“Of a person who you are here to see,” the receptionist clarified. She didn’t roll her eyes, but it was in her tone.
“Oh. Um. Natasha Kerr. She interviewed me. She’s going to be my boss,” Chloe said. Her cheeks felt warm, and she knew she was starting to blush.
Great, rambling and blushing. Great, Chloe. Well done.
The receptionist looked at her for a little longer than strictly necessary before she picked up the phone and stabbed at the keypad with nails that resembled talons.
“Yeah, I have a Chloe…” She looked at Chloe and raised her perfectly sculpted eyebrow.
“Dixon,” Chloe supplied.
“Chloe Dixon. She’s here to see Natasha?”
Chloe held her breath. She felt for sure that the person on the other end of the phone was going to say that she’d never heard of her. She looked over to the huge glass revolving doors, and the security guard that stood by them. Would they escort her from the building? Her heart rate spiked again.
The receptionist hung up. “Take a seat, someone’s coming down.”
She nodded quickly, before anyone could change their mind or ask her a more complicated question. She spun around and made a beeline for the waiting area, perching on the edge of the nearest seat, ready to get up and go the very moment someone called her name.
The man beside her was having a loud conversation on his phone, something about a job being on his radar and how they’d have to touch base offline. She wondered if the women at Honey used corporate jargon. She’d never been great at understanding what it all meant. She thought, for instance, that blue-sky thinking involved going outside to consider a problem in better lighting conditions.
A woman strolled by, her heels clicking across the marble floor. She was dressed in an immaculate trouser suit, her hair was pinned up in an impressive style, and she expertly held a tray of takeaway coffees in one hand. Chloe’s eyes widened. She hoped the woman wasn’t a Honey employee. She definitely wouldn’t fit in if they looked like that. And she couldn’t hold a tray of coffee in one hand. That was definitely a two-hand job.
She looked at her watch. It was twenty past nine. The email had told her to arrive at nine-thirty. It was a nicety that many British companies seemed to have adopted, allowing the new employee to arrive half an hour later than everyone else, to get their route into work sorted, and to allow the staff to be ready for them when they arrived.
Chloe’s anxious side hated it. To her, it meant that everyone else was already there, and that she’d have to walk past them in one go rather than meeting them one at a time as they arrived for work.
“Chloe?”
She looked up and nodded. A woman in her mid-forties was walking towards her. She was wearing casual black trousers, ballerina flats, and a colourful top. She had messy blonde hair, her glasses were on top of her head, and she was smiling welcomingly.
Chloe jumped to her feet and grabbed her satchel.
“Hi, I’m Wendy.” She held out her hand.
Chloe shook it. “Nice to meet you.”
“You too, pet,” Wendy greeted, her strong Northern accent coming through clearly. “I’m the office manager, receptionist, and general dogsbody. We’re all really happy to have you on board. Let’s get you set up, shall we?”
Chloe briefly closed her eyes. She seemed to be dressed correctly, and the first person she’d met was lovely. So far, so good.
Chapter Three
Chloe followed Wendy over to the bank of elevators. Wendy pressed the button and they waited side by side.
“Was your journey in okay?” Wendy asked.
“It was good. I took the Tube. I walked some of it,” Chloe said. She didn’t mention the armpits.
“I walked this morning,” Wendy said. “It’s just too hot down there when it’s summer. I know some of the new trains are air-conditioned but not my line. Mine will probably be the very last one to get it. When I’m retired.” She laughed and nudged Chloe with her elbow.
Chloe laughed, too, relieved as some of the tension washed away with the reaction. Wendy had a kind face with laughter lines around her mouth. She knew some people hated the facial dips, but Chloe liked them. She thought of them as a badge a fun person should wear proudly.
The elevator arrived, and they both got in. Wendy selected the third floor. Chloe’s heart started beating fast again. Her first time in the Honey office was fast approaching.
“So, you were interviewed by Natasha?” Wendy asked.
