Taken aback, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “I feel the same way.”
“I’m really going to miss you,” she said, her face solemn. Nora was a smart woman; she’d obviously put two and two together to figure out why I’d come to meet with her unannounced.
“And I can’t believe I have to move back to California. Don’t get me wrong, I love my home, but I’m not ready to say good-bye to New York yet. Is that bad?”
“Of course not. New York’s in your blood, Cassie. Plus, I have a proposition for you.” She rubbed her hands together and a devious smile appeared.
My mood immediately lifted. “What is it? Please let it be something that means I can still work here but not physically be here,” I practically begged.
She huffed and glared at me, shaking her head. “You ruin every surprise.”
“Tell me!”
“As long as you can deal with being an independent contractor instead of an employee, I can hire you on a project-by-project basis. And darling, your work more than speaks for itself, so I have no problem in doing just that.”
I stood up from my chair and ran to the other side of Nora’s desk, then reached down and squeezed her hard. “Thank you so much, Nora! Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!” I exclaimed into her hair. “This means everything to me.”
“Honey, we’re lucky to have you.”
“No, I’m lucky to have you,” I practically shouted. “When should I do the switch? And how will it work?”
“I assume you need to move as soon as possible, am I right?” she asked and I shrugged. “I can’t promise you work all the time, but I will get you whatever I can. It won’t be like it is now, but it’s better than nothing. And since you’ll be an independent contractor, you can charge me per hour or a flat fee, that’s something you’ll need to figure out on your own. But the money can potentially turn out to be the same for less work, technically speaking.”
“I seriously love you.”
“Great. Now, go type up your letter of resignation and hand it in so I can let you go.”
“You’re going to make me cry,” I said, wiping at the tears threatening to fall.
“I’m trying to make your life easier, Cassie, not make you cry.” She tormented me with a knowing glance.
“You’re right. And I love you for it. I can never thank you enough, Nora. You’ve been the best boss in the world.”
She nodded and admitted with no shame, “I am pretty amazing.”
I burst out laughing. “I had no idea what I was going to do, or how I was going to leave. Thank you for making this so easy for us.”
Nora let out a little huff. “It’s your own fault for being so damn talented. Now go,” she said with a dismissive wave, “before you mess up my mascara.”
I gave Nora another hug, kissed the side of her cheek, and turned to walk out of her office for the last time in the foreseeable future.
“By the way,” she said, “the photos you took of Trina are incredible. You still want to shoot her post-pictorial, right?”
“Absolutely! Trina would kill me.” Inside, I reveled at the fact that I’d get to come back here in the near future to work. I wasn’t even gone yet, but I already longed to be back. New York City had definitely left its mark on me.
Closing Nora’s door behind me, I walked to my desk for the last time. I sat down and spun my chair around to stare at my computer screen, looking over the letter of resignation I’d already typed out for two seconds before e-mailing it over. If I looked at it for too long, I might be tempted to press DELETE.
Thankfully, or oddly, depending on how you looked at it, I had only acquired a small amount of personal belongings over the years. I scooped them up and slipped out of the office, then pressed the DOWN elevator button without making a fuss. Just the thought of leaving was hard enough; I didn’t want to make a spectacle out of it. I planned on sending a good-bye e-mail to the office once I was settled back in California.
I know, I know, it was sort of a chicken-shit move, but the reality was that co-workers didn’t let people leave easily. They had a habit of creating chaos and parties and celebrations that never ended. It was all with good intentions, but I didn’t have time for that. I needed to get our belongings packed and moved out to Los Angeles as soon as possible. Jack and I needed a new home, and it was my job to find us one. Because that was what the wife of a major league baseball player did. She took care of her man.
As I walked up the street toward the subway station, I thought I’d be more emotional. I actually braced myself for the tears and soul ache that never came. I’d fought so hard with Jack about having my own career, and had taken such a strong stand when it came to what I dreamed and wanted. But right now, all I truly wanted was to be home with my husband. I knew I told Jack exactly that the other night, but that was before I’d quit, before I’d actually resigned from my job.