Page 48 of My Merry Mistake
“What’s this?”
He shrugs, almost looking embarrassed. “Open it.”
I take the small white box and flip it open to find my favorite kind of dark chocolate sea salt caramels.
I look up at him, and he’s smiling like,Eh? You like it?I start to say something, but there’s a soft knock on my open door.
I look past Finn to see one of the interns. She almost looks afraid to come in.
Finn plops down in the chair on the other side of my desk.
“What is it?” I ask with a quick nod to the intern.
Landyn is new. Fresh out of college, and most likely not cut out for this job. She’ll have a formal evaluation later this month, but odds are, she’s toast. She’s too slow and struggles to remember details. Not great for someone in her position.
She can probably sense her impending demise, which is maybe why she looks like she just swallowed a horse. Her face tightens.
“Hey, Landyn,” Finn says in that casual, cool tone. “It is Landyn, right?”
She double-takes a bit, probably because he knows her name. “Landyn, yes.”
Finn knows everyone’s name.
“How do you like working here so far?”
Her eyes dart to me, almost like she’s asking for permission to respond. I shrug, because this is what Finn does. It’s impossible for him to meet someone new and not have a full-on conversation with them. It’s like everyone else disappears when he talks to you, making you feel like you’re the only one in the room he cares about at that moment.
This is just how he is. His curiosity about me—and his conversations with me—aren’t special or unique. He is genuinely curious. About everyone. Once, he did a press conference and ended up asking more questions than he answered. Never mindthat there does seem to be something a little more purposeful about him lately.
Landyn shifts her weight uncomfortably, then answers Finn’s question. “I love this job,” she says. “But . . . it’s . . . a lot.” She winces. “I’m trying to keep everything straight.”
I should be more sympathetic. At this exact moment, I’m also trying to keep everything straight. Working in human resources for a professional hockey team is no joke. And while I am more than qualified to manage teams of people, and I have the organizational skills to keep everything running smoothly, lately I’ve fallen behind. I’m not keeping everything in order.
And I hate when things aren’t in order.
“Yeah, I can imagine,” Finn says. “Where did you go to school? I mean, I assume you went to school for this. Like, what’s the major for this kind of job?”
Genuine. Conversational. I can see Landyn’s shoulders relax, and her face brightens as she talks about college.
I turn back to finish the email I started when two more come in, one a follow-up from yesterday I haven’t gotten to yet. I frown, and it’s the kind of frown I can feel in my whole face—stressed and tight.
I look back at Finn and Landyn, now fully in conversation, like I’m not even here.
Unfortunately for Landyn, she’s part of the problem right now. If the support staff isn’t doing their job, that makes it hard for me to do my job. Things fall through the cracks, and I don’t want to have to hold her hand to get her where she needs to be.
I can’t hold her hand. I don’t have time.
“Have you been to a game yet?” Finn asks and the question irks me because, honestly, why are they having this conversation in my office? I amworking!
Before she answers, I cut in. “What was it you needed, Landyn?” I keep my tone polite but firm, hoping that she—and Finn—get the point. I’ve got things to do.
“Brian was wondering if you had those new contracts,” she says, straightening up like the principal just walked into the classroom. “He sent me here to pick them up.”
My brain scrambles. For a few seconds, I have no idea what she’s talking about. I look down at my desk when I’m struck with a sharp pain at my temple. “Uhh, yes, I do—” I close my eyes for a second, willing away a stress headache. “Yes. The contracts. They’re almost ready. I’ll bring them down in just a bit.”
Landyn gives me a terse nod, smiles at Finn, and before she walks away, he says, “Ah, don’t let her boss you around too hard.” He turns back to me. “She’s just got a lot on her plate.”
Landyn looks at me and says, “Is there anything else I can do? To you know, help? I’ve got some space to?—”
