Carlton

Lexi knew what I wanted from her–well, part of what I wanted from her–and it was obvious she wasn’t entirely on board with it. She hadn’t outright said no, though, and that was good enough for me.

I took another sip of my black coffee, letting her have time to herself to think things through. I was confident I could convince her to take on the job, but I wanted her to do it willingly instead of through coercion, especially since I couldn’t say I wouldn’t get any ideas from hanging around her so much. I was attracted to her, I could admit to it. Seven years difference was a little more than I expected, but if anything happened later, I wanted this to be her decision or I’d just feel guilty for tricking her.

My eyes never left her. She was obviously nervous, doing her best not to look directly at me for too long. Her eyes were either on her drink, on Sam, or flitting around the room, away from my general direction. I didn’t like that my presence made her so nervous, but she would get used to me if she decided to take my offer.

“Have you graduated yet?” I asked.

She jumped and blinked up at me, before her gaze quickly returned to looking at Sam, who was still drinking his juice.

“Um, not yet, sir, but I’m not far off. It’s only one more year, after summer is over.”

I winced. “Lexi, I might not remember you, but if we know each other, then there’s no reason for the formalities.”

Her cheeks blushed a light pink. I’d noticed she did that often.

“You’re my boss, though…”

“And, at the moment, we’re not even at work. I’m not talking to you as a subordinate. Please, just call me Carlton.”

“Okay,” she murmured. “Carlton.”

I nodded in satisfaction, then gestured at her mug. “You should drink up before your coffee gets cold, though it’s probably a little late for that, now. I can ask them to warm it up for you?”

“No, no! It’s fine, I just forgot, and Sam’s about done with his juice, anyway.”

The cup really was almost empty, and after a minute, he’d finished it all. I felt a little guilty, because he must have been really hungry and thirsty. I shouldn’t have forgotten to bring something for him, but it was a good thing he was old enough to drink juice and eat table food instead of just formula.

She set the empty cup down on the table and gently patted his back until he let out a burp. Then she settled him down on the bench beside her, where he lay quietly, eyes looking like they would fall closed any minute. She finally picked up her mug and started to drink. Nothing changed in her expression, although I was sure her drink must have gone cold already.

“Since it’s about lunch, anyway, is there anything you want to eat?”

“I’m fine, sir–I mean, Carlton. You don’t have to get me anything.”

“You need to eat something, though, and so do I. They make a really great salad, and I’d planned to get that.”

I looked around until I noticed Lisa, then raised my hand to call her over. She was carrying some dirty dishes, but she nodded and hurried off with them, coming to our table a minute later.

“Is there something else I can get you?”

I gestured to Lexi’s mug. “Please warm her drink up for her. We’d also like to look at the menu again, please.”

“Right away.”

She took the mug and went away with it before Lexi could say anything in protest. When she returned, she came back with two menus.

“I’ll be back to get your orders in a bit.”

We sat in silence for a moment, and I was a little surprised when Lexi was the one to break it.

“Why are you asking me, specifically, to do this?” She asked, voice quiet. “I’m sure you could find someone more qualified for the job.”

“I think you’d be perfect for it,” I said honestly. “See how Sam is right now? He’s not that way with everyone. I went through several babysitters before I finally landed on someone he liked, because even if there were some that I would approve of, Sam just couldn’t seem to get used to them.”

“Your last babysitter was something special?”

“Yes. The other applicants all had experience, but there was something about her that kept Sam calm when he was with her, like he is with you. The pay isn’t low, to begin with, so you would be well compensated.”

She pursed her lips. “How much is it?”

I gave her the base price I gave to every babysitter I’d offered the job, and her head snapped up, her eyes widening as she gaped at me.

“That… really isn’t a small amount,” she breathed out.

I chuckled. “That’s because I require the babysitter to stay at my home with Sam and look after him the whole day. Work is from morning to evening every weekday, and half days on the weekends. I think it’s fair. Now, why don’t you decide what you’ll order?”

Bringing up my menu, I looked through it, even though I knew exactly what I wanted. After giving her more info, she needed more time to mull things over. The money might sway her, since it was better than what she was getting from the company as an intern.

Lisa stopped by and took our orders, then went off with both menus.

