"No!"
"Oh my God! That dress! Hell no!"
"Next!"
"But we didn't even get to the interview yet…"
"So? Next!"
She kept that up for half an hour until she went through all fifty of them. Her record stood at sixty rejections.
"Are you really not going to hire any of them again, Chloé?" April asked.
"You know why I'm doing this April. I need people I can trust around me. Especially now, who knows what he has in mind?" She replied. "Besides, you'll only be gone for a few weeks right?"
"Well…I'm not sure Chloé." April replied nervously. "If Sam likes the house, we might move there permanently."
She knew saying that would upset Chloé, but someone had to do it. And since Sam wasn't there with her, that someone, was her.
"I still can't believe you're leaving me to fix this mess by myself, for a house." Chloé replied, she was visibly upset by then.
"I can't help it Chloé. Sam says he doesn't want our kids growing up in the same city he did." April replied with a nervous grin.
"You know, I could get you and Sam a nice Condo by the coast. That way you won't have to leave for a while, and can help me figure out how to fix this mess. Think of it as an early wedding gift." Chloé replied enticingly.
Chloé was so desperate, that she was willing to use money as a leverage against her best friend for the first time.
"Really Chloe? You're playing the money card on me?" April replied. "Besides, you know it's not my decision alone to make. And knowing Sam, I doubt he'd even agree to it."
"Is there nothing I can do to change your mind April?" Chloé insisted. "How am I going to explain this whole mess to father alone?"
"Well, you're his daughter after all, I doubt the Chairman would do anything too drastic…I mean he wouldn't right?"
"You don't know him like I do April. When it comes to money, father is willing to do anything." She replied. "Besides, it's not just about father anymore, the Board too. How do I explain what happened to them? Why did it have to happen days before my first evaluation?! As it stands, I risk losing my position!"
"I understand…"
Chloé brazenly interrupted April in a fit of anger and frustration. All her pent up emotions finally let loose.
"You should!" She exclaimed. "You of all people should understand how hard it was for me to get to my position! You were there when the board doubted me and thought I was too young to be CEO!"
"I'm sorry Chloé…"
"How can you leave me when I need you most April?" Chloé replied, looking devastated. And she had good reason to be.
Chloé Reynolds, twenty-seven. A beautiful, smart and confident woman. She graduated Valedictorian of her class when she studied for her MBA.
An overachiever from a young age. So much so, In fact, that for her farewell speech at graduation, being a psychology minor, she came up with the ultimate tear jerker speech. One that left half of all those present either in tears, or wishing they were still freshmen.
Her unyielding desire for success was as a result of her flamboyant father. Self-made Billionaire and Content Marketing Mogul Richard Reynolds. Not a day went by without his name mentioned in the papers. To him, anything short of victory, was pathetic. Second place simply did not exist in his vocabulary.
The Billionaire stunned the media when he abruptly stepped down from his position as CEO of RnR. He held that position since the company was founded, over thirty years back. And making his own daughter the next CEO spurred outrage among the board members.
Some felt she was too young, others simply thought she was too inexperienced when it came to running an actual business. She did manage to quell their doubts however, when she succeeded in running the company for six whole months without a glitch. That was until then, that is.
A rival company had run an ad with the same exact theme as theirs, mere minutes before they did. The same music, clothing brands…Everything was almost identical to the very last detail. Someone had leaked company secrets, and it was costing them millions in lawsuits.
She had a lot to explain to the board. And without her assistant and best friend April, there, she felt distraught. The very thought of having to face her father and the board alone, the next day, sent chills down her spine.
"There's going to be so much work for you to do, are you sure about not hiring any of them?" April asked.
"I don't know April, I don't want something like this happening again. Who knows what kind of person I may end up hiring? What if…"
A knock at the door distracted her.
"Come in!"
"Ms. Reynolds, it seems the fifty-first applicant is running late. We received a call saying the applicant would be here soon. Do you still wish to wait?"
"Running late for an interview?" April asked as she chuckled. "I wish I was as daring as that."
Chloé looked at her unamused. It seemed the very thought of April leaving, was infuriating her so much, that even the usual jokes weren't as amusing anymore.
"I'll be working late today, so there's no rush." Chloé replied.
"Very well Ms. Reynolds."
"I wonder, who would be daring enough to run late for a meeting with me?" Chloé thought to herself.
***
Opening his eyes slightly, his gaze drifted to the clock, as he felt the soft cotton sheets against his body. Suddenly his eyes widened as he realized what time it was.
"Dio Mio!"* He exclaimed.
*Dio Mio – Oh My God.
"I overslept!" He yelled. "Where is cousin Enzo?!"
Pushing himself up with his well-built upper body, he jumped out of bed, and dashed for the phone. Hastily looking for something on the cabinet.
"Aha!"
He held a wrinkled up piece of paper in his hand. On it, were numbers which seemed like they were roughly scribbled down, without much thought to it.
He promptly dialed up the number on the paper, but no one picked up. Only on his third attempt did the person on the other end finally pick up.
"Cousin Enzo?" He asked with slightly accentuated English.
"Where are you Leon?!" The person on the other end exclaimed.
"Where else would I be? At the hotel. You were supposed to pick me up, no?" He replied.
"That's not important anymore Leon! It's not every day that one gets interviewed by Chloé Reynolds herself, for a job at RnR! Get here immediately! I did my part, the rest is up to you!"
"Grazie!"* He replied.
*Grazie – Thank you.
"Oh, one more thing Leon. Don't call me Enzo in front of others, use David!"
"Why not? You are cousin Lorenzo, no?" He asked, somewhat stunned by the unusual request.
His cousin replied with slight laughter as he said;
"Trust me, you'll understand once you get here."
Hanging up, as he looked at the clock. He noticed he was thirty minutes late already. But trusting in his cousin's word, he quickly took a cold shower, and wore his best suit.
His long curly locks neatly done, he was cleanly shaven exposing his perfectly chiseled jaw line. And as he saw his brown eyes looking back at him in the mirror, he couldn't help but smile, showing his quirky dimples in the process, as he said to himself;
"Di bell'aspetto."*
*Di bell'aspetto – Handsome.
As he walked out of the hotel room door, he knew that was his last chance at starting over, or he would have to go back to Italy.
***
"I'm so tired." Chloé said to herself. "What time is it?"
A knock was heard at her door.
"Come in!"
The figure a tall slightly tanned exceptionally good looking man walked in, as he smiled.
"Hmmm, I don't recognize you. Who are you?" She asked.
"Me? I am Leonardo."