Page 8 of February

“I actually just delegated to my assistant.”

“Oh, you did, didn’t you? Is that why I just heard her arguing with a shipping company because you couldn’t get through to a human about a certain pair of shoes you’re missing before I walked in?”

“Well… baby steps,” she replied.

“Monica, I’m retiring soon. You know that. Your mom wants me home, and I’m very much ready to finally enjoy retirement.”

“I know, Dad. I’m ready,” she said.

“You’re ready to take over, yes, but I don’t want this place to become your entire life. I have every belief that when I retire, you will move a bed into this office and sleep here.”

Monica laughed and said, “No, I won’t.”

Then, she thought about how, only three nights ago, she fell asleep in her business suit on her office sofa, but he didn’t need to know that.

“Go to New Orleans, meet with the company, make it seem like a quality acquisition as a personal favor to me, even if it doesn’t get us all that much, and try to enjoy yourself while you’re down there, too.”

“Wait. Is this your weird way of getting me to take a vacation?”

“How do you even know what that word means?” he joked as he stood up.

Monica tried her best to pretend like it hadn’t taken him a lot longer to stand than it used to and just focused on his smiling face, happy with his own joke.

“Dad, I don’t have time right now.”

“You’re working there, so it’s not a vacation. I’m only suggesting that you work during the day and enjoy your evenings. You’ve never even been to New Orleans. You never went to the football games at Tulane when I tried to take you. We have a box there, Monica. You never let me take you back home.”

“Dad, you’re a New Yorker. You went to Tulane for business school, but you’re not exactlyfromLouisiana.”

“I was for a few years, and it was home.”

“You know, Aaron is considering Tulane,” she shared.

“Oh. Good boy,” he replied.

“And LSU.”

“Well, talk him out of that one, obviously.” Her dad laughed.

“I’m trying not to talk him into or out of anything. Lily is trying to talk to him about Columbia. She’s pretty insistent.”

“Well, the boy will go where he goes,” her dad replied. “He has a letter of recommendation from me if he needs one for Tulane, and I’m happy to make a call.”

“Thanks, Dad. I’ll let you know if he wants that,” she said.

The door to the office opened, and her assistant stood there, looking a little scared.

“Yes?” Monica asked.

“Um… Your shoes are currently in Miami and will not be here by the time of the gala tonight. I tried everything I could. I even offered to fly down there to get them myself, but I wouldn’t make it back in time. The guy laughed at me when I suggested that.”

“Perfect,” her dad noted. “Not the laughing part,” he added to Monica’s assistant before he turned back to her. “You’re leaving tonight, anyway.”

“I am?” Monica asked.

“The jet is ready when you are. Pack for a few weeks, at least, to be safe. These things can take a while, and I’d rather get it all tied up in a bow before the next board meeting. Our lawfirm has an office down there, so reach out to them when you need them. Just tell them that this is a priority, and you’ll be fine.”

“Dad, I can’t just leave tonight.”

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