Page 49 of Collin: Episodes 4-6
“I still don’t feel like I’m doing enough. It’s been mostly handling phone calls and running errands. You could get anyone to do that.”
Mr. Reevesworth tugged on Collin’s wrist, drawing him down into his lap. “It’s Thursday of your first week, Collin, and you handled the office by yourself this afternoon. Next week you’ll start etiquette lessons with Samira. She’s going to teach you to walk, talk, and navigate the business cultures I frequent the most often, like who enters a room first and where they sit.”
“There’s classes for that?”
“There are, but Samira teaches privately for me. She’s the one I hired to teach Damian.”
“Seriously, sir, you’re paying me way too much for this.”
Mr. Reevesworth pressed Collin’s head down on his shoulder and snuggled Collin deeper into his lap. “Hardly. You see, you think of it as earning a paycheck. I don’t think of it as a paycheck. I see it as spending money on what I want.”
“And what’s that, sir?”
“This.” Mr. Reevesworth drew up his leg so that he completely cradled Collin against his chest.
“But what if the others found out how much you’re paying me?”
Mr. Reevesworth laughed and pressed a kiss to the top of Collin’s head. “I pay them more than I pay you. Believe me, when I find someone I want to keep around, I make sure they don’t want or need to leave.”
Friday was quiet but busy. As the only assistant in the office, Collin stayed occupied running errands and answering Mr. Reevesworth’s personal line and the assistants’ line, which was usually split between two people. A few of the others who worked in the building for Reevesworth Industries dropped by, and Collin learned a few new names.
He got held up later than usual as the morning wore on and missed his normal lunchtime. Ash ambled in, wearing the same outfit Collin had ordered for him days ago, hands in his pockets. Red and black were certainly his colors. He sat on the edge of Collin’s desk while Collin finished taking down a message.
“Of course, ma’am. I’ll let Mr. Reevesworth know as soon as he comes back. Yes, yes, of course. Thank you for calling.”
Collin hung up the line with a long sigh and looked up at Ash. “Be glad you don’t work in customer service.”
Ash glanced at the phone. “You sound annoyed.”
“There’s someone in the art department at this college who keeps calling every day. She’s convinced Mr. Reevesworth has an heirloom in his possession she wants to study. Something to do with his uncle. I’m half tempted to find the vase myself, just to get her to stop calling. Mr. Reevesworth is friends with her boss, so…”
“So he can tell his friend to tell her to stop?”
Collin pulled a face. “That’s not how it works. Not unless Mr. Reevesworth wants to make a withdrawal on that relationship bank account.”
Ash scratched his nose. “I thought you did big business stuff here, like stocks and shipping. Not vases.”
“It’s a lot about relationships and capital at this level. Other people make things.” Collin stood up and stretched.
Ash scrunched up his nose. “How do you know all this?”
Collin chuckled. “One, college. I’ve taken business classes and done a lot of outside study, podcasts, books. Two, this isn’t my first job. And three, my dad used to complain all the time about corporate. So does my mom, actually. Though she got out. Now’s it’s academic politics.”
The phone rang again.
He rolled his eyes at Ash and reached for it. “Hello, this is Mr. Richard Reevesworth’s office, his assistant speaking, how may I help you?”
“Yes, this is O’Donnel, just following up to my email to make sure Richard got it.”
For the first time, fear did not run up Collin’s back as he reached for pen and paper. “Of course, Mr. O’Donnel. Mr. Reevesworth is in a meeting right now. Let me just take down a message.”
Ash frowned. He glanced at Mr. Reevesworth across the room, still bent over the maps and printouts.
Collin hung up. Ash rubbed his nose and looked between Collin and Mr. Reevesworth again. “But Mr. Reevesworth’s not in a meeting.”
Blank-faced, Collin replied, “Oh, Mr. Reevesworth is in a meeting—with himself and that map. Very important meeting.”
Ash’s eyes widened, then he laughed, curling in on himself, elbows pressed against his stomach.
