I needed an excuse.
Despite being CEO, I couldn't just be calling random employees into my office for a "chat". There had to not only be some definitive reason for diverting them away from their work and also because it was simply just unprofessional of me. That was usually why Vincent and I kept our communication in work to messaging unless I had a professional reason to barge into the IT technician office and converse with him.
"Noah, it's great to meet you," I said, shaking Noah's hand firmly and properly. It took every ounce of my strength not to verbally call him Two Frogs.
Credit to him, he also had a firm handshake. But it was down to business. Time to see what this guy was really like.
He'd been on like four dates with Madeline but when Raegan offered for him to accompany us on our usual Friday night dinner, she declined the offer on his behalf. She spurted some shit like they were taking things slow and she wasn't seeing him often as it was. Whenever I've asked her about him she's always blushed and become abruptly coy. It would be adorable if it wasn't over another guy.
No. No, I wasn't jealous. I was happy that Madeline was happy.
Truth be told, the same couldn't be said for poor Oscar. When I told him that Madeline might have a boyfriend—she'd clammed up when I mentioned the "B" word and I haven't broached the topic since—he seemed so dejected that even Shrek couldn't yank him from the funk.
Yeah. We'd taken a break from watching Disney movies to achieve the deal to cheer him up. We were back on the Shrek franchise. More donkey-dragon babies.
What am I doing with my life, I hear you ask? I have no fucking clue. Who else can relate?
I'm a CEO watching the Shrek movies. Regularly.
In order to meet Noah, I'd set up brief meetings with all of the new IT technicians we'd hired since we'd lost a handful during Tim's awful management when the crucial air conditioning unit malfunctioned and he failed to fix it promptly to comply with health and safety with the employees' working environment. And Noah was the final one to meet. I'd managed to get through them all today, having cleared my schedule.
I'll tell you this: I'm never fucking doing this again. If Madeline wants to date another employee of Kelly Industries, I'll search him out myself and corner him after work or something. This was an insane amount of effort just to speak with the guy for no more than half an hour.
"Likewise," Noah replied, releasing my hand and sitting opposite me when I gestured to the chair. "I didn't realise Kelly Industries had a meeting with new employees after their first month."
Jesus. Two Chickens had some seriously dark blue eyes. That was the first thing I noticed when he walked in. Maybe Madeline liked that about a guy.
I had to remind myself I was only doing this to ensure he was a good fit for Madeline. She was a nice girl, after all, and I didn't want her to be hurt by some douchebag. I was merely looking out for her. She'd appreciate it. I'm sure.
"It's a new procedure we're thinking of implementing," I lied. "This is a trial run." I leaned forward on the desk and clasped my hands together. "Are you enjoying your current employment?"
"Absolutely. I love it here."
"Excellent." I'd pretty much run out of things to discuss formally. The prior meetings had a total duration of around ten minutes each. And my next question was just bullshit. I wasn't going to follow anything up unless it was a legit request or proposal. "Is there anything you think you'd like to see a change with?"
"Oh," Noah said, startled by the sudden question. "Off the top of my head, I don't think so."
"Excellent." I paused. "I just want to use this time to personally see what you have to offer Kelly Industries. Don't at all think this is an interview—you've got the job. You're clearly good at your job," I said, gesturing to the wad of paper underneath my arms even though it wasn't a reflection of Noah's work at all and instead some printed emails to serve as reminders for me and my half-written shopping list.
