by Alia Thomas
This was his second year on this book and he was growing frustrated with the characters. The main man was on a quest to his destiny around the world and Richard had him stuck in China simply because his mind wouldn’t generate anymore interesting adventures for him after the monastery visit he last wrote.
For the second time today, he found himself thinking about the woman he had hired on impromptu. They were not professional thoughts and that was what bothered him. Kimberly’s references had checked out. The law firm she worked for had said she was a diligent worker with great standards and a brilliant work ethic. He had of course spoken to her supervisor who was a friend. Shelly Deer knew of Kimberly’s dramatic exit from the company and felt it justified. She had tried time and time again to tell the partners that were shoveling extra work on Kimberly unnecessarily, and one of the ole boys made a quip about color and servitude. It was then that Shelly knew there would be no chance of equality for her friend and was more than happy she had told the boss to shove it. Shelly’s friends called her a liberal. She called herself a human and inside her white skin, she deeply believed there was hope for mankind.
Kimberly would be starting in the morning and even though he wasn’t due to go into work, Richard would be there. Making certain she settled in was going to be a personal point of his. He hoped the greeting wouldn’t appear too eager.
There was a strange stiffening in his pants as he stood observing her in the office and it caught him off guard. In his former days, he dated exclusively white women and only after his visit to Asia did he venture outside of a western woman. The sudden stirring movement below his belt in the presence of Kimberly was unusual and foreign. Richard didn’t know how he felt about it and decided to leave it alone. Only when he awoke around three am covered in sweat from an almost wet dream did he realize he was smitten.
*****
The building of Tabletop industries was glass on the interior for a good degree. The escalators were encased in glass and so were the cubicle sections. Only the offices of management had solid wood doors, but Richard was satisfied that the glassy image communicated the transparency he wanted the company to depict.
He was chatting to the receptionist when Richard spotted Kimberly setting foot on the escalator on the lower level. From there, she would cross the lobby and enter the elevator where he would be waiting for her. He was the boss. Richard decided that he wouldn’t worry if someone deemed his escort of her overzealous.
With the ping of the elevator doors, Kimberly stepped into the foyer of her new place of work, ready to face the day of orientation. Richard stuck out his hand and offered her a welcome handshake which she returned with vigor. Why the hell was this man waiting for her at the elevator? Did they change their mind about hiring her?
Suspiciously, Kimberly followed him down the hallway she had walked before. This time they approached another elevator and went up another two floors. Like the escalators, this one too was transparent and gave a view of the busy street below. Kimberly reminded herself to take the stairs back down.
She is so short, Richard thought to himself. Kimberly wore pink today. The dress ended just above her knees and fit her hips perfectly. Height offered him a vantage point of her breasts that seemed to be heaving as the elevator ascended and the small owl pendant around her neck quivered. The top of the dress was abstract with pastel colors that only accentuated her skin that seemed to glow as the sun and artificial light mixed together, streaming into the moving box. The familiar braid at the back of her head hung loosely, but not a hair was out of place.
On the walk to his office, Kimberly pointed out that she wouldn’t be taking the elevator back down and Richard resisted the urge to laugh at her silly fright. Her heels were dangerously high, but she balanced with the poise of a lady, never stumbling, only gliding. Opening the door, Kimberly accepted his invitation inside and Richard found that he was making a habit of watching her ass, which was much more ample than he was accustomed to. Suddenly aware of the half eaten sandwich on his desk, he swept it aside nervously and sat without speaking. When Kim cleared her throat, he remembered that he was the boss and he invited her here, so he was going to be the one doing most of the talking.
“Once again Ms. Walsh, let me welcome you to Tabletop and encourage you to approach anyone of the senior staff for assistance. Everyone has been briefed on your position and will be more than willing to help you with anything you need.”
“The pleasure is all mine. I can’t wait to delve into whatever you need. I am a hard worker and I don’t quit until the task is complete, so bring it on.”
That she spoke with such ease and candidness was pleasing to Richard who had become accustomed to half answers and diverted eyes when people talked to him. Kimberly maintained eye contact as she responded and this made Richard like her even more. Nodding enthusiastically at her positive response he continued.
“Now, I suspect that working here will be a bit different from working at a law firm. You won’t have any external clients and your main responsibility is to keep me... Well, the company rather, happy and legally protected. Other things like contracts and patents will fall under your portfolio and whenever we open a plant or retail store, you will be the one to make certain we follow the letter of the law.”
Inside, she was jumping for joy. This would be a cake walk compared to the sweatshop of Goldman & Parks. Just one client. Kimberly was positive she would nail it.
Glancing around the office, she observed that, though the office was well decorated, it lacked warmth. The pictures that usually filled the walls of the well accomplished stood bare and the mantle above the unused fireplace was devoid of plaques of trophies. Either Richard didn’t have anything to shout about or he didn’t spend much time here-maybe it was both.
Assessing that he was a bachelor without children was mostly correct on Kimberly’s part, but she didn’t dare ask personal questions. As she awoke from her mental ramblings, she found Richard pondering her face and she was immediately conscious.
