Chapter 36

THIRTY-SIX

Claudia

I wake up with a blinding headache and a funny tummy.

It’s a rainy Monday morning in early November and I’m tempted to call in to work.

But I can’t.

There’s so much to do and I’m starting my tech support stint this week. Technically, I’m taking the three-to-eleven shift answering the phones, but I want to go in earlier so I can catch up on a few other things. Since I’m so far ahead in my training, Randy has given me additional duties, and it feels like I’m finally starting to get a feel for both the company’s software and their work culture.

Everyone is laid back and casual in dress, attitude, and scheduling, but hardcore when it comes to the software itself and customers. I’m really enjoying the job and can’t wait to be in a position where I can add my thoughts and suggestions when it comes to upgrades and customer services.

However, that’s not going to be today.

Today, I feel like I’m getting the flu and I’m not sure whether to push through it and take a chance on infecting my co-workers or stay home and rest.

I stumble into the bathroom and gulp down some acetaminophen. Standing at the bathroom sink, I rest my hands on the counter and will the nausea to go away. A shower and breakfast will probably help, but I’ll take my time since I don’t have to be there until three anyway.

The acetaminophen takes care of the headache, but my stomach is still feeling off and I eat a plain piece of toast with a cup of tea since just the smell of coffee made me want to heave.

I haven’t had a stomach bug in years, and the timing sucks, but I’m feeling better now and head into the office.

Randy looks up when I walk in.

“Hey! You’re not supposed to be here until three.”

“I was going to review the last section in the customer service manual,” I admit. “I hate doing tech support on the phone, so I want to make sure I’m as prepared as possible.”

He smiles. “You’re really going above and beyond, Claudia. Glen and I are incredibly pleased with your work. Brad, Dana, and Roger are weeks behind you.”

“I don’t love the training part,” I admit ruefully. “I’m ready to dig into the work, so the sooner I get this stuff over with, the sooner I can do the things I enjoy more.”

“Totally understandable. And don’t worry—we’re gearing up to set you up with your first account right after the holidays. You and I are going to work on it together. It’s a new customer I’ve just brought on and they want a lot of customization. It’ll probably be a three- or four-month project.”

“Fun!” I say enthusiastically.

We both laugh.

“I don’t know if you’ll be calling it fun when you’re working sixteen-hour days for weeks at a time.”

I pause, anxious to bring up something that’s been on my mind.

“When I was hired, you said you didn’t care if I worked remotely—is that still the case? I was going to stay in Florida for a few weeks after Christmas because Anders has a light travel schedule.”

He hesitates. “I don’t have a problem with remote work, but with this particular client, you may need to be on site for some of it.”

“Oh.” I hadn’t expected to travel. My employment contract states less than fifteen percent travel during any given twelve-month period. “Where are they located?”

“California.”

Shit.

That’s not the news I was hoping to hear.

“Would you rather I don’t put you on this project?” He frowns slightly.

“No, of course not. I mean, I want to do it. I just may want to spend my non-travel time in Florida.”

“In that case, a flight from Fort Lauderdale to L.A. is no different really than from Philly, so sure. That’s not a problem.”

“Great. Thank you.”

“You okay? You look a little pale. I know I’m not supposed to comment on looks, but if you’re not feeling well, you should relax until three.”

“Oh, I’m fine. My stomach was off this morning, but it’s gone now.” That’s not entirely true, but I feel better than I did earlier.

“Okay, then get to work!” He’s kidding and I nod.

He calls out to me as I turn to go back to my cubicle. “By the way—I’ve just hired a few more people, so I’m going to limit your time on the help desk. A few days this week, just so you get a feel for the other side of things, and you’ll be ready to dig into project work. If you like, we can start the pre-planning work for the new client next week. That way, you’ll be able to see a project almost from the beginning. They’ve already signing the contract—pre-sales handled that—but this will be everything after that.”

“I’m excited,” I say. “And I’m looking forward to you meeting Hana as well.”

“Me too. She’s brilliant and had some really interesting ideas when we chatted during the video interview. I honestly think she’d excel at pre-sales. She’s attractive—and don’t bite my head off, we both know it matters—but equally intelligent, so I think clients will be drawn to her.”

“And she’s an extrovert,” I say, “so that would be a great fit for her.”

“Someone who can sell and understands the technology part? That’s pure gold for us.”

“I hope the visa thing doesn’t become problematic.”

“I don’t think so.” He shrugs. “I spoke to our attorneys, and they think a two-year work visa will be fairly easy to get in sales because that’s something not everyone can do. Add in her technological knowledge, it should be a slam dunk. But I try not to count my chickens.”

“Then we’ll be cautiously optimistic.”

“Absolutely.”

“All right. See you later.” I head back to my cubicle and sit down.

The headache is gone but my stomach is still rumbling.

Am I hungry?

I could really go for a Whopper.

My mouth waters just thinking about it, which is funny because I rarely eat fast food. Today might be an exception, though. I’m going to work for a little while and then make a Burger King run.

I tap out a message to Anders, who’ll probably find this amusing since not eating fast food is something we found we have in common.

CLAUDIA: You’re never going to believe what I’m craving today.

ANDERS: A large Swedish penis?

CLAUDIA: That’s every day. Today I’m talking about food.

ANDERS: Butter pecan ice cream?

I’d told him that’s my favorite guilty pleasure.

CLAUDIA: A Whopper. With cheese, lettuce, tomato, mayo, and ketchup. I don’t know what the hell is going on.

ANDERS: Last week I was craving ham and pineapple pizza. It happens. You should indulge.

CLAUDIA: Did you?

ANDERS: I did not. But I’m a professional athlete so I need to be good during the season. I’ll do lots of indulging in the summer.

CLAUDIA: I feel like I should be strong, but what the hell. I have to work tech support tonight—I deserve a treat. Also, I’m getting my period, so that probably has something to do with it.

ANDERS: That timing works out well because we’ll be together in just under two weeks and now we won’t have to spend the whole time in the shower.

CLAUDIA: LOL Yes, my cycle seems to be on board with our plans.

ANDERS: Eh, a little blood wasn’t going to stop me from making you come a few dozen times.

CLAUDIA: A few dozen? You’ll only be here two-and-a-half days.

ANDERS: Your point? I can get you off once an hour for the full sixty hours, or however long it’s going to be.

CLAUDIA: Wow, I better rest up. I woke up feeling icky today, so I hope it passes before you get here.

ANDERS: Are you okay? Should you call a doctor?

CLAUDIA: Nah. I think it’s just a stomach bug. I had some toast and feel better now. And that Whopper is going to make everything right in my world.

ANDERS: LOL All right then. Go get one! I have to get to practice, but I’ll ping you later.

CLAUDIA: All right. Have a good practice. Tell Johan and Aiden I said hi!

ANDERS: I will. Xoxo

He’s started signing off our texts with X’s and O’s and it always makes me want to sigh and giggle.

I’m so crazy for this guy.