The Double Life

Chapter 15

The paperwork that's piling up on my desk since I started work this morning isn't going down any time soon. Whenever I think I've finished with one, another three appears on the pile, all labelled 'urgent' and I just pile through it.

Andrea has kept quiet after Chris told her about taking care of the meeting on his own. She hasn't once mentioned it to me because she knows that I heard Chris fine well. He doesn't want me at the meeting and to be fair, I wasn't really bothered about going to it. It's not as interesting or appealing to me for today.

The time on my computer screen has just gone four twenty-eight and for about the tenth time today, there's another pile of paper placed on my desk. I look at it mid-typing and then up at the person who has placed it on my desk.

"More?" I simply ask Billy.

His white shirt is neatly tucked in to the top of his trousers and his patterned purple tie isn't sitting flush under his collar. His ginger hair is a mess and there's a worried look on his face.

"Mr. Benton said that you've to interview these people regarding the permanent position for someone to be his assistant." Billy's voice has a slight quiver to it and at the end of his explanation, he swallows hard.

I narrow my eyes at him. "I thought his old assistant was coming back in a few weeks?"

"He said he isn't due to unforeseen circumstances."

"And why can't he do this himself?"

"He said you'd be more suited to do this than him." Billy's hands are shaking now and I can see it clearly by the way he's holding tightly to the unopened letters he still has in his hands. "He said you'd know more about what to look for in a good assistant as you helped to pick his old one."

"I see," I nod. I straighten up and get back to typing away on my computer. "Fine. Tell him I'll start when I've done all the other one hundred things I have to do."

"He said it's to be done by tomorrow night," Billy bravely tells me.

I stop typing completely and look fully up at Billy who takes a step back from my desk out of fear. "By tomorrow night? Are you serious?"

He nods.

"Doesn't he know what tomorrow is?"

He shrugs.

I stand up on a loud grunt and push Billy out my way as I make my way towards Chris's office.

I can't believe he wants me to find him a permanent assistant by tomorrow night. Doesn't he know that it takes weeks to go through all possible candidates and that's not including interviewing them? What he's asking me to do can't be done in time. I know that and so does he.

He knows that all too well.

I don't knock on Chris's office door before entering; I just walk straight in, anger consuming my entire body.

"Out," I instruct to Josh who's standing next to Chris behind the desk. They both look at me in shock and I can tell they're both wondering why I'm here. My eyes are solely fixed on Chris, I don't give what happened between Josh and I a second thought. "Now!"

Josh places everything he has in his hands down on the desk and leaves the room quickly. The door closes with a small thud and I walk over to the desk, my arms folding over my chest in the process.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I say through gritted teeth.

Chris frowns. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about making me look for a new assistant for you before tomorrow night. That's what I'm talking about!"

"Oh. That," he says lightly.