Chapter 5. The Interview

He opened the door and helped her into the back seat. She heard the door shut, then another door open, and felt a warm presence beside her.

“Alright. Jamal, take us to SwernLife hospital,” he said.

His voice was rich and warm, yet confident.

“What? No. No.”

That hospital was way out of her budget, and she didn’t have health insurance. She hadn’t thought that she would need it for everyday things like her glasses.

She turned to face him and tried to make out the shape of his face, without leaning in too close. She didn’t want to come off as a creep. She heard him suck in a breath. He was very close. She shifted away.

The perfume she wore today wasn’t anything special. It was just a handmade gift from Jean last year. The same gift that Jean gave everyone every year.

“Why don’t you want to go there?”

“I usually go to Dr. Roberts, but he’s booked and SwernLife sounds expensive.”

“Puh. I’m paying. Don’t worry about the bills.”

“But… But…”

She leaned closer to him, trying to make out if the curve of his lip was a smile or he was just being sardonic.

“What about the interview you wanted to have? This is the best time to begin, right?” he said.

“Oh, right. But I can’t write anything because I can’t see.”

“That would be remedied in a moment, Miss Johnson. You are a miss, right?”

“Do you see a ring on my finger?”

She bit her tongue. She hadn’t meant to be so vile, but the last thing she wanted to be was to be in a stranger’s car, heading off to God knows where. She didn’t need a repeat of Jeremy in her life.

“Drive, Jamal,” he said. The engine purred to life and the car rammed as warmth reached them. “So you’re not married then.”

“I’m not. This interview thing… I really didn’t think I was going to see you today.”

“You should always be prepared, you never know when life will bring an opportunity to your door.”

Elaine leaned into the soft leather of the chair. It was much softer than the stale mattress she used as a bed. Life had brought an opportunity to her door. Two, in fact.

One, he was going to fix her glasses problem, and she wouldn’t have to wait five more weeks to see Dr. Roberts. Two, she could pitch the book idea directly to him and be sure that Annette wouldn’t throw her letter into the garbage can.

“So, Mr. Swernbach. Are you Stephen Swernbach?”

“No. That is my father. I am Andrew, currently acting CEO, pending whenever he wishes to take over the business.”

Elaine pulled her bag closer to her face so that she could stare into it. She could spy a few cookie wrappers that she’d left in her bag, meaning to dump them. Of all days to carry the garbage bag, it had to be on the day she was meeting the CEO.

She tried to find the dark blue phone case and when she caught sight of it, she pulled it out and brought the screen to her face, trying to find the record button. “You don’t mind if I record you speaking, right?”

“In the current circumstance, I don’t think you could record any other way.”

She swiped left as she tried to find an app that would do the work.

“Let me help with that.”

He grabbed the phone from her, then returned it, placing it in her hands so that his large hands covered hers and hers cradled the phone. She felt like he held on for a second too long or maybe she imagined it because she liked the warm feeling of his hands.

“We may begin, Miss Johnson.”

“You said you’re acting until your dad chooses to work, but Annette said he was ill.”

“He says he’s ill.”

“I don’t understand.”

“That’s a family matter.”

Elaine squeezed her phone. She wished she could see properly. She wanted to read the emotions on his face instead of staring at the blurry thing that looked like the passenger seat headrest.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.”

“You were unaware. Next question.”

“Which of the Swernbachs would I go to if I wanted to make a book proposal?”

“What is the proposition?”

“A book about the CEO. About the company. Its past. Its future. Its plans.”

“You’re not a spy trying to steal company secrets, are you?” he asked.

“What? No, why would you think that?”

“I’m just kidding. You look so tense, Miss Johnson, and I’m the one on the hot seat, relax.”

Elaine took a deep breath. Anything could go wrong from here. She had not come prepared with questions because she wasn’t sure she would see him. She did not want to ask the wrong thing the way she’d asked about Mr. Stephen.

“Okay, can we start over?”

“As you wish, but I’m really interested in hearing about this proposition now.”

“This is the main reason I am here. I work for ROI Penn. We’re a publishing and ghostwriting company.”

Andrew cut in, excitement evident in his voice. “You write for ghosts?”

“No, no, we write for authors, and they take the credit.”

“I know. Another joke, Miss Johnson. Just relax.”

“Do I really look that tense?”

His hands covered hers as he pried them free from the chair’s edge. “Just take it one word at a time, and we’ll be fine.”

“Thanks.” She didn’t pull her hands out of his. “So, CEO books are all the range now. Not only do they offer a great marketing tool, they also help to boost the company image and sales. You must have seen Larry Chick’s book, right?”

“The sun that never sets?”

“Yes. That book brought in over 30 million dollars in sales for them and helped his business expand their reach through the comments that people made.”

“So, you want me to write a book?” He squeezed her hand. “I must warn you, Miss Johnson. I’m not a very adept writer.”

“That’s where we come in. You tell the story and we write the book for you. We do the marketing and the editing and packaging and everything else. You don’t have to worry your head about a thing.”

He was silent for a moment and Elaine pulled her hand out of it and dropped the phone on her lap. She must have said something to upset him or maybe she didn’t pitch the idea the right way.

“It’s okay if you don’t see the need to.”

“I haven’t rejected your proposal yet. I will think about it. For now, let’s just focus on replacing your glasses.” He let her hand fall to the seat and she drew it to herself, wondering why she found his touch so calm and intoxicating.