Holy fucking shit!
Therehewas. Griffin Miles Evans.
I couldn’t move.
His long strides in the expensive dress shoes carried him swiftly down the walkway to where the other high ups stood. Griffin stretched his arm forward, naturally drawing back his crisp white sleeves to expose his lavish watch. The six of them stood for a few moments together and then separated to walk to their cars. Griffin stood at the back of his black sedan while he spoke loudly to one of the other men about directions to a bar.
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 all right. 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 was the company logo done in gold lettering. 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 here to try to get an internship. I wanted to work here so badly. I wanted to be closer to Griffin. Ineededto be closer to him. I about lost my mind when Human Resources told me the internship program was extremely competitive and they wouldn’t consider anyone without at least a bachelor’s degree. Devastation didn’t begin to 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 all through college. At the completion of each semester, I sent the director a card thanking her for keeping me in mind, along with my 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’s 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 car 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.
“Today was graduation, but this is just the temporary paper one. They will mail me my official one with the raised seal,” 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.
