Chapter 101
I returned to my desk to find Susan hovering nearby. Her first day had
officially begun, and she looked completely out of place in her
designer outfit and impractical heels. Her resemblance to her brother
Allen was striking, but where he exuded competence, she radiated
privileged naivety.
“Elsa! Finally!” She rushed over. “I’ve been trying to figure out the
filing system for like, half an hour. How do you organize the digital
reports again?”
I suppressed a sigh that would have turned into a scream if I’d let it
escape. Is she serious right now? We spent an entire fucking hour on
this on Friday. “The same way I showed you on Friday, Susan. By date
and department code.”
“Right, but like, where do I find the codes?”
“They’re in the orientation packet I prepared for you.”
She blinked at me. “Oh. I think I left that at home.”
Of course she fucking did. “I’ll email you another copy,” I said, already
pulling up the file.
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That set the tone for the entire morning. Every fifteen minutes
brought a new question:
“How do I transfer calls?”
“Where’s the supply room?”
“Which spreadsheet template should I use?”
“Is Drake–I mean, Mr. Stone–always so serious?”
By noon, I hadn’t completed a single task on my own to–do list. I
skipped lunch, hoping to catch up while Susan was out, but she
returned after only twenty minutes, chattering about the “adorable
little café” downstairs while I was trying to cram a month’s worth of
work into the few minutes of peace I’d been granted.
This has to be some kind of cosmic joke. Or Drake’s idea of
punishment. Replace me with someone who requires me to do twice
the work for the same fucking pay.
My patience finally snapped around two o’clock when she interrupted
me for the third time in ten minutes.
“Susan,” I said, trying to keep my voice level while my inner wolf was
howling with frustration, “I know you’re eager to learn, but you
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graduated from Twin Moon University. These are basic office
functions that should be covered in any business course.”
She twirled a strand of hair around her finger. “I was a music major.
We didn’t do much with office software.”
A music major? Working as Drake’s assistant? You’ve got to be
shitting me. “Even so, I’ve shown you how to use the customer
database three times now. You might want to take notes.”
Her expression shifted from confused to offended. “Are you saying I’m
stupid?”
“No, I’m saying you need to pay attention. I can’t stop my work every
five minutes to-”
“My father says I’m a quick learner,” she cut in, chin lifting. “Maybe
you’re just not explaining things clearly.”
I counted to ten silently. One, two, three–don’t tell her to fuck off-
four, five, six–don’t mention her daddy’s money can’t buy
competence–seven, eight, nine, ten. “Susan, everyone has a learning
curve. I’m just suggesting that-”
“You know what? Fine. If I’m such a burden, I’ll just call my dad’s
assistant. Janice has an MBA from Cornell. She can explain things
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properly.”
Before I could respond, Susan had pulled out her phone and was
rapid–firing instructions to someone on the other end. Twenty
minutes later, a severe–looking woman in her forties arrived,
introduced herself as Janice, and efficiently set up at Susan’s desk.
Susan, meanwhile, stretched out on the office sofa, scrolling through
her phone.
I stared at the scene in disbelief. Holy shit. Is she seriously having
someone else do her job on her first day? And Drake calls ME
unprofessional?
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