7

Amara Denz arrived at Baze a few minutes shy of eight and rode up in the elevator alone, thank God. The moment she stepped off on the reception floor, she darted into the bathroom to take a quick glance at herself in the mirror. She wore a black shift dress and black jacket with nude, practical shoes—a conservative outfit, one she felt good and professional in. Her hair was blown out in loose blonde waves, and her makeup was understated—just enough to cover her sleepless night and add a little gloss to her lips. She ran her fingers through her hair and took a deep breath. She looked the part, and she knew it.

Stepping out of the bathroom, she had no idea where she was supposed to head next. She didn't know if she'd even get an office, let alone where it might be. She floundered for a moment, then reminded herself to pretend today was the first day at any other job. Nodding to herself, she walked up to the reception desk where a beautiful redhead was clacking away.

“Hi,” Amara said as the woman looked up at her with a smile. “I’m Amara Denz. I’m starting work here today as Mr. Joe’s personal assistant. I’m not really sure where I’m supposed to be.”

“Pleased to meet you, Amara,” the woman said. “I’m Becky. Welcome to the company.”

Amara thanked her.

Becky continued, "Mr. Joe isn't in yet."

But he'll be here any moment. Why don't you sit over there and wait for him to come in?

She thanked Becky again and went over to sit in the waiting area. It was the same waiting area where she sat and waited for her interview, and she was actually even more nervous this time. Taking slow, deep breaths, she tried to relax.

She pep-talked herself while waiting. Either Leo knew her, or he did not. Either he was nevertheless a son of a bitch, or he wasn't. Either of those wasn't relevant to what she was here to do. Do the job as well as she could and get paid for it. She could manage that. And if, as an added bonus, she was able to make Leo see that she wasn't some worthless nothing he could intimidate, then that would just be a fringe benefit. She was starting to feel confident again. She knew she could do this job blindfolded.

Leo arrived a couple minutes after eight, and all of Amara's newfound confidence was drained from her. He stepped out of the elevator and walked towards her. He wore a different suit from the one he had on when she interviewed, but it was equally expensive-looking, and he was equally as sexy as ever.

"Good morning, Becky," he said as he passed by her desk.

"Good morning, Mr. Joe," she replied. "Would you like your usual coffee?"

"Please," he gestured. "And whatever Amara is having. Amara?"

She remained for a moment speechless. She would say anything wrong. He'd ridicule her drink, or her accent, or her clothing, and Becky would laugh. And then she'd be once again at Lyons College. This was not, however, school, and if he did one of those things, Becky most likely would not laugh. She would be horrified by him. Amara smiled at herself. "Black with one sugar, please.".

Becky got up and headed off to make coffee.

Leo recognized Amara. "Good. You're on time."

Which was more than he could say for her, but naturally she did not tell him so. She nodded quietly instead.

"Alright, let's get you settled in," he said. "This way."

She got up, her legs a bit shaky, and followed Leo down a corridor. A different one from the one she had followed to go for her interview. There was a thick, springy blue carpet on the floor and considerably more glass on this part. Every office had glass fronts. They were sparsely populated, but a few already had staff inside.

"That's Bruce; he works in accounts," Leo said as they passed by one of the offices. "And that's Jess in there. She's an excellent tech. She designed our new organization app."

That did make Amara feel slightly better. At least, he wasn't misogynistic. It was only her that he had hated, not women. They were reaching the end of the corridor now, which opened out into a large open-plan room full of cubicles and people on phones.

"This is the secretary pool," Leo said, indicating the cluster of employees.

Amara nodded, and they went on into a hallway that again narrowed. The end of the hall was dominated by a huge glass-fronted corner office with spectacular views of the city. It had a large mahogany desk with black leather chairs, including a couch and armchairs arranged around a low coffee table.

"That's my office," Leo indicated, pointing to the huge one. And then he pointed to the smaller one to its side. "And that'll be yours. Our handyman, Charlie, will stop by later to put your name and job title on it, and Stewart from IT should already be on his way to set up and activate your computer and phone line."

"Okay," Amara responded, trying to take in as much information as was being conveyed. At this point, she was simply glad that the partition wall separating her office from Leo's was not made of glass.

Come on in my office, and we'll go over it all while Stewart is setting things up. Then you can start," he said. He opened the door to his office and stood aside, holding the door, encouraging her to precede him in.

She smiled her gratitude and went into his office.