The One Who Holds It All

Allergic

Maximus

This meeting would last all day if I let it.

My thoughts have been wondering the whole time. I can’t concentrate when all I can think about is her. The way she smelled, the way her long dark hair floated down her back, how her legs looked so sexy as she stood perched on her heels. That curvy hourglass figure I could see from behind, and only imagine from the front. I chuckle, thinking of how absurd the whole thing is. I don’t even know for sure if that was her, or what her legs even truly look like, as they were covered up by her jeans. But something was calling me, letting my subconscious know that it really was her. Even if I never found her again, I would have the image of her full backside engraved in my mind until the day that I die.

Not a bad view, I suppose.

I grin.

Max.

My eyes darted up to Xavier, standing at the front of the conference room, with a pleading look on his face. He clears his throat.

“Ahem, Max, the firm was just saying that they agree to our proposal and they would like to formally accept the offer on the table.” His voice says business, but his eyes are begging me to come back to earth, with a hint of annoyance.

I meet his gaze with my own, my mind coming back in to focus on the events at hand. His obedience seeps through his pupils and his eyes avert.

“Mr. Klein, I am delighted to hear you are happy with what we have given you. I will have the contract formally drawn up and we will sign it tomorrow. That is, if it can wait until then? I apologize, my assistant is off today and I have to have a temp draw it up.”

Mr. Klein, a short, billowy fellow, stands up and leans across the table to shake my hand. I stand to return this, in my opinion, silly sentiment. But not wanting to ruin the deal, I reached my hand out and firmly grasped his hand.

We shake as he replies, “Of course, Mr. Pack. Let us know when and where we will get it signed. We look forward to working with you,” he says, not sensing any tension between Xavier and I.

I nodded as I started to make my way out of the room, Xavier on my heels.

“Well, that went surprisingly well. I should give myself a pat on the back for giving my first solo presentation to a client,” Xavier says with a slight frown. “What in the world happened back there?”

“I’m sorry Xave, I was there, but my mind couldn’t concentrate. I can’t stop thinking about her,” I said a little too forcefully. She was consuming me, and my frustration with her being so close but so far away is starting to surface again.

“Listen, I’ve got Megan working on the uber as we speak. In fact, my phone was buzzing in my pocket during the meeting. Let me give her a call and see if she is able to find anything,” he says, concern lacing his voice. “We will find her, Max. Especially now that you have her scent.”

Xavier stepped out into the damp spring air, phone in hand, as we headed to the car. I climbed in, not wanting to get my hopes up. I’ve spent so many years searching, waiting, and losing hope. Having her so close to me, knowing she was there and I missed her; my head is spinning and I’m not quite sure exactly how to handle it. I have always been in control, always known the answers to questions and the remedies for issues that arise. It's how I arrived at my current standing. My ventures are always successful, not just because of the fact that I am a natural born leader, but because I have worked my whole life to make sure I am giving the best of myself to everything I set my sights on. It pains me to know that I missed my opportunity for her. She is the one thing I’ve yearned for, for so long. Now I just can’t quite clear my head to know how to handle the situation.

Kylie

It took every ounce of courage I had to step out of the elevator. Not only because I was dreading to have to look out the windows for fear of the view being up so high, but also because I was sure, no, I was quite sure, that this was the most beautifully intimidating office space I had ever seen. The walls were a crisp white, not a smudge anywhere to be seen. The front desk was trimmed in sparkling black tile, with a solid white (was that marble?) top. The floors were a mesmerizing, yet subtle tile design, in what looked to be, more marble. I’ve never even seen marble in person- I've only seen it adorn the shower walls of a luxury bathroom in an internet pin. Let alone walk on it- in heels.

I walked towards the desk to the beautiful blonde sitting in the chair. She was on the phone with someone, but sensing me, she raised her head to reveal an even more stunning face. Big, round, brown doe eyes above a pixie nose, leading down to her perfectly pouty pink lips.

Wow, I am so out of my league here.

She smiles at me and her whole face lights up. She gently holds up a finger, eyes pleading me to understand that whoever she was speaking with, was important, and she would get to me as soon as they hung up.

“Yes Sir, that’s right. Unfortunately, the Uber driver couldn’t recall what house it was, as they just asked to be stopped off on the side of the street. I gave him my number in case he remembered anything else, but honestly, he seemed kind of hesitant to give out any more information. His legality towards the safety of his passengers was weighing heavy on his mind, I’m sure,” she said with a slight furrowed brow. She paused as she listened to the voice on the line. I take a seat in the chair opposite the desk, assuming the conversation may take a minute longer.

“Of course, Sir- I’ll do that. Oh yes, she just walked in, I will give her the full tour and have her get straight to work. Right away, Sir,” she added with a mischievous grin and a chuckle. The dramatic pause at the end of her conversation would have gone unnoticed, had her eyes not glazed over for a whole 5 seconds, while the grin never left her face. Were her cheeks becoming flushed? Oh no, I did not need to get in the middle of whatever was happening there. I wasn’t going to be here long enough to care about inner-office dramatics. Brushing off the slightly intimate dismissal, I looked around the room, trying to guess where my space would be.

