The Job Offer (3 page)

That led into a conversation about Carla
and the baby.  Carla was feeling greet without any morning sickness, and she
glowed with happiness.  With babies on her mind, Carla even talked about
experimenting with new baby food recipes.  From there the afternoon was spent
in companionable conversation catching up and laughing over memories from their
college days when they worked on the waterfront.  After they finished their
lunch, they decided to walk to Edmonds Central Plaza, located a few blocks away,
to begin their search for new maternity clothing for Carla.  It would be months
before Carla started showing, but stores always stocked new clothes a few
months in advance of the season, and Carla wanted to get a jump on the new
fashions.

While browsing through the clothing stores
looking for Carla, Carla spotted several summer dresses and a pair of sandals
for Anne to try on.  They were sexy and lacy and not at all what Anne was used
to wearing out east.  But Carla kept insisting that Anne try them on because
she said that Anne "seriously needed a summer makeover."

"So this was what 'the look' was
about."

"What look?"  Carla tried her
best at appearing innocent but failed miserably.

"The one you gave me at lunch.  It's
the one you get every time you plan something for me without telling me."

"Come on, Anne.  I know how you
hate shopping for yourself, so I decided that you needed to lose the beatnik
slash scientist look."  Anne looked down at her blue jeans and button down
white blouse and frowned when she looked back up at Carla.  "Not that you
don't rock that look, Sweetie.  But when was the last time you bought something
sexy for yourself or had your nails done?  Probably not since the last time I
took you shopping, so you are long overdue for a makeover.  I love your hair,
though, and if I had your body, I'd flaunt it."

"Ok.  I don't want anything too
sexy, though.  I don't want to look slutty.  I still want to look like
me."

"You will look like you, only
sexier.  Trust me, Anne.  You know that I've never steered you wrong in the
past."

Anne took the dresses and the shoes
reluctantly and walked to the changing room while Carla waited out in the store. 
The dresses and sandals did make her look and feel feminine and sexy, Anne had
to admit.  After changing back into her regular clothing, she suffered through
Carla’s smug expression and took out her credit card.  But new dresses required
new underwear too, Carla said, so Anne bought some of that as well.

As Carla talked about how she soon would
be wearing maternity clothes because short people always showed faster than
tall people and that last week she saw some cute clothes in another store, Anne
mentally tallied up the small fortune she had just spent.  The maternity
clothes came next, and Anne helped Carla decide on several fall fashions that
would compliment her petite frame.  Then with their purchases in hand, Carla led
them to a shop for manicures and pedicures because, she reasoned playfully, there
was no point in having sexy clothes and sandals without them.

"Maybe you’ll get lucky while up at
the inn.  With all those hot males, Anne, it pays to look good," Carla
said as their toes were being colored.  Anne laughed at the comment because she
was just not the "getting lucky" type of women men went for.

Once their hands and feet were done, they
worked their way along the waterfront past several busy stores and crowds of
people who flocked to the waterfront on that Sunday afternoon.  Eventually,
they found a place to sit in a little coffee shop that faced the harbor.  As
they split a piece of fudge cake ala mode and drank their beverages, they discussed
where to head next.  Because they had a few more hours before they needed to be
at Carla’s house in Bellevue, they decided to head in that direction and drive down
to the Bellevue Square mall to look for furniture.

At six, they finished their shopping and
headed to the house where Carla and Gary lived.  Their house was located in a
nice quiet neighborhood along a tree lined street and was located only two
blocks from a large park and nature preserve.  As Anne drove behind Carla up
the street, she saw families outside in their yards either working on their
lawns and flower gardens or tossing around balls and Frisbees.  Several people
waved at Anne’s car as she drove by.  Carla and Gary’s home was located on the
corner lot at the top of the hill.  They had a Craftsman style house with a
wide front porch, and the large lot had several mature trees.  A two stall
detached garage was tucked away behind the house.  Carla parked in the garage
while Anne parked behind her on the concrete driveway.  They brought their
purchases and Anne’s suitcase inside through the back door then decided to wait
for Gary on the back patio and enjoy the early evening.

Gary returned about twenty minutes later
from a walk with their dog, Bob, a golden Labrador retriever.  The last time
Anne saw Bob, he was just a puppy, but he had since grown to be quite a large
dog.  The two year separation did not stop Bob from showing his acceptance of
Anne, and he surprised her with a slobbering wet tennis ball dropped at her
feet.  Gary quickly shooed Bob away and went into the house to clean up before he
joined them again on the patio to start up the grill.

Gary had not changed too much physically
in the past few years, Anne noticed.  He was about Anne’s height and had a wiry
build that today was covered in a pair of old jeans and a tee shirt with the
Superman logo on the front.  He still sported his slightly shy expression
behind his wire rimmed glasses, but his hazel eyes were warm with welcome. 
Anne noticed that he was getting a slight paunch around the middle, and his
blond hair was receding slightly.  Anne decided that there was nothing really
exceptional physically about him.  But Gary had a keen mind and a wicked,
offbeat sense of humor that complimented Carla to a T.  Perhaps the thing that
struck Anne the most about Gary was that he had a loving expression whenever he
looked at his wife.  For that reason alone, Anne had always liked him.

While Gary took care of grilling steaks,
Carla and Anne worked together in the kitchen pulling together a salad and
broiling vegetables.  They decided to eat outside at the table and enjoy the
warm evening.  Anne watched the easy manner between Carla and Gary and thought about
how nice it would be to be married to your best friend.  Her mother and Jim had
that same ease between them.  Anne smiled happily at Carla and Gary who, at
times, seemed oblivious to anyone other than each other.  Then looking out at
the back yard and the late sun, Anne thought that a sunny day and great friends
were the perfect way to welcome her back to the Seattle area.  Getting the new job
would make her trip complete.

