Page 9 of Quarantined with the Billionaire

Mr. Steel’s eyes narrowed. Ah, the sarcasm was started to work. He wasn’t sure how to take me.

And maybe I shouldn’t risk blowing this so soon. So I smiled and tried to force a chuckle. “Kidding. No, he didn’t tell me, and I thought better safe than sorry.”

“Well, tomorrow you can dress a little more casually.” Tomorrow? “Not that I don’t appreciate…” Pausing, he glanced at my knees.

Really?

“…your choice of clothing. But let’s get you situated, shall we?”

Nodding, my tummy flipped, a queasy sensation roiling in my belly.

But I also felt a little eager.

“Would you like Simon to put your personal items somewhere?”

My damned purse was turning out to be way too much of a topic for conversation. And my sarcasm weapon was failing me big time. At least now I knew the driver’s name. “No, that’s okay.”

“Well, this is your desk,” he said, walking to the other side of the room. “I considered having you in my office but I thought we might be a distraction to each other.” What the hell did that even mean? “And you and I have a lot of work to get done.”

“What will be my hours?”

“They will likely be longer than your usual job in customer service. And Jeffrey said you were asking about a raise?” At his words, my cheeks grew warm. He continued talking as if he didn’t notice. “Impress me today, Ms. Bernard, and we’ll talk.”

Standing in this palatial home, I already felt like I was earning twice what I had at the office. But my primary task now was to make sure I was as good as, if not better, than his assistant who’d fallen ill. I considered asking how much my raise would be or even inquiring how much his sick assistant received and thought better of it. Instead, I pursed my lips together to suppress a smile.

“Let’s go to my office.”

“Will I need my purse?”

“I don’t know what for.”

Feeling stupid for even asking, I placed my handbag on the swivel chair in front of the desk, trying to wipe the sheepish look off my face. Mr. Steel then led the way toward the door he’d come out of and I followed, eager to see more rooms in this gorgeous home.

“You’ll have lots to do today. When I talked with Jeffrey, I told him I need someone who learns quickly and can shift gears at a moment’s notice. If you don’t think that’s an accurate assessment of how you work, let me know now. That’s the type of person I am and the kind I need assisting me.”

His office was not what I’d expected. There was a lovely antique-looking desk at one end with a matching chair. The computer that sat atop it, including dual monitors, looked out of place with the remainder of the room. There was a sofa and coffee table with a glass top that looked like it had come with the desk. The carpet was off-white and the two windows against the wall opaque, like stained glass without the color. I figured the translucent quality was to stop Mr. Steel from being distracted from the view while letting him know the time of day.

“I think that’s probably pretty fair.” I was, at least, closer to those qualities than any of my coworkers in Customer Service. But could I keep up with Maddox Steel? I had no idea.

“Today, I’m going to have you working on my schedule. Come with me.” We walked over to the desk, and he pulled another chair next to his and I sat down. “My entire schedule is here in Outlook, but it interfaces with this appointment program here.” Pulling up an application, he showed me the details, explaining to me how they worked together. “The appointment program keeps track of regular meetings, but my day-to-day organizer is Outlook. It’s the tool I use to manage my day, and it’s sent to my phone as well, so I’m never without it.”

I nodded. So far, this seemed easy. “So where do I come in?”

“Well, I’m sure you can imagine that, if I’m working at home, I’m not going to be meeting with these people in person. Your first task is to contact these individuals and either reschedule for a month or so down the line or schedule a phone or Zoom appointment. I want it to be their preference, but I don’t have time to make all these calls to negotiate the particulars myself. And, in fact, if I were to call them, I might as well just have the appointment—and I don’t have that kind of time at the moment.”

“I can do that.”

“Good. Let’s head back to the study.” Ah…my makeshift office was in the study. When we got to my desk, Mr. Steel opened the laptop there. “You’ve been logging in remotely from home, right?”

“Yes.”

“This laptop works the same way. You’ll be using the phone here, and I believe your desk has all the supplies you need. But if you discover you need something else, you can dial nine on the phone to reach Simon. He can assist you. Including when you need something to eat or drink. Have you had breakfast?”

Remembering the piece of fruit on the way out the door, I nodded. “Yes.”

“That’s a shame. I was just getting ready to eat. Would you like to join me anyway?”

Oh, goodness. Really, I should have started on the daunting task ahead. What I’d already seen told me Mr. Steel had anywhere from thirty to fifty appointments per week—and I gathered he wanted me to take care of everything from today through the end of the month. I had no idea how long that might take.

Smiling, I tilted my head, my usual sarcastic replies out of reach.

“Come on, Ms. Bernard. I think you could stand a little more meat on your bones. Especially if you’re going to keep up with me.”

Oh, and I planned to…

---