“I’ve just got a lot on my mind right now.”
“Hopefully, you’re talking about Colin.”
The mention of his name brought more memories from the weekend, and she changed the subject. “How’s Paul doing?”
“He’s fine. I had to give him the cold shoulder for a couple of days as punishment for the date, but he got over it. We went to Asheville over the weekend for some wine tasting.”
“That sounds fun.”
“It was. Except, of course, there’s no ring yet and the biological clock is still ticking and time is growing short. Pretending that everything is okay hasn’t worked yet, so maybe it’s time to try a new strategy.”
“Like what?”
“I have no idea. If you have any foolproof plans, be sure to let me know.”
“Will do.”
Jill had another piece of sushi. “What do you have lined up this afternoon?”
“Same stuff as usual. There’s a lot of prep work to finish for the trial. While trying to keep up with everything else, of course.”
“Like I said, Barney expects a lot from his associates.”
And Ken expects something else. “It’s a job,” she said.
“Are you sure everything is okay? Even with our lecherous managing partner?”
“Why would you ask?”
“Because you went off to that conference with him, and I’ve known him longer than you have. And remember – I know exactly how he operates.”
“The conference was fine.”
Jill gave her the once-over before finally offering a shrug. “Fair enough,” she said. “The point is, I’m sensing that something else is bothering you.”
Maria cleared her throat, wondering why it suddenly felt as if she were being interrogated.
“There’s really nothing to say,” she answered. “I’m just doing the best job I can.”
The days that followed were too busy for the luxury of daydreaming, with Barney storming into her office every half hour asking her to examine additional details or to make calls, notwithstanding her work on other client matters. She barely had time to leave her desk, and on Wednesday afternoon, while working on a draft of Barney’s opening statement, she failed to notice the way the sunlight began slanting through her windows, or the departures, one by one, of her colleagues. She stared at her MacBook screen with singular concentration until a knock at her office door startled her. She saw the door slowly swing open.
Ken.
With a jolt of panic, she looked through the open doorway; across the hall, Lynn was no longer at her desk. Barney’s office was dark, and she couldn’t hear anyone else in the hallway.
“I noticed that your lights were still on,” he said, stepping into her office. “Do you have a few minutes?”
“I was just finishing up,” she improvised, hearing a trace of uncertainty in her tone. “I must have lost track of time.”
“I’m glad I caught you then,” he said, his voice smooth and controlled. “I wanted to finish the conversation we started last week.”
Maria felt a thud in her chest and began collecting the pages on her desk before slipping them back into their folders. The last thing she wanted was to be alone with him. She swallowed. “Is there any way we could do this tomorrow? I’m already late and I’m supposed to have dinner with my parents tonight.”
“It won’t take long,” he said, ignoring her excuse as he came around her desk. He stood near the window and she noted the sky had darkened beyond the glass. “It might be easier for you this way, since we’re away from prying eyes. There’s no reason for everyone to know what happened with Barney’s clients.”
Not knowing what to say, she stayed quiet.
He glanced out the window, seemingly focused on something in the distance. “How do you like working with Barney?” he finally asked.
“I’m learning a lot from him,” Maria began, choosing her words carefully. “He has great strategic instincts, the clients trust him, and as a colleague, he’s good at explaining his thinking.”
“You respect him, then.”
“Of course.”
“It’s important to work with people that you respect. It’s important that the two of you can work together as a team.” Ken adjusted the venetian blinds, closing them slightly, then returning them to their original position. “Would you consider yourself a team player?”
The question hung in the air before she was able to answer. “I try to be,” she said.
Ken waited a beat before going on. “I spoke to Barney again on Friday about the situation, and I must say that I was a bit surprised at how angry he still was over what happened. That’s why I asked you about being a team player. Because I went to bat for you in that meeting, and I think I’ve been able to defuse the situation. I wanted to make sure I was doing the right thing.”
Maria swallowed, wondering why Barney hadn’t talked to her himself if he was still so upset. “Thank you,” she finally murmured.
He turned from the window and took a step toward her. “I did it because I want you to have a long and successful tenure at the firm. You’re going to need someone who’s able to advocate for you in these kinds of situations, and I’m here to help you when I can.” By then, he was standing over her, and she felt him place a hand on her shoulder. Kind of. His fingertips skimmed the area below her collarbone. “You should consider me a friend, albeit a friend in a high place.”