“Is there something on my face?” She asked while looking around for a tissue to clean any blemish that may have suddenly landed on her. Richard turned into a deep shade of pink as he stammered and reassured her that she was fine.
Maybe he should have used a different word but fine was very appropriate. Kimberly was attractive and it was getting in the way of his concentration. Her eyes were doleful and innocent but when she blinked her dark eyes became hooded with mystery and this added to her alluring persona.
“I apologize for staring,” he laughed. “I get lost in my own little world sometimes.”
Straightening his jacket and shifting uncomfortably, he made note of the legal issues that would arise from sexually harassing an employee- a lawyer at that. He needed to focus on the job at hand not how her mouth closed into a pout when she finished speaking or how her chest heaved when she was excited. Richard didn’t miss the fleck of fire in her eyes when she passionately expressed her admiration of their company motto. He had found a keeper-in more ways than one.
Now it was time for the dirty work. Tabletop industries were being sued for negligence. A chair they had manufactured was allegedly responsible for the death of a customer and consequently, a recall of the entire batch of chairs leaving the facility around the same time was issued. Millions in revenue were lost and when the case hit the airwaves, they could expect a further impact.
Millie Thomas was an old lady in the Suburbs who was gaining weight steadily and had ignored the threshold warning for the chair. Ballooning at six hundred pounds, she had flopped down into the chair after a brief walk to the mailbox. Hitting her head as she went, she became unconscious and was still, to this day, in a coma at a hospice for the terminally ill. She was not expected to recover.
As he recounted the story to Kimberly, she became quiet and pensive. Having dealt with these types of matters before, she was confident that it could be resolved out of court and stated this to Richard but he had more news.
Initially, the family had accepted the out of court deal of a quarter of a million dollars, but then, Millie’s vulnerable daughter was approached by a group who targets large manufacturers and the feeding frenzy had started. The Citizens With a Say had hired a lawyer on the behalf of the family and had filed the suit a year earlier. CWS didn’t gain much traction in the media and only a few small newspapers had reported the matter. Richard himself had read such an article near the obituaries just over the ad for chicken at ninety cents per pound. It bothered him all the same.
Kimberly reclined in her chair as she listened to the layman version of the story, knowing full well she would have to look over the files herself to draw her own professional opinion. Crossing her legs at the knees, she tilted her chin pensively and Richard did all he could not to stare at the exposed legs on display before him. His wife had been a thin woman and it was a look he thought he enjoyed. Lately, he had been feeling quite different.
Kimberly’s were solid. The knee fanned out into a smooth thigh and disappeared under her skirt to meet her wide hips. He was looking directly ahead and listening to her views on the situation, but his focus was not on company business-it was all personal.
She had finished a while and was now glancing around at the bare walls bored. Announcing that she should get to work and standing, abruptly cutting his view short, she paused expecting him to escort her back to the elevator at least. Instead, Richard simply leaned over and shook her hand as he wished her a good day leaving Kimberly perplexed by the sudden dismissal. Clicking the door closed after she swayed though it, Richard exhaled and wiped his brow. As a gentleman, he should have walked her out, but he could not. His smaller head was talking and arguing with his brain to ask Kimberly out. Looking for attention, it stood erect under his desk.
Chapter 3
The lawn was lit with tea lights and the stage was set for a smashing party. The people smiled and made small talk with others that they didn’t really care about. This was all these affairs were about-pomp pageantry and status. Women were in attendance and this troubled Richard immensely. He knew that the vultures would be out for young, fresh meat and he happened to be the latest one to be left bleeding and wounded from the battle of divorce. Willing to lick the wounds of the injured, they dressed more scantily than pin up nurses and their potential bedside manner was not inviting to Richard.
Unlike most of the people here who would never dream of arriving in nothing less than a chauffeur driven limo, Richard chose to drive his Hummer. A billionaire in a Hummer was not astonishing, but dressed in formal dinner wear it was a sight. Unfortunately, he arrived just as a bevy of anorexic beauties with breasts straight from the factory were filing out of a stretch. A rugged vehicle driven by a single rich bachelor stirred the heat of each woman there, drawn into the semi bad boy image he exuded. The blood was in the water and the sharks were on the trail.
The charity event was hosted yearly in aid of the private sector’s environmental awareness campaign. As a leader in the manufacturing industry who had successfully reduced his plant’s emissions by eighty five percent, and had succeeded at becoming almost one hundred percent paperless, Richard was expected to attend. His mother was there, inside waiting for him and he was not looking forward to it. Rejecting the family name after the divorce, Ms. Lena Charles was a lady in every regard, but privately, a demon. Fearless and lethal, she always got what she wanted- always.
Heading a committee for Tabletop that did nothing but occupy the wives of the older board members, she would accept no less than a VIP invitation to this event. Richard had no partner to bring so she was his plus one.
Dodging the women whispering in his direction, he glanced back at the valet driving away the Hummer, straightened his fitted black jacket he went inside the stately building. The house was close to ancient and chosen because if its history.
