Page 21 of Naughty Heart

EVELYN

“Doyou get along well with others?”

At the sound of Malcolm’s voice, I glanced up from my desk and saw him standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame. He was so laidback and casual about it, something I wouldn’t have suspected of someone in his position.

It was Wednesday, my third day at work, and I was still trying to learn all the ins and outs of my new job.

Day one had been the interview and introduction to the company with the tour Malcolm had taken me on. Yesterday had resulted in me being able to spend far more time off my feet—something I was especially grateful for. Malcolm had set me up in my own office, which was directly across the hall from his office. If both of our doors were open, I would have been able to spend my entire day staring at him.

We spent nearly all day yesterday together again. In any other situation, the thought of having to spend so many hours in such close proximity to my boss would have had me on edge. There was a power imbalance in a situation like that, and there was no question I would have been immediately uncomfortable in that situation at my last job.

For some reason, I didn’t feel that way now.

I guessed it was possible I felt differently because the job I was doing now was so very different. I mean, I was Malcolm’s personal assistant, so it was only natural I should expect to spend a significant portion of my working day with him.

And considering I was new on the job, there was obviously going to be a learning curve and training period involved.

That was precisely what happened yesterday.

Malcolm had taken some time to get me set up with everything I needed on my computer to maintain and organize his schedule. I started learning a bit more about what my job responsibilities would include—answering calls, scheduling, maintaining files, and helping to prepare for meetings. While he was teaching me the specifics of all that he had yesterday, Malcolm was sure to communicate that my job responsibilities wouldn’t necessarily end with just that.

As time went on and more things popped up, my duties would adjust to accommodate those things.

None of that bothered me.

I was excited for it, and I’d even joked about it with Malcolm.

“And here I thought I was going to be fetching dry cleaning and coffee for you,” I teased.

He tipped his head to the side and assessed me. When he spoke, he did it with a tone that indicated he was genuinely curious. “Do you think that’s what you should be doing instead? Would you rather be doing that?”

It surprised me that he was even asking my opinion.

I shrugged and admitted, “I’m not saying that’s what I want to do or not. You hired me to be your assistant, so it’s my job to take care of whatever it is you need to me to do during the workday. If it was getting coffee, I’d do it with a smile on my face. If it’s everything you’re teaching me now, I’m going to put all my effort into doing the best job I can with it. I want to be a valuable asset here, Malcolm.”

He allowed his gaze to linger on my face briefly before he gave me a nod in response and got back to my training.

I was enjoying learning about my new position, and so far, I really liked Malcolm as a boss. He was forthcoming and kind. After my first day, I had to admit I’d spent some time that night in bed wondering if the dynamic between us would shift over the course of the days that followed. I worried that Malcolm would be one of those insufferable bosses who was so wealthy and out of touch with reality.

I was wrong, because he wasn’t anything like that.

He made it easy to like my job, at least for now. And that didn’t mean I couldn’t recognize how early it was. I wondered whether I was overlooking things that would normally bother me for the sake of an excellent salary or simply because it was new and so very different from my old job.

For now, it was too early to tell if that was the case, and because I was feeling good about where I was and what I was doing, I chose to focus on that instead.

Overall, I was happy.

Happier than I’d been in a very long time.

And one of the things I loved the most right now was the way my new job was feeling like an adventure. Every day, there was something new happening.

Considering Malcolm had just asked me about how I got along with others, I could only assume I would be doing something today that put me in front of said others.

“I’d like to think I do a decent job of it,” I answered him. “Why do you ask?”

“Well, one of the biggest parts of my job here is making the work environment good for everyone,” he began. “I was thinking it might not be a good look for me to have someone working directly beneath me who doesn’t like people.”

I shook my head. “No. No, I don’t think you have anything to worry about when it comes to that. I think I’m a people person.”