Chapter 2: The Starlet

Evan's POV 

I stood up at my desk, ready to call my best friend Zack to meet up for lunch. We had been best friends since our high school days and all throughout the years at Harvard University where we received bachelors degrees in Marketing and Communications, and masters in Business Administration. 

"Hi darling," a voice greeted as I was walking to my private elevator. 

I turned around slowly, knowing who it was, and she immediately threw her arms around my neck and drew me in for a kiss. 

I pulled away gently. 

"What are you doing here?" I asked her. I wasn't expecting her and I hated it when people showed up uninvited.

"I wanted to surprise you and take you out to lunch." She was still cheerful. 

How do I shut her down gently? I asked myself. 

Julia Starlet was a twenty four year-old actress. Tall, slim, blonde and beautiful. I adored her bright brown eyes and the elegant way she wore her makeup. She was flawless but she was only a one night stand I met at one of my father's functions. And I had no true intentions of having anything solid with the types of women who appeared to be so easy to get into bed and always eager to spread their legs for a rich guy. For Pete's sake, the same night I met her was the same night I bedded her. She was like so many others but she was the reflection of myself and I wanted-- no, scratch that -- I needed to change my lifestyle. Eventually.

"Actually, I'm getting lunch with my best friend," I said, typing into my phone, responding to an email. 

"Well, can I come along? And would you stop texting and pay attention to me?" 

I heaved a sigh. She was already getting on my nerves. 

"No." I retorted, walking into my elevator. 

She followed me in. 

"Evan. I want us to become exclusive. Lets make it official and become a real couple," she suggested with a smile. 

My eyes moved from the phone and scanned her. 

She must be out of her mind. 

"No," I said again and turned my attention back to my email. 

"So you think that you're going to sleep with me and dump me the next day like a piece of garbage? Who do you think you are?!" she roared before snatching the phone out my hands. 

"What the hell! Give me back my phone."

"No! You're not breaking up with me!" 

She threw the phone on the elevator floor and used her heels as a weapon of destruction, stomping repeatedly onto it until it was nothing but bits and pieces underneath her. 

I looked at the woman acting like a crazy lunatic next to me. I chuckled and shook my head.

"Am I funny to you?" she asked, looking at me when she was through destroying my iPhone with the heel of her stiletto. 

"Listen Julia, you're a nice girl, really, but I don't revolve around you. You were just a one time thing and I have zero intentions of taking you home to my family. Which basically means I have no intention of making you my girlfriend, fiancee, wife or even baby mama."

"But you sent me flowers." 

She was about to cry. Her eyes welled up and she was getting red in the face like a steamed lobster.  

"I always do that. That's how I say thank you and goodbye."

I exited my elevator and informed security to escort her off the premises. I was not in a mood for listening to any more tantrums from an emotional, wrecked woman.

I started my Bentley and drove to a nearby upscale restaurant where Zack was already waiting. We always met here whenever we decided to have lunch together and catch up on things.

"You look drained," he greeted, patting me on the back as I sat down at our table. 

"You don't know the half of it, and I just had to deal with Julia."

"Julia?"

"Yeah. The movie actress I met at Dad's gala last Wednesday."

"Oh, well she wasn't so bad. She was very beautiful and seemed friendly and--"

"Easy." I finished for him. 

He laughed. "Well, not everyone is the same. The lady who gives it on the first date could very well be wife material. I don't think that defines a woman," he said while opening the menu placed on the table in front of us.

"Well, I do. I wouldn't trust her if she spreads on the first night, bro. She knows nothing about me, not even my second name, but she's ready to sleep with me and you're saying she 'could be wife material'? No! I call it gold digging."

"Evan, you're twenty five. You're not getting any younger. When are you going to settle down and find the right woman?"

"Dude. Don't you start with me. Please leave those kind of lectures for my mom. She's the only one who always preaches to me about settling down. I'm not ready for all that yet. I know exactly when I will settle and what I'll settle for. I don't want a famous actress, models or anyone within those categories. I want normal."

We ordered our lunch and a bottle of red wine. After lunch I went back to my office and he went back to his. He also managed his father's firm but his dad was still CEO.

"Miss Blackman, order me a new iPhone and have it sent over to my office. Also, as you'll be starting as my new assistant, I want you to get all the secretarial resumees we have on file and bring them to my office."

The previous personal assistant I had I fired. She was unprofessional. One day she barged into my office, took off her bra and threw it at me like a stripper.

"Wanna have some fun boss?" she asked. 

"Have some fun at a new job because you're fired!" I responded without even looking up at her. 

All I heard was a low growl and her heels hitting the floor as she walked out my office. 

Maybe she got the wrong impression when I told her I wanted her in my office right away. Hell, I was about to fire her anyway. She messed up my schedules the day before.

I hated employees who couldn't control themselves. I wasn't interested in any help of mine nor could I ever see myself being. I was the boss and my tolerance was very thin, the slightest sneezing could throw me way off.

"Yes sir," Miss Blackman responded and immediately went to pull out the cabinets in search of the applications. 

I went into my office, closed the door behind me, and sat down in my comfortable office chair. 

I gazed around and imagined how my father must have felt when he accomplished all of this. He was my role model and my mentor, that was one of the reasons why I never changed a thing in the office. Everything was the exact way he left it. His picture still hung on the wall. And the photograph with him in his clean white tuxedo, mom in her very beautiful wedding gown and Emily and I in our white baby suits in their arms, was on my desk, positioned at an angle that was visible for my eyes only. It was my favorite picture, though I couldn't remember that actual day-- I was barely five months old.

I raked my fingers through my hair as a knock came on the door. 

"Come in Miss Blackman," I instructed. 

I always knew it was her, she didn't have to call to inform me she was coming to my office like everyone else. 

She opened the door and walked up to my desk. "I've found them."

"Okay," I replied and took the folder from her hands and placed it on my desk. 

There were many applications. Hundreds, if not thousands, and I wanted the best of the best. 

"Miss Blackman, transfer all the calls to my mailbox and join me in here so we can go through these together," I said, daring not to touch any application until I had help. 

"Yes sir," she answered with a smile and withdrew quickly. 

I liked that about Miss Blackman. She was always cheerful and up for any task or challenge I threw her way. 

_______________

"This one is too shallow."

" Too deep and egotistical." 

"Too short." 

"Too self expressive." 

We looked through the applications for the remainder of the afternoon. 

At the end, four applicants stood out. 

"What's my schedule like tomorrow?" I asked her. 

"There's a meeting you have with the investors at 11:00 a.m and the fifth level meeting at 2:00 p.m. You're free before and after the hours of those two meetings."

"Great, okay. Call in these applicants and inform them that they've been selected for an interview tomorrow at 8:00 a.m sharp. If they're not interested or they've already found another job, here are the others." I handed her three more applications I also found impressive, so I used them as a stand-by. Just in case. 

"Okay. I'll get on it right away," she said. 

I looked up at the wall clock in my office. She was already overtime. It was 4:30 p.m and she finished at 4:00 pm. I wanted to stop her, to tell her I'd do it myself, but she was already out the door making phone calls.

"Mr. Hollen, I've contacted the first four but two had already found other jobs, and the others are no longer interested since they're out of the country, so I've contacted the standbys."

"And?"

"They'll be coming in tomorrow at 8:00 a.m. Here are the names." She handed me a piece of paper. "Good afternoon sir," she said again and turned to leave. 

"Thank you." I said and she turned back at me, smiled again and left. 

Wow. She's amazing.