A Whole New World

9. The Offer X 2

   My morning went smoothly with appointments and checking in on a few of the projects that were underway managing issues and making sure we stayed on targets.  I was finishing up on one last call before heading to the lunchroom to heat up my left-over meatloaf when Mrs. Andrews appeared in my doorway.  She lingered there which indicated she needed to say something.  I ended the call as quickly as I could in a professional manner but still rushed it a little before hanging the receiver up and turning to her.

"Mrs. Andrews, is there something you need?" I asked

"I would kike to invite you to join me for lunch.  Would you care to join?" she asked me, insinuating like I didn't really have a choice.

"Sure- I can do that, I was just about to go and heat up my lunch...Where would you like me to join you?"  I must have been having a true brain fart moment because she never brought lunch nor ate with anyone else.

With a chuckle that made her shoulders slightly bounce before she settled, then replied, "We are heading over to Grey-Stone's about a block away.  I can meet you downstairs in say, 10 minutes?"

I was completely shocked because she had never invited me out for lunch much less barely spoken to me for the past 10 or so years.  When she mentioned Grey-Stone's I knew that it was a bit of an upscale swanky place that I was just not used to going to.  My eyes opened wide at the mention of it and I tried to recover as quickly as I could hoping that she didn't notice before replying "oh, sure-that sounds very nice, thank you."

She gave a small nod and replied as she was turning away "good, see you downstairs, I will have my car ready." before she walked away.  I assumed that she would be leaving the office momentarily, so I quickly grabbed my purse and coat to head for the elevator hoping that I didn’t make her wait.  We arrived at the restaurant from a quick but quiet ride and made our way inside.  Neither of us really said anything above pleasantries and small talk about the nicer weather coming.  It wasn’t until we were seated at a private table that she opened the conversation while we were sipping on some water.

“Mrs. Richards, may I call you Amanda?”

“Yes, of course Mrs. Andrews.”

“Thank you.  I am sure you are wondering why I invited you out to lunch today.  As you know, I am not a woman to beat around the bush and like to get right down to business.”  She started with, but I was still very confused as to why I was here.  I decided to just give a small nod to indicate that I was ready any time she was.  “We received an offer this morning from The Miller Corp.” (that was the presentation that I made last week, it was my project!), and I would like you to head the entire project.  I know that normally Mr. Lewis takes the reins from here and he oversees you and your team, but after the work you put into this project, I think you are ready for it and I need a second VP as I would like to step back a little bit and start to enjoy a few things.”  She continued to go over some of the details and I was fully engaged.  This was HUGE for me!  It wasn’t until she got to the part that might make me turn it down that I felt discouraged.  “Of course, I am prepared to offer you $65,000 per year but you will have to move to the head office here in Toronto full time.  We will be providing you with a salary and an account for business expenses.”

Just then our lunches arrived, and I decided to take a moment to thin some things over.  This would mean that I would either move us to the city or make that long commute every day.  I finished chewing my first bite and swallowed before replying “Mrs. Andrews, as much as I am honored to have this opportunity, I am not sure I can make that work for me.  I love working in the Barrie office, the people there are amazing, and my commute is only 20 minutes.  What would happen if I turned it down?”

“I can assure you Amanda, I will not make an offer like this again.  I am also prepared to offer to cover your moving expenses and provide you with a company car.”  I was amazed, but still felt like I was missing something as the longer I pondered over this, the more she added to the offer.  Unbeknownst to me, that I was the deal breaker.  If I didn’t take over the project, then we would not be getting the contract.  The only person that knew this little tidbit of information though, was Mrs. Andrewes.  Her plan was to advance me until the contract was well under way and then let me go, ideally saving herself a lot of money in the process.

“I honestly don’t know what to say to Mrs. Andrews.  I will have to think about it and determine if this is the right move for me.  I will need at least a week to think this over.”  I sadly said as we continued to eat our lunches.  “I have meetings this afternoon and I would like to take tomorrow off to go over everything to see if it is even feasible to consider a move like this.”

“I can handle that, but I will need an answer by Friday at 2pm as we have a deadline on the offer.” She stated matter-of-factly.  She really had no emotion at all.  Everything was a business transaction for her.  We finished our lunch and her driver brought us back to the office where I stepped out of the car.  Mrs. Andrews called from inside the back reminding me “remember-2pm Friday- no later.” before her driver closed the doors and they drove away.

