Scarlett
Today is the first day of my summer vacation, but because I have a tyrant for an uncle, I don't have the luxury of sleeping in or hitting the beach with my friends.
Instead of lazing around like any fifteen-year-old girl has the right to, I've been ordered to work for two weeks at Uncle Nic's company, just to make sure I don't grow up "spoiled".
Like that's even possible, ha!
I flounce off as soon as the elevator doors open, and familiar faces greet me with smiles. I cheerfully say hi and hello back to them—-but stop dead in my tracks when I see an unfamiliar figure working behind what used to be Mr. Johnson's desk.
Oh wow.
Mom told me that V&V has a new secretary on probation, but I'd never in a million years have expected it to be a woman. Uncle Nic's best friend and business partner, Stone Verhoff, is completely against hiring a female secretary, so what changed?
My curiosity grows as I study the other girl. I'm guessing she's in her early twenties, but she looks more like she's approaching thirty because of her taste in clothes. They're entirely respectable, but they're also terribly shapeless and boring.
Hmm.
Can that be why Uncle Stone is okay with hiring her?
Only one way to find out, and so...
"Hi there!"
I'm the type of girl whom nobody can resist, and by that I mean I'm really, really good at making people like me. V&V's on-trial secretary is no exception, and in just ten minutes, we're already chatting over coffee at her desk.
Her name, I've just found out, is Mary Cavendish, and it suits her, IMHO. She has a Madonna-like face, kind of like...Natalie Portman's, if you know what I mean? And with her hair a gorgeous shade of copper, and her eyes a sexy-smoky gray behind her glasses, I'm willing to bet she can be gorgeous enough to turn heads...if she wants to.
But she obviously doesn't, considering her current taste in clothes, and oh my gosh, those shoes—-ugh!
"Can I ask you something?"
"I think you'll ask it anyway," Mary says with a slight smile, "even if I say no."
"Aww." I bat my eyelashes at her. "You already know me so well."
Mary snorts, and I can't help giggling. It's like seeing the Blessed Virgin Mary burp, so you can see why I need a couple of extra seconds before I can get the giggles under control.
"So..." I clear my throat. "I'm not sure if anyone's told you this, but Uncle Stone—-"
"—-is against hiring a female secretary?"
I gasp. "How did you find out?"
"Mr. Johnson is a friend of my aunt," Mary explains wryly. "He told me that this job could be perfect for me, but if I want to be hired, I'd need to be certain things—-"
I'm giggling again, this time at the way Mary air-quotes the last two words.
"—-if I want to win Mr. Verhoff's approval."
"What about Uncle Nic?" I ask teasingly. "Don't you need to win his approval as well?"
"I don't think so," Mary answers in a surprisingly dry tone.
"Why not?"
"Your Uncle Nic approves of all women—-"
I burst into laughter, and Mary looks suddenly rueful. "I shouldn't have said that about your uncle—-"
I shake my head, saying cheerfully, "You don't have to apologize when you're telling the truth. Uncle Nic is a playboy, always was, and probably always will."
"What about Mr. Verhoff?" Mary asks. "Has he always been a woman hater?"
"He doesn't hate women."
"I see."
I stifle a smile. "You obviously don't believe me, but it's true. I'm a girl, and he dotes on me. And of course on Zee, too, his sister."
"So he cares about female relatives and almost-relatives," Mary concludes, "but as for the rest of the female population..."
"Didn't Mr. Johnson tell you why Uncle Stone feels the way he does?"
"All he told me was that Mr. Verhoff and Mr. Verhaege had valid reasons for wanting to avoid hiring a woman."
"It's true," I confirm. "They started this company fresh out of college, and their first secretary spent more time flirting with them than working. The situation got so bad that they needed their legal department to do its thing."
Mary is incredulous. "Are you saying sexual harrassment was involved?"
I lean forward, confiding in a whisper, "Don't quote on me this, but the last straw for Uncle Stone was coming back to the office and finding Ms. Fuller lying naked on his desk."
"Oh."
"It's almost like something out of a movie, isn't it?"
Mary nods. "But now that I know what happened, all those 'certain things' I was asked to do make a lot more sense."
My gaze accidentally strays to her shoes, and I can't help wincing. "Are those one of the 'certain things' that Mr. Johnson asked of you?"
"They're not that bad," Mary protests with a laugh.
"They so are," I say with a shudder. "Those shoes look like they're just Crocs in leather."