Chapter 18
Chapter
Eighteen
IRIS
Yesterday turned out to be one of the best days I have had in a long while. Even with the terrible cramps that always hit me on the first few days of my period, having Max there helped ease some of it. Especially with how attentive he was toward me.
I didn’t want for anything.
As much as I wanted to take a second day off, I knew I couldn’t. If I took off every single time I had a painful period, I would miss a week every month. That’s not plausible even if Max would allow it.
So here I am at my desk, working on budgets and reports that I would rather burn.
“You have a delivery,” Chad says, bringing me in a smoothie.
I smile when I see it. Of course he is sending me another smoothie. He swears it is supposed to help with cramps. I don’t know if it is true or not, but it is the thought that counts.
“Thank you. What is Max up to?” I ask Chad.
“He has meetings all day with supervisors.”
I smile to myself. I’m glad he is taking this so seriously. It reminds me of my interview with Astor Conglomerate. The reason they appealed to me was more than their location and the change of job duties. They also were offering a competitive package.
“Does he have any free time in his schedule today?” I ask, an idea in my head.
“From two to three,” he tells me without having to look.
Chad isn’t always the best assistant. He has had to learn a lot of things at a quick pace, so sometimes things slip through.
I’m glad to see some things are sticking, though.
I always knew Max’s schedule down to the minute when I was his assistant.
I expect nothing less from the man taking over for me.
“Good. Pencil me in. I’d like to discuss some ideas with him.”
“Of course. Is there anything else?” he asks.
I shake my head, turning back to my computer.
Instead of focusing on reports, I type up a proposal. I take what I learned about Astor Conglomerate and add in my own flair. Things I think would be beneficial for all employees. Things that will make employees want to be loyal to our company.
Once I’m done, I smile at my work. This is the stuff I like to do. Actually making a difference for the company, employees, and guests.
I think I will talk to Max about wanting to change job positions. I wouldn’t want to take a position from someone, so maybe I will wait and see what opens up, and if it intrigues me, I’ll ask to swap.
Standing from my desk, I make my way out of my office. Max’s door is firmly shut.
“I’m going to go grab some food for Max and me. I’ll be back in time for our meeting,” I tell Chad.
“Sounds good.”
“Did you need anything?” I ask.
“Nope. Thank you, though.”
I leave the office, excited by what the future might hold. For the first time in a while, I feel settled in my life. Sure, I am still looking for the man of my dreams, but I’m starting to wonder more and more if he has been here the whole time.
My phone rings, pulling me from my thoughts.
“Hey Clint,” I answer.
“Tris was a bad idea,” he starts, sounding out of breath.
“What? I thought it was going well.”
He huffs as he keeps panting. “Yeah, well, so did I until about twenty minutes ago.”
“Oh no. This sounds bad,” I moan into the phone as I walk into the restaurant I ordered from.
I tell them my name and grab the food already sitting by the counter for me.
“She invited me over for some midafternoon, um…” He trails off.
“Nookie,” I supply.
“Yes. Nookie. I was like, ‘sure, why not?’ right? So I get there. We are mid-deed, and her boyfriend walks in. He’s shocked. I’m shocked. Hell, the fucking spider in the corner was shocked.”
“What a fucking hussy. I am so disappointed in Tris,” I murmur as I make my way through people back to the office.
“Oh yeah. It gets better. He lives on the West Coast. They have been together since they were in high school. He was going to marry her. He came to surprise her because they hadn’t had much time to talk recently.”
“Did he try to fight you?” I ask.
“No. He was heartbroken, but it didn’t look like he blamed me. She started screaming about how this was for their future. How I would give her money, and then when she came home, they could build a life together. I guess she thought I was rich.”
“Well, I mean, you do wear thousand-dollar suits and dropped a hefty tip that day at lunch,” I tease him.
“I like quality clothes, and I treat my waitstaff. Sue me.”
I snort. “You tipped her extra. I know you did.”
“Maybe. Still, it sucks.”
“Is that why you are huffing in my ear? You high-tailing it out of her neighborhood?”
He laughs. “I figured a walk would calm me down. That, and a chat with a good friend. Speaking of which, how is work? Max glaring at you as you talk to me?”
“No, smartass. I am actually grabbing lunch for us now. We have a meeting.”
“You do realize you aren’t his assistant anymore, right?”
“Ha ha,” I tell him. “I know, but I am about to propose some big ideas to him. I want to butter him up.”
He chuckles. “I think you could ask for the moon and he’d give it to you, no food required.”
“You’re wrong. I once wanted to dye my hair purple, and he told me no. So he has his lines. Especially when it comes to business.”
“Uh-huh. That was before he woke up. Ask about purple hair now. I bet it changes.”
“Goodbye, Clint.” I laugh into the phone. “Good luck with your gold digger.”
“This is all your fault, you know. You encouraged it. Bye, Iris. Have a good rest of your day.”
As we hang up, I reach our building. I smile to myself.
Yeah, I think life is treating me well right now.
MAX
Seeing Iris’s name on my calendar brightens my day. I like that she scheduled a meeting with me. Today has been back-to-back meetings with the next level of employees, laying out what they do and what they could do from home or not.
They don’t know what the questionnaire is for. There’s no way I could tell them the truth. Gossip is like wildfire. It would spread to Iris before I have the chance to tell her myself, and I don’t want to do that until it is finalized. That means after the next board meeting.
