for you if you don’t put in the effort.”
“I’ll read them,” I stated confidently.
“Excellent. In that case, you can leave for today.”
“Wait!” I’d spoken before I’d had time to think it through, and
Mathis paused, quirking one eyebrow at me in expectation.
“You have something else to add?” he asked.
“Just – why weren’t you there? Why weren’t you at Uncle Andy’s
funeral or at his will reading? I looked for you. I just… I guess I thought
you’d be there,” I finished lamely. I was going to say ‘I thought you cared
about him’, but I didn’t want to say anything so hurtful.
“I was there,” Mathis said coolly.
“But – I didn’t see you,” I said, confused. If he had been there,
I was certain I couldn’t have missed him. At six foot three, with his imposing
stature and piercing blue eyes, I was sure that nobody in the room would have
missed him.
“I was there,” Mathis repeated. “He meant a lot to me – I owe him
my success, my fortune, and my life. You, of all people, should know that. I
simply did not wish to make myself known.”
“Oh, okay. Right,” I said. I wondered whether he meant he did not
want to make himself known to the other guests – or just to me. I thought about
asking him, but his impassive face was discouraging and I felt once again like
a silly schoolgirl with a crush – not in the same league as him, and with no
right to ask such personal questions.
“If that is all,” said Mathis. “I’ll see you for our next training
session.”
“Yeah, I’ll see you next time then,” I said.
“Goodbye, Amanda,” he said, and gave me one of his quirky,
charming smiles.
As I scuttled out of his office and past the pretty secretary, my
face was flushed with the intoxicating effect of his smile and my mind was
still conflicted. Was Mathis trying to keep his distance from me on purpose?
Did he just not care? I couldn’t understand him – and it was so frustrating!
Chapter 8
Our next training session was much less grueling than the first.
Perhaps Mathis had realized that firing questions at me was not the best way to
make me learn things, because this time he didn’t simply flood me with
information but talked in a relaxed, even entertaining manner about some of the
experiences he had had as a hedge fund manager. Hearing him talking about some
of the pitfalls of the profession made me feel less like an idiot for not
knowing anything, and by the end of the training session, I felt much better
equipped to navigate the minefield of investing.
By the time we were done, the sky was already getting dark and the
secretary had gone home, leaving the building locked behind her.
“I guess we got caught up in our work,” I said sheepishly,
embarrassed that I had taken up so much of Mathis’ time.
“It doesn’t matter – come on, I’ll let you out,” Mathis offered.
“Thanks,” I said. We walked together towards the elevator, and I
felt strangely small beside Mathis’ tall, athletic form. My eyes came level
with his collarbone, and I couldn’t help noticing how tan his skin was, and how
the muscles in his neck moved subtly under his skin. I was getting nervous, and
I found myself unable to say anything, even meaningless small talk.
We rode the elevator in silence and Mathis went ahead of me to
unlock the front door of the building.
The sky was slate gray, just getting ready to go dark, and rain
was pounding off the sidewalk, the drumming sound blocking out the rush of
traffic.
“Oh no, it’s really pouring!” I observed, half to myself as I ran
up to the glass doors to get a better look.
“Do you need me to call you a cab?” Mathis asked, standing next to
me looking out beyond the glass, with a touch of his old chivalry.
I started smiling, unable to forget the time when we had both
sheltered from the rain together in a small natural cave,
“I’ll read them,” I stated confidently.
“Excellent. In that case, you can leave for today.”
“Wait!” I’d spoken before I’d had time to think it through, and
Mathis paused, quirking one eyebrow at me in expectation.
“You have something else to add?” he asked.
“Just – why weren’t you there? Why weren’t you at Uncle Andy’s
funeral or at his will reading? I looked for you. I just… I guess I thought
you’d be there,” I finished lamely. I was going to say ‘I thought you cared
about him’, but I didn’t want to say anything so hurtful.
“I was there,” Mathis said coolly.
“But – I didn’t see you,” I said, confused. If he had been there,
I was certain I couldn’t have missed him. At six foot three, with his imposing
stature and piercing blue eyes, I was sure that nobody in the room would have
missed him.
“I was there,” Mathis repeated. “He meant a lot to me – I owe him
my success, my fortune, and my life. You, of all people, should know that. I
simply did not wish to make myself known.”
“Oh, okay. Right,” I said. I wondered whether he meant he did not
want to make himself known to the other guests – or just to me. I thought about
asking him, but his impassive face was discouraging and I felt once again like
a silly schoolgirl with a crush – not in the same league as him, and with no
right to ask such personal questions.
“If that is all,” said Mathis. “I’ll see you for our next training
session.”
“Yeah, I’ll see you next time then,” I said.
“Goodbye, Amanda,” he said, and gave me one of his quirky,
charming smiles.
As I scuttled out of his office and past the pretty secretary, my
face was flushed with the intoxicating effect of his smile and my mind was
still conflicted. Was Mathis trying to keep his distance from me on purpose?
Did he just not care? I couldn’t understand him – and it was so frustrating!
Chapter 8
Our next training session was much less grueling than the first.
Perhaps Mathis had realized that firing questions at me was not the best way to
make me learn things, because this time he didn’t simply flood me with
information but talked in a relaxed, even entertaining manner about some of the
experiences he had had as a hedge fund manager. Hearing him talking about some
of the pitfalls of the profession made me feel less like an idiot for not
knowing anything, and by the end of the training session, I felt much better
equipped to navigate the minefield of investing.
By the time we were done, the sky was already getting dark and the
secretary had gone home, leaving the building locked behind her.
“I guess we got caught up in our work,” I said sheepishly,
embarrassed that I had taken up so much of Mathis’ time.
“It doesn’t matter – come on, I’ll let you out,” Mathis offered.
“Thanks,” I said. We walked together towards the elevator, and I
felt strangely small beside Mathis’ tall, athletic form. My eyes came level
with his collarbone, and I couldn’t help noticing how tan his skin was, and how
the muscles in his neck moved subtly under his skin. I was getting nervous, and
I found myself unable to say anything, even meaningless small talk.
We rode the elevator in silence and Mathis went ahead of me to
unlock the front door of the building.
The sky was slate gray, just getting ready to go dark, and rain
was pounding off the sidewalk, the drumming sound blocking out the rush of
traffic.
“Oh no, it’s really pouring!” I observed, half to myself as I ran
up to the glass doors to get a better look.
“Do you need me to call you a cab?” Mathis asked, standing next to
me looking out beyond the glass, with a touch of his old chivalry.
I started smiling, unable to forget the time when we had both
sheltered from the rain together in a small natural cave,
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