Restart

Chapter 11. Excitement

I arrive at the office early. I am the first to get there, besides the security and I am impatiently waiting for my secretary to inform me of today's schedule, although I only really seem to care about one thing, so I impatiently pick up my phone and start texting.
*Have you spoken to my personal assistant yet? *
*No. You told me she starts work at 9. *
Great! Could time tick any slower? I am suddenly feeling nervous and want this day to be over with already.
I try to call my father to preschedule a meeting and I am repeatedly forwarded straight to his voicemail. Since I seem unable to do, or think of anything else, I grab my phone again.
*Have you decided what position you would be after yet? *
* How could I? I don't know what's available. *
*Just call my assistant in a couple of minutes. She came in early.*
I immediately call my secretary to come in earlier today, but not before she accepts a call from a certain woman named Claire Fay. I instruct her to provide all the information required, emphasizing on the part that she should act like she was already at the office. She always had her work laptop with her, so all the information was there anyway.
I decide not to text Claire again, although I am very tempted to, but it's so damn hard. Why am I being so restless? Today is an important day for me, so I should be calm and perform as smoothly as possible, but I am acting more like a strung up high school boy, juat like my father's opinion of me
"Finally! What took you so long?" I ask my assistant the moment she arrives, only half an hour after I called her and half an hour earlier from her usual working hours, but instead of reacting to my exaggeration, she apologizes, reminding me why I like her the best from all my previous private assistants. Obviously she picked up my edginess and decided to be there for me instead of standing up for her rights. I do appreciate that and I will make it up to her in the future.
"I am so sorry sir."
"Did she call you?"
"Yes Mr. Anderson, I provided everything she asked. I emailed her a list with all the position openings we have at the moment and she ..."
"She what? Why did you stop? Did she already refuse them all?"
"At first she did, but five minutes later she called me back and informed me of her choice." She reluctantly says.
"Which is what? Do I fucking need to ask you? Do you not like your job? You are wasting my time and I am losing my patience here." I agitatedly say
I know I am being a jerk by speaking to her like that, but I have to take my anxiety out at someone. That's what Alicia is for. As my P.A. she sometimes needs to be the punching bag, to ease her boss's load. It is part of her well paid job and during these three years that she was assigned to me, she seemed to be managing just fine. This doesn't bother her, I am sure. If it did, she would have said something. She is a smart enough girl to know I don't mean the harsh things I say to her sometimes, it's just my way to keep her alerted and I reward her generously enough for her to realize that I do actually appreciate everything she does for me.
Suddenly, she speaks interrupting my thoughts.
"She wants your driver's position. I only included the opening yesterday, as your regular driver will be retiring next month. I explained to her that this is the only position that would have to go through you and only you for approval and that she would have to pass a test and then get a lot of special training, but she said it's the only thing she wants to do from the list".
I am nervously laughing after listening to these nonsense, absolutely certain that Claire is messing with me. She wants to be my driver... Who? Her! Besides the fact that I would never trust a female driver, I would also NEVER accept this English crazy woman driving me around in a foreign country, not knowing all the shortcuts when traffic was an everyday thing and mostly I wouldn't feel comfortable to be the passenger of a driver that was up to now driving at the wrong side of the road, sitting at the other side of the car! I am smiling much to my amusement, as I thought she was way too serious and mostly kind of a sad person, so I wasn't expecting her to be so humorous. I must admit this was good. It's been too long since I actually laughed out loud.
*Pick me up at 12 for brunch. Lol * I hope she gets the sarcasm in my text.
*I need to finish my training first before I am able to do that. *
Ha ... she is taking this too far I think to myself.
*Ok, then I'll pick you up at 12 from your hotel. I want to discuss the details concerning the meeting with my father over lunch. *
*Great. See you then.*
*And also to help you find your place in this company. You will have to make a decision fast, for us to be able to prepare you for whatever position you choose. *
*But I already have! I thought that you knew about my choice, after reading that first sms you sent me.*
Ok. She really doesn't know when to stop. But here I am, still left with a stupid grin on my face and a humorous mood. I wonder why I am acting so casually around her, by making jokes and talking intimately, which is very unlike me. It's not like we are actual friends and most importantly, she will be soon working for me. I most definitely won't have any of this funny mood when she will officially be my employee, because I don't want her to fill the rest of the employees heads with any intimacy ideas and shit like that. I have led her to believe I am a sweet guy, but she must learn that's not the case. I am a very straightforward man and I don't care much about being kind to my employees, as too much intimacy causes problems. They ought to be kind to me and they better be, as I am the one who updates their bank accounts at the end of the month.
Things should be crystal clear as far as business relations goes. A boss is a boss and the employees are there to serve him or her, although I don't really know many lady bosses. Such an important and requiring position, should only be filled by men, as women are too sensitive and emotional to handle the intensity and all the stress. I do know some women that own and run companies, but most only with the help of a husband, father, or lover I am sure. Women are too sensitive and fragile to handle and efficiently ran a big company, although they don't admit it to themselves. The way their brain works may be more complex and better at multitasking than a man's but their exaggerated sentiments are all over the place obstructing their final performance on crucial matters.
A proper employee's behaviour when working for me, should be something she would have to find out later of course. If she knew that Mr. Alexander Ronald Anderson is nothing like the Alexander she got to know, she would run. She does strike me a little as the feminist type, so I wouldn't want to argue about any of these matters, at the moment.
"Alicia, I am hoping to get my daily schedule sometime soon. Like, before I fire your incompetent ass."
"Yes, sir. I am ready whenever you are, sorry I didn't notify you already."
Messing with that girl, keeps me entertained. Because I am sure she knows me well enough, not to take my threats seriously.
After going through my today's obligations, I pass them along to the ones that would be able to handle them as efficiently as me and I leave the building to find a welcoming gift for Claire getting on board my ship. I need to play all nice with her and not act like a smug ass, because if she backs out on me, I am lost for sure. I have an allergic reaction to the mere contemplation of matrimonial bonds. Imagining myself in that position is simply terrifying.
I take Alicia with me and I let her decide on the gift, not really caring for what she chooses. She hands me this tiny box 20 minutes later, only to infuriate me for taking too long and I tell her to find her own way back to the office as I am already running late. I give her money for a cab while shutting the car's door behind her. It's already 11:45′ and the traffic is terrible. I will never be there on time, so I can't drop her off at the office, as it's a detour, that will only delay me more.
On the other hand, I got the chance to finish with all the phone calls I had to make and I even completed an e-meeting through a secure platform while sitting in my car. I really loved the possibilities and the ease that technology has to offer. You could do so much, while sitting down in an island sipping mojitos, or while sitting down at your own damn toilet. I am fully conversant with everything technology has to offer and it's one of the things that I take praise for bringing into the company, in contrary with my father's old outdated, less efficient and costlier ways. Of course, that meant we had to let some employees go, since they basically had nothing to do, but we are a profitable business, not a charity one.
*I will be a little late. I am stuck in traffic. Make it 12:15′.* I text her.
*No problem. Take your time.* was her response.
*I can't wait to see you *
Why on earth did I text her that? I don't want to scare her away again. Why am I acting so impulsive around her?
Fuck! She didn't reply. I hope she won't take this the wrong way. If she is not down there waiting for me, I will be the only one to blame. I went through all of this trouble to come this far with her and I had to go and act like a maniac stalker.