Which reminds me that I need to get her out of town for it. She can’t attend and find out my plan before I have full approval.
Escorting Laurel, the supervisor for our graphic design team, out of my office, I smile when I see Iris talking with Chad, two takeout bags on the desk in front of her.
“Thank you, Mr. Williamson,” Laurel tells me, shaking my hand.
“No, thank you, Laurel. Your input is invaluable for the company.”
She smiles before walking away. Iris waves at her before grabbing the two bags along with a notebook and heading my way. As soon as she is close, I take the bags and usher her into my office.
Once the door is closed, I move toward my desk, laying out the different food options. I smile when I see my favorite burger from the restaurant down the road.
“You didn’t have to go get us lunch,” I tell her.
“You would’ve sent Chad out. Besides, I wanted some air.”
“Well, thank you. I was surprised to see you scheduled a formal meeting with me. You usually text me and demand my time,” I tease.
She smiles. “You’ve met with the directors and now are meeting with supervisors. I figured you might want some input from your CFO.”
Guilt settles in my stomach. I’m lying to everyone right now.
Chad and the guys are the only ones who know the truth.
Mason even said he hadn’t told Liv so that she wouldn’t be disappointed if it didn’t work out.
It’s the same reason I don’t want to tell Iris until I know it is going to happen.
I don’t want her to get her hopes up and come out disappointed on the other side.
I swallow hard but force a smile. “I would love to hear your ideas.”
“Good. Make a plate and take a seat,” she tells me, gesturing to my chair.
“You don’t want to eat on the couch?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “This is a business meeting, so you eat and I’ll talk.”
“Proceed then,” I tell her, grabbing the paper plates from my desk before grabbing my burger and fries.
I settle in my chair as she makes her own plate before she takes a seat.
“So I’m not sure how you usually start these meetings, but I have a few ideas of how to improve employee morale.
Starting with how we work. I have noticed that a lot of employees are willing to work from home when they are ill rather than taking the whole day off.
I think that we offer sick pay with the option that if they prefer to work from home, they can do so.
It will help them save their sick pay for truly important things rather than a cold.
I think it would cut down on people coming to work with a cold and spreading it.
” The passion shines through with her words.
I smile. “That is something I could add to the list. I have been discussing with the others how much of their job requires them to be in the office,” I tell her.
“I know I don’t like missing work for a little sniffle, and I know many others here feel the same. I think it will increase productivity.”
I nod. “I agree. What else do you have?” I ask, writing down her idea before picking my burger up.
“I know we offer competitive benefits with a 401(k), medical insurance, and such, but I think we could offer some more benefits. Such as gym passes. We could have this at our hotels. It would add a little extra work for the front desk, but it would give the employees a free place to work out and take care of their health. We even have a few rooms downstairs we could turn into an on-site gym. I know I would go use it on my lunch break if I could.”
My eyes fly to hers.
It is a good idea. One that I might be able to work into the Boston office, but it won’t be implemented here. Not if we move our home base back to Boston. I’m hoping to scale back here and rent the other floors to another company or maybe sell the building completely and buy a smaller one.
Still, the idea of having them use the hotels is genius. It wouldn’t cost us any money to give them passes that they could scan at the desk to confirm they are indeed an employee.
“We could even offer family plans. Immediate family, such as spouses or children, could also use them for free,” I muse.
“Yes. That is even better.” She pops a fry into her mouth.
“I like that idea. I’m not sure about adding a place here. I would need to look into costs, but it’s possible.” I tell her, leaving out the fact that I would be looking into doing it in Boston.
“I could do the research on that. It is my job after all, being the money person.”
“Get me the numbers then. I’d love to see them.”
She smiles widely before she looks down at her notes. When she glances up at me nervously, I wonder what her next suggestion is.
“We should review the employee handbook, specifically the dress code.”
I raise my brow. “You don’t like wearing business attire?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “No. That should stay. We are a business after all. I do think having a casual day maybe once a month or something would be fun. I know they love when we let them dress up for Halloween.”
“I don’t see an issue with that,” I tell her.
“I think we should allow colored hair,” she blurts out, her eyes on mine.
I fight to hold back my smile.
That’s why she was nervous. A few years ago she really wanted to dye her hair purple.
She was going through a phase where she wanted to make a drastic change, and her hair was where she wanted to do it.
At the time, I told her no. It was unprofessional to have colored hair in the workplace.
She went and chopped all of her hair off instead.
I regretted my decision the moment I saw her with the pixie cut.
Not that she wasn’t beautiful, but I missed that long, beautiful hair she had.
I refuse to chance that again.
“We need restrictions in place. It still needs to look professional, but I am fine with allowing colored hair. We could ask them to submit an inspiration photo to confirm it would be acceptable.”
Her eyes widen at my easy acceptance. She sucks her lower lip in her mouth.
Fuck, if I don’t want to kiss her right now. Instead, I shove fries in my mouth and nod at her.
“That’s a good idea.” She clears her throat. “I think employees will like showing their individuality more. I also don’t think people are judged based on hair color as much as they have in the past.”
“Agreed. What else do you have?”
As she continues to lay out options for paternity leave and mental health days, I look at her in awe. She surprises me more and more every day.
I wonder, if I make these changes, will she tell our competitor to keep their job offer? Or will she be upset when she finds out the secret I’ve been keeping from her?