More Than a Suit: Tobie

More Than a Suit: Tobie By J.D. Walker “Hey, Tobie. How was your weekend?” John DeWitt asked me while pouring his coffee. “It was good, thanks.” I added a ton of creamer to my cup. John preferred his coffee black as tar. “I hung out at a Cinco de Mayo festival near my apartment. Drank a shitload of beer.” John and I worked together as associates for EnerGen International, in the acquisitions department. We’d started with the company at the same time as interns, and eventually had been hired on full-time. “Oh, right. I totally forgot about that.” John took a sip of his coffee and closed his eyes in bliss. “What did you do?” I asked. “Partied all weekend. I can barely walk, but it was so worth it,” he replied with a grin. I laughed. “Oh my God, you’re such a slut!” “‘To thine own self be true,’ or some such nonsense. You should try it sometime, unchain yourself from that desk. You work too hard.” John took his cup and walked out of the break room. I grabbed my coffee and followed him. “I’ll be okay. Work is my highest priority right now,” I said. John stopped with me at my desk. “Honey, you need to get out more. I’m glad you went to the festival this weekend, but that’s the first time in, like, months, right? You’re always here working late at your desk, sometimes even on the weekends. Work shouldn’t rule your life. You need to date, have a little fun.” “I want to be VP in five years. The only way I know how to do that is by working long hours. Sacrifices are necessary. There isn’t much room for dating.” I sat and turned on my computer. “Yeah, well I think you can work, have fun and still get what you want. Hell, when was the last time you were with someone?” John asked. “I dunno…months, maybe?” I responded. It was something I tried not to think about. I really missed s*x. “Are you serious? Your ass must have cobwebs by now.” “John, seriously. We’re at work. And leave my ass out of this, pendejo. It’s fine just the way it is.” “Oh, you’re calling me names. I must have struck a nerve,” he teased. “Go away.” “Wait, let me see your right hand. Must be chafed from all that solo action.” He made a grab at me, but I swatted him away. “John! Stop it. My ass is fine, my hand is fine, and lube helps with the chafing, if you must know. Quit bugging me and get to work.” “You know, if you ever need—” “¡Basta! Enough, already.” John relented, but before he sat at his own desk, he said, “Seriously, Tobie. I hope one day you find something, or better yet, someone who’s more important than work or a promotion, because all work all the time is just depressing.” I loved my job, despite pesky coworkers, namely John. He was always after me to go out more or have fun, but I was really focused on getting ahead. Working hard was the only way I knew to achieve that. I didn’t need anything to jeopardize this goal. Sometimes, though, I wondered if John was right. A few minutes after I started working on a complicated spreadsheet, John interrupted my train of thought. “Hey, Tobie. Do you know where that file with the salary data for the southeast is located? I can’t find it on the server.” With a sigh, I found the file and emailed a copy to him. “Check your inbox,” I said. As much as I liked John, sometimes he annoyed me because he could never find stuff in plain sight. “Thanks. You’re the best.” “Yeah, yeah.” I went back to my calculations. I took a break around ten o’clock to clear my head. As I walked by the break room, I glanced in and saw John talking to a few other associates, animated as usual. They all seemed so carefree and laid back. Wish I knew how to be that way. I headed outside and took a quick walk around the block, then went back to my desk to get some more work done before noon. I was eating a sandwich in the break room when John found me at lunchtime, catching up on a Jack Reacher novel on my e-reader. It was one of the few things I allowed myself the luxury of doing in my rare free time. It helped me to unwind a bit. “Hey, Tobie. Did you hear about the new department VP?” I looked up as John sat at the table with a can of soda. He popped it open and took a sip. “Nope.” I took another bite of my sandwich and kept on reading. “He transferred over here from the Memphis office. I saw him briefly. Totally hot, man. Tall dude, about six-three, African-American, built like a god. His name is Malcolm Jones. I wonder if he’s gay.” I almost choked on my sandwich. “Don’t even go there,” I said severely. “Relax, man. I’m just fantasizing.” “Yeah, that’s the problem.” John just smiled at me and took another sip of soda. I shook my head and went back to reading. Or at least, I tried to. My mind started to wander. The new VP sounded absolutely scrumptious, though I’d never say that out loud. I liked tall, solidly built men. But even if I were interested, it wasn’t worth my job or a promotion to pursue anything, and the man was probably straight anyway. I guess I really did need to get laid. “He’s called a meeting of all the associates in the department to talk about that junior analyst job.” There was a listing of open positions tacked to a bulletin board on the wall next to the table. “One o’clock in the fourth floor conference room. I’m going to sit in the front row,” John said, a lascivious expression on his face. “Of course you are,” I replied with a smirk. “Remember to wipe the drool off your chin or it’ll give you away.” “Ha, ha.” I noted the time on my e-reader. It was ten minutes to one. “Thanks for the heads-up.” I finished my sandwich and cleaned up. “See you in there,” John said as I left the room. When I got to the conference room, it was one o’clock on the dot. There were twenty associates in my department. Everyone but me sat in the first two rows. I chose a seat in the third. Carly, the administrator for the department, walked briskly into the room and handed out a packet to each one of us. I scanned mine quickly and noted the information about the position and expectations. All of a sudden, the buzzing of voices in the room faded. I looked up and my heart skipped a beat. The man who entered the room was even hotter than John had described. His expensive gray suit was tailored perfectly to fit his tall, muscular frame. The peach-colored shirt he wore was a stunning contrast against his dark brown skin, also offset by his light gray and orange striped tie. He had mesmerizing brown eyes. And his high cheekbones begged to be kissed. Handsome was too mild a word to even describe him. I wanted to drop to my knees on the spot. Madre de Dios. “Good afternoon, everyone.” I felt my c**k harden at the smooth bass of his voice. Mierda. “I’m Malcolm Jones, but please, call me Mal. I look forward to getting to know each and every one of you. Carly will set up meetings with you according to my availability this week so we can discuss your work here and what your plans are for your future at EnerGen. As you know, the department is looking to fill a junior analyst position. All the information you need is in the documents you received from Carly. “Here is what you really need to know. The junior analyst will be reporting directly to me. I’m a fair boss, but I have very, very exacting standards. You should jump before you ask me how high. You will work even later hours than you do now. You will have to prove yourself in this position. If you’re chosen, it doesn’t mean you’ll keep the job. Many have tried and failed in similar positions across the company. “There will be a grace period where I will treat you like absolute crap, just so you understand the reality of this step up in the corporate world. This is not a cakewalk, people. This is the real deal, and you may not cut it.” No one made a sound. “Carly will send out emails this afternoon. I look forward to working closely with each of you.” Mal gave everyone a smile that was at once intimidating and charming, and then left the room. All I could think was wow. I loved a man who knew how to take charge. On the heels of that thought, though, I realized that this attraction could definitely get in the way of my better judgment. I would need to be really careful and as professional as possible around Mal Jones, because he was everything I never knew I wanted.