A thrill of excitement rolled down my spine when I heard his voice. I remembered that deep, confident voice so well.
He hadn’t even bothered to look in my direction.
But that was alright. Soon I’d be working with him. He’d see me and recognize me. Then we could be friends … and more. I stood up and straightened my tie as it was less than ten minutes before my appointment.
Pulling the door open to drag over the noisy doormat, I turned to glance at the parking lot just in time to see six very expensive vehicles pull out. With only one of the cars being black, I knew that one was Griffin’s. I smirked when I saw it had been a brand new Mercedes S-Class. Very fitting for a man like Griffin Evans.
I made my way into the posh lobby and walked across the white and gray marble floor to the reception desk. The gorgeous brunette behind the desk smiled at me and held her index finger up for me to give her a moment to finish the call. I nodded and took a few steps back and glanced around. On the wall behind the woman in gold lettering was the company logo. It was a masculine font, and the “E” in Evans and the “F” in Financial were quite a bit larger than the rest of the letters. Underneath the Evans Financial logo was the company’s tag line, “A Family Company.”
Not much had changed in the lobby since I had last been here six years ago. Right after graduating from high school, I came to Evans Financial to try to get an internship. I wanted to work here so badly. I wanted to be closer to Griffin. I needed to be closer to him. I about lost my mind when human resources told me that the internship program at Evans Financial was extremely competitive and that they wouldn’t consider anyone without at least a bachelor’s degree. Devastation didn’t describe what I had felt for a while after that. Simply put, my sanity was gone.
But I stayed in contact with the human resources department at Evans Financial. At the completion of each semester, I sent the director of human resources a card thanking her for keeping me in mind, along with my college transcripts up to that point. Persistence paid off, and at the start of my last semester, she sent me an offer letter for a paid internship upon graduation.
And here I was.
When the lady behind the desk hung the phone up, I pulled my eyes away from the gold logo and gave her my attention.
“Are you Riley Tucker?” she asked in a playful tone.
I took a few steps forward, setting my forearms on the counter. She glanced at my gold “M” cufflinks. They’re Griffin Evans’ University of Michigan cufflinks.
“Yes, ma’am,” I said with a smile.
The woman smiled and said that Amy, the director of human resources, was expecting me. Proudly carrying the blue diploma holder in my hand, I followed the receptionist to the elevator and entered the lift after she did. She pressed the button with the number two on it and began making idle chitchat.
“Is that your diploma?” she casually asked as she gestured to the holder in my hand.
“Yes, ma’am. Today was graduation,” I replied excitedly.
“Today was?”
“Yes, ma’am,” I confirmed. I ran my hand down my tie and smoothed it against my torso.
“Wow, you had your graduation and drove all the way up from Ann Arbor today?”
“Yes, ma’am. This internship is significant to me. It was my priority.”
“Our CEO also went to the University of Michigan,” she said in a friendly tone.
I know.
“He’s a huge Michigan fan. Especially in the fall for football season,” she added.
I know.
With a subtle bounce, the elevator came to a stop. I followed her down the hall and gave her my attention as she continued to talk about Griffin.
“I don’t know when he graduated.” 2004. “And I’m not sure what he got his degree in.” Master of Business Administration. “What did you get your degree in?” she kindly asked as we turned a corner.
“Master of Business Administration,” I eagerly replied.
The same as Griffin.
As we approached a corner office, Amy stood and walked around her desk. The receptionist didn’t enter the office with me but told me congratulations on my degree. I thanked her as she left and then shook Amy’s hand before taking the offered seat.
“Well, Riley, congratulations,” Amy said and held out her hand for my diploma. “I just need to make a quick copy of this since it’ll probably be a few weeks before we can get it verified with the school.”
“Thank you,” I said as I handed my diploma to her. Amy continued to talk while she stood a few feet away at the copier in her office as we went through some formalities and then forms.
“Since you’ll be starting on Monday, let me show you where you’ll be sitting.”
I followed Amy down the hall and past the elevators to the other side of the building. The five cubicles that were in this section were along the wall with the window that overlooked the lake and paths behind the building. The gray fabric cubicle walls were about three and a half feet tall and concealed about a foot above the desk space. Then there was about another foot and a half of glass on top of it. Each cubicle was spacious and had some privacy, but I thought when seated, you’d still be able to see the tops of the heads.
“This middle one will be yours.” Amy tapped her manicured pink nails on the empty gold metal placket on the exterior cubicle wall. “Your nameplate
