Page 5 of Beat around the Bush
He pulled out his own chair as I sat in the one across from him. He sifted through the paperwork on his desk after he sat down, then leaned back in his chair, hands folded together.
“So, Oakley, why should I hire you?”
Uh, other than the fact that I’m going broke and surviving solely off boiled noodles and broth at the moment?“I’m a hard worker, a great multi-tasker, and never call out of work.” I recited the list like it was ingrained into my brain. What else did employers want to hear other than that?
“Your resume was pretty bare when it came to job history,” he pointed out.
I inwardly cringed. My parents had supported me, but I was anything but spoiled. Since getting out of college, I’d worked at my dad’s firm filing paperwork for him. I didn’t want to put that on my resume, though, because knowing my luck, my new employer would call his company asking about my experience and then he’d find out where I was. Without that in my history, finding a job at twenty-four was more difficult than you’d think. “I know. But I’m a quick learner and I’m greatwith customers.”
So was half the population.
He leaned forward, grabbing a pen to write something on the paper in front of him. My palms began to sweat as I watched the pen move. From where I was sitting, I couldn’t make out the words, but I had no idea what he could possibly be writing from the little information I’d given him.
“You just moved here?” he asked.
“Yep.”
He stared at me like he expected me to say more. After a few moments of silence, he asked, “From where?”
“Denver.”
His chin tipped slightly. “Ah.”
“What?”
He set the pen he’d been twisting in his fingers down. “Nothing.”
Did he have something against Denver?
“Well, Oakley, I’m out of options here.” That statement didn’t make me feel good at all. “We haven’t been getting as many people applying as I’d like to see, so you’re hired.”
I shook my head, thinking I heard him wrong. “I’m hired?”
He nodded.
“But I hit your truck.”
His eyes froze on me from under the bill of his cap. “Being a good driver isn’t a part of the job requirements.”
Smart-ass.
“I’m really sor-”
He cut me off. “Don’t apologize again. Please.”
His eyes never left mine as I stood from the chair, holding my hand out above his desk to shake his. Dropping the car accident, I said, “Thank you, Lennon. I won’t disappoint you.”
He didn’t so much as glance at my hand. “Come in tomorrow and we’ll get started with onboarding.”
Pursing my lips, I felt flames lick at my cheeks as I dropped my hand. I guess he wasn’t a hand-shaking kind of guy.
I nodded once and turned on my heel to head out of his office. It went a lot better than I thought it would, especially given I’d rear-ended him last night. No matter how much he didn’t want me to be sorry for the incident, I couldn’t help it.
Out of all the people to rear-end, it had to be my future boss.
Starting over was already off to a terrible start, but I wouldn’t let this stop me from creating a new life for myself.
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