“Yes. I was surprised I got the job, I didn’t think it went well. But she called me the next day and offered me the role.”
Wendy dipped her head knowingly. “Yes, Natasha is, shall we say, hard to read. You’ll get used to her.”
Relief swept through her. During the interview Natasha had been aloof to the point of almost being cold. She hadn’t laughed at any of Chloe’s jokes. In fact, she hadn’t even smiled once, as far as Chloe could recall through her cloud of interview panic.
Chloe had almost run away from the interview, convinced that it was probably the worst in history. When she’d got the call the next day, she’d almost fainted with surprise.
“Did she tell you much about the job? About the company?” Wendy asked.
Chloe shook her head. The interview had been decidedly one-way. Natasha had quizzed her about her experience, her knowledge, and what she would do in any given situation. At the end, she’d asked Chloe if she had any questions. By then Chloe was convinced it was doomed and was desperate to leave.
Wendy tutted. “I suspected as much. Well, there are ten of us in the office, eleven now you have started. Helen is our editor-in-chief, Kim is her PA. You’ll love Kim. Then there’s you and Natasha in digital. In Editorial you have Pippa and Tess, avoid Pippa at all costs. Fiona heads up sales and marketing; Lucy, Rose, and Darcy are her team members. And then there’s me.”
Chloe’s head spun. She felt like she’d never remember all those names.
“Oh, and we have a few freelancers who come in,” Wendy added. “We’ll introduce you to them as they do. And then there’s investors and our CEO, Christine.”
“Err…” Chloe said.
“Don’t worry, you’ll hear these names plenty of times,” Wendy reassured her.
The elevators doors opened. They both stepped out and into a plain-looking corridor. At either end was a large glass door. Three other doors were spaced out along the corridor, all plain white wood that nearly blended into the bland hallway.
Wendy turned left and walked towards one of the glass doors. The word HONEY was etched into the frosted glass.
Chloe hurried after her, still trying to remember all the names she’d just heard in the elevator. She wished she’d written them down.
“Here we are, home sweet home,” Wendy said. “Well, reception anyway.”
Chloe chuckled half-heartedly and followed her into the room. It was a large area with a long reception desk that held a sign-in book. A cardigan was casually slung over the back of the chair at the desk, which Chloe assumed belonged to Wendy. Behind the desk was a floor-length glass window filling the room with daylight.
She felt the hairs on her arms rise. The air conditioning was a relief from the heat outside. She’d almost forgotten about how blissfully cool offices could be while the city outside sweltered.
There was a small leather sofa against the wall. Above were some large framed prints of Honey Magazine covers over the years.
“So, this is reception… where you’ll find me,” Wendy said. She turned and pointed towards the main office. “Here’s where we’ll find you.”
The office was a large, open-plan space with modern, light-wood desks and bare brick walls adorned with more Honey Magazine photoshoots and covers. There were three banks of desks. Each bank contained five desks with four corner desks facing the middle and a bigger desk at the head.
Along two walls, large windows brought in light. Along the final wall was a number of closed doors, presumabl
y leading to private offices and meeting spaces. In front of one of the doors was a number of filing cabinets and a desk, creating a little U-shape of privacy. Chloe assumed that door led to Helen’s office and that the desk belonged to her PA. Whatever her name had been.
She clutched her satchel nervously in front of her like a shield. There were a few women at the furthest bank of desks. All the other desks were empty.
“There’s a big meeting this morning,” Wendy explained. “Come on, let me introduce you to this rabble.”
They walked the length of the office. Chloe’s palms started to sweat on cue, just as she was presumably about to shake hands with people.
“Girls, this is our brand new digital assistant who is going to drag us kicking and screaming into the modern world,” Wendy said.
The three women were around her age. Two looked like they were at their permanent desks. The third looked like she had pulled up a chair to sit with them.
“Chloe, this is Kim Faulkner, Helen’s PA. This is Rose Appleby, our social media assistant. And this is Darcy Quinn, our marketing assistant.”
Chloe offered a wave across the desks.
