Package Deal(6)
“She’s nine and loves being at the Campus School. So I think things are going to work out just fine. And I’m looking forward to getting to know the area better.”
He leaned closer to her. “Just so you know, no personal stuff—things like family—will be in the article. It’s irrelevant to our intent.”
He folded a napkin several times, and set it under the nearby fork before picking up his coffee cup and signaling for a refill as he turned his gaze briefly away from her. Minutes later, he started to rise, signaling the end of the interview.
“May I ask you a question?” she said.
He sat back down and gave her a short nod.
“How are the other interviews going?”
He grinned. “Pretty well. I’m getting ready to start the series soon.”
“The blonde music instructor, Eugenie? I can’t seem to remember her last name. She seemed very nice.”
Marcus laughed. “No need to remember her name. She’ll tell you who she is. Her affectations are humorous. She needs to learn to take herself less seriously. Once I got past her I’m-the-one-the-one-the-one attitude, she was fine.Even the new guy in chemistry did his best to make his research sound interesting—although it was so complicated I had trouble understanding all the nuances. The hard sciences are not my strong suit.” He paused. “That leaves your colleague, Carl. What can you tell me about him? He hasn’t returned any of my calls.”
She pressed her lips into a thin line, remembering how he’d practically ordered her out of the office earlier that week. “Please don’t call him a colleague, even if we do share an office.”
Marcus looked at her. “Is there a problem?”
“If you mean does he hog the space—always wanting to use it? Yes, that’s a problem. If you mean is he easy to work with? No. And, he’s not exactly pleasant to be around. I’ve taken most of my things home because he seems to think he’s the only one entitled to use our shared space.I’ve had to remind him that I have office hours, too.”
“Have you talked with your chairman?”
“Not yet. I wanted to see if I could solve the issue myself—and working from home has, mostly, taken care of that.I’m the most junior faculty member. I don’t want to ask for favors, especially not this early in the quarter. But I still need to be available so the students can reach me when they come in for help.”
“Talk to your chair. I know Greg Hillier. He cares about his faculty. I’m sure he’ll want to know if Carl is giving you trouble.”
“You’d better not call him Carl if you want him to call you back. He insists on being called ‘Professor’ by the students.And he told me … all of us … at our first faculty meeting to use his full name.”
“Sounds like a blowhard to me. Talk to Greg. He’ll make sure he shares.” Marcus smiled as he stood up. “Maybe he was an only child and never learned to play well with others.”
“Or maybe he’d never been taught manners.”
After walking back with Marcus across campus, Amanda headed toward her department. What was it about him that appealed to her? She wanted to know more. Maybe JJ would fill her in. She seemed to know everyone. As she entered the office, she rubbed Shakespeare’s head on the sculpture positioned on a stand near the outer door of the department then turned and entered Beatrice’s office.
“Is Greg available?” she asked the older woman.
“Let me tell him you’d like to see him.”
Minutes later, Beatrice ushered her into the chairman’s office.
“Amanda! I’ve been meaning to come by and see how things are going. Do you like your classes?” The Australian gentleman known for his exquisite manners, leonine mane of white hair, and formal manner of dress smiled at her as he ushered her into a seat.
“They’re fine. I’m especially excited about the small group that signed up for my Dickinson seminar. I think we’re going to have fun exploring her lesser-known poems.”
“That’s nice to hear. What about the freshman classes?”
“They are larger than I’d expected for a private college, and I know most of the students are not English majors, but I’m okay with that. When I was a TA, I had large sections.”
“Glad to hear it. What’s on your mind? By the way, I don’t believe I’ve said how happy we are that you are with us. I’m pleased you’ll be doing more magazine articles, for the professional journals and the commercial ones.”
Amanda leaned forward in her chair and looked down at her hands. “I’m not quite sure how to say this, but I’m having some difficulty in my office. The arrangement with Carl, that is, Carlton Winslow.”