“So,” I said, turning back to Lexi. “You haven’t graduated yet, you have a while to go. Why are you in a hurry to look for an internship?”

She blinked. “Um, I just really needed a job because I needed the funds, but an internship at an actual company is still a good opportunity. My grades are already terrible, and I imagine it’ll be harder looking for a permanent position later.”

I nodded in understanding. “I’ll rephrase my question. Why do you think you need an internship at the company very badly?”

Lexi fidgeted, shifting slightly in her seat, adjusting Sam beside her, who looked like he’d finally fallen asleep.

“I, uh, I need to build experience for finance?” She said, sounding unsure.

“So, finance is your major, huh. And? Did you gain any experience in finance?”

Her gaze shifted away as she squirmed some more in her seat. “Well… I did get to work in a finance office, but…”

“But you haven’t done any work related to finance yet,” I finished. “Right?”

“How did you know?”

“You’re an intern, you’re new, and you got in through connections. I’d be surprised if you had, to be honest. Office politics aren’t easy to navigate. I know, because I took an internship at this company while I was still at the university level, and everyone knew who I was.”

“Really?” She asked, eyes wide.

“Really. Since I was the boss’s son, they were nice to me to my face, but no one expected any real work from me. Alec went through the same. Of course, I still did my best in everything that I was told to do, but I do remember it wasn’t easy. The internship positions at our company aren’t that many to begin with, which makes them hard to get into. Interns are either scouted, interviewed, or recommended by staff, but there’s never a guarantee for who gets in, so if someone just walks in because they know they owner…”

“Is that why people are hard on me at work?” She asked as it dawned on her. “Because I got something other people have to work hard for?”

“Partly. Don’t let it bother you, though. A lot of people use connections to get ahead. It’s a resource you either have or you don’t, and you just happened to have it.”

Even as I tried to console her, though, I knew it wouldn’t work. Once she understood, her expression went pale. I was thinking of what I could say to make her feel better, but Lisa finally came by with our orders and laid them on the table, and I lost the moment. Lexi seemed distracted as she picked up her fork and poked at her food.

“Maybe I’m better off babysitting and not trying to get work experience,” she murmured after a while.

Her voice was so quiet, and there was just enough noise in the café that if I hadn’t been paying attention, I wouldn’t have heard her.

“There’s no reason to think that way.”

She looked up. “It’s true, though, isn’t it?”

“No, I don’t believe that. Even if your grades aren’t the best, that’s no reason to give up. While having good grades is good, it’s not all you need to be able to get a job. That’s why I’m offering to help. You don’t have to sell yourself short like that.”

“What exactly are you offering me here, Carlton?”

I shrugged. “I’ll definitely make this worth your while. I was hoping we could help each other out, I didn’t mean to make it sound so one-sided. Other than pay, I’m sure there’s something I can do to help you. For example, I can help you get the experience you need.”

“You… will help me?”

I chuckled. “Don’t sound so shocked, I said I’d help, didn’t I? And this is the one thing that would benefit you above anything. You have to be especially conscious in your last year, and what I can teach you can help you during classes, as well. I didn’t major in finance, but I have plenty of experience, so I understand it well enough. I know it can be useful to you.”

“You mean, something like private coaching?”

I thought for a second, then nodded. “Yeah, something like that. How about it? Are you up for it?”

She was looking right at me, her face serious as she deliberated. I let her have her time to think, waiting for her response. Then, her expression changed, settling with determination. She took in a deep breath and blew it out.

“Okay,” she said. “I can do it.”

I smiled, then held my hand out to her, and we shook on it.

“Good. How soon can you start?”

“Immediately,” she said quickly. “I’ll have to do something about my position at the company…”

“Don’t worry about it. I can deal with that for you. If you’re done eating, we can go take care of that right now?”

“Of course,” she said, nodding.

I didn’t know what had changed in her, but I wasn’t going to question it since I was getting what I wanted. I paid our bill, and we got up to leave. I watched as Lexi carefully shifted Sam in her arms as she stood and picked up her purse, and I smiled, sure I’d made the right decision.

“I’m going to show you the ropes. As long as you understand what I can teach you, I promise you’ll be able to find a position somewhere.”