*  *  *  *  *

Monday morning dawned with the promise
of a day as equally beautiful as the day before, and Anne finished getting
ready for her interview by running through all possible questions and her
answers over a cup of coffee and a bagel.  Then after stowing her suitcase and
new clothing in the trunk of her rental car, she made her way up Interstate 405
to the Highway 520 exchange and headed east to Redmond.  She did not bother
playing with the radio station but, instead, listened to the NPR station
someone had previously programmed in.  Traffic was light due to missing the
morning rush hour, and she made good time as she drove and listened to the
morning news report.  About two miles after merging onto Highway 520, she saw
the exit for the frontage road she would need to take and followed it until she
reached the campus for Stanford Enterprises a few blocks away.

The Stanford Enterprises campus
consisted of a large two story red brick building with two white concrete
buildings located behind it, flanking it like raised wings.  The sweeping campus
was covered with mature maple and pine trees and had several large grassy
areas, a small parking lot in front of the red building, and a larger parking
lot located in back between the two concrete buildings.  A well maintained
shrub and flower garden filled with azalea and potentilla bushes, blue lobelia,
red impatiens, purple and white petunias, red astilbes, and several other
annuals Anne could not name followed the sidewalk that led to the front door of
the red brick building from the smaller parking lot.  She parked her rental in
one of the Visitor Parking spots in the lot and looked at the dashboard clock
before locking her vehicle and following the sidewalk to the main door.  With
fifteen minutes to spare, she entered Building One, the red brick building, and
checked in at the reception desk.  Then she excused herself and went to the
Ladies' room to freshen up her hair and makeup and attempt to calm her racing
heart.

Her reflection did not reveal any of her
nervousness but, instead, showed a woman who was calm and collected.  Her long
curly dark brown hair that she had put up in a neat French twist that morning still
held.  This should not have surprised Anne because it was so covered in product
that a hurricane would not let loose a strand.  But it did.  She said a quick
"thank you" to the god of good hair days for keeping her hair looking
neat.  Her white silk shell showed a few wrinkles from the seat belt, so she
buttoned up her blue suit jacket to hide them.  Her light blue eyes were bright
and alert not showing any effects from the sleepless night she had experienced
due to her nervousness over the interview and sleeping in a strange bed.  At
least she looked good, she thought, as she touched up her lipstick and powdered
her nose.

When she was finished she went back into
the front lobby where she was directed by the reception desk to the Human
Resources department.  There she took a seat in a light blue colored
contemporary accent chair and looked around as she waited.  The lobby of the HR
department, like the main reception area, was tastefully decorated with a
mixture of blues and greens with white painted woodwork.  The overall color
scheme gave the room a sophisticated beach house look that helped calm her
nerves.  A painting of racing sailboats hung behind the HR reception desk
complimenting the decor.  She liked that the room was not too formal.

After a few minutes, a tall middle-aged African
American woman, with short silvery white, came out to greet her.  The woman was
dressed professionally in a multicolored floral print blouse, black dress pants,
and colorful earrings.  Her short hair emphasized her striking looks, her good
bone structure, her warm brown eyes, and her smile.  "Dr. Conner.  It is a
pleasure to meet you, finally.  I am Ms. Tomlinson, our Human Resources
Director.  Can I get you anything before we go to the conference room?"  She
shook Anne's hand while she spoke then began leading her down a wide, well lit
hallway until they came to a conference room that also reflected the beach
house theme.

"No.  Thank you, Ms. Tomlinson.  I'm
fine."

"Good.  I hope your flight was
alright.  I always hate to fly, myself."  She ushered Anne inside to a
chair at the table.  Two men were already waiting inside and were seated at the
oblong cherry wood table across from Anne.  Each of them had a notebook and several
papers on the table in front of them.  After Anne's assurance that the flight
went well, Anne was introduced to the men.  Mr. Winfield was a tall
distinguished looking man of about sixty who came across, to Anne, as someone
who could be formal and standoffish until he had a chance to get to know you.  Dr.
Rudolph, in contrast, was a short balding man with a shaved haircut who wore black
framed glasses over his brown eyes.  He appeared to be somewhere in his late
forties, had a wiry build, and looked like he wanted to jump out of his seat
and move around.  Anne's first impression of him was that he was like a Jack
Russell terrier that had boundless energy.  His smile was warm and friendly.  If
she was hired, he would be her boss.

Anne made herself comfortable as Ms.
Tomlinson sat down next to Dr. Rudolph then began answering their seemingly "small
talk" questions.  Anne knew from experience that the questions were merely
"feeler" questions that were asked to see what her personality was
like and how she would fit into the company culture.  They spent a few minutes
with those seemingly unimportant questions, and once that portion of the
interview was completed, they proceeded to the portion of the interview where
they asked specific questions about her work experiences, education, and ideas.
 The butterflies in Anne's stomach at the beginning of the interview left her as
she began to talk about her work.  They spoke for almost fifty-five minutes discussing
Anne’s work experience.  Anne was ready with her replies for each question.  The
verbal and nonverbal responses she received from the three of them were
encouraging.  Anne noticed small smiles, their bodies leaning in, a few slight
head nods, and silent communications that took place between the interviewers.

After their line of questioning was
completed, Anne had the opportunity to ask them specific questions related to
the job and the company, things she could not learn from the company website
and business journals.  This took several more minutes, and before she knew it,
the interview was over.  The hour and a half long interview flew by.  Anne’s
good feeling about how it went increased when she saw that the three
interviewers were all smiling sincerely as the meeting broke up.  Then, after
shaking the hands of the men, she was shown out of the room by Ms. Tomlinson
for a quick tour of the facility.