8. Evie

eight

Just picture it as your classroom in college but in a more formal setting. Plus, your boss is my best friend.

That’s what Dad said when I called to inform him about the schedule adjustment.

He told me Mr. Thorne had already informed him. After which, he”d gushed about how proud he was of me.

Tears brimmed my eyes when I recalled his tone.

I”m proud of you, Evie. You have never failed me. I”m sure your mom is proud of you, too.

It gladdened my heart to think Mom was smiling at me. I could picture her baking her special cookies and handing them to me for a job well done. It was what she usually did in times like these.

Gosh, I miss her. I would never stop missing her.

I wiped my eyes and tucked a stray hair before glancing at the mirror. Hair slicked into a low bun, a neatly ironed shirt, and a black pencil skirt that reached my knees, I was ready for work.

Did I also mention that I had a whole stack of work clothes delivered to me? Virginia delivered them to me last night saying it was the boss’s order. The clothes were expensive.

Frankly, I’d never had that many clothes in a while and I wondered how much Mr. Thorne must have spent to get them.

My stomach flipped at the thought. I needed to thank him.

Before then I needed to focus on my nervousness.

Nervousness.

I was nervous. I”d never worked as a secretary before. I”d never even worked in an official setting, not to mention the most successful robotics company in New York.

It was all still sudden.

Thankfully, the new arrangement would make the process less burdensome. Courtesy of the new schedule Mr. Thorne had informed me about last night.

Mrs. Thorne, Sophie’s grandma, arrived last night. She would take care of Sophie until I was back.

I”d be the secretary a few days a week, three, sometimes two. Then, when I return, I”ll take on my role as a nanny from Mrs. Thorne. That would be the new routine.

You’ll be needed at the office when the Chief arrives for inspection. Your presence will also be required when there”s a need to improvise on the drone.

Apparently, the drone they”d been building was an improved combat drone. And my job would be to test and give feedback on the drone control interface.

Your understanding of psychology will be valuable in user testing and feedback on drone control interfaces, ensuring user-friendliness and minimizing stress for operators.

Since this control interface constantly required improvement to maintain a competitive edge, my skills would remain relevant, especially when the need for improvement arose as long as the drone contract was valid.

I understood that.

Mr. Thorne also mentioned that I”d handle basic personal secretary work— administrative and clerical tasks.

Overall, the workload wouldn”t be much. It allowed me to earn extra cash while familiarizing myself with the work settings. And that was precisely what I intended to do.

I had to be at the office by eight. It was 6:47 a.m., and I was already dressed. Blame my nervousness. While we’re at it, I might add that I barely slept.

That was also due to my nervousness and something else.

My lips instantly curled in distaste when I allowed myself to think of the night of the park. And the day of the meeting.

I didn”t know why he thought telling me how to handle my job was a great idea. I fucking knew what I was doing. And I definitely didn”t understand why he thought it was great to ruin my mood after the…

Fuck.

Maybe his behavior was acceptable. It should be a constant pointer to everything I stood to lose if that continued. We shouldn”t indulge each other.

I knew that. But there was this pang of hurt and disappointment that twisted my stomach each time he became dismissive. Each time he’d suddenly changed after….

Ugh.

I shouldn”t be hurt. It shouldn”t bother me because now I know better. There wouldn”t be a third time. I would make sure of it.

After settling in the chair, I brought out my phone to scroll through Instagram. A wide smile curved my lips when I saw a reel. While at it, I quickly shot Emma a text.

Emma was my high school friend here in New York before I had to move to Minnesota. Even in Minnesota, we still maintained communication. Since she was still in New York, I hoped we could catch up again someday.

She replied a few minutes later, and we started chatting. With each text, my grin widened.

Emma: Girl with a blushing emoji.

Evie: You always start everything with girl.

With a laughing emoji, I replied.

Emma: Haha, it”s basically an exclamation for me.

Evie: Btw I”m starting a new job today. I’m getting ready. My palms are a bit sweaty from being so damn nervous.

Emma: You”ve got this! What company is it anyway?

I smiled.

Evie: Thorne Industries.

I watched the three typing dots appear and reappear until her message dropped.

Emma: ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!!

The dots danced again until.

Emma: AND YOU’RE IN FUCKING NEW YORK??

Yikes.

Evie: Oops, time to go. Bye bye.

Emma: There”s no escaping this. We will talk about this later!

It was ten minutes past seven. I grabbed my small black bag. Then stepped out of the room. There was one thing left to do.

I quickly knocked on Sophie’s door. When she opened it, I lowered myself to wish her goodbye. “Sophie, Grandma will take care of you today. I have to go to work.”

I”d told her this before. But her reaction remained the same– blank.

I met Lewis, who was waiting for me when I reached outside. I wasn”t surprised. His boss had already given him instructions. He’d drive me for as long as I worked at the company.

“Good morning, ma’am; I”ll drive you to your workplace now.” He greeted me with a slight bow.

“Thank you, Lewis,” I muttered when he opened the door to the black Mercedes for me. In no time, we were on our way.

Over thirty minutes later, we got to Vanderbilt Avenue.

I’d also learned that the administrative building was in Mid-Manhattan, focusing on software and light assembly. While the manufacturing and testing facility was in Nassau County, Long Island, holding the prototyping and testing lab.

I muttered another thanks before alighting. As opposed to the first time I was here, I soaked in the beauty of the building.

The building was fifteen stories tall, and had a design that left my mouth hanging momentarily. Made with gunmetal panels and glass, the building gracefully curved inside as it rose.

Sheesh. If sleek was a building, then this was it.

