Page 13 of Remington’s Mate

Executive assistant jobs were supposed to come with executive duties, including handling her own projects. There had been no talk of any such thing so far.

Unmet expectation number one.

She was also supposed to supervise the department’s administrative staff. These mythical creatures appeared in her handy departmental flow chart from Human Resources and had actual fucking desks near hers in Sutcliffe’s outer office area; however, they did not, in fact, exist.

Unmet expectation number two.

This meant that Jaeda was not only stuck doing routine secretarial work, but she was making coffee and washing fucking coffee cups.

Unmet expectation number three.

She was not planning projects or going to meetings as her boss’s proxy. She was not putting to use all the things about construction materials and procurement that she’d spend a week staying up late and cramming into her brain. She was making. Fucking. Coffee.

No wonder the last executive assistant had bailed without notice.

But Jaeda was still kicking ass—she’d organized the hell out of the office in her first week, as well as learning the company’s policies and procedures, and making some friends in other departments who could tell her all the tips and tricks to getting things done.

And she’d spent the weekend making a ten-point professional development plan to show her boss.

Having come in two hours early this morning, she was now prepped for the week. Jaeda went down her list of finished work, destined for Sutcliffe’s inbox. Printed papers in a tidy stack on the left side of her desk; electronic documents in a file, open on her computer screen.

Check, check, check… all there.

Items to be brought to Mr. Sutcliffe’s attention for his approval and input were stacked neatly on the right side of her desk.

She glanced at her own reflection in the plate-glass windows. Neat, conservative business suit. Classy upswept hair, all in place.

Last, she checked her emergency preparedness drawer. Stapler. Paper clips. Sticky notes, multicolored, in rainbow order. Signature flags, multicolored, also in rainbow order.

Spare pens. Binder clips. Lipstick. Extra snacks in case she had to work through lunch. Statue of a meditating elephant that concealed the hidden flask filled with single-malt whiskey. Her mother was right. She did need it, in case she had the sudden desire to kill Sutcliffe and had to talk—or drink—herself down.

Next to the elephant was a hairbrush that contained a hidden knife blade, in case she decided to skip the whiskey and kill Sutcliffe after all.

Perfect. She was ready.

She was starting on the work that was due tomorrow and Wednesday when Sutcliffe breezed in. He was in his late thirties, good-looking if you liked suits-and-silk-ties, perfectly coiffed, jump-when-I-tell-you-because-I-have-the-power types.

You can handle him, she told herself. This is just a stepping stone to something better. You only need to stick it out for a year or so.

“Good morning, Mr. Sutcliffe,” she said, all proper and professional.

He glanced briefly her way. “I need the project manager hiring contract. The new guy’s coming for his final interview this morning.”

The what? Today? No, he wasn’t. Jaeda re-checked her list of work for this week. “Yes, sir. I had your meeting with the candidate on the calendar for Thursday.”

He gave a sigh, like she was an idiot. “I changed it yesterday. He’s coming this morning.” Jaeda bit back the desire to thank him for the fucking heads-up. “I need the completed paperwork. Where is it?” He held out his hand impatiently.

“It’s on my list for this morning.” It wasn’t, but it would be now. “What time is the candidate coming in?”

“Ten-thirty.”

Shit. It was already almost ten.

He added, “So you better get your fanny moving.”

Jaeda held onto the armrests of her desk chair. Violence is frowned upon in human workplaces. Violence is frowned upon in human workplaces.

She said brightly, “I can have it done by then.”