The woman stands up to reveal her figure- her complete supermodel figure, might I add. Her emerald green blouse and tan trousers did nothing but accentuate her slender body. Either she is at least 6 feet tall or she is wearing 8 inch heels. She smiles that bright smile as she holds out her hand for mine. “Hi, I’m Megan. You must be Kylie?”

Nervously taking her hand, I replied. “Hi Megan, yes, I’m Kylie. I’m sorry If I’m a bit late, I had to come from across town on a short notice, otherwise I would have been here on time,” I said a bit nervously. My mouth was talking but my mind could not get over how beautiful this woman truly was.

“Oh, that's ok! We usually don’t have the need for a temp, but the situation was an emergency. We appreciate you coming in,” she says while her eyes sparkle. “Its not often we get a new employee, so I hope I can help you navigate through the day.”

“Oh, thank you. I am usually pretty good at taking directions, not to brag about myself, but I can be pretty self-sufficient when I need to be,” I said, a little unsure while following her down the hall. “But I will take all the help I can get today for sure.”

We come upon a big walnut door, with a hanging nameplate that says “A.M. Pack”. Looking around for a desk outside the door, I didn’t see anywhere for me to work. But trusting Megan, I keep following as she leads me into the office. She opens the door and an immediate feeling of comfort washed over me. It was a weird sense of familiarity and an even weirder feeling of being... safe? What in the world was happening? My nerves started to disappear as I became more visibly relaxed. I walked ahead of her to study the entirety of the large room. To my left by the door, in front of the large picture window, there is a small white desk. Pretty standard with a chair and a couple of picture frames holding moments from a lovely couple and, I’m assuming, their young son. The little boy’s joy was contagious as I felt myself smiling wide at the photos. I look over to my right, where my interest is piqued by the large, tidy walnut desk. Very curious to envision exactly who I am to be working for, I am disappointed when there are no picture frames or any certain piece of personal items for me to see. I was also curious to know why my heart was saddened at the sight of the chair being empty and void of its usual patron. Whoever it may be.

“This will be your space,” Megan says while motioning to the small white desk. “Amy has an organized binder with all of the information for the computer and the email system. She is very organized, thank goodness, so she has everything ready for you to look over. I hate that you have to be in here all by yourself this morning, but A-, ahem, Mr. Pack is at a meeting with some clients. He should be back this afternoon to introduce himself in person though,” she says as she heads for the door.

“Thank you, Megan,” I said as I made my way over to the desk. “I appreciate you helping me get settled in.”

“No problem. Come find me if you have any questions or need anything at all!” And with that she stepped out of the door, and I was left with the sound of her heels, which I noted were only 1 inch high, clicking down the hall.

Sighing and taking a seat at the desk, I look over to see a binder that says “Temp Instructions” on the front. Opening the binder, I started reading the first page, which is a personal letter from Amy, herself.

To Whom It May Concern:

Inside this binder you will find every piece of information that you will need in order to properly aid in the day-to-day operations of A.M. Pack, Inc. and the personal and professional needs of Mr. A.M. Pack himself.

This job comes with many responsibilities that may require you to work longer-than-normal hours both inside the office as well as at the call of Mr. Pack. It is my suggestion that you have a packed overnight bag stored here in the office if the need for you to travel should arise. On the next page you will find the personal cell phone number of Mr. Pack. Please text him the following information upon arrival so that he may have your information stored:

Full Name

Email address

Home address

Any known allergies to common foods or environmental elements

Once you have completed this, please turn to the following pages to become established with your new work area.

Thank you for filling in for me as I am sure whatever has kept me from my duties here is serious.

Please take your new duties seriously and if you need anything at all, Megan from the front desk will assist you.

Amy

My new boss needed to know about my peanut allergy? But why?

My mind wonders as I pull out my phone to complete this simple yet seemingly strange, intimate task.

I enter the number on my phone and type out my information. Not sure if I should add a greeting, or leave it plain-Jane, I opted for a greeting. I’d rather be kind and safe than rude and, well, sorry.

‘Hello Mr. Pack, my name is Kylie Holden and I am your new PA for the week. I am at the office now and ready for any instructions you may have for me.’

I enter my email address, my home address, and hesitating on the last part, I end with

‘And I have a peanut allergy…’

Nervously, I hit send. Taking a deep breath, I set my phone down and flipped to the next page in the binder.

As I start to open the internet browser on the computer, my phone dings.

I picked it up to read the response from my new boss:

‘Hello Kylie.

An email with instructions has been sent.

I will arrive around 11:30’

Well, that was short and sweet. I think to myself as I continue to log in to my email. I logged in and saw, just as he said, an email already waiting for me in my inbox.

Opening the email, I read the instructions and got to work on the corrections to the contract.