As I approached the entrance, a large kinetic sculpture made of polished steel gently swayed in the breeze. The sculpture was a long rod made of steel that stemmed from another box-like steel on the ground.

The familiar sound of the robotic voice hit me when I stepped into the expansive lobby. Subtle yet echoing.

”Welcome to Thorne’s industry, a leader in robotics innovation. Please visit the front desk if you”re here to see someone or want to learn more about our company.”

The same words constantly filled the air, and I wondered if the announcement was around the clock.

Right, the front desk. My feet tapped against the marble floor as I walked.

I groaned inwardly when I saw the red-haired receptionist. She wasn’t very receptive the last time. Hopefully, she was in a better mood today.

I walked up to her.

“Hello, I’m here to—”

“I remember you.” Her overly thin brows scrunched. “You”re that lady that ran away into the conference room.”

Yes. Not my proudest moment. Her voice was monotone, and she eyed me with a look I couldn’t decipher. I couldn’t tell if she was mad or not.

I cleared my throat. “I’m Mr. Th—”

“Mr. Thorne’s new personal secretary, yes.” She looked like she was stifling a yawn. “You’re already registered as an employee. His office and yours are the only ones on the top floor.”

She returned her attention to the computer. I took that as my cue and headed towards the elevator. The door opened to reveal a bald-headed guy with glasses. I resisted the urge to raise my brows.

He looked to be in his late twenties. I’d never seen a bald young guy. It was usually older men.

“…so umm, you gonna come in or what?” He scratched the back of his neck meekly.

Oh. I thought…

“Sorry.” I quickly entered.

Grey eyes turned to me. “What floor?”

“Top.”

“I’m going to the fifth.” He pressed the keypad before wiping his hands on his dark trousers. He was about five-foot-seven, neither chubby nor skinny.

“My name’s David. I work in the engineering department.”

The administrative building housed Human Resources, Finance Accounting, Information Technology, Legal, and facilities management. Then, the Engineering, Software, Mechatronics, and Quality assurance were on separate floors.

It was nice to meet someone other than the receptionist.

“Evie,” I smiled.

“Evie?” He broke into a grin. “That’s a unique name.”

I could feel the awkward silence, but thankfully, the door dinged, and his smile brightened. “I”m guessing you work with the CEO?”

I nodded. He did, too. “Good luck.”

With that, he was out. I tried not to think of David’s last words. I mean, I worked for Mr. Thorne at home, and I knew his character. What’s the worst that could happen? Right?

The door finally opened to the top floor. Unlike the ground floor, there was no robot here. No noise.

Just a gunmetal accent wall and two offices. I suddenly felt uncomfortable at the echoes of my footsteps against the marble floor. When I got to the large door, I stopped momentarily to stare.

The lower half was made of brushed aluminum, while the top half was made of frosted glass. Instead of a plaque, his name was etched on the glass surface in bold inscription. ETHAN THORNE

It was now -standing here- in this building, in front of this door, that I truly realized the power in the name. The authority… regalia…

Snapping myself out of my thoughts, I quickly moved to the office at a small distance from it.

The door wasn’t as huge and was completely made of aluminum materials. I pushed it open and was glad that it obeyed.

It would have sucked to return to Miss Receptionist for a key. To my surprise, my office was inviting. The walls were a cool blue on one side. Then white on the other.

I dropped my purse and took a seat on the ergonomic chair. Before me was a MacBook, mousepad, and telephone. Hmmm, I kinda like this job already.

I spun in my chair, taking in the new feel of my office. Then, I switched on the laptop. Evie, the tech guru.

A small snicker escaped my lips. Halfway through surfing the laptop, I realized I probably needed to make my presence known to Mr. Thorne.

He hadn”t given any specifics of my jobs. I didn”t know if I should be sitting here or serving coffee. Instantly, I stood up and walked back to his office.

My heart hammered wildly when I reached the door. I let out a breath. This was it. This was another dimension of our already strained relationship.

But I didn”t need to be nervous. Good composure, respect, and attentiveness should set a good pace for us.

Releasing a thick breath, I knocked. I waited for an eternity before I heard a gruff ‘enter’.

I pushed the door open— forcefully. Since the door was large, I thought it would require a lot of force.

Boy, was I wrong. I suddenly realized it was a pivot door.

The door glided open the rest of the way. And I was left staggering with nothing to hold on to. Let me rephrase that. I was left staggering inside his office, under his steely gaze, with nothing to hold on to.

My chances for good composure were already canceled. I was going to fall to the side, except…

Disappointment filled me when, in a split second, I crashed to the ground.

Shit. This wasn’t the first office impression I wanted to make.

I restrained my yelp and quickly rubbed the side of my sore butt. I thought he would at least have some dignity and save me.

“What are you doing?” He raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. Of course, only he would see a struggling lady and ask silly questions.

Resisting my blush of embarrassment, I quickly scampered off the ground, adjusting my outfit as I did so.

“Good morning, sir.” My words came out in one breath.

He leaned forward, clasping his palms. My eyes instinctively dropped to his muscles. His sleeves were rolled above his elbow.

“Why are you here?”

I paused to stare at him. He wasn”t joking because his face remained set in a frown.

“I”m here because it”s my first day and—”

“You can only step into my office when I call for you.”

“I just wanted to know if you needed a morning coffee, sir.” I couldn”t help the distaste in my voice.

“No.” He replied almost immediately, fixing me with a bored expression.

I frowned but it soon dissolved when I recalled another motive. “Thank you for the clothes.”

He pressed his lips in a thin line. “Use the door, and this time, do so gently.”

He didn”t have to mention…

Since good composure was out of it, I had respect and obedience. With a small nod, I turned around and opened the stupid door… gently.

So much for a great start.