What a fucking shame—and a nightmare for Sloan. Why was she passed over in favor of Rawson’s oldest son? Because he’s male? Because he’s the heir apparent? Because she’s illegitimate? “I’ve spoken to him a bit. He seems very…busy. And Karly sounds like a truly enthusiastic assistant.”
“I’m sorry. Was he getting fucked or blown?”
Her straightforward question takes me aback. “Blown.”
“Of course. Less effort required on his part.” She sighs. “Please excuse that. It’s not typical of executive behavior at Reservoir.”
I’m sure, or nothing would ever get done. And right now, Rawson’s organization is our most serious, on-the-rise competitor. “Your org structure?”
Suddenly, my temporary inbox pings with a new delivery. She’s already sent me an org chart—a temporary one with Shane’s name in the CEO spot. Below that, I see five unfamiliar names, one each in the boxes for VP of Finance, Tech, HR, Marketing, and Management. Below that is a collection of directors in smaller but similar capacities. Under those, I finally spot Sloan’s name. She’s the manager of a technical team that shepherds new products and services to market while liaising with both Finance and Marketing. In other words, she has a ton of responsibility but none of the glory or pay.
“I just received your email. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Things are…shifting frequently, so I can’t promise the organization will look like this tomorrow.”
And that frustrates her. I hear it in her voice. “When did you join Reservoir?”
“Three years ago.”
“Have you been in the same position all that time?”
“No. I started in an entry-level job on the Finance team. But my first boss said I was overqualified, so he—”
“Why?” And if that’s true, why was she hired in the first place?
“I have a double degree in economics and finance, along with an MBA. I was working a job one step up from clerical.”
Holy cow. Maybe the better question is, why did she take that job? I’m all for people earning their promotions and proving their worth before being rewarded, but even then she probably had more practical knowledge about running a business than most of the organization. And Bruce Rawson allowed HR to hire her before shuttling her into a dark corner of his company like a dirty little secret?
Then again, maybe that’s exactly how the man sees her. After all, Shane Rawson being interim CEO proves that not everyone is expected to work their way up in the company.
“That’s impressive,” I praise.
And it is. She has more degrees than me, and since she’s younger than Rogan, she’s probably in her mid-twenties.
“Thank you. When I first joined Reservoir, I spent nine months assisting the assistant manager on one of the Finance teams. Then Smith, the VP over Technical Solutions, hired me. I was in that job for a year before I was promoted again, mostly so the organization could take advantage of my interdisciplinary knowledge. Recently, Smith promoted me again. So here I am.”
“Thanks for the perspective.”
“Well, it’s only enough for you to know I’m not the firm’s mover and shaker. I can introduce you to those who are.”
Either she’s being modest or someone—Shane? Bruce himself?—has convinced her she’s not important. Because they want her contained but not seen? If that’s the case, why does she stay?
Whatever. I need to focus on stopping Reservoir from pursuing Wynam. “That would be fantastic. Should I call one of them to get the most recent annual report once it’s done?”
“Yes. Perez is over Finance, as you can see. He would be best, but he’s had some unfilled positions in key spots for a while. I know HR is working on that, but with the holidays and Bruce Rawson’s absence, I’m afraid positions have been filled more slowly than usual.”
Even if Perez has vacancies on his team, I don’t see why he can’t rally his existing troops to get things done. Should I chalk up the inaction to laziness or rebellion? I doubt Bruce would have suffered slackers, but because Shane doesn’t care, maybe Perez is showing his bureaucratic resistance to their new leader?
“Understood. What kind of new products and services are you working on now?”
“There are more than a few, and I’m afraid I have a meeting in three minutes with Smith. I’ll see about compiling a list of proposed expansion projects, timelines, and associated budgets when I get a few minutes.”
“That would be very helpful. I’ll look over everything you’ve sent, and I’m sure I’ll have more questions.”
“I can direct you to the person best able to answer them. Have a good day, Jeremy.”
Then she’s gone, and I find myself wishing I had a few more minutes with her. I love a good cat-and-mouse game, sure. The chase is in my blood. The kill is one of my greatest thrills in life. It’s a major reason Evan stays glued to me at the hip. But there’s something about this woman. She’s a mystery. Why would she work for her father and give her blisteringly effective best only to be continually undervalued? Advancement opportunities? Does she realize that Shane is an idiot and will be easily overthrown the minute Bruce steps down for good? Or does she have emotional reasons for her seemingly illogical decisions?
Since it’s still zero-dark-thirty in Maui, I set my phone aside and turn off my bedside lamp. I’ll need a few more hours of sleep if I’m going to be productive today.
But my brain won’t shut down. Questions about Sloan keep whirling in my head.
Twenty minutes and a frustrated punch of my pillow later, I grunt and fling myself out of bed, then march to my home office down the hall. Sighing, I sit, wrench open my laptop, and indulge the curiosity I shouldn’t.
It takes a few minutes and a few searches, but I finally find information on Bruce Rawson’s illegitimate daughter. Sloan Meghan O’Neill, twenty-five. She did her undergrad studies at the University of North Texas and got her MBA from UT Arlington. Good schools but not great. She amassed her fair share of student loans—lots of people have—but she’s been diligently paying them down since the minute she graduated. Her mother drowned in a freak scuba-diving incident six weeks before she finished her graduate studies. Tough fucking break. Sloan has no social media accounts, which is both interesting and unusual. No dating profiles, either. Pictures of her are impossible to find.
For the first time in a long time, the internet has created more questions than answers for me. My gut tells me she might be the one hurdle between my success and failure on Evan’s behalf. I’ll need to stay on my toes when I talk to her. Since she’s smart, she’ll most likely look up Jeremy McBride, too. She’ll see a good-looking SOB with a slightly checkered social media presence during his college years. She’ll find some factoids about him, so if she asks me personal questions about family or friends, I’ll have to respond accordingly.
This is going to be an interesting challenge.
Is that the only reason you’re still dwelling on your conversation with her?
Of course. I’m not looking to get laid. I can do that whenever I want.
But how often do you meet a woman you can talk to? Who speaks your language?