C9 Chapter 9

“I thought the normal resumption time was 8:00 am sir?” I asked curiously.

There was no response. After a minute of waiting, lost in my thoughts, I cleared my throat to get his attention.

“Sir, about your schedule for today—oh, that reminds me! Samantha Lloyd called this morning. She mentioned booking an appointment with us last week Wednesday but said she hadn’t received a response. I told her I’d confirm with you and reschedule the meeting if needed. Should I do that today?”

“Who's she?” he asked, his tone curious but firm.

“She's the CEO of Industrial company. I looked her up,and I think she's interested in partnering with us. If you need more information, I can get more details from the information office,” I suggested confidently.

“Mm, good job. What is on my schedule this morning, let's see if we can push the meeting to noon.” He said.

“Fortunately, You're free this morning.” I replied. “But you've files to review, they've been piling up since last week, and the HR team has been calling since Monday for updates.” I continued.

“Alright, after the meeting, organize the files, and I will review them.” He Instructed.

The phone on his desk rang, cutting the conversation short. He picked it up.

“Yes Bianca?” He answered, pausing to listen. “She's here with me,” He replied, staring at me briefly.

I realized Bianca had likely been trying to reach me.

“Alright, send him in” he said, replacing the receiver. He turned to me.

“Someone’s on their way in now, so go ahead and schedule the meeting with Samantha,” he said.

“Yes, sir” I replied, with a nod.

As I turned to leave, he stopped me.“Wait. Can you make coffee?”

“Yes I can,” I replied without hesitation.

“Are you certain?” He pressed skeptically.

“Boss, just because I buy coffee outside doesn't mean I can't make one, I just prefer buying it at the shop, because they make really good coffee.” I responded confidently, clarifying the situation.

I knew he thought I didn't know how to make coffee because of our several encounters at the coffee shop.

“You don't judge a book by its cover, sir,” I added jokingly with a small smile.

“Fine” He smirked. “One tablespoon of black coffee and two tablespoons of sugar. The kitchen is over there,” he said, pointing to a door I hadn’t noticed before. “Make one for yourself if you'd like.”

I nodded and walked to the door, I opened it and stepped in, I could see the kitchen ahead of me.

“Wow,” I whispered in awe. The space was simple yet elegant. I saw the coffee machine on the cabinet, a microwave, and even a small cooker there, owh he cooks here—I checked the cupboard, but they were nearly empty.

“What does he eat then?” I thought aloud,noticing a door by the side, I opened it and discovered a bedroom, I'm surprised I never knew there's a bedroom inside here. It's understandable, since he overworks himself. It seems he hasn't used it in a very long time, it looked so cold and blank, the only fancy thing here was the couch beside the bed.

Shaking off my curiosity, I returned to the coffee machine to make his coffee, it was unlike anything I've ever seen before. Several small boxes of coffee capsule sat neatly beside it, They were arranged orderly with different names of coffee written on each of the box,and there's a jar of dried coffee beside it, I picked up the one with black coffee on it, inside it is a small sealed cup. Following the instructions,I inserted the cup into the machine,and swiped up, five seconds later liquid came out of the coffee hole to the cup.

“Efficient,” I thought, impressed. This is so easy, I never knew there was something like this. “If he doesn't like it, I will have to make use of the dried coffee in the jar,” I thought, adding two tablespoons of sugar, I carried the coffee back to his office.

Immediately I walked in, the conversation between him and the client halted.

“Good morning sir, would you like coffee, water, or juice?” I asked the client, after placing the coffee on Mr. Grumpy’s desk.

“Water will do.” the man replied.

“Cold or warm?” I inquired.

“Cold” He said.

I walked to the mini fridge near the retrieved a glass, and poured cold water. Handing it to him.

“Do you need anything else, boss?” I asked Adrian.

“No, you may leave, ” He replied.

I returned to my desk to finalize the meeting details. Once done, I called the Industrial Service Company line.

“SCOTT HOLDINGS, Audrey speaking,” I said to the person on phone.

“Hi Audrey, how can I be of help to you?” A lady responded.

“Regarding your CEO’s call earlier, I've set up the meeting for today and sent the detail to your mail. We would be expecting her by 11:00 AM. Would that work, or should I reschedule for next week.” I asked.

“Hold on, let me confirm with my boss,” she said.

After a short pause, a new voice came through.

“Hi Audrey, This is Samantha” the woman said.

“Good morning, ma’am. I’ve arranged the meeting for today at 11:00 AM,” I informed her.

“Perfect. I’ll be there before then. Thank you!”

“You’re welcome, ma’am. We’ll see you soon. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye” She responded, ending the call.

I called Bianca to inform her about the appointment, so she could direct Samantha to the right floor, without delaying her.

—

At precisely 10:30 AM, Samantha arrived at my desk. Her soft cologne wafted through the air, and I noticed gray strands in her neatly tied bun. She seemed to be in her mid-sixties.

“Hi, Audrey, right?” she greeted with a warm smile, I could see the wrinkles on her oval face.

“Yes Ma'am, could you give me a minute, let me put a call through the CEO.” I replied” I said, dialing the boss's line.

“Hi Boss, Mrs. Samantha is here,” I informed him.

“Send her in,” he replied.

Turning back to her, I said, “You can go right in, ma’am.”

“Thank you,” she said, walking toward his office.