Slow Dancing

14 | ad libitum

1 4

a d   l i b i t u m

[Lat.] : At the performer's pleasure; sometimes means a passage may be omitted.

I GENERALLY CONSIDERED myself an adaptable person. When Rosemary left Dad, dismissing the house help and all the luxuries living with her had brought us, I quickly got used to doing the chores at home while Dad started the gardening business. When Dad couldn't pay the bills after helping my uncle, who had been and still was heavily in debt, and our electricity had been shut down, I used a candle as my light source to study.

But working at a new company merely three weeks after having worked at Collins, Lee, Aisling & Assoc. proved to be rather overwhelming. Especially when it Bretton Industries – a company far bigger than the law firm ever was. It took grand and luxurious to a whole new level altogether, a fact that I was fast realising as I stood in front of the multi-storey building.

Gazing up, I found that I could hardy see the top of the building without flinching from the glare of the sunlight overhead. This was the place I was to be working at from now on. Nolan had, upon Kaden's orders, begrudgingly told me everything there was to know about the company.

This was headquarters; there were other manufacturing and shipping outlets and factories all over the country. As personal assistant, I was to receive calls on Kaden's behalf, plan his schedule and answer his emails. It seemed daunting to me, but somehow manageable if I tried my best.

And believe me, I was going to. I was well aware that people were probably going to look at me with jaundiced eyes, given the fact that I didn't even hold a degree and was already assisting one of the most influential men in the country.

Taking a deep breath, I hitched my workbag higher up my shoulder and headed into the building. Security let me through after I had shown them my employee card and I went towards the lobby. My hands nervously clutched at the paper bag I was carrying as I waited for the lift. If the atmosphere at the law firm had seemed more relaxed, the atmosphere here was tense and driven. Everyone here seemed on edge, like every minute spent waiting for the lift was a waste of money that they could've been making.

I squeezed my way into the crowded lift. As the lift went higher up and more people dispersed to their respective floors, I noticed that the remaining employees in the lift were beginning to give me odd glances. It made me fidget, glancing anxiously down at myself.

My attire probably stood out, I supposed. I was donned in a navy blue dress with chic white buttons that I found classy, but clearly wasn't working here when everyone was in their stiffest, most formal attire. Then again, I'd dressed the same way I did at my previous job and Nolan never mentioned a dress code to me.

"Wear whatever you like," Nolan had told me, before grinning impishly. "Better yet – "

But then he was cut off when Parker smacked him on the head. I had laughed then, but I certainly wasn't laughing now. I was nervous, to say the least.

When I finally arrived at the highest floor, I stepped out after the two other people who got out of the lift ahead of me. I watched them head briskly towards the left wing and so I followed, feeling rather lost because Nolan hadn't told me exactly where Kaden's office was. Eventually, I gathered my wits about me and proceeded to ask the nearest person I saw sitting at her desk.

She looked at me like I had sprouted three heads, as did the other people nearby who had overheard my question. "Do you have an appointment with Mr Bretton?"