“Great to meet you,” Kim said. “Helen’s been excited to bring you on. I’ll set up a meeting once you have settled in. She’ll just say hi, won’t take long.”
Chloe swallowed nervously. “Sounds great.”
“I’m so happy that they’ve filled your role,” Rose said eagerly. “I’ve been begging for more digital support. I have so many things to talk to you about.”
“Let her find her desk first,” Wendy said. “And don’t forget to loop Natasha in on whatever you discuss.”
Rose nodded her agreement. Wendy was clearly a mother figure to the younger members of the office. Although they were all adults, they were probably all under thirty, like Chloe.
“Do you know what’s happening in the meeting?” Darcy asked.
“No idea. I think it was a last-minute thing,” Wendy replied.
“I saw Celia and Christine go in there,” Darcy fished.
Wendy shrugged her shoulders. “When they want us to know, they’ll let us know.”
Chloe could see that Darcy wasn’t convinced. She now guessed that the three had gathered to discuss what was being talked about behind closed doors.
“It’s because the figures were down again last month, isn’t it?” Rose asked.
“Figures go up and down all the time,” Wendy said. “Just get on with your work and stop worrying about things.”
Darcy and Rose swivelled their chairs back to face their desks. Kim stood up and pushed her chair back to where she had gotten it.
Wendy turned around and gestured for Chloe to follow her.
“Never mind them, they are always looking for drama where there isn’t any,” she whispered. “They are great girls, though. I think you’ll all get on brilliantly.”
They walked back to the first bank of desks they had passed. Cables sprang up in between the four empty desks. The one at the head was clearly occupied.
“This will be you.” Wendy tapped the back of a chair. She pointed to the desk at the head of the bank. “That’s Natasha’s desk. And the other three are hot desks for freelancers or whoever happens to be visiting. Make yourself at home, I’ll just go and get your MacBook out of the cupboard.”
Chloe sat at the desk and placed her satchel on the ground. She opened the drawers of her desk pedestal, pleased that she had three drawers. It had been a while since she’d had a desk of her own.
“Hey.”
She jumped and spun around to see Kim was sitting on the edge of her desk.
“H-hi,” Chloe replied.
“So, Rose, Darcy, and me have lunch together in the staff kitchen at one every day. You’re welcome to join us.”
“Oh, that sounds great. Thank you. I… I’ll have to go out and grab a sandwich.”
“Sure, you can pop out and get something and we’ll see you after. If you want, I mean we won’t be offended if you have other plans. I know some people want their lunch hour to just zone out and forget about work.” Kim laughed. She slid from the desk. “Anyway, if you need anything, then my desk is over there, in front of Helen’s office. Or drop me an email. Everyone is really friendly, well, except Pippa. And Natasha’s a bit weird.”
“You’re the second person to warn me about Pippa,” Chloe said.
Kim folded her arms and leant back onto the side of the desk. She scrunched up her face in concentration. She had the look of someone trying very hard to be diplomatic.
“She’s… loud. And rude. Don’t get me wrong, she’s great at her job. She’s just a complete bitch as well. She shouts a lot and doesn’t have any issues with calling someone a moron. But she’s deputy editor, Helen’s second-in-command, so she can kinda do whatever she likes.”
Chloe didn’t like the idea of a wildcard member of management who might call her a moron. Her face clearly displayed as much. Kim reached out a hand and patted her on the shoulder.
“Don’t worry, you’re digital. She’s editorial. You’ll hardly speak to her.” Kim leaned back. “You met Natasha, right?”
“Yeah, she interviewed me.”
“How did that go?” Kim chuckled.
“It was interesting,” Chloe admitted. “I didn’t think I’d got the job.”
“She’s got Asperger’s,” Kim explained. “She’s really good at her job, but the social niceties... not so much. In fact, she doesn’t talk to anyone ever if she can help it. Doesn’t socialise with anyone. Just comes in… does her work… goes home.”
