Chapter 1 #3
Drea was a player, but somehow managed to charm everyone enough not to create hordes of irate women. Nobody had anything bad to say about Drea, which was . . . kind of impressive.
Well, nobody but Cassie. She didn’t dislike Drea; she was just confused. After hearing about her charm and seeing it with the others at the office, she felt there was something different when Drea interacted with her. She wasn’t rude exactly, just not friendly.
At first, she thought it was because they didn’t know each other well, but after two months of working together, she had watched Drea be friendly with everyone else in the office.
Just not her. She couldn’t think of anything she had done that might have upset her, so she chalked it up to different personalities that didn’t click.
But if she was being honest, it bothered her.
Cassie wasn’t going to become another in a long line of conquests for Ms. Drea Cordeira, but she could be her friend.
Except Drea apparently didn’t want the friendship.
And Cassie didn’t know what she had done to make Drea behave so . . . well, so politely.
Cassie looked back at her computer screen.
Another burst of laughter. She steeled herself and tried to focus on the calendar in front of her.
But eventually her eyes wandered back to Drea’s desk and the smile on Drea’s face, subtle flirtation, and inviting body language.
The ease that she had with Erin after only a few hours irked her.
Cassie’s mind flashed back to her talk with Drea this morning. Drea hadn’t been rude per se, but she definitely wasn’t inviting or warm. Curt, to the point. A weight landed in Cassie’s chest. Why was she the only one Drea didn’t like and, more importantly, why did it bother her?
The blank schedule on her screen grabbed her attention once more. She adjusted in her seat and made herself focus.
When she finished, she walked over to Sam’s desk. “Here are the potential dates for the new client meeting next week with Pawper’s Pups.” The windows behind Sam’s desk peered onto Tchoupitoulas Street, and the view of a live oak’s winding branches always grounded Cassie.
Sam stopped staring at her computer and eagerly accepted the paper from Cassie. “Great. Hmm. Let’s do Tuesday.”
“Okay,” Cassie said cheerily, starting to walk away.
“Cassie, hang on. I’m trying to figure out what to do with Erin, and I could use your opinion.” Sam motioned for her to come look at her monitor.
Cassie bent over Sam’s shoulder as they stared at the intern schedule Cassie had made for Sam the previous week.
She had put a lot of effort into making a rotation system for Erin to get an idea of the different roles in the company and see what she liked best, which she would then focus on for the rest of the year.
Sam had seemed excited when Cassie went over the plan with her last week, so Cassie wasn’t sure what had changed.
“I was going to have her start with Tom like you had planned,” Sam started, but the sound of Erin’s laughter caught both of their attentions.
They turned toward Drea’s desk in one synchronized movement.
“But it looks like Drea is already working with her.” Cassie couldn’t take her eyes off the two of them but still managed to notice the slight tension in Sam’s voice, gone almost as quickly as it appeared before Sam continued. “So, might as well start there.”
Was it just her or were Drea and Erin sitting really close?
“Cassie?”
“Sorry, what?” She turned to Sam, who was staring at her.
“You okay?”
“Yes . . . yes, sorry.” She shook her head as she let out a small laugh. “I think that plan sounds great.” She turned to get out of there fast, not sure if she was more embarrassed by how easily Drea had entered her thoughts or that Sam might have noticed it too.
Sam stopped her. “Can you get me the final designs and marketing plan for Uptown Grocery before I pick up Jake today? I’ll work on it tonight and make sure everything’s ready for next week’s pitch.”
Though they had all been working nonstop the past couple of months to launch the firm and make it a success, no one worked harder than Sam.
The bags under her eyes worried Cassie, and she hoped that as the team built a rhythm, she would take more time for herself.
But she couldn’t say that to Sam. They had been pretty close at their previous firm, but always professional, and everything was so new now as they were all figuring out their new roles.
So she did all she could do and smiled at Sam. “Absolutely.”
* * *
“You seem to have hit it off with Erin quickly.” The mix of concern and curiosity with a side of hesitation in Sam’s voice wasn’t new to Drea, but Drea couldn’t decide if it was because of her history with pranking interns or her history with women . . . or both.
She eyed Sam, who had asked for a chat before Drea headed home.
Drea thought it might be about the new intern, and judging by Sam’s statement she decided to settle into the comfy office chair a bit more, preparing for a lecture on professionalism in the office.
“I figured she’d enjoy working on a campaign rather than standing around, but it’s not a big deal if you have other plans for her. ”
“No, I appreciate you taking the initiative and showing her what you do. That’s why I wanted to chat with you. I’m going to have Erin do rotations to get some experience in each role in the office and then have her choose one to pursue for the rest of the year.”
“Solid plan, boss.”
“Cassie worked up a whole schedule already and I meant to go over it with everyone before Erin started, but you know . . .” Sam gestured her hand at the office.
“Yeah,” Drea said. Of course Cassie had made a schedule.
Cassie always made Sam’s life easier. Drea knew how harried Sam was.
The pace had been frantic since the company launched, and as much as Drea had needed time to de-stress and add some work-life balance, she knew Sam needed it even more.
Though she was pretty sure that opportunity hadn’t come yet.
Sam ran her hand through her hair as if trying to wipe away the stress. “Anyway, I was going to start her with Tom to learn about slogans and ad copy, but I’d like you to be her first rotation.”
Drea felt her brows raise. Maybe she had misjudged the purpose of this meeting.
“But I want to make sure we’re on the same page about a few things,” Sam continued.
There it was. Drea crossed her ankle over her knee and got comfortable.
“Drea, I need you to be professional with Erin. I know you enjoyed pranking interns at your previous position, but there’s a lot riding on this right now . . . for me.”