Arianna Harlow trembled as the man prowled around her, continuously circling her chair. She felt like a caged animal just waiting for him to strike. Why was she still sitting there? Why didn’t she say the job wasn’t for her, that it had all been a big mistake and she’d best be on her way?
She knew why. Reality flooded her mind – how she couldn’t afford to walk away, that was, if he offered her the job. She was barely staying afloat with her bills overflowing. Her mother was about to be removed from the rehabilitation home she was in, shipped to a lesser facility, and Ari didn’t even have a dollar left in her bank account.
She was truly afraid that if her mother was sent to the state care facility, she’d quickly wither away to nothing. Ari couldn’t let that happen – she wouldn’t.
Arianna had already dropped out of school her last semester, her life forever changed because of one brief moment in time, because of one horrendous mistake.
If only…
Those two words had haunted her thoughts for the past six months. She had several different endings to those words, but the dominant words were if only…
If only she hadn’t called her mom in panic that night.
If only she hadn’t gone to the party in the first place.
If only her mother had left a few minutes later.
“Are you listening to me?” Raffaello Palazzo’s voice rumbled through the air causing Ari to jump in her seat. She had to think for a moment about what he’d last said to her. Oh yeah, she was too thin.
“Yes, Mr. Palazzo. I just don’t know how to respond to that. ”
“Hmm. ” His voice came out as a hum, drifting across her nerve endings. Rafe was incredibly intimidating as he paced his office, towering over her at a few inches above six feet. Add to that, his jet black hair and stunning eyes and she felt like a rumpled factory worker, totally out of her element in his exquisite office.
As he made another pass around the room and neared her, Ari thought back over the last week of how strange the entire process had been. Never before had she jumped through such hoops during a job interview. She’d found the entire situation quite odd.
She’d applied for over a hundred jobs in the past month. Only three employers had called her back. One had been for a bank, the manager calling her a few days later, saying they’d given the position to another applicant. The second was for an insurance company, and they’d told her she didn’t have enough experience.
The third job… well, she didn’t really know how to describe what she’d been through. The ad had only said;
Looking for full-time applicant for Palazzo Incorporated. Must be willing to work seven days a week, long hours. Must not have any other commitments in your life, no family, second jobs, or school. Female applicants only. Salary 100k a year plus expenses. Hand delivered applications only.
Ari thought getting the job would be a long shot, but she had nothing to lose by applying. She’d immediately spruced up her resume, which to that point only included working two years in her local pizza parlor, then working almost four years as a part-time secretary at Stanford for the History Department.
With only one semester away from graduation, her life had changed forever because of the first foolish mistake she’d ever made. Why had she been so careless with only a few short months to go? Now that night would haunt her, be something she'd have to live with for the rest of her life.
With a leather notebook in hand, resume and application inside, she entered the large building and approached the security guard in the lobby who directed her to the secretary on the twenty-fifth floor. In she walked with what she hoped was confidence exuding from her every pore, and she handed over her polished resume.
“Thank you, Ms. Harlow. If you’ll have a seat, Mr. Kinsor will call you in shortly. ”
Ari had sat down amongst a sea of other women, all of them looking far more qualified for whatever office position the job was for. One by one the women had stepped into a room, the door shutting behind them. After about ten minutes they’d walk back out, their expressions confident as they eyed the remaining applicants. This business world was a shark fest and Ari didn’t know if she was up for the swim.
“Ms. Harlow?”
“Right here,” she called as she stood and ambled toward the small man wearing glasses and a gentle smile on his face.
“This way, please. ”
She followed him into the room where a blue screen was set against the wall. There was a table with a paper and pen sitting atop it and nothing more.