposite side of the world, really.

"I guess they wanted for us to send some of our guys, and they will send some of theirs. Whoever gets sent will be working under the CEO and their assistants. They basically just want to see what it's like in America, and then vice versa. Mr.Frailey already declined their offer, saying he wouldn't have time because of how young Magnolia is at the moment, which is understandable. The invitation has been extended to all stores, though." She informs me.

"Fuck, I don't know if we can afford to lose any of our guys, though. How long is the program?" I ask, reading over the paperwork she gives me on the program as we walk up to my office.

"Only a month or so." She informs me. "The CEO's and attendees can request an extension if wanted, but a month is what they are required."

"Fuck, I don't know about that. A month is a long time." I say. "Given our current situation. I mean, Frailey has Melissa over in Vancouver so I'm already one person down. I don't know if I have time to take over that department, too." I say.

"Can I suggest something, sir?" She asks politely.

"Shoot." I say, still reading through the paperwork. Really, this program sounds really fucking cool. I just don't know if we can do it this year, given our current situation at both stores. November was a rough month for the company, and December probably won't be any better.

"What if we sent Clarissa up to finance while Melissa is away? I mean, I know that she's not really in charge of that area, but she does have experience. You brought her from Vancouver, so she already has the knowledge. You kind of trained us in all areas incase something like this happened. I could take Clarissa's spot until she is done. That way, there is someone in each department." She tells me. I smile down at her, and she flushes. I know it took her a lot of courage to throw this idea out there.