Chapter 1

Mr. Wilson seeks help but doesn't quite comprehend how things work around here.

“Sir, your 10 a.m. appointment is here.”

“Reschedule it.”

“But Mr. Wilson is already here.”

“Well send him home then!”

“He's in your office now.”

As I tossed open the door, a short, balding man jumped back from my display case before anxiously taking the seat in front of my desk. I took a sip of coffee before resting the cup next to the ever-growing stack of documents that needed signing and threw my aching body into the soft cushion of my chair. Wilson's chubby fingers constantly weaved in between each other and tugged at his wrinkly gray suit.

“What do you need?” I demanded, not bothering to attempt to hide my contempt at having cut into precious nap time for a fumbling oaf with an eating problem.

“Um, I, uh, you see, it's not my fault, honest I swear it's not. My wife, she hasn't been the same lately, always cranky, always, you know, I swear it's since the kids were born, she's not the same since, you know? I'm not a bad man, please believe me. I couldn't help myself!”

“Let me guess; your wife put you on a diet and you ate the Twinkies anyways?”

“No - what? I mean, this girl, she was beautiful, and I just had to get away from it all. And I think my wife is suspicious.”

“So... you cheated.”

“Well, you don't have to word it so harshly.” He said, his plump face turning redder than a tomato.

“How many times?”

“Er... I don't know? Three, maybe four times. Honestly, I don't remember.” His face instantly turned from a bright red to a flushed out pale white, not unlike the little Barbie dolls with the hair that changes color in hot water. Perspiration gathered on his wide forehead and his eyes frantically darted around the room, refusing to meet with mine. Helen Keller would be able to see through such an obvious lie. I didn't blame his wife for being suspicious of him. I gathered myself up and offered him my hand.

“It was a pleasure doing business with you,” I said, halfheartedly. It would be best to wrap this up quickly, no more than a few hours.

“Erm, that's all?” He replied, mouth agape.

“Yes. I will have my secretary contact you with an estimate and we'll go from there.” The smell of sweat emitting from his body was becoming unbearable. I made a mental note to have the janitor disinfect the office later. As we left, I directed the man towards the marble desk in the middle of the lobby where the new secretary was stationed.

“Miss Stone, please have Mr. Wilson here fill out the necessary paperwork then have Charlie run a background check. I have a date this afternoon with my bed.” I instructed as I turned towards the elevator. I heard a shout come from behind me, however the heavy stainless steel doors closed before another word could make it through.

I sighed and leaned against the wall, relieved to be on my way home after pulling two all-nighters in a row. Even the low hum of the elevator as it descended would be enough to put me to sleep. I glanced at the Rolex on my wrist. Ten thirty. I have to be back by five, I thought. The drive is roughly seven minutes. Five hours should be enough. The cool doors reflected back a rather unruly image which very clearly showed lack of sleep. I readjusted my tie and straightened my jacket before they opened, chocolate curls and the scent of coffee floating past me. I dashed towards the glass doors at the entrance. The people who manned this floor were extremely talented at starting conversations at the most inconvenient times. Not even bothering to breathe fresh air - something which I hadn't done in two days - I climbed into my silver Audi and rushed home.

I awoke at three o'clock sharp to the sound of my phone ringing. Still half asleep, I mashed the buttons until a woman yelled from the other side of the line.

“Mr. Wilson is here.” I recognized the voice as that of Stone.

“What the hell does that man want now?” I spat back bitterly.

“I tried to explain to him that it's never a good idea to wake you, but he is demanding that you come.”

“He's already there?”

“Yes and we need you here! Now!” I hung up the phone. Goddamnit! This company was a double-edged blade. On one hand, we were in high demand due to the very nature of the business. On the other, managing it was absolute hell at times. Especially since half of the staff had the mentality of a monkey with its hands tied to its legs. I quickly dressed myself and headed back to the office, where I was surprised to see a raging bull called Wilson tearing the place apart.

