Chapter 10.1
Kim and I talked about the fun each of us had with our bed partners as we went through all our normal morning routines. Kim spoke highly of both Mary and Shelly as she showered. She took a break from talking as she was blow drying her hair, but when she was finished she picked up where she left off and talked non-stop while she applied the little bit of makeup she wore. Before I left the bathroom, I told Kim how happy I was that she had such wonderful time with Mary and Shelly. I never got to tell her how much I enjoyed my time with Terri and Jenna, but I figured I would do that on the way to work. Before leaving our bedroom I shook Jenna and told her it was time to get up.
On our way down the hall, Kim stopped to wake up Becky and Lisa, telling them it was time to get up and get ready for work. She told them Jenna was in our room just waking up as well. Both of them smiled and mumbled "Good morning" while they groggily put their feet over the edge of the bed and stood up wiping the sleep from their eyes. Both Kim and I returned their morning sentiment.
We found Terri, Mary and Shelly sitting at the kitchen breakfast counter drinking coffee. Terri jumped up and immediately poured Kim and I a cup of coffee. We sat down and started fixing our coffee while Terri stood at the stove and made two egg and cheese omelets with wheat toast. Within a couple of minutes Terri placed our breakfast in front of us then sat down to drink her own coffee and talk to us.
Kim told Terri, "I'm going into work this morning, however, when Hanna calls to let you know when she is being released from the hospital, I want you to call me and I'll take a taxi over to the hospital and meet Shelly."
Shelly said, "I will be bringing the unmarked car to the hospital. But I'll be in full uniform."
Kim asked Terri, "What bedroom do you want Hanna to have?"
Terri thought for a moment then replied, "I think the bedroom next to mine will be perfect for her. I'll have Debbie and Ashley go through the room and make sure it's cleaned thoroughly and ready for her."
Kim reminded Terri that Ted and Marion along with their expanded crew would be working around the house today and all of them will be nude so it would be hard to shield Hanna from all the nude people. Kim said, "We'll just have to play it by ear."
As Kim and I were finishing our breakfast, Jenna, Lisa, and Becky came downstairs and everyone greeted them with, "Good morning."
All three of them smiled saying "Good morning." Jenna looked at Terri and asked, "Terri, would you make us some eggs and toast. We'll get some OJ out of the refrigerator."
Terri smiled as she stood up saying, "I made mom and dad an egg and cheese omelet; do any of you want one?"
All three girls replied, "I'd like one please."
Once again, Terri stood at the stove and within a few minutes she placed an omelet on each plate. Jenna operated the toaster and made the toast, buttered it and placed some on each plate. All three girls stood at the counter, picked up a plate and carried it to the table to sit down to eat.
I stood up and said, "Come on darling, we need to hit the road so we can be ahead of all the traffic."
Terri got up and stood by the door leading out to the garage and waited for us to walk over to her before she reached out and hugged and kissed both of us.
Our trip to work started silently, but that only lasted a few minutes. Kim told me she was a little bit nervous. She said, "I hope Ted has most of the system up and running later today so we can see what's going on outside our home. I am worried about our safety and what might happen if one of the people find out we have both girls at our house."
I looked over at Kim and said, "Honey, we are safer than any other family. We have two professional police officers staying at our home who are excellent marksmen and I'm positive they will make sure we are protected. Not only that, Ted is only a radio call away and if anything happens, he will come with screaming squad cars. If it will make you feel any better, I will stop by the gun shop on my way home tonight and buy a couple of hand guns so we can have them in our bedroom."
Kim looked at me saying, "I think that's a great idea, Dan. We live in the country and it would be good to have something to use just in case."
That being settled, our conversation turned to the weekend and the fun we had. Kim said, "I love you so much for the lifestyle we live. I am living the life that other wives can only dream about."
I looked at Kim and said, "Honey most husbands would give their left nut to be able to dip their wicks in as many pussies as I have. I only have to you to thank for allowing me to live a lifestyle most husbands wouldn't dare to dream about for fear they would lose their nuts completely while they slept. It's a good thing your name isn't Lorena Bobbitt."
Both of us burst out laughing and Kim added, "No problem honey, we won't be calling you stubby any time soon."
I told Kim how much fun I shared with Terri and Jenna last night. She let me ramble on for some time before she said, "Dan, both of our daughters love us very much and it is only fair that we show them how much love we have for them."
We arrived at Kim's office and I leaned over and kissed her before she got out of the car and closed the door. I sat in the car and watched her lovely ass as she walked up to the glass doors. Kim turned and saw me, then blew me a kiss before she disappeared inside.
Slowly I drove over to my office. I parked in my designated parking spot and as I got out of my car a co-worker named Hank came walking over to me and said, "I heard the rumor over the weekend that congratulations are in order."
I smiled at him questioning, "What are you talking about?"
He smiled at me saying, "Don't tell me the old man kept you in the dark?"
I smiled back at him saying, "The only thing I know is there's a meeting first thing this morning to fill a position."
Hank smiled at me and asked, "Are you sure that's all you know?"
I smiled back at Hank as we walked into the building and said, "See you at the meeting."
Meanwhile at home Terri finished fixing breakfast for herself, Mary and Shelly and they sat down to eat together. Mary said, "This still feels so strange being here and being nude and knowing that I'm being paid for working."
Shelly relied, "I know. This is so surreal sitting here naked with our client and enjoying breakfast and yet at any moment we could be called upon to go into full swing and have to draw our weapons and protect her. I'm having the same feeling as you are, Mary."
Terri smiled, saying, "When I came here to interview with the Morrisons for my housekeeping position and they informed me they were nudists, I was nervous too and once I took off my clothes I had the strangest of feelings, but I wanted to get away from Harold so bad, I was willing to do anything. However, now I think it is strange to put clothes on after living here as a nudist. I don't know how Dan and Kim do it so easily."
