Page 37 of Love Among the Ruins
CHAPTERELEVEN
ELENI
The receptionist smiled at Eleni when she came to work the next day.
“Dominic asked me to show you the in-house system.”
Wait, what?Eleni had walked past her and now backtracked. “Were you talking to me?”
“Dominic asked me to show you the system.”
“Did he?” The man worked quickly. Eleni was touched he’d already sprang into action. “Would that be okay?”
“It’s what Dominic wants.”
“O-kaaay,” Eleni answered slowly, finding Miranda’s choice of words odd. They quickly settled on a time to meet later in the day. Miranda could only make it after working hours which made Eleni feel bad for keeping her at work longer than she needed to be there. But the PA insisted it was fine by her, and once again stated that Dominic had been keen for her to provide the training.
As she entered the office, the two women stopped talking. Eleni ignored them. She was less bothered this time when they looked away guiltily and pretended to be concentrating on their work.
At the end of the working day, Eleni went and sat with Miranda who went through the computer system thoroughly. She was a good teacher, and patient, too. With her there was none of that prickly falseness she’d felt from Agnes, and Eleni felt relaxed enough to learn. By the end of the training session, she was not only more confident about using the system, but had gained a friend, and talk soon turned to non-work related things.
“You’re really pretty,” Miranda said, out of the blue. They’d been talking about how Eleni was adjusting to her new job and her life in Athens, when Miranda burst out with this little compliment. Eleni didn’t know how to respond. So, she smiled instead and said nothing. Miranda had a gorgeous heart shaped face, full lips, and was very pretty. Eleni was all but ready to compliment her in return but felt that it might ring hollow to say this to her now.
“How did you get this job?” she asked instead. Miranda told her that she’d applied for a dozen jobs in Athens, looking for administrative type of work, and had now been in this job for three years. At twenty-three she was two years older than Eleni, but she didn’t have the self-assurance that Eleni would have expected. It was almost as if she looked up to Eleni, and there was no reason to, unless Eleni’s dealings with Dominic played a part in Miranda’s assessment.
“What about you?” Miranda asked. Eleni recounted the story of how Dominic had been at the taverna where she’d worked. “Then later I met him at a party on a yacht.”
“A yacht?” Miranda’s eyes grew large. “You were at a party on a yacht?”
Eleni burst out laughing. “I wasn’t a guest. I was waitressing, serving the food and drinks.”
Miranda’s shoulders slumped, as if this admission relieved her. “But how … how did you … get this job?”
Eleni didn’t know what to tell her. She had a sneaky suspicion that Dominic had done her a favor and she was wary of telling Miranda the truth, but her gut instinct told her she could trust her. So, she recounted the story, of how she’d been fired.
Miranda looked shocked. “I’m sorry. Are you okay?”
Eleni nodded.
“Men. Some are pigs, no?”
“Yes.”
“Dominic was good to give you a job here.”
“It’s only for the summer, but it helps, yes.”
Miranda sighed, loud enough for Eleni to take notice. “He’s a nice man. So much nicer than his dad and his brother.”
“He has a brother?”
“Alexander. They come over from time to time, him and the senior Mr. Steele. They come here more than Dominic. This is the longest Dominic has stayed.”
Eleni sat forward, her interest brimming. “What are they like?” She was curious to learn more from a reliable third party, which she believed Miranda was.
“Dominic’s father, he’s ... I don’t want to say anything that will get me in trouble.”
“You won’t. I won’t tell anyone. This is between you and me, Miranda. Don’t worry.”
