“Thanks for this,” I said, getting in.
“No problem.”She took off with enough force that my back pressed into the seat.
“You know getting a ticket is going to slow us down, right?”
She grinned.“Did you forget how good my vision is?I’ll spot them before they spot me.”
And she did, braking in just enough time not to be caught or hit pedestrians.By the time we reached the destination, the Steele Corp rep was already waiting outside.He smiled when he saw me.
“You’re the best.Thanks for this,” he said as I handed over the sample.
“You’re welcome.”
He ran inside while I walked back to the car.
“Lunch now?”Miranda asked.
“Only if you drive slowly.My stomach needs time to settle.”
She laughed and drove back to the Steele building, where we ate in the cafe.
When I returned to my desk two hours later, Whitney shot me an annoyed look.
“Where have you been?”
“I took my hour lunch after delivering the document.Why?”
She huffed a little.“Ms.Stonestock needs a summary of the marketing plans for the last three months and their ROI’s for a meeting first thing tomorrow morning.She’s presenting it to the board, so no mistakes.”
“All right,” I said, no longer doubting what Lianna was trying to do.“Where do I find the marketing plans?”
Witney showed me the system they used to track marketing plans, then left me to filter and read through the applicable ones.Thankfully, I found a way to export what I needed so I didn’t need to key everything in manually.Still, it took hours to compile everything and start making a presentable report.
Whitney and Shana both shut down and left before I finished.
Alone, I continued working as quickly as possible, watching the minutes slip by.I couldn’t be late for my shift at Lunar Pulse after Uncle Jay advanced me my pay.
Ten minutes passed, and I knew I’d need to skip eating when I ran home to change.
While I had all the data there, it wasn’t pretty.As a marketing report, it couldn't underdeliver on appearance, regardless of the data's accuracy.So I spent a few more precious minutes formatting it.
As I made the report look professional, I wondered why Lianna was assigning me time-constrained tasks.Obviously, to fire me, but why?Had she found out I had a second job?I’d read the employee handbook.There wasn’t anything in there about forbidding dual employment.And my second job didn’t violate the non-compete agreement I’d signed either.
Finally finished, I sent out the completed report, backed up everything, and put the thumb drive in my purse for safekeeping.
Knowing I’d stayed too long to go home first, I headed straight to Lunar Pulse and arrived before my shift started, but only barely.
Uncle Jay did a double-take when I walked in wearing a nice blouse, black dress pants, heels, and the serving apron wrapped around my waist.
“This place is classy, but not that classy,” he said.
I rolled my eyes.“Don’t get me started.Today was the kind of day that makes me think I screwed with someone’s karma in a past life.”
He chuckled.“You probably did.There’s a group coming in at eight.Can you get the private room set up?”
I nodded and left him behind the bar to check the private room.Uncle Jay kept it clean and ready for rental, but it rarely got used.Most people just stuck to the main club.The thick leather doors parted with ease, and I turned down the AC to get the air moving.Then I plugged in the whiskey-and-leather diffuser.
Taking the setup as an opportunity to snap some marketing pictures, I put extra effort into artfully arranging glasses and decanters on the low, under-lit tables.Instead of house-seasoned pretzels, the private room got a charcuterie board with imported cheeses and crackers.
