Page 79 of The Lucky Escape

‘You need something new, Annie, and I would be an incredibly bad boss if I did not give you up for this role.’

I was astonished. Antwerp?

‘It’s the diamond capital of the world, and very good for shopping. Brussels would maybe excite you more, but it’s only forty minutes on the train and of course the Eurostar connects direct to London from there, so you’ll never be far away from us. I can organize it so that you’re needed here for a week every few months, if you’d like the excuse to come back. They’re offering a very competitive salary, which is more than I can find in our budget for you, and I’ve been told by Jules – you met him a couple of times in some Zoom meetings, I think? – to say whatever it might take to get you to say yes. I shouldn’t think it will take a lot, will it? But either way, I’m not to let you consider turning this down, I’m afraid.’

‘Right then,’ I said. ‘So I’m not fired?’

‘Fired?’ Chen repeated. ‘Why would you say that?’

‘I thought I was in trouble,’ I said, blushing.

‘Quite the opposite,’ Chen said. ‘Your absence this month has made it clear that we want to do everything we can to keep you. You’re an asset to the company, Annie, and you’ve been missed. We’ll be sad to lose you here, of course, but Antwerp will be lucky to have you. Let’s get you over there for a few nights, shall we? You can go and meet everyone in person.’

‘Okay,’ I replied, as I let what she’d said sink in. It was the strangest twelve minutes of my life.

38

‘I know they offered you the Antwerp position,’ Adzo said when I called her immediately after leaving Chen. I was freaking out. Was this what I had been looking for? Was all the talk of retraining and switching careers actually just the thing to wake me up to the fact I needed a change in general, and just like that … this could be it? I’d never been to Antwerp before, but I hadn’t missed London when I’d been in Australia. Maybe that was the problem – it wasn’t my job, it was the city. I just needed new streets to roam.

‘Why didn’t you warn me?’ I squealed. ‘I literally just saw you!’

‘Chen consulted me about it, asked me if I thought you could take it, that’s all. I wasn’t sure how fast she would move though – if she was going to ask you today or just test the waters.’

‘Doyou think I can do it?’

Adzo sucked the air through her front teeth. ‘Mate. Come on. You’re amazing at what you do. Antwerp would be lucky to have you.’

‘Thank you.’ I flopped down onto a bench. ‘Isn’t Antwerp somethingyou’dwant?’ I asked. ‘Out of the two of us …’ I stopped talking because the truth was suddenly obvious. ‘Oh. You didn’t want it,’ I said. ‘They offered it to you first and you said no.’

‘No!’ she shrieked. ‘Antwerp specifically asked for you. But,’ she continued, ‘San Francisco have specifically asked for me.’

‘No!’ I cried.

‘Yes!’ she said.

‘Oh my goodness, that is so incredible, Adzo. Congratulations! I’m so happy for you!’

‘I feel sad, though,’ she said. ‘Because I think this is the beginning of the end for us, whatever happens.’

‘Damn,’ I said. ‘Yeah.’

‘Yeah.’

Ever since I’d arrived at the company Adzo and I had been thick as thieves. I think my ‘good girl’ tendencies amused her, and I was in awe of this woman of the world and all of her outrageous stories. We complemented each other personally and professionally, often finishing each other’s sentences – or should I say, theories. We had a shorthand together at work, meaning calling ourselves the ‘Dream Team’ really wasn’t hyperbole – where I lacked Adzo filled in the gaps, and where she was less able I was able to pick up the slack. Half the time the only reason I looked forward to work was because of my Work Wifey, which is a horrible, girly, reductionist turn of phrase that wholeheartedly encapsulated the role we played in each other’s lives.

‘Did you say yes, then? To San Francisco?’

‘In theory,’ she said. ‘I’m going to do a recce mission out there next month to see if it fits, and I’ve got questions aboutthe package they’re offering me. But yeah. I mean, it’s San Francisco!’

‘You’re such a good negotiator,’ I said. ‘Chen wants me to go out to Antwerp to see the lay of the land. I haven’t said yes. But I didn’t say no, either. She basically didn’t give me a choice?’

‘Oh my.’ I could tell she was grinning. ‘You’re finally going to get to meet the handsome Jules face to face. When I was out there last year it was like walking around town with a model or something. He’sgorgeous.I cannot fathom how anybody can look that good and be that smart? But—’

‘But heisthat good-looking and is that smart,’ I said. ‘The stuff he sends through? His thinking is really inspired.’

‘It’s really hot,’ Adzo agreed.

‘Obviously I’m with Patrick though,’ I said, and it was the first time I’d considered his role in all of this. Patrick.Ah.

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