Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 95311 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 381(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95311 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 381(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
Downside, she would have long hours. She would have what seemed like an impossible boss. She would have to be pleasant to Sally. But, hey, a job is a job. No matter what, she could eke her way through it for a year and then start looking again if it was really as bad as everyone implied. She could certainly last that long at least. She didn't know what kind of incompetent employees they had hired in the past that couldn't last more than a week, but that was all sorts of pathetic. No job was so terrible that you couldn't tolerate it for at least a year.
CHAPTER THREE
SHE WANTED TO quit after an hour. That was all it took.
Her alarm screeched shrill and insistent. Before she went to bed, she had opened her curtains so the sun would wake her up fully. Unfortunately, the sun decided to take a rest that morning and was replaced by a heavy, unyielding rain. Wonderful. She pulled herself out of bed feeling achy and like she hadn't slept at all. She threw herself into the shower, standing under the scalding water until she felt almost human again.
She gave herself a pep talk over a steaming coffee. She was fully capable of handling anything that came her way. She was an intelligent, qualified career woman. She would not be intimidated by anyone. And she, most certainly, would not kowtow and hero-worship Elliott Michaels like Sally, and most likely, every other employee of the company did. She would demand and receive the respect she deserved. She would have an amazing first day at work.
Hyper-vigilant about time as always, Hannah arrived promptly at eight. She stopped at the front desk to get her official security badge with her name and everything printed on it. It even said "full access". The guard was the same as from the day before but this time he actually greeted her warmly and told her to have a great first day as she got in the elevator.
The doors chimed and opened. Directly in front of them stood the young man from the day before. He was tall and lanky with sandy-brown hair and green eyes. He looked every bit a model from a hipster fashion magazine in his gray wash skinny jeans, gray blazer over a gray and green tartan plaid shirt, and bulky green scarf.
"Ah, fresh meat," he said in a slightly feminine tone. "And you're a pretty little picture, aren't you?" he asked, then went on without a response. "My name is Tad. I have been here two years. It can be a hellhole, but it pays well. Oh, I know. I know. It's weird to see a male secretary. But I am very in touch with my feminine side if you know what I mean."
"Loud and clear," Hannah said with a genuine smile. She loved gay men. They made the best workmates.
"Well, you are early. Walk with me and I'll give you the scoop. But I need to fax these," he said, holding up a stack of files as thick as a book. "So right this way," he said and she fell easily in step next to him. "So, like I said, my name is Tad. You already know Sally the Wicked Witch of the Top Floor, if you ask me. Or anyone you ask for that matter. But you lucked out. She has no control over you. You get to answer to the boss and the boss only. Not that that is a good thing. The man scares me and I mean I have never even had him speak directly to me." Tad placed a piece of paper in the machine and typed the number in without looking. "I am sure you have heard about all the girls who came before you."
"Kinda hard not to," Hannah said, taking half of the stack of faxes and taking them to the other fax machine. Tad had a yellow sticky note on each paper with the number it was to be faxed to.
"It doesn't help that no one trains you gals. And all the other girls have been real nasty so I never offered a hand. But I will try to be as much help as possible. I've been here for a while so I have come to... know some things."
Hannah noted his inflection and smiled, leaning closer. "Oh?"
Tad took the bait. "Most importantly, he takes his coffee black. And, well, he takes his coffee with his oxygen, so you should never let his cup get empty or he will be a real bear. He doesn't talk much to any of us, except maybe Sally, and he will expect you to anticipate his needs. He won't spell things out for you. Most days he is here before anyone else but me. I work an early shift. And he leaves after pretty much everyone else but the cleaning staff. You should become intimately acquainted with the florists in this area. He always has a woman on his arm. You know how men like him are..."