For the Love of Coffee

Chapter 1; A Beautiful Day

In all his life Jonathon Roland had never seen a sight as beautiful as the woman standing before him now.

She seemed to be in her mid twenties, perhaps an athlete for she moved with the grace of a cat, as if her feet didn’t touch the floor. She seemed tall for a woman, almost six feet with very long legs which she kept hidden behind the fabric of an impeccably fit business suit. Her long golden hair was pulled tight to her scalp with a tail hanging from the side, creating the perfect mix of business and relaxation.

Jonathon, stunned for a second, took in her face as if drinking fine wine, something to be taken slowly and savoured. Her lips, full, sensuous and moist from a recent light coating of lipstick, turned up into a warm smile that lit up her face as she stared into his eyes. Her nose, slightly turned up at the end was flawlessly formed to match the shadow of her jaw line and drew his gaze effortlessly to her eyes. He felt like he was being pulled into those eyes, the colour of emeralds with just the faintest touch of grey, as she moved towards him, her large curling lashes blinking in the artificial light.

Yes, he decided, this was by far the most beautiful women he had ever seen.

Susan was used to the effect her looks had on people. Ever since she was in her early teens and started to blossom into womanhood, her beauty had opened doors. She couldn’t count how many times men, or sometimes women, had stumbled over their feet and tongues trying to introduce themselves to her. In her teens she’d used her beauty to get whatever she wanted; it felt like opportunities would fall into her lap with the bat of an eyelash. But lately it seemed that her beauty was all that anybody seen in her. Nobody cared about who she was or who she wanted to be. Her love life was non-existent as any man that she met would look at her as if she was something to conquer and move on. Her last boyfriend, Mark, had actually used those words when she’d found him sleeping with his neighbour.

But she’d never had a man look at her the way Jonathon Roland was looking at her now. He stared into her eyes, with a slight smile on his lips, as if he was staring into her soul. His gaze startled her for a second as it felt like he was searching for the real her– the woman she was inside. It frightened her a little as she felt something she hadn’t felt in a long time– nervous!

He was perhaps fifteen years her senior and looked like a Bruce Springsteen clone in a two thousand dollar business suit. Jonathon Roland, she knew, was a self-made multi-millionaire and one of the most sought after bachelors’ in the country.

But it wasn’t a man she wanted in her life right now, she was here to apply for a job as his personal assistant.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Roland.”

She held out her hand, “My name is Susan Daily.”

He didn’t reply but just kept staring as if he didn’t hear her.

“Mr. Roland, are you okay?”

He blinked at her question, “Oh, I’m sorry. Miss Daily, was it?

“Yes, Susan Daily,” she replied.

“Please take a seat, Miss Daily. Forgive my eyes; they sometimes speak without my lips.”

He gestured to a chair on the visitor side of his desk before shaking her hand as she sat.

“Mr. Roland,” she began, “May I list my credentials?”

“That won’t be necessary, Miss Daily, and please call me Jonathon. Let’s try to keep this as informal as possible.”

“Ok, Jonathon, but please call me Susan.”

“All right, Susan it is. For starters I know your credentials. You would not have gotten to this point without impressing my personal staff. The purpose of this meeting is to see how you react around me; all the credentials in the world mean nothing if we are not compatible.”

He noticed her lift an eyebrow at this statement and corrected her thought by saying,

“I mean in a business sense, Susan, when I say compatible. You know that this position requires that you would have to be at my side at all times, except when sleeping. You would be working with me constantly, eating with me, sleeping and rising when I do and traveling with me wherever I go.”

Jonathon watched her closely as he let what he said sink in, before continuing.

“You would have to become my friend and confidant. We must like each other as people; anything less would be unacceptable. We would be spending so much time together that it is imperative we get along personally.”

Susan was enchanted by the way he spoke. The words flowed out of him with a confident ease that made her feel comfortable. He spoke soft, yet forceful, as his eyes sparkled with intelligence. She could feel a relaxed aura around him as he explained the position and could tell that this was a brilliant man with a love for life.

She thought, “It’s no wonder he’s in the position he’s in. He has a likeability that’s undeniable.”

Yes, she decided, she could work with this man and quite easily accept him as a friend.

Jonathon noticed her smile as he explained the details of the position and suddenly realized it was contagious for he was smiling in return.

He decided that he would offer her the job but his mind, he thought, was made up when he shook her hand.

“You smile, Susan. I take it, I’m not boring you.”

“No, on the contrary, Jonathon.” His name felt soft coming from her lips, making her blush slightly.

“It’s just this is the first time that I’ve heard of that one of the requirements for a job was to become a friend. The idea appeals to me.”

“Thank you, Susan, it also appeals to me. Ok, I’ll take a chance if you will. How soon can you start?”

Susan was shocked for a minute. Is this all there was to it? She was at a loss for words.

She heard Jonathon laugh and say, “Susan, are you ok?”

“Sorry,” she said. “I just didn’t expect to be offered the job so easily.”

“If you’re going to work with me you will get used to my quick decisions. I trust my first impressions and you impress me.”

Jonathon smiled as she said that she could start at that moment, without even asking about her salary. This also impressed him. It told him that she didn’t want the job just because of the money.

Jonathon told his secretary to hold all his calls and spent the next ninety minutes talking with Susan. He told her that this would be their first official meeting and handed her two documents. One was a confidentiality agreement, which she quickly read and signed. The other document took her breath away as it listed her job description and salary. He was offering to pay her three times her last salary and she had to ask if it was a mistake.

He smiled and said, “No, it’s not a mistake Susan. I know it’s not a lot of money to start but I have a good feeling that you will be making a lot more than that number rather quickly.”

Her hands were shaking as she quickly signed the document and pushed it back across the desk.

For the rest of the meeting they talked about, what would be, their first business trip together.

Jonathon told her that he was planning to go into the coffee business and had a trip planned to South America in three days. He wanted to see the business from its roots. He told her to be ready to accompany him on Thursday the fourth. He also gave her a list of five coffee growers and asked her to find out anything she could about them– from which countries they sold to, to the name of the owners’ dog and everything in between.

He said, “You never know what might become important in future talks with these people.”

As he talked about this trip to South America his eyes lit up like those of a very excited child, which made her feel excited about the trip herself.

When the meeting finished, Jonathon walked Susan to the elevator and told her to be ready at 9am on Thursday as his driver would be there at nine sharp.

Susan left the building feeling like she was walking on air. She couldn’t believe that this was happening. This was her dream job and the first thing she wanted to do was to share the news with her best friend and roommate, Tina. She couldn’t wait to see the expression on Tina’s face when she told her that she was leaving for South America on Thursday.

It was only five blocks to the boutique that Tina worked at and as it was a beautiful day, she decided to leave her car in the parking garage and walk.

As she walked the bustling sidewalk to the boutique, bursting with excitement, she couldn’t help but think,

“It’s a beautiful day in more ways than one.”

****

Chapter 2 of this story is linked here.