Chapter 8
Good morning, Dot!” Darius Thompson, one of their new hires, said as he walked by to his cubicle.
Dot waved and smiled. She really cared for the junior staffers. She’d been one not long before, and she knew with the economy slowing it wouldn’t be easy for them to find new jobs.
She thought of Kitty’s conference call, and how exciting and energizing it felt to talk about politics for a bit the night before. Shaking that off, she picked up her company-branded Stanley cup filled with lemon water and headed to the conference room.
She put on her best poker face. “Fake it ’til you make it” was one of her favorite mottoes.
And it was time to go to work.
“EXCELLENT PITCH, DOT,” the president of the company said. Dot appreciated the rare compliment.
“We’ll see if they buy it,” the SVP said. “They’re a tough crowd. But, I agree, it’s a very good pitch.” He falsely flattered her in front of the boss.
Dot smiled and thanked them, with a little less enthusiasm than usual. She got through the meeting and walked back to her desk, trying to focus on the praise she’d just received. Why was it that she took criticism more to heart than admiration?
“All good?” Darius asked her.
“Yes. Great. Thanks for your help. You had some good ideas.” She knew accolades went a long way for the younger staff.
Her phone buzzed with a text.
“Call me. Now.” It was from one of their most important but annoying clients who was always messaging her. She knew what this was about.
Dot waited three beats for her own dignity before calling him by video chat.
“Hi, Michael.” Michael worked in San Francisco.
He’d created a mortgage-related tech start-up as his main project when he got his MBA at Stanford.
Even before he graduated, a bunch of venture capitalists threw money at him.
He was one of those guys with extra-long bangs, like a Shetland pony, which required him to keep tossing his head back so that he could see.
“Dot, am I booked on CNBC this afternoon before the market closes?” His eyes were dark beads, fitting his mood. “I need to be out there. I have to raise another round, and that jerk from LendingTree is all over Squawk Box. If we don’t show the same kind of hustle, I could lose funding.”
“I hear you.” She was well-versed in language to de-escalate a tense conversation.
“I have a call in to the producer. We are looking for the right time to get you on. Right now, your competitor is rolling out a product, so they have something new to say. As I’ve mentioned, we need you to have something new to get on the show. ”
“Let me ask you something, Dot.” He paused for effect. “Who’s the boss of you?”
“Excuse me?” She blinked, surprised by his tone.
“I asked: Who. Is. The. Boss. Of. You? Let me answer. I am. I am the boss of you. Is that clear?”
She held his gaze but didn’t answer.
“Get me on the network by the end of the day. Or else, we’re done.” His voice was menacing.
“Understood.” She knew she’d have to call in a favor to get him on TV.
She clicked off without saying goodbye. Her stomach was in knots. The SVP, the staffing memo, Stanford Michael. The uneasiness with Ryan. Nothing felt right and it was all just too much. She decided to walk it off. She grabbed her coat and left the office.
DOT HEADED OVER to Fifth Avenue. She didn’t mind the crowds and liked to people-watch and look in the store windows. The fall displays had a couple more weeks before the holiday decorations took over.
Determined to improve her day, she turned north and walked up the east side of the block, passing Saks Fifth Avenue and St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
As she strolled, she felt a little calmer.
Then, right before Fifty-Seventh Street, she saw a familiar figure.
It was Ryan. And he was going through the revolving door into Tiffany’s.
Oh no, she thought, her stomach dropping to the ground.
Though her heart screamed run, her curiosity compelled her forward.
She dialed Mary and walked into Tiffany’s.
“What’s up? I’m on a big Zoom meeting,” Mary whispered.
“Can you step out? I need you.” Dot saw Ryan enter the elevator at the back of the store. She tried to hide behind a pillar until the doors closed.
Mary shot a note to her managing partner and said she’d be right back on the call. She picked the phone back up. “Okay, I’m here. What’s up?”
“I’m at Tiffany’s. Ryan is also here.”
“Oh! My goodness, Dot. This is so exciting!”
“No, it’s not. It’s not what you think! We aren’t here together. I happened to see him walk in. Now I’m following him to see where he’s going.”
“So do you think he’s . . .”
“Yes, I think he’s going to get it. Mary, what am I going to do?”
“Wait. Dot. You don’t want to marry Ryan?”
“Mary, I don’t even think I want to date Ryan.”
“Oh. Well. This feels very new. When were you going to clue me in?”
“Ugh, don’t give me a hard time right now. My head’s a mess. This is a huge problem.”
“Okay. Okay. Did you see what floor he went to?”
“I’m checking. Hang on.” Dot moved through the iconic showroom and checked the directory by the elevators. She mouthed to the woman working the elevator. “Third floor, please.”
“Still with me?” Dot asked.
“Yes, where are you now?”
The doors opened onto the third floor. Fifteen feet from her was Ryan, his back to her, looking down into the glass display counter.
“Oh Lord!” Dot ducked behind the elevator operator, praying her boyfriend didn’t see her.
“May I help you, miss?” a smartly dressed Tiffany staff member asked her.
“No thank you,” she whispered loud enough for him to hear but not enough to get Ryan’s attention.
“Mary, he’s looking at rings!”
“Can you get out of there before he sees you?”
Dot scooted backward to return to the elevator bank. The elevator lady who had just brought her up tilted her head in confusion. “Shall I take you back down to the ground floor, miss?”
“Yes. Thank you.” Dot dived into the waiting car and pressed herself against the side wall. She was trying to keep it together. Into the phone she said, “Mary, I’ll call you later.”
“Don’t forget a single detail. I can’t wait to hear this story.”
When the elevator doors closed, she felt like she couldn’t breathe.
In just one morning, both her career and her personal life had taken major turns.
And at that moment, she truly didn’t know which way to go.