Page 9 of Sleep

Jasper Kopetski was an arsehole. But then I’d always known that, even before I’d hired him to be my finance director. He was solid on the professional side. Ruthless, yes, but solid. On the personal side, he threw tantrums in public, and his ego was hugely inflated. Hence here he was, in my little glass home office, his legs spread wide and his large belly wobbling as he snarled in my face.

Arsehole.

“Jonny, this is all madness. You need to get me back into an office. I can’t do with this sitting at home trying to conduct meetings over a screen. Personal interaction is a huge part of how we turn things to our advantage. I can’t do that remotely. Not to mention that Cheryl is driving me mad.”

Him complaining? Not unusual. And I thought his current cohabiting lady was called Melanie, but what did I know? I didn’t understand what attracted someone to Jasper Kopetski. Perhaps the giant wallet that was showing through his dress slacks. Perhaps the sweat on his balding forehead. Or maybe the fact that his teeth were too white and too large for his mouth and that I was staring at him in slight disgust.

Again, nothing new. I’d hired him. I’d had to live with his presence in my space for years. And he did deliver the results I demanded, usually on a silver platter. Hence I had made him a double espresso and plonked myself back in my large black leather chair that creaked comfortably as I crossed my arms. I was as bad as him for judging him by his looks; on the inside, Jasper Kopetski was as hard as the marbled floor I was tapping my foot against. Ruthless. Soulless. Demanding.

“You’re crunching the numbers, Jasper. How much have we saved this month alone by not having a company HQ? I assume you are paying attention in our morning meetings and seeing all the smiling faces? People love working remotely, and we are producing results.”

I was talking nonsense, and Jasper knew it, grimacing as he adjusted his position in my matching visitor’s chair.

“You lost your nerve, understandably, and I do partly agree with your decisions. But Jonny, I’m having to conduct meetings in a hotel. Much as I appreciate the facilities of that hovel next door, I would prefer to have my PA at hand and not have to ring her for every little detail to be adjusted.”

Lost my nerve…damn cheek of the man. Jasper had been the first to call me out on my hearing issues, but the truth of the matter was that he’d also covered for my hapless slips of the tongue, more than once, and he’d quickly picked up on correcting me and covering up my mistakes. I was grateful, but I’d have preferred if he didn’t keep shoving it in my face.

“I’m sure Kizzy is more than happy to attend any meetings where you feel her presence would be useful. That’s what she’s there for. As long as you book with Jenny, you can have her at hand.”

“Not my job to ring Jenny for admin issues.” Jasper rolled his eyes. I rolled mine too, because that was exactly his job. Downsizing had produced the results we had envisaged, and remote working suited everyone. The only one whinging was Jasper. And…I hated to admit it…me, but I was just tired.

“Remote working is here to stay. We will have complaints, that’s normal. Teething issues. HR is tracking people’s workloads and productivity. In the future, we’ll need to keep an eye on getting people together in person to upskill and performance manage, but for now, this is the way forward. I like it. They like it. So get with the programme, Jasper.”

I tended to treat him like the demanding adult he was. I paid him enough to keep him in designer suits and retain the driver I knew was waiting downstairs. I also knew how much he spent on his lady friends. Note the plural. Jasper always had at least a couple of women on the go. I shook my head again, hoping he would just slurp down that coffee and get out of my sight. He was a necessary evil.

“So, talk me through the Lambeth Council deal. The site is ready, and the planning has gone through surprisingly smoothly. Will the budget hold?”

Talking shop was the way to handle the man, who immediately pulled up the data on his laptop and turned the screen towards me. Numbers scrolled too fast past my eyes as his mouth rolled off figures and names and words that would have meant nothing to your average person on the street but were as familiar to me as air and water. We were good. I liked what we were producing here, and the results would not only give us a huge profit, but also… Well, I liked to think that we were offering quality life opportunities to the fine people of London. Jobs. Retail. Affordable homes. Stupidly expensive homes that nobody in their right mind would purchase.

Well, I had. I laughed out loud at the thought, making Jasper snort.

“It’s not funny, Jonny,” he whined.

“It’s excellent.” I gestured to my screen, where Jenny’s familiar face appeared like magic, saving me from this meeting lasting longer than I needed it to be. I gave Jasper a dismissive wave and he promptly excused himself from my office. I smiled as the door shut behind him as he left. Glass offices were brilliant. No need to walk people out or let people in. I had a handy little remote lock and could sit here all day, letting my life play out. No need to do anything but smile.

Jenny made me smile.

“So…” she started, shuffling papers in front of her. “Kids are napping, so I’ve been super-productive. Contracts are being couriered over to you in fifteen, and you need to have a face-to-face with Thomas Wu tomorrow. Ten o’clock work for you? I’ll book a meeting room next door, keep it simple.”

“Thank you.” I could do with that meeting being a swift Teams call, but Mr Wu was particular and needed careful massaging to agree to our rather brutal cut-price offer for his third-rate plot of land—something I hated being part of, but that was what our line of business was all about. I wasn’t brutal. I wasn’t an arsehole. But I, too, played that part to get the job done.

“I’ll be right there. Usual deal. Don’t worry, anything important, I will relay to you. No misunderstandings, not on my shift. You get all that?”

Jenny stopped her nonsensical waving of papers and looked at me. I nodded. She knew how to communicate effectively with me, despite the constant paper shuffling and tapping on her keyboard, which drove me mad.

“You eaten?” she asked.

No point lying. I hadn’t. Not since yesterday when I’d gulped down too many coffees and crammed a piece of toast down my neck. The last slice of bread. I needed to venture out and pick up some supplies. The corner shop down the block had essentials. They didn’t stock coffee beans, though, so I had to gather myself up to reply.

“Can you put an order in for a weekly delivery of espresso beans?”

“Decaf espresso beans. Weekly delivery. Done.”

I grimaced. Those decaf beans tasted like pond water. And this was exactly why I adored Jenny, who let a small giggle rip.

“Let me rephrase that. I will change brand and supplier. That better?”

“Potentially?” I whinged. I was getting as bad as Jasper.

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