She really needed this job. That's why she was always there a half an hour before her boss got in, why she was often the one to turn the lights off after everyone else had left, sometimes even there when the cleaning crew arrived at night. She came in on weekends when she knew Paul's work week ahead was heavy to make sure he had everything he needed for his various meetings, that his calendar was in order.
"You're meticulous," he told her. "What would I do without you?"
Meticulous. She carried the word around like a gold star. Meticulous. On top of things. Never missing a step. And her boss, Paul, he was good to her. When he stopped at Starbucks on the way into the office, he picked her up an oat milk latte, left it on her desk. He praised her in meetings, and to his own boss. He put in for her raise, and she got it. She hadn’t even asked.
Of course, she knew all the rumors about him. How he was a different man when he’d had too much drink. How he took credit for his colleagues’ work. How he got aggressive, handsy. But Jessica had never seen a hint of any of that. He did his job. She did hers.
Sure, there were a couple of office affairs—Beth in Marketing, Marie in Social Media. There had been some drama there; she wasn’t sure what. She tried to stay out of it, didn’t hang out in the break room where people gathered to whisper about this and that. She wasn’t like them; they all seemed so carefree, meeting for brunch and happy hour, driving new cars, taking expensive trips.
But Jessica wasn’t carefree. She had debts—massive student loans. There was no safety net. Her parents both passed and had left her with nothing except more debt. It wasn’t their fault. They’d worked hard, too. That was the way of it for some people, wasn’t it? Work hard and still can’t get ahead. But Jessica was steadily chipping away at her debt, even managing to save and invest a little.
Though this job paid well, if she was doing what she went to college for, she’d make more. But when she’d been applying, this position was offered first. She figured she’d take it just to pay the bills and keep looking. She’d make a change soon. But for now, she needed to be here. She wanted to be here.
So, today when Paul asked her to stay late to help with his client presentation, she didn’t hesitate.
“Of course,” she said. She had plans; she’d cancel them.
“Don’t worry about dinner,” he told her. “I’ll order in Thai.”
Truthfully, she liked Paul, even though many of the women in the office did not. He was funny, kind to her, hardworking. No, no. It wasn’t like that. Jessica had someone special in her life, someone she loved. Paul wasn’t her type. Like, not at all.
The project he needed help with was a big pitch for a brand-new client, a bespoke gym founded by an influencer who needed a full suite of services from traditional advertising buys to a publicity campaign, to website design and social media management. If Paul landed this account, it would mean a lot to the firm, which had lost a few clients last year for various reasons—some said because of the rumors swirling around Paul. But she didn’t believe that.
Anyway, Jessica had been researching the client all day, and she had some ideas that she was excited to share with Paul. She’d dressed for it, too. She wore her new black suit, with a white silk blouse and pumps. Dress for the job you want. Isn’t that what they said?