‘Sorry, Gill,’ she said, feeling around under her chair for her handbag. ‘We ought to be getting back.’
‘No. We ought to stay here. Show Hamilton that he can’t just do exactly what he wants,’ said Ewan, passion making him look younger than his twenty-eight years.
‘Er, I think you’ll find he can do exactly what he wants,’ said Amira. ‘Mark Hamilton Recruitment is his company. The clue’s in the name.’
In the end it was Gill who decided things.
‘I need to get going anyway. I’m going to give myself the afternoon off and then I’ll get on the phone, start ringing some contacts about a new job. I’m not worried. I’ve had so many approaches over the years.’
Paula had worked with Gill long enough to recognize her brand of quiet bravado. Poor Gill. Though she had a steely side that she kept carefully hidden, this must be a terrible blow to her self-esteem. Still, thank God she was going home so they could get back to the office. Paula sneaked a quick look at her watch, and her stomach gave a savage lurch.
‘Come on,’ she chivvied the others while trying to free her arm which had become trapped in the sleeve of her raincoat.
‘Yes, you lot go back,’ said Gill brightly. ‘I’ll call a taxi to come and pick me up, with all my stuff.’ She gestured to the cardboard box containing notebooks, a spare pair of shoes, the framed photograph of Gill with her two young nephews. ‘Just make sure you keep me updated on what’s going on. I shall expect a blow-by-blow account from each of you. And pictorial evidence of the infamous Rachel Masters.’
By the time they arrived at reception, five floors down from their office, Paula was out of breath. She really ought to start going to the gym or something, she thought, try to get rid of the extra two stone that seemed to have attached itself to her in the last couple of years without her even noticing it, so that now, at fifty-five, she hardly recognized herself. In the lift, she kept her head down, for fear of seeing her own mother looking back at her from the mirrored walls.
Why had she worn that awful old top today? The shapeless blue T-shirt was made of the kind of thin cotton that clings damply to clammy skin. If she’d known she was going to meet a new boss, she’d have made more of an effort. And she certainly wouldn’t have worn these black trousers. At least the waistband was covered by her top, so you couldn’t tell it was elasticated.
Bustling through the door of the office, her coat already half shrugged off, Paula’s nerves were on edge. Please don’t let Rachel Masters have arrived already. But a quick glance towards what used to be Gill’s office confirmed her worst fears. The door was shut. Someone was in there.
For five minutes, Paula sat at her desk not knowing what to do. Though the blinds were down there was a narrow gap between the slats, through which she caught a glimpse of a woman bent over the desk that until that morning had been strewn with Gill’s personal effects. Her face was partially hidden by a curtain of glossy dark hair. She couldn’t get a good look, but she could tell immediately that Rachel Masters was ten, maybe fifteen years younger than her. That meant Paula had all the advantages of experience. Rachel would be glad of a safe pair of hands.
Emboldened, Paula took another peek and felt herself relax. Rachel Masters looked so alone there in that office. She was probably feeling much more nervous than they were and desperate for someone to come and introduce themselves. And as her new deputy, it really ought to be Paula herself.
Taking a deep breath, she crossed the few feet of blue carpet to her new boss’s office.
‘Yes,’ came the reply to her knock.
Paula stepped through the door.
‘I just wanted to welcome you—’
‘Is it normal for the entire staff to take a two-hour lunch break?’
Rachel didn’t look up and Paula was conscious of her smile shrivelling on her lips.
‘No. We were just—’
‘Can you call everyone together, please? I’d like to have a few words.’
‘Of course. Out on the main floor?’
Finally Rachel glanced up at Paula from eyes of palest blue offset by spiky black lashes. Paula felt her cheeks burning.
‘Well, unless we sit on each other’s laps, we’re hardly about to squeeze seven people in here, are we?’
Rachel’s mouth, a red lipsticked slash, flattened into a tight smile.
Paula was aware of the sweat prickling under her arms and made a note to herself to keep her hands clamped to her sides. She felt her cheeks burning.
‘Will do. You’ll find we’re a pretty friendly bunch.’
Again the smile that failed to reach the eyes.