The house had felt so quiet and empty to Lucy since Jordan had quit. She was beginning to realize how much she missed just having someone at the house every day. Now when she came home from classes or the hospital or from running errands, she knew the house would be empty and she dreaded coming home to the lonely place.
When the phone rang, Lucy hurried to answer it, but it was a wrong number.
Disappointed, Lucy hung up the phone and sat down on the living room sofa. When she answered the phone she had hoped it was Jordan calling to tell her he had changed his mind and he wanted his job back. She almost laughed at herself for being so ridiculous, but then she started to worry. Why did she always hope it was Jordan calling? Shouldn't she be more eager to hear from Craig, her fiance?
Lucy rose from the couch and paced the room, nervously biting her nails. She cast a sideways glance at the phone. She knew who she should call, but she was afraid to do it. Finally, she worked up her courage, picked up the receiver and dialed.
"Eileen? It's me. Don't hang up."
Eileen sighed on the other end, "What do you want, Lucy?"
"I need to talk to you. I promise it's not about you and Hector. Can we get together? Please?"
Eileen hesitated. She really didn't want to go through all of this again, but Lucy sounded so upset, she couldn't say no. "Fine. I'll be home this afternoon if you want to come by."
"Thank you," Lucy sighed in relief. "I'll be right over."
When Eileen answered the door, she joined Lucy outside on the front porch instead of inviting her in. She stood with her arms crossed tightly in front of her and asked, "Ok, what do you need to talk about?"
"I want to ask you something," Lucy said slowly. She had planned what she wanted to say on the way over, but she still wanted to choose her words carefully. "That day, when I told you that Craig and I were engaged, and we got into that huge fight, you said that I shouldn't marry Craig because I didn't know him long enough. Did you really mean that or did you just say it because of what I said about you and Hector?"
Eileen shook her head and turned towards the door. "I don't want to get into a big thing with you, Lucy. I'm tired of fighting about this."
"So am I," Lucy insisted. "I just need to know."
"Why?" Eileen asked skeptically. "Why should it matter what I think?"
"Because I've been thinking maybe you were right," Lucy admitted. "I mean, I do love Craig and I think we could have a really great life together, but I've been thinking about someone else a lot. And if I'm getting married, I shouldn't be thinking about another man, should I? Isn't that a huge hint something isn't right?"
Eileen frowned. Lucy's words hit close to her own heart and as much as she hated to say it, she had to agree. "It is," she said solemnly. "But don't let what I said bother you. I do think things have happened kind of fast with you and Craig, but I only said what I did because I was mad. And I'm sorry that I said it."
"I'm sorry, too. Do you think we can we put this fight behind us? I really want us to be friends again."
Eileen nodded and smiled, "Yeah. I'd like that."
"Hello. Can I help you?" Amanda greeted Chad as he walked into the office.
"Yes, I'm Chad Vanderburg and I have an appointment with Mr. Townsend."
"I'll let him know that you're here," Amanda replied as she picked up the telephone to call Arthur's office.
While Amanda was on the phone, Chad looked around him at the office where he would soon be working. As promised, Hector arranged an interview for Chad with Mr. Townsend. According to Hector, if the interview went well he could start right away.
"Mr. Townsend will be with you in minute," Amanda announced as she hung up the phone. "Why don't you take a seat?"
As Chad walked towards the chairs in the lobby, he noticed a man sitting at a desk in a nearby cubicle. He turned to Amanda who was just leaving her desk. "Who is that?" he asked.
"R.J. Majors. He's one of our junior executives."
Chad's throat suddenly felt dry, but he managed to thank Amanda before she walked away. There was no way he could work in the same office as R.J. He turned and quickly walked out of the office before the other man could see him.
Later that afternoon, Arthur called his employees together for a meeting in the conference room.
"I have an announcement to make. Fortunately it's good news," Arthur began. "Lawrence has passed his business course at the top of his class," Arthur paused while the others congratulated him. "And we have a new employee. Lawrence and Hector know him already."
As Arthur spoke, Hector smiled to himself, but that smile vanished instantly with what Arthur said next.
"Let's welcome Andrew back to the company," Arthur said, starting a round of applause as Andrew entered the room.
"What? Wait a minute," Hector objected. "You're hiring him back after he stole money from the company?"
"I didn't steal anything," Andrew spoke up.
"We found some new evidence that cleared Andrew's name. He's innocent and we've agreed to put this incident behind us. Welcome back, Andrew."
"Thank you, Mr. Townsend. You won't regret this."
"What about Chad?" Hector interrupted. "I thought you were going to hire him."
At the mention of Chad's name, R.J. looked up with interest.
"I had planned on hiring both Chad and Andrew, but unfortunately Chad left before I could interview him," Arthur explained with a pointed look at Hector. "If no one has anything else to add, let's conclude this meeting and get back to work." As the employees stood to leave, Arthur pulled Lawrence aside. "I'd like to talk to you a minute, Lawrence."
After the others had left, Arthur said, "I just wanted to let you know that I'm proud of you for doing so well in your courses."
"Thank you, sir."
"I admit, I was a little doubtful about giving you this position at first, but I have to say you've been doing an excellent job. Keep up the good work and I'm sure you'll go far with this company."
"Thank you. I will."
Arthur shook hands with Lawrence and then watched as he left the room. "I hope you do," he said to himself, before heading back to his office.
"So," Hector said as he stood over Andrew who was getting settled in at his new desk. "Looks like you've got everyone fooled. How did you get Townsend to forget that you're a thief and hire you back? I'd like to know how you did it."
Andrew slowly stood up and turned to face Hector. "Why? If you're looking for a way to cover your own tracks, then I can't help you. I didn't take that money and I think you know damn well that I didn't."
"You think so?" Hector smirked. "That's news to me."
"Well, anyway, I'm back and I intend to stay. So watch your back, Burgess," Andrew warned before turning back to his desk.
"Don't worry about me," Hector thought to himself as he walked away.
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