Chapter 17
***Trent’s POV***
I swivelled around on my chair, trying to see how long I could keep it up before passing out from dizziness. It was a good job that I had my own office now; people would think I never worked around here otherwise. Truth was, I was waiting for the secretary to send through a few new papers and, until then, I had absolutely nothing to do.
The phone began to ring so I guess I spoke a little too soon. I’d been working here long enough to know there was always something that needed doing somewhere or other. Without hesitation, I put my feet down on the floor and the chair came to a jolting break. I lifted the phone off the hook and pressed it to my ear, shaking my head to try and stop the room from spinning. At least I hadn’t passed out- yet.
“Mr Richards speaking,” I quickly slipped into ‘professional’ mode. When I’d first started working here, I’d felt like a complete idiot answering the phone like that. Now though, it was just came naturally.
“Ah Trent, can you step into my office for a moment?” It was my boss; his voice practically oozed authority.
“Of course,” I complied. “I’ll be right down.”
With only an “okay” as his reply, he hung up. My boss wasn’t exactly one for small talk; he was extremely straight to the point. I liked the guy, but there was no denying that he was intimidating- even a tad scary.
I began working for J-lex about two years ago when I was just sixteen. By the time our parents ditched, I was only thirteen, but I got sick of their pity money pretty quickly. I’d decided that I wanted to be self-reliant; I knew it would be better that I looked after Rose on my own. Sure, she was pretty heartbroken when they left. Hell, I was too. We’d gotten over it, though. We’d had to.
I’d started out at the bottom of the company ladder when I joined, doing the most mundane tasks known to man. Luckily, one of the managers noticed my ‘business potential’ and it was pretty much onwards and upwards after that. I apparently had a knack for selling computer software; who would have known?
Anyway, I’d ended up in my current position of Assistant Manager. Yes, that meant I was in one of the big roles of the company. That didn’t mean that I didn’t get nervous whenever I went to go and see the big boss though. My hands were already clammy by the time I knocked on his office door.
“You called for me?” I poked my head around the gap and used my politest tone. It’s better to be safe than sorry; I didn’t know whether I was in trouble or not yet.
“Yes, I wanted to talk to you about something.” He smiled, ushering me into the room. Relief quickly replaced my anxiety. If he smiled, that probably meant I wasn’t here for a telling off.
I walked further into the room, stopping in front of his desk. “What’s that, Sir?”
“As you know, our company’s just opened a branch out in California.” I nodded in confirmation. “Well, I recommended you for manager.” He did what?!
NO FREAKIN’ WAY. This was just— it was the opportunity of a lifetime. And it was all down to this man sat right in front of me.
I leant across his desk and shook his hand firmly. “Thank you. Thank you so, so much.” My voice was similar to that of a child’s on Christmas morning. I could almost feel my excitement rolling off me in waves.
“No need to thank me.” My boss shook his head. “I just picked the person best suited for the job.”
“I don’t care, Sir. I am completely grateful for this opportunity; I promise I won’t let you down.”
He cracked a smile. “I know you won’t. You can go back to work now, that is all.”
And with that, I was dismissed. “Okay,” I nodded- probably with a little too much enthusiasm. “Thanks again!”
I left the office, not caring that a silly grin was plastered onto my face. I, Trent Richards, was going to be a manager. I couldn’t wait to get home. I really wanted to tell Grant and Rose. She was going to be so—oh crap.
This job was in California. We’d have to move. What was Rose going to say?