I let myself take a breath and thought if I really needed to go back upstairs before heading over to one of my afternoon meetings.  I decided that I had everything I needed so instead of heading inside, I started walking to my car.  The afternoon flew by as they normally do when I am in meetings.  It wasn’t until I was on my way home when I heard 1 ring on my phone before my car picked up the call for me.

“Good afternoon, Amanda Richards speaking.” (Man, I did sound like a robot!)

“Yes, hello Mrs. Richards.  This is Brian Miller calling.

“Yes Mr. Miller!  I just heard the good news, thank you for allowing us the opportunity to...”

“yes, yes.  enough of the pleasantries.  I was wondering if I could entice you into a conference call later tonight when you are not driving.  Normally, I prefer in person meetings, but I believe Miss. Michaels mentioned that you live way up north and may already be on your way home.”

“Um, Yes Mr. Miller.  I am on my way home and will be driving for another 45 minutes or so, depending on traffic of course.  Is there anything I can help you with now?”  I was used to talking to clients, so this was not out of the norm for me.

“I will call you back at 7 then, does that work for you?” Mr. Miller asked.

“Yes, of course, I will make sure I have everything ready in case you need more information.”  I hung up the phone and continued my drive home not thinking much of the conversation that just took place.  Everything went normal with the dinner and evening routine which I did speed though a bit knowing that I wanted to be prepared.  I explained to Cody that I had another work call, and it shouldn’t take too long.

At 7 o’clock on the button, my phone rang, and I answered it.  “Hello Mr. Miller.  I am all ready on my end, how can I help you?”

“Well, I was assuming that since I didn’t hear back from Mrs. Andrews this afternoon that you turned down her offer?” Mr. Miller asked

“Pardon?!?!  How did you know she gave me an offer?”  I was flabbergasted.

Mr. Miller gave a chuckle before speaking “Well, the offer was a conditional one.  The only condition that I stipulated was that you were the only lead on the project.  I-as well as my entire team was blown away by your preparedness, attention to detail and professionalism.  Listen Mrs. Richards, I have worked with many companies like the one you work for over the years and they tend to eat up and spit out good people.  We sense greatness in you, and I want to make you an offer to come work for me.  I know this is not the best way to present an offer, but if you are willing to meet with myself and one of my lawyer’s tomorrow afternoon, we would be happy to present you with a formal offer.”

“Oh my!  Um, I don’t even know what to say Mr. Miller.”  I paused to take a moment to take a deep breath and then another before continuing “Yes, I can meet you tomorrow afternoon, but I am not in the city tomorrow.  Where would you like to meet?”

“Anywhere you would like, text Miss Michaels the name and address and we will be there.  Does 1pm work for you?” He asked.

“Yes, that will work fine, Thank you Mr. Miller.  I will see you tomorrow.”

I immediately texted Mike and Alexa to let them both know.  What surprised me though was a call from Mike within 10 seconds.

“Hi Mike.  I just want to apologize again about this past weekend…” I started saying

“Thank you, and I am sorry for maybe overreacting a little.  You know I worry about you, especially in severe weather.  That is a long, nasty drive.  We can come back to that though, spill with what happened and start with Friday night.”

As I went over everything, (well, everything…) that happened between the rest of Friday, then today with Mrs. Andrews and Mr. Miller, Mike was listening very intently.  I could even hear him writing something down and chances where it was for Tina, so she knew what was going on too.  They didn’t like putting anyone on speaker phones around Mia because kids repeat everything!!!  When I finally finished, he was excited for me.  saying that this was the break that I had been waiting for and that I didn’t have to drain myself anymore for Mrs. Andrews.  I could hear him typing on his computer before he noted that The Miller Corp. was one of the leading employers in the country.  This was starting to indeed seem like a once in a lifetime offer!  I hung up the phone with Mike when it was time to tuck Cody into bed and I decided to take a quick bath to try to calm my nerves.  If I didn’t find a way to calm down a bit, there was no way I would be sleeping tonight.

The next day I arrived at a small pub in Cremorne that was just off the side of the distillery.  They had tasty food and of course, local beverages.  I was about 15 minutes early so I grabbed a table close to the door so I could see when they arrived.  Within a few minutes Alexa walked through a door followed by Mr. Miller.  I stood to greet them, and we all sat down.  Mr. Miller started with “So, on the drive up here, I learnt that you and Alexa went to college together and just rant into each other recently.”

