Page 6 of Just Business
“Come on. I’ll introduce you to the people who work the real magic.” Sam rose.
Justin followed Sam deeper into the office, into an open space of desks, monitors, whiteboards, sticky notes plastered on a wall... and a Ping-Pong table.
Very nice.
Four engineers sat at a round table in the center of the space. Sam introduced them all before vanishing to the front of the office. “He’s all yours” were his parting words.
One of the four—Jen—handed him a bottle of water. “Surviving?”
“Yes. And thanks.”
“Sam makes you talk yourself dry.”
Another of the team—Fazil—snorted. “Better than what Eli does.”
Justin choked on the water. Not much, but enough for a ripple of amusement to move through the team. He cleared his throat. “What does Eli do?”
“Grills the shit out of you. He’s...” Fazil shrugged.
The blond—Adam—finished that thought. “Merciless and tough.”
“Unforgiving.” The fourth member spoke. Sertab, if Justin remembered the intros correctly. “But fair.”
“Don’t let them psych you out,” Jen said. “He’s not a monster.”
No,monsterwasn’t the word Justin would use.Intense.
“So,” Adam drawled, “why here?”
Just like that, he was off and running again. By the end of the group interview, his head spun. Too many questions, too much laughter. Some of the conversation went over his head—he hadn’t been into computer science—and was honest about that.
“Dude doesn’t have to know programming. Just respect it,” Jen said to Fazil.
“Ping-Pong?” That from Sertab.
“Yes, though you’ll all probably beat the pants off me.”
Approval. Good. They shuffled their papers and Fazil stood. “Ready for the endgame?”
Eli. Justin shrugged and rose. “I’m not worried.” Bravado and skill was the only way to survive in business.
Fazil led him to a large office across from Sam’s. No assistant’s space.Thank goodness.Eli swung around in his chair. No smile. “My turn at last.”
“So it would seem.” Justin stood inside the doorway.
“Good luck.” Fazil zipped away.
Eli pointed to one of the chairs behind a small table in the center of the room. “Have a seat, please.”
Well, here we go.Justin squared his shoulders and did as told.
***
Well, now, wasn’t Justin a picture of stress and tension in his suit. How delightful. Eli took the seat across the table from Justin and folded his hands. He owed Sam a dinner for two.
Everything about Justin’s outfit was calculated, down to the blue shirt that matched his eyes perfectly. The gray of his jacket and vest contrasted with the black of his tie, the latter matching his unnaturally dark hair. Somehow, that ragged cut looked perfect with the clean, crisp cut of the suit.
Justin had left the chipped polish. It fucked with Eli exactly as Sam suggested it might. What he wanted to do was bend Justin over the table between them and find out if he really did come right on time. Instead, Eli crossed his legs and leaned back. “Why is someone like you working in a coffee shop?”