“You... you b*****d! What the hell kind of a shady business are you running here?!” He hissed as he caught sight of me. I glanced over towards the front desk, not surprised to see my useless secretary missing in action.

“Shady? I am offended that you feel that way, Mr. Wilson. We at J. Feint Financial Enterprises proceed with utmost care in making sure our customers are satisfied. Now, please calm down and explain to me what the problem is.”

“Three... three thousand dollars? You want me to pay three thousand dollars for one night?! That's absurd!” He sputtered back defensively.

“Mr. Wilson, you are neglecting to understand the work that our entire team is putting into covering your a*s. I don't believe I was the one who cheated on my wife, now was I? That is reality.”

“How can I even be sure that you're telling the truth? This is a company based off of lies for Christ's sake!”

I couldn't stop my lips from curling into a smirk, angering him even more. It had been a while since such an entertaining imbecile walked through those tall glass doors and I just couldn't help but play with him.

“Well then, you can go home and explain to your wife where you were last night. If that is all, please excuse me as I have more pressing matters to attend to. Security, please see this man to the door.”

“No - wait!” Wilson called out. I turned around to see an expression of utter defeat, making it all the more difficult to suppress my own amusement. As long as you know how to control a person's emotions, they become putty in your hands.

“Miss Stone, wherever that woman is, go see her about the payment. And I will see you tonight.” I said, that damned secretary scurrying out from the staff office at once. I wondered if she only took on such an angry tone with me, judging by the cutesy way she acted around everyone else in the office. I held no interest in such a shallow woman, although she always somehow managed to reach deadlines in spite of fooling around. Women are strange creatures.

I glided my fingers across the smooth metallic buttons, directing the elevator towards the first floor. At the 27^th floor it stopped and a stack of paper with legs stumbled in next to me.

“Would you like help with that?” I asked after realizing that the stack of paper indeed had a sex, and that it was female. I had no desire to exert any more energy, however the C.E.O. of J. Feint Financial is attractive, intelligent, and, above all else, chivalrous. If I failed to uphold the image I presented to the media at this point, it could potentially cause heavy loses for the company. It was all such a pain in the a*s.

“Oh, no thank you, I think I've got it.” The girl replied in a meek little voice. I stifled a sigh of relief. I really didn't feel like helping her anyways. I couldn't help but feel pity for her though as she wandered out of the elevator and sent the stack of papers flying across the entrance.

As I helped gather the papers, I caught a faint whiff of coffee and recognized her as the girl from this morning. I stole a glance. She was cute, though far from the type to appear in Vogue. Chocolate-colored strands of hair, which had fallen from her ponytail, framed her thin face. She had a small build, and couldn't have been older than sixteen. I wondered what a sixteen year old girl was doing in my building, on the floor collecting papers.

“Luke!” Charlie called, strolling over with his usual haughtiness. “What's up? Oh, who's the cute girl?” She looked up immediately, her light brown eyes fashioned into a glare, before scooping up the rest of the papers and dashing off.

“Oh, were you going for her? Sorry I scared her away, man. Probably for her own good anyways.”

“What is it Charlie?”

“Oh, yeah, I did that background check you asked for,” He said, handing me a manilla folder. “The dude is a manager for some second-rate convenience store chain. Has a wife and three kids, all under 18.”

“Including the wife?”

“Shut up, you know what I meant. I also included his medical information. Seems like he's diabetic.”

“Well s**t, I could have told you that.”

“Alright mister genius, then tell me what you think.”

“I think you should go call up the tech department.”

“I deserve a raise.”

“Keep asking and the only raise you'll be seeing is in your hospital bill.”

“You know, I can never tell if you're joking or, like, serious.”

“I'm always serious.” I said, sifting through the folder. It was almost too easy to figure out how to seal the deal. It wouldn't even take a few hours to sort out.

Reviews

[Sarah and Ashleigh]

I know this is an old work but it came up on my discover page and I am actually hooked!!! It's probably a long shot but I hope you still continued it elsewhere!