“Yes, that is correct.”

“Well, I just want to start by saying that I appreciate this place you chose to meet at.  I too came from a small town and when I see people like you, as talented as you are, I try to find a place for them within my company.  You may wonder why, and I will tell you.  I came from a small town as well.  Nothing was ever handed to me.  You had to work hard for everything you had.  I see that in you, and I believe as an owner, that you need to treat your employees well and they will in turn, give you their best.  Most places will wear you down and spit you out.  But here is what I am willing to offer…”  He took a pause (the whole time I could see an ear-to-ear grin across Alexa’s face, but she remained silent.)

“I appreciate that Mr. Miller.  but before you start, I just want to say something first.”  Here goes I thought-tough as nails because I had to make a small stand.  “I am not sure if you are aware, but I am a single mom to a 9-year-old boy.  What I have right now works because I am home to cook dinner every night and with his babysitter, I can not stretch that too much.  As it is, I drop him off at 6 o'clock in the morning when I am working in the city and I hate doing that to him.   I can only offer any company my services during office hours with the odd exception of working a few hours at home the odd night.  I am willing to work hard, but I will not make sacrifices dealing with the wellbeing of my son.  I try my best to make it work.”  I couldn’t believe that I said those words.  I was proud of myself, but at the same time I hoped that I didn’t just blow my shot.

“First, I have a fairly clever idea what you are making now.  When we are finished, Miss Michaels will be handing you a portfolio with everything we talk about here for you to go over, think about as well a bit of the company’s history, goals and aspirations.”  He paused to allow me to take everything in.

“Thank you, Mr. Miller, it means a lot for you to notice me and actually create a position at your company for just me, but I am not sure I deserve that much praise.”

“Nonsense- we have done our homework on you and besides what I am willing to offer you- as a starting wage is what I think you are worth and how much I believe you will be able to succeed with our company.  For starters, I will be offering the standard things like $95,000 per year, full benefits, and a company car that gets replaced every 3 years.  What I am further willing to offer you is a full scholarship for your son, Cody is it?  To attend St. Jude Academy because I am a firm believer in investing in our future.  I am not sure if you have ever heard of it, so I have made sure that there is some information in the portfolio as well and Lastly, I am willing to offer a $5000 signing bonus and cover moving expenses if you choose to move closer to the city.”

I was floored and I was trying my best poker face, but I had a feeling that if I were playing poker, I would be breaking!  This was $30,000 A YEAR more than my own boss offered AND free private school for Cody on top of that???  Most of those schools were at least $20,000 a year to go- minimum.  I would never have been able to even think about something like this.  “Um, WOW!  Mr. Miller!  I don’t even know where to begin!  This is just all so much, and I am not sure what to focus on first.  Of course, you wouldn’t mind if I took some time to consider your offer?”

“No, not at all.  Take all the time you need.  Just call me directly when you have decided, and we can take it from there.  Now, if you ladies will excuse me, I need to head back to the city.  I know that we have not had lunch yet and I do apologize, but I had an emergency call come through just as I pulled up.  Miss. Michaels, I trust you will be staying for lunch and finishing up here?”

“Yes, of course Mr. Miller.  I will see you tomorrow.” Alexa replied with a smile.

We waited until he left out the front door before both of us expelled and excited squeals at the same time!

“Did you know anything about this?” I asked her

“I knew a little, but not the whole extent.  But you also must understand that it is part of my job and of course, confidential!”

“Yes, I get that- but when did you find out?”

“Oh, just this morning when I arrived at the office.” Alexa noted.  “I was just as surprised as you were this morning.  What do you say we drop the subject for a bit and enjoy our lunch?”

“Now, that is something I don’t need to consider before agreeing to it.” I replied with a smile as I raised my glass.  The rest of lunch went by nicely and we shared more laughs but we both knew that this was not the place to continue our earlier conversation.  We parted when I had to leave to meet Cody after school.  It was not often that I was able to do this, so we tried to enjoy every minute of it.  Tonight was a night to celebrate because of everything that had happened over the past 2 days, I could honestly say that things were looking up for me.  I still didn’t know exactly what I was going to do, but I had a promising idea.