He despised people who were late, and frankly, given how much trouble she was in, he’d expected her to be on time.
He strode to his office door, and swung it open, stepping out into the corridor just as the slender brunette approached.
“You’re late!” he snarled.
Taken aback, she stammered, “I was just bringing these to you, sir, and….”
“Don’t talk back!” He stared down at her. “Just get into my office, and sit down.”
“Yes, sir.”
He watched her as she walked nervously across his office to the chair in front of his broad desk. She was a pretty one: near-black hair, a slender waist, long legs, wearing a fitted grey trouser-suit over a white blouse, her hair pulled back to hang in a plait down her back.
He was going to enjoy this.
“Now, you will listen to me, and you will not talk back.” He closed the door firmly, locked it, and then walked slowly across the office, to sit on the edge of the desk, looking down at her sitting uncomfortably in the chair. “As your new boss, I have read your personnel file carefully, and I have to say that I am not impressed. You are regularly late, frequently disrespectful and clearly lazy. This will not continue. I know that you’ve received warnings before, and under the company’s policy I could fire you right now. You don’t want that, do you, Tanya?”
“Well no, sir, but….”
“That’s good,” he cut her off, “because I don’t want to fire you, either. I want to give you a chance.”
“A chance?”
“Yes, Tanya. Right here, right now, in this office, we will work out a plan of action, a set of changes to your behaviour, that will allow you to stay here, in your job. The alternative is that I fire you. If you even hesitate in co-operating, you will be dismissed. You understand?”
“Yes, sir….” She seemed uncertain, and her brow furrowed as she looked up at him.
“Good. Now, there are two sets of issues at stake, and we will deal with them one at a time.” He was interrupted by a knock at the door and he glanced round irritably to rebuke the would-be intruder, “Come back later!” and then return to the girl. “The first issue relates to your general bearing, the way that you comport yourself. Appearances are everything in business, and yours, frankly, needs some work.”
“Well, what should I do differently?” she asked uncertainly.
“Two things. First, look at your blouse.”
“I thought it was quite nice?”
“It is.” He looked down at her, admiring the sheer fabric. “But you should undo the next button.”
She uncertainly reached up to release the button, so that the fabric fell open enough to show the top of the mounds of her pert breasts. “Like that, sir?”
“And the next.”
