Page 14 of One Month's Notice

“So, you finally decided to join me?” Michael was leaning back into a large black office chair with a neutral expression on his face.

“I’m so sorry,” Nat spluttered. “I was busy reading emails and didn’t notice the time.” She couldn’t tell whether Michael was angry. He was like a closed book and this frustrated her. Even though they had only met twice, she was normally so good at reading people.

“I’ll get one of the tech team to show you how to set notifications up. Then you won’t forget again.”

Nat squirmed in her seat. This really wasn’t a good start.

“OK, let’s run through everything.” Michael sat forward, bringing his face closer to the camera. “There will be some key meetings over the next few weeks you will need to be at, taking minutes and ensuring we have an accurate record of any decisions.”

As he began to talk, Nat was mesmerised by the colour of his eyes. The glow from his laptop screen lit up the deep blue in a way she hadn’t noticed under the lights of the coffee shop. The protection she felt from being behind a computer screen allowed her to study him in detail. His dark hair was styled loosely and a day or two of stubble framed his mouth. The plain white t-shirt hugging his muscular frame contrasted perfectly against his tanned skin.

Michael paused for a moment. “Are you still with me?”

Nat brought her focus back to the words coming out of his mouth and nodded to show she was listening. “OK, that sounds good. Decisions.” Nat wrote carefully in her notebook.

Lucy came back into the kitchen and switched on the radio. As loud music echoed around the room, Nat waved her arms to get her attention and show she was on a call, forgetting that Michael could see every move.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” Lucy mouthed, shutting off the radio.

“I hope those aren’t your dance moves?” Michael raised an eyebrow.

“Sorry, carry on.” Nat smiled apologetically.

He began talking again, but then paused for a moment as Lucy’s arm appeared on camera. The hand placed a cup of tea down on the table and slid it towards Nat. Lucy’s face appeared momentarily. She nodded at Michael and then slipped quickly out of view again. Nat put her hand up to her mouth to hide a smile, which disappeared quickly as soon as she heard Michael sigh heavily.

“Sorry, again. As you can see, I’m not used to working from home.”

“I’ll call you a bit later on.” His tone was blunt. “I’ve got a meeting I need to get to now.” The call disconnected before Nat was able to respond.

“I’m so sorry.” Lucy’s face was etched with guilt.

“Honestly, don’t worry about it.” She gave Lucy a forgiving smile, but couldn’t help feeling a little uneasy at the rocky start to her first day. Was Michael always going to be so serious?

The rest of the morning passed quickly as Nat worked through her growing list of jobs. She kept an eye on Michael’s emails to ensure anything urgent that came through was flagged for his attention. The first few pages of her notebook had already started to fill up, the handwriting getting messier with each new task.

“I’m going to make some sandwiches.” Lucy placed Louis in his highchair with a beaker of water. “Would you like tuna or cheese?”

“Tuna please.” Nat tickled Louis under his armpit and he let out a squeal. “Do you want a hand?”

“Oh no, don’t worry. You can entertain the little terror for a while. How’s the job going so far?”

“Well, it may not be the most life-changing of jobs, but at least it’s busy, so the days aren’t going to drag.” Nat stuck her tongue out and Louis stuck his out in reply.

“What’s your boss like?”

“He’s…” Nat paused, trying to think how to describe Michael. “He seems like a reasonable person, but can be a little stern at times. A little difficult to read. I need to give it more time before I give my final verdict.”

“Oh, dark and mysterious!” Lucy grinned at Nat. “Well, from the quick peek I got earlier, he’s extremely good-looking.”

Nat rolled her eyes. She contemplated telling Lucy about the coffee shop kiss, but decided against it. It was only Michael doing her a favour and didn’t mean anything. She was sure of it. Louis picked up his beaker and banged it on the table, frustrated at not having Nat’s full attention.

“Hey there grumpy!” She placed her hand on his chubby fist to calm him down. “Don’t worry, you’re the only boy I’m interested in.”

Louis grinned, showing off his two new bottom teeth. With a shriek, he launched the beaker across the table. As it landed, the lid came loose, the contents drenching Nat’s notebook. She grabbed it before the water could do too much damage, spraying her laptop in the process.

“Oh shit, here!” Lucy threw Nat a tea-towel so she could mop up the mess. “I’m so sorry. I thought the lid was on properly.”

“Honestly, you really don’t need to apologise. You and Simon are doing me a huge favour letting me stay. It’s only a bit of water, no harm done.” Nat rubbed Lucy’s arm. “Come on, I’ll help you finish making lunch. I could do with a break from the screen, anyway.”

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