Page 90 of Another Lucky Number

‘Shall we get started then?’ says Sébastien.

‘Sure.’ I give a nervous nod. ‘Ready when you are.’

‘Bien. I expect this part of the interview will take an hour, then we will move elsewhere for the presentation…’

My heart sinks on hearing this. It undoubtedly means there will be a much bigger audience than I was hoping for.

‘Eloise and I will both ask you questions,’ Sébastien continues. ‘These will relate to our company values and how your previous work experience relates to the role. Is that all fine with you, Emma?’

‘Absolutely.’

Sébastien kicks off the questions and he and Eloise alternate between them in a very natural way. It’s a far more relaxed experience than I had with Amber’s ‘interrogations’. However, I’m still grateful that she grilled me to that level and got me ‘ready for anything’. Fortunately, in this case, ‘anything’ has turned out to be a rather pleasant surprise.

Sébastien and Eloise go out of their way to make me feel at ease, to the point that the whole experience feels more like a pleasant chat between like-minded professionals than an interview. If it weren’t for the fact that Amber tested me with some values-based example questions, I might even have wondered if itwerean interview. But the tell tales signs are there, and I’m pleased to note that I do feel a natural alignment with what the company is about.

‘Thank you, Emma,’ says Sébastien, after what feels like about ten minutes. ‘Those are all the questions we wanted to ask today. Shall we move on to the presentation?’

‘Sure.’ I try to look enthusiastic, while my stomach feels like it’s taken a dive into a cement mixer.

He turns his attention to the screen. ‘Merci bien, Eloise. I will take things from here and call you later.’

‘De rien, Sébastien.It was nice to meet you, Emma. Good luck with your presentation.’ Eloise waves goodbye and disappears from the screen.

We leave the meeting room and make our way back along the corridor to the atrium, where Sébastien leads me out of a door into the close humidity outside. We walk in the opposite direction to where the main facilities of the resort are located, and it’s not long before I spot why. In the near distance, I can see an altar-slash-stage with a canopy roof and a huge AV screen positioned at the back of it. And as we get closer, rows of seats with an aisle running up the middle come into view.

Under different circumstances – a wedding, live act, anything – I would consider this set up, with its stunning backdrop of powder white sand and turquoise sea, to be an idyllic event location. But seeing the seats fill up with people, knowing thatI’mthe ‘entertainment’ kind of takes away the shine.

‘Here we are.’ Sébastien’s tone is matter of fact, as if this set-up is something interview candidates across the world are faced with every single day. ‘This is where we host weddings, and we also use it as an outdoor cinema sometimes in the evenings.’

‘What if it rains?’ I look up at the sky. It feels like we could be in for a downpour at any moment, and this time I’m not wishing for rain to stop play. I want this damn thing over with, once and for all.

‘I am hoping it will stay dry, but if not, we can bring the canopy roof across the audience. It offers some protection and the electrics are encased, but in the event of a heavy downpour, we would, of course, move inside. You will find everything you need on the left side of the stage. I assume you have your presentation on a USB stick?’

‘I do… yes,’ I croak, then clear my throat.

‘Please relax.’ He puts a calming hand on my arm. ‘I know this is a pressured situation – more so than you wouldexperience on the job – but I also know that you can do this. I have seen your superstarchanteusekaraoke skills, remember?’

I chuckle nervously, taking it as a measure of my anxiety levels that my stomach doesn’t flutter with desire at the physical contact.

Sébastien is approached by a member of the audience and excuses himself to speak to them while I give myself a silent pep talk, straighten my shoulders and walk down the aisle to meet my fate.

Once on the stage, I’m pleasantly surprised to find cool air being pumped out of air conditioning units above me. This at least gives me hope that I won’t be a sopping mess by the end of the experience – which would be a distinct improvement on my previous practice sessions.

I busy myself with setting up my presentation so that the title slide is displayed on the screen behind me. Looking up at it and then out at my ever-growing audience, the reality of the situation hits me, causing my legs to wobble and the cement mixer in my stomach hit turbo power.Oh god, please let me get through this in one piece. The only thing that would be worse than yesterday is to throw up all over the stagebeforeI pass out.

In desperate need of some reassurance, I scan the audience for familiar or friendly faces. My eyes land first on Charnice, who’s clearly been waiting to catch my eye. She gives me a huge encouraging smile and silently brings her hands together in what I think is a message of ‘you’ll be great’. I nod gratefully in response. My gaze then shifts to two people approaching Sébastien: Cat and Amber. He greets them with his signature kisses, before they claim two seats right at the back. I keep my eyes on them for a moment, but they’re busy chatting with the people next to them.

Once the rows are full – totalling about sixty people – Sébastien makes his way down the aisle and joins me at the side of the stage.

‘Ready?’ he asks.

‘Probably shouldn’t keep them waiting any longer.’ I say, while trying to calm the raging protestations in my body.

‘Bien. Perhaps you can use the headset to make sure the audience can hear you?’

I look across at the table where the laptop is and spot the headset. I feel a bit daft at the idea of using it, but it’s the obvious choice over shouting my way through my presentation. Grabbing it and switching it on, I rejoin Sébastien and he greets the crowd.

‘Mesdames, messieurs… ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon and thank you kindly for taking the time to join us today. As you know, at Paradis Resorts, people are the most important part of our business. That means you: our valued guests and colleagues. We live by our brand values, and we make sure that the colleagues we bring in live them too. So, today I would like to introduce you to Emma, who I am interviewing for a very important role within the company.’

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