A crease forms in her forehead. Her lips form a thin line梐lmost regretful, but trying so hard not to be.
揥hat do you need them for? I know you bring them to homeless people, which is honestly kind, but I抦 still not sure why. You could feed ten more people with a simple loaf of bread instead of those expensive rolls…？
Interesting. Her little spy game still hasn抰 helped her figure out everything.
揑f you抮e standing in for Lucy, you need to know how,?I tell her, ignoring her probing questions.
揈verything has a folder and it抯 color coded. I抦 not a complete moron, Burns,?she says sharply, looking up through her lashes.
Goddamn her and that stubborn little pout.
In another universe, I抎 grab her by the shoulders, not caring about any bystanders. I抎 find a better use for those strawberry lips that doesn抰 involve endless scorn.
揇id you reschedule the call with our Italian designer??I ask.
揌er office is slammed. She requested the rescheduling, actually. I found an available time on your calendar and booked it in the system. Pretty intuitive.?
揑 only take meetings at certain times.?
揇id I schedule it when you抮e free??she asks.
揧es. How did you know??
揝he has a recurring space on your calendar for 憂o meeting blocks.挃
揥hat about the invoices? They need to go straight to accounting. Proposals from businesses we抳e established relationships with get forwarded to me, the proper department, and accounting. Unsolicited proposals can come to me if you think I抎 be interested, but only then. Anything else that comes through with an attachment needs to be printed and filed. The filing room is behind Ida抯 office, and she can show you our simplified system.?
She nods briskly, that stark blond hair waving.
揝hould I start filing from today? Or do I need to go back and check if Lucy had everything filed through the end of yesterday??
揓ust start with today. If she didn抰 have it filed through the end of yesterday, she can deal with it when she gets back. If an invoice goes unpaid, accounting will notice and you can print it then.?
揋ot it.?
揝ince it抯 your first day on a new job, let抯 go for lunch.?As soon as the words leave my mouth, I regret them. Private lunches with an employee who gives you a hard-on bigger than a Starship rocket aren抰 wise.
Too bad she takes her job seriously, though, meaning I have to respect her despite all the hell she gives me.
Even when she gawks at me right now, as frozen as a deer in front of a speeding semi.
揑t抯 tradition,?I explain. 揈very EA I take on gets fed while they抮e spending time with me. They should know my thinking, right down to my pastrami on rye. And since you抳e been sharing my breathing space since I hired you and we never got the chance, we抮e past due.?
揑 can抰， but thanks anyhow.?
I square my shoulders and blink. No one ever turns down a free lunch.
揥hy not??I grind out.
揕ucy抯 been getting emails since one a.m. I need to go back and work on whatever needs filing, digitally or by hand. Cheryl抯 sending me a new ad mockup by four and I抦 sure it抣l need corrections. Plus, I have to write a series of social media posts for Anna, so…double duty, half as much time to chitchat.?
Why do I fucking hate that she抯 armed with good excuses?
My hand balls into a fist.
揅heryl Helen抯 been here longer than me. Almost twelve years. Why are you correcting her ads??I ask.
She gives me a dismissive flick of her hair.
揧eah, well…I抦 not trying to step on any toes, but Anna wasn抰 thrilled with her last round of concepts. Cheryl is worried about submitting it, and it抯 got my copy attached. She抯 just doing the visuals, so I抎 like it to look good. The colors are bleeding together, and I抦 not sure she sees it. You need an eye for that sort of thing.?
揑n your professional opinion, is Cheryl抯 current role a good fit for her??I ask carefully.
It抯 not that I抎 fire her. If, however, I somehow missed optimizing my human assets, I need to know.
Dakota thinks for a few seconds too long.
揙ut with it, Miss Poe. I assure you I抦 not looking to reprimand her,?I say, leaning in.
揥ell…I don抰 know her super well, but I抦 worried she might be going color blind. I抳e heard her talking about vision issues. Also, she prefers writing copy to graphic work, but Anna said her copy feels sorta dated.?
揝he抯 worked here for ages,?I say, mulling over what she just said.
揇on抰 get me wrong. She抯 very helpful, and she knows a lot. Deep knowledge. I抦 glad I抦 not management so I don抰 have to worry about these things…？Poe frowns, a nervousness on her face at affecting any staffing decisions.
揝o you抮e admitting I do hard things??I say smugly.
Her face jerks up, souring at my mock ego.
There抯 my little fighter. And if she needs my bad attitude to distract her from fretting over Cheryl for the rest of the day, so be it.
揝omeone has to handle staffing, I guess. It抯 probably easier if he抯 self-absorbed,?she says.
揂gain with the selfish asshole remarks? You must rehearse your insults to keep them so fresh,?I say with a sarcastic head shake.
She ignores me.
揑f you were management, what would you do??I ask, aiming to pull her out of her own head.
揥ell…I guess I抎 find some class on copywriting trends and send her to training for a refresh. And I either wouldn抰 ask her to choose color schemes and images or know that someone needs to check it over. If she抯 been here for a while, it抯 not fair to hold her vision against her.?
揟hat抯 a fair solution, Miss Poe. Find a copywriting course and send it to me, not Anna. Problem solved.?
揑s that even a thing? Copywriting classes??
揌ow should I know? It抯 your idea. I just happen to like it, and everyone will benefit from utilizing Cheryl抯 talents,?I say.
With that, I walk past her desk.
揌ey, wait. Where are you going??she calls after me.
I stop, throwing a cold look over my shoulder.
揕unch. Are you coming or not??
Dammit, Burns. Danger, a voice screeches in the back of my head.
I know.
I know I shouldn抰 when every reckless part of me screams should.
揅ould you bring me something back??she asks in a low, awkward whisper.
揇o I look like DoorDash? Join me if you want to eat.?This has to be what self-sabotage sounds like.
揊iiine,?she slurs, muttering something less flattering under her breath. I try not to smile. 揥here are we going??
She pushes her chair away from her desk and stands.
揥hat do you like??
揌ot Italian beef sandwiches drenched in the salty tears of terrible bosses.?Her green eyes flash with wicked delight.
For once, I think she抯 cracking a joke that isn抰 meant to flay me open.
揌ot beef sandwiches it is, but there抣l be no tears today.?
揟oday.?
揧ou enjoy watching people cry that much and you think I抦 the psycho??I snort, nearly shaking my head off my shoulders.
I don抰 expect a breakthrough.
Somehow, we get through lunch without wanting to murder each other.
Somehow, we talk like normal human beings about entirely work-related business.
Somehow, we take a step back from holding knives at each other抯 throats.
A few days later, when I come up for air after dealing with suppliers, partners, and production, we抳e survived an entire week with Dakota Poe as both executive assistant and copywriter.
Her work remains impeccable.
If she stays on track, she抣l single-handedly make this big launch a breeze. That抯 easily worth more than the private bonus I agreed to pay out at the end of her ninety days.