It was the home of legendary Bill Masters, the first corporate giant to speak out about environmental concerns and offered his company as the martyr for the concern of a better world. Dissecting it and then reconstructing the mills he owned one at a time, Masters had survived the almost total devaluation of his entire stock. In the end, those who bailed out when he needed them most were forever sorry that they didn’t keep their investments with him.
The company rose to the helm once again, stronger than before and Bill retained all of his shares. A new bar was set for the manufacturing sector and a bruised Bill went after each company ignoring the new environmental laws with a vengeance not seen since.
The foyer was well lit and the light dazzled on the sequins and shiny earrings of the women and bounced off the glass of the expensive watches of the wealthy men. Richard felt alone. As he searched the crowd for his miserable mother, he laughed. Mr. Richard Damask- net worth in the billions, handsome, articulate and single. Nature could be so cruel.
*****
Shelly called Kimberly as she was exploring the drawers of her desk. How could something made from an artificial substance resemble wood so closely? The phone rang and she cleared her throat as she answered the very first external call on her sleek new phone with the touch screen keypad. Kimberly’s very own private secretary announced the call and in her most professional tone she answered.
“Good day, this is Kimberly Walsh. How can I be of assistance today?”
“Hi Kim it's Shelly. How are you settling in?”
Kimberly was aware of the glowing comments she dropped in the reference call from the HR Manager and sensed that Shelly was crossing the circle from a professional acquaintance to friend. The warmth of Shelly’s voice indicated likewise.
“I am doing great Shelly. The place stands on good moral ground and the workload is, thankfully, enough for one person. I can finally find something to do with my spare time.”
“That’s so nice to hear Kimberly. You are an intelligent woman and I know you will fit in nicely there. Funny that you should mention spare time... I have an invitation to a black tie event tonight and because you have moved to a place with a little more soul than the God forsaken Goldman & Parks, I thought it would be nice for you to attend. The Coalition of Business Environmental Protection hosts this shindig for all the manufacturers. It would be a good place for you to rub shoulders with the other people in your new industry. I didn’t invite my husband yet in case you accept. What do you say?”
New job, new attitude. Kimberly had a list that included getting a social life. It wasn’t exactly a club scene, but it was an outing that would let her relax and still be in a professional mode at the same time. Did she have an outfit for such an affair? Yes she did-or at least she would get one.
“You know what Shelly, I would love to. I haven’t been anywhere but to yoga, in ages and it would be good to rub shoulders with rich and famous.”
“I am so surprised you said yes! Don’t let me ruin this moment in case it’s not real.”
Both women laughed at Kimberly’s social immaturity and made the final plans.
“Ok, the dinner is being held at Bill Masters’s estate on the edge of town. You get to it just before the lake where they do boat racing on Sundays. Are you familiar with it?”
Kimberly said yes, but in actuality she only knew it was south of her street. The GPS in her car would have to do the rest. Shelly never detected the lie and continued.
“Dinner is being served at seven thirty but you are expected to be there by seven. I will try to meet you at the door, but I will call the organizer now and have your name added to the list. I am on a minor committee so I am shrimp compared to the big wigs in attendance. None the less, we can pretend to be important while we mingle.”
Like school girls they giggled again and then quickly said goodbye. Kimberly wondered if Richard had received such an invitation, but declined to ask when he popped his head in to check on her before heading out.
Richard was always looking in on her. He never made any off putting comments or made her feel uncomfortable in his presence, b
ut there was something about him that she couldn’t put her finger on.
In his office, she caught him staring, but she didn’t mention anything about it. The bull dog she was raised to be, would have called him out on being rude or sexually suggestive, but there was nothing creepy about Richard. Instead, Kimberly sensed sadness that ran deep and felt more sympathy than anything else in his presence.
Truthfully, she found him handsome. Dating in her life had come to an end just after she started working at the law firm because there simply had been no time. On the rare occasions she did go out, it was within her own race and for a moment, she wondered about adding some vanilla to her usual morning coffee as she stirred it with a dainty little spoon. Given to her by Auntie when Kimberly went off to conquer the world, she took the gift with her everywhere.
Born without a silver spoon in her mouth, Kimberly struggled to keep her head above the water with only her nostrils sticking out. When she got the scholarship to law school and then answered the call to The Bar, Auntie gave her the spoon in a small velvet box with bronze corners and an antique clasp.
With the words, “Be blessed child,” engraved on the slender stem of the spoon, Kimberly used it daily as a reminder of how much easier life was now that she actually had something to stir.
The days at Tabletop passed quickly and today was no different. By 4:30 she was home considering what exactly one wore to an exclusive event with rich people who had large amounts to spend on a wardrobe. Admittedly, Kimberly was a disciplined spender who budgeted to the penny. Though she had a nice little nest egg and a few minor investments here and there, she rarely splurged. The high rise apartment was her largest overhead. Justified by the memories of cold nights with her mother and cheap second hand furniture, Kimberly insisted that her living conditions be comfortable and even a little indulgent.
She loved art and hated clutter. For this reason the spacious two bedroom apartment was decorated in a contemporary black and white with pops of color punctuating the décor. An aged portrait of Diana Ross hung on the main wall behind the three seater, and the music theme continued throughout the modern home.
