Being Mrs Dantata

08

Hanan slowly got used to working at Zayd's. She learned as much as she could while shadowing the other employees in the unit. Most of them were nice but if there was one person she loved most after Jonathan, it was Jane. Having her right beside her work station made everything better as the female Uzor never failed to help out whenever Hanan got stuck with one thing or the other.

From working on reports and memos and cross-checking documents, Hanan slowly moved to helping in drawing out contracts and being there to see how things were run when clients were attended to. Despite being familiar with most of the processes, she still allowed herself learn. Jonathan never failed to check in on her and she was grateful that he did so subtly. Zayd too.

Whenever Zayd was in the company, he stopped by and made it seem as though he was coming to say hi to everyone in the unit or to see Jonathan. In reality, he was checking in on her; to be sure that she was fine and that she was as comfortable as she could be. Whenever she could, she asked how Amal was doing and Zayd never failed to tell her that Amal was doing quite okay. He never mentioned that Amal looked forward to seeing her. He simply decided to wait until when fate provided the perfect opportunity for both women to meet.

That particular Monday morning in the first week of November, Hanan got to work late. Before she could sit, Jonathan called for her. She apologised as soon as she stepped into his office.

"I'm so sorry, Jonathan. I overslept and I was really disoriented when I got to the bus stop."

He smiled amusedly. "It's your first time being late, Hanan. I'm not going to query you or anything."

She blinked. "You aren't?"

He shook his head. "No. Have a seat. I have some work for you. That's why I called for you as soon as I saw you come in."

She let out a relieved breath as she sat on one of the available chairs. "I thought you were going to scold me or something."

"No, I'm not going to do so. You've been punctual since the first day so I have no reason to do any scolding when it's not a usual habit of yours."

"Thank you."

"I don't know why you're thanking me but you're welcome." He got straight to it. "So, I have some work for you. I've allowed you dilly dally around the office and now it is time for you to get down to business."

She laughed nervously. "That doesn't make me feel safe."

"It's a small project but it's a huge client."

There was no stopping her panic. Her eyes were like saucers. "And you want to put it in my hands?!"

He nodded. "Yes, I do. Everyone else has a project they're working on except you."

"You can tell the client to wait a bit." She shook her head. "I don't think I can do it."

"You don't even know what it is."

"Even though." He had said it all. It was a huge client and there was a possibility of her messing up. She didn't want to risk it. "I don't think I can do –"

"Why are you scared, Hanan?"

Her mouth clamped shut and every haywire cell in her body went off.

Jonathan steadily held her gaze. "You've been walking on eggshells lately and I noticed. That's why I said you've been dilly dallying around the office."

"I haven't been walking on eggshells." She said quietly. They both knew it was a lie. "I just don't want to get in anyone's way. Besides, it's easier to do the little things."

"Then you should be a secretary because you're doing secretarial work as far as I'm concerned."

His words stung. "Ouch."