“Ah, I see.” Chloe had suspected that Natasha might have been on the spectrum. She had some experience as her cousin had recently been diagnosed with Asperger’s.
Things were becoming a little clearer.
While she had nothing against anyone with Asperger’s, she wondered what it would be like working for someone who rarely spoke. Chloe loved to chat and laugh at work. It didn’t seem like that would be on the cards in a team of two with Natasha as one half of that duo.
Chloe bit her lip. She wanted to ask about the meeting. Clearly Wendy’s introduction had interrupted a conversation about it. Kim seemed nice, and Chloe wondered if she may be willing to share some information.
“Was it… Rose? Who was asking about the meeting? Something about figures?”
Kim grinned at Chloe’s not-so-subtle fishing exercise. She looked around to check that no one was listening to them.
“Circulation figures and ad revenue are the two main things talked about around here. Both have been going down for a few months now, nothing major. All printed media are having the same problems. It’s not a big deal, but Rose worries about things. She’ll be banging on about this meeting for days, or until the next drama comes along. I wouldn’t worry about it.”
“Kim, phone call,” Wendy called out from the reception area.
“Better go, catch you at lunch!” she jogged over to her own desk.
Chloe immediately liked Kim. Her concerns about working with Natasha and Pippa were being dampened by the knowledge that there were nice people in the office, too. Wendy was a real mum figure, and Kim seemed sociable and kind. She’d already been invited to lunch, so maybe she would make friends at Honey.
She looked up at the closed door to the meeting room and wondered about her other new colleagues.
Chapter Four
“There must be something,” Darcy said. She flipped through Rose’s in-tray again. She didn’t understand how someone who worked in social media could have so much paperwork. She was sure that Rose just kept things in her in-tray in order to look important.
“Nope. Nothing urgent anyway,” Rose said. She leaned close to the screen and read a Twitter thread. “Why are you so eager to go in there anyway?”
“To see what’s going on, of course.” Darcy gave up looking. She flopped into her chair, turning back to her desk, dejected.
“You couldn’t pay me enough money t
o walk into that meeting now. All the bigwigs in one room, looking up at you as you walk… Oh! I see.”
Darcy winced.
Rose had just caught onto her plan and was no doubt about to tease her mercilessly for it.
“You want to see… Celia,” Rose breathed out the name.
“No,” Darcy lied. “I want to see if I can see what’s going on in the meeting. It’s weird that everyone has suddenly gone to an emergency Monday morning meeting. You said so yourself.”
The side-by-side corner desks were angled for ergonomic comfort, which allowed Darcy to keep the back of her chair to Rose. A relief, as she knew her cheeks were flushed in a serious blush. She cursed her pale skin for giving her away all the time.
“But seeing Celia would be a bonus, wouldn’t it?” Rose pressed.
Darcy grabbed hold of her desk and pulled herself closer. Eager to put a few more centimetres between her and Rose.
She looked at her much-loved postcard of the vintage poster for Madama Butterfly. The calming sounds of “Un bel di vedremo” played in her head, and she wished she was at the Royal Opera House. It was a strategy she had used for years. When things got too much for her, she retreated to her favourite place. As far as she was concerned, nothing was more calming than a night of opera.
Rose was right. She did want to see Celia. Darcy would give anything for a few seconds’ sight of the woman. Of course, she was curious about the reason for the meeting. But Celia Fox was her primary motive for wanting to gatecrash under the guise of some urgent piece of information that needed to be conveyed.
“I’m sorry,” Rose said softly. “I don’t mean to tease you.”
Darcy turned slightly to face her co-worker. “It’s okay.”
Rose did tease her, frequently, but she didn’t mean anything nasty by it. Darcy was just overly sensitive, and Rose never took anything seriously. It was amazing they got on at all.
Rose scooted her chair closer. “I just hate seeing you head over heels for someone who doesn’t, and will never, know that you even exist. I’m not trying to be cruel, just realistic. It’s been a year, and I’m pretty sure she hasn’t got a clue who you are.”
Climbing the Ladder Page 2