C2 2

Kim brought herself back to the present. I should go over there , she thought. She’ll be wondering where I am.

She entered Sonja’s office and was greeted with a smile, as always. “Let’s sit there.” Sonja indicated the conference table.

Oh, no, not that again! Kim had barely managed to calm down after being surprised by Sonja at her computer screen so uncomfortably – but Sonja was completely unaware of that. For her, all of this was innocent. She was straight, after all.

Kim lowered herself into a nearby chair and waited for her boss to sit down next to her, but she didn’t. She sat down on the opposite side of the table and placed a prospectus in front of Kim.

Kim picked it up and looked inside. “You’re going to this seminar?” Thank the Goddess! A couple of days of peace!

“Yes, and I’d like you to come along.”

So much for the relaxation . “Me?” Kim asked, astonished. “This is a management seminar.” She looked at Sonja. “Do you need someone to take minutes?”

“No.” Sonja shook her head. “I don’t want you to take minutes. I want you to take part in the seminar, just like I will.”

“But I . . . I’m not a manager,” Kim marveled rather feebly.

Sonja Kantner leaned forward and looked at Kim with that intense gaze that Kim could barely endure. “But you could become a manager.” She leaned back again. “In my opinion, you are considerably under-challenged in your current position. You have many other qualities than those you’re putting to use here. And I wish to foster them. Once you’ve completed this seminar, you’ll meet all of the prerequisites for a promotion. You could be a manager by the fall.”

Other qualities? What did Sonja Kantner mean by that? Had she noticed that . . .? Did she want to get rid of Kim? Kim cast a furtive glance at her boss. No, she seemed as friendly and competent as ever. “By the fall?” Kim asked, taken aback.

“Yes, it can’t happen any sooner. Promotions are only announced once a year.”

“I know.”

“And? What do you say?” Sonja asked with an inviting smile. “Will you come along?”

“If you want . . .” Kim replied vaguely. This was her boss. If she said Kim had to, then Kim had to.

“No, no!” Sonja shook her head. “I don’t want to force you into anything. You’re welcome to say no. But I think this would be a great opportunity for you, wouldn’t it?” She gave Kim a questioning look.

“Yes. Yes, it certainly would be,” Kim admitted.

Kim’s misgivings were not of a professional nature. She was more than happy to have the chance at a promotion. That would certainly have more money attached to it. But at a seminar like this, they’d be even closer than they were here in the office. And there would be no blessed end of the day at which they’d part ways and go home.

Kim knew about these seminar hotels, too. There was never anything nearby. That meant conference attendees sat in the bar in the evening with other seminar participants, because there was nothing else to do but have a drink and gab away. All small talk, and normally not a problem, aside from the inevitable boredom, but if Sonja were there, she and Kim would probably tend to concentrate on one another because they didn’t know anyone else. Until well past midnight, probably, when it was finally time to go to sleep.

Fine. Kim would at least have those few hours alone in her hotel room to recover from her, from her constant gaze, from her uninterrupted presence.

Sonja was still watching Kim, waiting for her answer. She was probably wondering why Kim would hesitate at all. Anyone else would surely have agreed right away, and with excitement.

Kim nodded. “Sure. I’m looking forward to it.” She gave Sonja the most enthusiastic smile she could muster, to make her forget her hesitation.

“Lovely.” Sonja stood up. “Are you finished with the report that we talked about this morning?” she asked as she went back to her desk; she was obviously already thinking about something else.

“Almost. The meeting with the project group took longer than expected. I haven’t quite had time to finish it up.” And because of the little excursion Kim had needed to make on the Internet . . . But Sonja Kantner certainly didn’t need to know about that.

“When, then?” her boss asked succinctly. She was exceptionally efficient when it came to work.

“In an hour,” Kim promised.

Her boss nodded. “Bring it to me as soon as you’re done, please.” She sat down, and with that, Kim was dismissed.

Kim glanced down at the prospectus one more time as she stood up. “Should I reserve the rooms?”

Sonja looked up briefly. “No, I’ll take care of that. It’s included with the registration. I need to talk to them about something else anyway.” She went back to reviewing her files.

Kim nodded, left the office, and stopped at the coffee vending machine. She needed something to get over that shock. Unfortunately, the company management hadn’t seen fit to provide stronger drinks for such occasions. Hard liquor would’ve been just the thing right now. Kim did know of a colleague or two who were guaranteed to have a bottle hidden in their desks, but she didn’t really want to go so far as to ask.