Doukakis's Apprentice

‘THE budget is how much?’ Debbie plopped down on the chair and fanned herself with her hand. ‘That’s incredible. You’re a genius.’

‘Gérard liked my ideas.’

‘And Demon Damon can’t fail to be impressed. I hope he comes crawling back with an apology.’

Careful not to look up, Polly scrolled through her ‘to do’ list. ‘He isn’t really Demon Damon. He’s pretty decent, really. He just cares about his sister.’ When Debbie didn’t respond, Polly lifted her head. ‘What?’

‘Sorry, but isn’t this rather an abrupt turnaround? Just two weeks ago he was the Big Bad Wolf poised to eat everyone in one gulp.’

Polly felt the fire burn in her cheeks and quickly turned back to her desk. ‘He’s guaranteed everyone’s jobs. That wins my vote.’

‘Mmm … So are you ever going to tell me what really happened in Paris? It’s been two weeks and you’ve said virtually nothing.’

‘I told you it was a very successful business meeting.’

‘Obviously. But I wasn’t talking about the meeting.’

‘The Eiffel Tower looked pretty at night.’

‘All right—let’s stop messing around here and get straight to the point.’ Debbie folded her arms and strolled round the desk so that she could see Polly’s face. ‘Did he kiss you?’

Polly felt the breath catch in her lungs. For two weeks she’d been trying not to think about Paris. And she’d tried especially hard not to think about the way Damon kissed. ‘Will you leave it alone? What is the matter with you?’

‘Oh, my God, he did kiss you.’

‘Did you feed Romeo and Juliet while I was away?’

‘You think I’ve put them on a diet?’

‘Polly, I’ve just managed to agree a fantastic rate for those primetime ad slots.’ Kim came scurrying across the office, the baby tucked against her shoulder and her BlackBerry in her other hand. ‘I’ve sent you an e-mail.’

Relieved to be rescued from Debbie, Polly stretched out her arms and took the baby for a cuddle. ‘I gather your child minder has let you down again? I can’t believe how much he’s grown in just two weeks.’

‘Sorry I had to bring him in. I would have worked from home but I have to finish those magazine tie-ins for the Run, Breathe, Live campaign. Sam doesn’t mind.’

Polly kissed Sam’s downy head. ‘Maybe not, but I have a feeling that the boss might. We have to introduce him to these things gradually or he’ll have a heart attack. The plants and the fish almost finished him off. If he sees that you’ve brought Sam to work I think it might test his new found patience.’

‘He isn’t going to see. Damon flew to New York two weeks ago and hasn’t been seen since.’

New York?

Falling on that crumb of news like a starving bird, Polly wanted to ask how Kim knew but she could see Debbie’s foot tapping impatiently as she waited to be able to continue her interrogation. It would be asking for trouble to show too much interest in Damon’s whereabouts.

She wished she’d known he wasn’t even in the country.

Apparently she hadn’t needed to spend the past two weeks watching the door in case he walked in.

‘Maybe he was in New York,’ Debbie murmured, ‘but he’s not now. He just walked through the door. And you are holding a baby.’

Polly’s heart pounded against her chest and she knew she was blushing. ‘OK, this is not good. Why did he have to pick this particular moment to check on us? Kim, take Sam into one of the meeting rooms quickly. When Damon has gone, we’ll come and get you. Move.’ She gave the baby back to Kim and went to head Damon off.

Underneath the panic, she felt absurdly excited at the prospect of seeing him and that feeling horrified her. She was like a puppy, wagging its tail. As she walked up to him all she wanted to do was fling her arms round his neck. ‘Hi there. Good trip? Did you hear back from Gérard? He called me this morning. Great news.’ She tried to urge him back towards the door and away from Kim and the baby, but he stood fast, clearly happy to conduct the conversation in the middle of the office.

‘He rang me five minutes ago. Congratulations. I gather he accepted your—how did you describe it?—“shockingly massive” budget’. And he wants to talk to us about pitching for more of their brands. Congratulations. You just landed the biggest marketing fish in the pond. The only stipulation is that he wants you to lead the team.’ His eyes were dark. Unfathomable. ‘With that in mind I thought it was time to discuss your position in the company. I don’t think we can have an executive assistant advising a vice president.’

‘You’d better make me president, then. Then I can boss you around.’ Not for anything was she going to reveal how pleased she was to see him again. She was about to ask him more about his call with Gérard when a faint cry came from the other side of the office. Polly froze in horror. ‘So what position were you thinking of?’ She raised her voice. ‘Whatever you think is fine by me.’

Damon flinched. ‘Why are you shouting?’