“That’d be great. I’m sure she’d love that. Let me know.”
“I’ll work on it this afternoon and be in touch.”
“Why the fuck can’t my computer work on the network?”
I’m getting frustrated. It’s been a week now, and I end up going home and working all night to keep up since I can’t get my computer to connect in the office. I look over to Landon, who’s had a parade of staff coming in and out of his office all morning. He’s available. I quickly stand up and walk over.
I knock on the glass wall outside the door. “Hey. You got a minute?”
He looks up and smiles. My body tingles with the memory of what we did.
“Sure, what’s up?” He points to a seat across from his desk.
“We’ve been working a week now, and I’m still unable to get on the network here to make additions or changes in my code.”
“Have you told Mattis?”
It’s difficult not to roll my eyes about how worthless Mattis Yung is. I’ve brought it up to him, and he blows me off. WTF? I paint a smile on my face. “I have. Every day. He tells me, ‘I’m working on it,’ but each night, after working all day here, I go home and program. It would be great to be able to do it here.”
A small line appears between Landon’s eyes, and his head tilts. “May I see your computer?”
I swear, if Landon mansplains to me about networks, I’ll take my shoe off and hit him over the head with it. I stalk back to my cubicle, disconnect from all my monitors, and hand him the laptop.
He clicks around as he looks at things. “It shows you’re connected.”
I count to ten in my head. “Yes, it does. Now go into the Python coding screen and try to write a basic script.”
“I don’t actually know much Python.”
“Just type the line above it. That’s fine.”
I watch his fingers fly over the keyboard. He knows Python. He’s added an embedded line that says he’d like to lick my pussy again.
I cock my head to the side as if to say, Really?
He turns the computer toward me, proud of what he’s done.
I already knew that part would work. Now I’m ready to wipe that smug grin off his face. “Please set the code.”
He does, and the computer goes to a black screen and begins the restart sequence.
“What did I do?” Landon’s mouth opens, stunned by the black screen of death.
I shake my head. “That’s the problem. It works for me on my home Wi-Fi, but since we’ve started working here, every time I complete my code and set it, the computer reboots. And, before you ask, nothing I’ve typed in is added when it comes back online.”
He turns the computer toward me so I can enter my passwords to finish the startup sequence. As he looks over the lines of code I’ve written, his brow creases again.
“Obviously this won’t work as we move into the next stage. I’ll need to be able to code as we test to correct for translation delays.”
“Does this happen every time?” he asks.
I nod.
“Your code is elegant, and while I’m no Python expert, it looks clean, so I can’t see why this would be happening.”
“I’ve scoured the code looking for something that might cause the reboot, but there’s nothing. I keep going back to it being something in the network here.”
He picks up his phone “Mattis, can you please come in here?”
Mattis walks in with a big smile on his face until he sees me. Then his face falls, and his nose flares in anger.
I don’t know why he’s surprised and angry. I waited a week to rat him out, and now my patience is out the window—along with my sleep for the last week.
“Mattis, where are you with Tinsley’s computer on our network?”
“It’s connected to the network. I can see it from the network desktop.”
“Each line of code she writes in the office causes the computer to reboot. There’s something going on.”
He shakes his head and shrugs. “I can see her on the network. I don’t know what else I can do.”
Landon reclines into his chair and steeples his fingers as he scrutinizes Mattis, who squirms under his glare. He turns to me. “Tinsley, can you excuse us a minute?”
I stand and pick up my computer. “Of course.” I’m vindicated. I wouldn’t want to be Mattis right now.
As I go, Landon calls, “Can you shut the door on your way out?”
I nod and pull it closed behind me.
After that, I hear smothered conversation going back and forth in staccato bursts. Landon himself warned me his male employees might have trouble adapting to a workplace with women. If Mattis can’t get on our train, sounds like he’s going to get kicked off.
Using my time wisely, I hit the ladies room and talk to Ginger about how she’s doing on the testing and reviewing of my code. I hear voices raised, but pretend I don’t.
Eventually, Mattis walks out and glares at me before returning to his office.
Landon comes out a moment later. “You said you can write when you’re not on the network?”
I nod.
“Grab your computer and your belongings. I want to take a trip.”
My team knows what my issue is, so they understand. “I’m on my phone if you need me,” I tell them as I pick up my purse and computer and wave goodbye.
Landon swipes his fob for the elevator, and we travel down until the doors open in the garage. He walks