The doorbell sounded and Terri stood up along with Shelly and walked to the door. Both of them walked to the door and Shelly took her position behind the door while Terri opened it and saw Ashley and Debbie standing on the porch. Terri invited them in and the four of them walked towards the kitchen. Terri poured both of the newcomers a cup of coffee and they sat down and joined the conversation.
Terri said, "Before I forget it, we want you to go through the room next to mine even though it hasn't been used. Please clean it and make sure everything is set in the bathroom. Hanna is coming here later today and we are going to give her that room to use."
Both Ashley and Debbie were surprised that Hanna was getting out of the hospital so soon and both of them expressed their sentiment that this was the best place for Hanna to be because Mary and Shelly were here to protect her.
The doorbell sounded again and Terri stood up along with Shelly and walked to the door. Shelly took her place behind the door and Terri opened it and saw a man standing on the porch she didn't know. The man asked, "Is Terri Powell at home?"
Terri had a cold shiver run through her body when she heard his words, yet somehow she remained calm and with a straight face she was able to say, "Just a moment please, I'll get her for you. Please, wait right here."
Terri quickly closed and clicked the lock on the door as Shelly dashed to the office, calling quietly to Mary as she ran. As both of them were putting on their shorts and tee-shirts only Mary put on her pistol belt. Shelly called Ted on her radio and used the code word they had set up between them. Terri quickly went to the kitchen and got Ashley and Debbie and took them upstairs to her room and closed and locked the door as prearranged.
Shelly went to the front door and opened it while Mary stood with her gun drawn behind the door. Shelly smiled at the young man waiting on the porch and said, "Hi, I'm Terri Powell, how may I help you?"
The young man looked Shelly up and down then said, "Hi, I was asked to come here and talk to you and see if you were ok."
Shelly replied, "Well as you can see I am doing very well, but who asked you to come here and see me?"
The young man said, "I don't know his name, but he knows you and he wanted me to talk to you, then stop and see him."
Immediately Shelly threw the young man to the porch and Mary came out and the two of them cuffed him. The whole time the young man was being cuffed he continued to scream, "What are you doing? I only came here to talk to you!"
Seconds later Ted came to a screeching halt in front of the steps and ran up on the porch and grabbed the young man and stood him up. Immediately Ted started questioning him asking, "What's your name?"
The young man said, "John. John Harrison. Why am I being handcuffed and thrown around?"
Ted asked, "Why are you here?"
"A guy asked me to stop by and see if Terri Powell was doing ok." John replied.
"Where's that guy now?" Ted demanded?
"He dropped me off and then said he would wait for me down by the road." John said quickly.
Ted looked towards the road then said, "Watch him, I'll be right back."
Ted jumped in his car and drove down the driveway where he got out and looked around. He knew it was a lost cause because even though he came in his own private vehicle, he would have given himself away by the way he was driving. Ted drove back up to the house and called for a patrol car to come out and pick up the young man. While they were waiting Ted read the young man his Miranda Rights and asked him if he understood his rights. John stuttered, "Yes, I understand, but what I don't understand is why I'm being arrested for just asking Terri if she was ok?"
The patrol car arrived and Ted gave his officer some instructions, then the officer left with John sitting in the back seat. Ted made a phone call to one of his other officers and instructed him to bring a marked car out and park on the south side of the driveway on the edge of the road. Ted said, "I'll be awaiting your arrival so I can give you further instructions."
Ted called Marion and said, "I want you to call Pete and Jeff and tell them I'm tied up with police work and ask them if they can work for me today. Tell them it is of the upmost importance that we have the system up and running today."
Marion asked what happened and Ted gave her a brief description of the events and then told her he had to go to the office and interview the prisoner. Then he told Marion to pull in as many favors as she could to get the job done. Marion told Ted not to worry, she will do her best.
Ted turned to Mary and Shelly saying, "Apparently someone has figured out that Terri is here. The only way I can figure out is someone must have been watching the hospital and followed Kim back here yesterday. For the rest of the day, I want both of you to wear at least the shorts and tee-shirts you have on now and wear your pistol belts. I want both of you to be ready for anything. Just because we nabbed an innocent kid they sent up to the door doesn't mean that we are out of the woods on this. Don't let Terri go outside or at least out in the front of the house and if she goes out on the deck, one of you will have to be with her. Mary, I am going to put you on the clock, but please don't put it down as overtime."
Mary looked at Ted saying, "Don't worry, Sergeant Johnson, we have the house covered. No one is coming in here unless we have your approval."
Ted looked at Shelly and said, "Go up and tell Terri it's all clear and tell her I want to talk to her.
When Terri came back down with Ashley and Debbie, Ted was waiting. He looked at Ashley and Debbie then asked, "Do both of you know what's going on? Do you remember what Dan said the other night at the party about being on the lookout?"
Ashley was quick to say Terri had told them someone she didn't know came to the door asking for her. That's why we went to her room and stayed there until Shelly came up to get us.
Ted said, "Neither of you are in any danger. I have two officers here in the house and I have another officer at the end of the driveway who is going to stop anyone on this road and interview them."
"Terri, I need you to give me a list of anyone who you are expecting to come here to work today, other than my crew." Ted said.
Terri walked to the kitchen breakfast counter and wrote down, Tony, Patty, Beth and Barbie Williams and Bill Smith. Then she handed the list to Ted. Terri said, "That's all I'm certain about but others may show up."
Looking at Terri, Ted said, "This is a start. Jack is going to be sitting at the end of the driveway and I'm going to have him stop anyone who comes down the road and interview them. I will tell him to let these people in automatically, but all others will have to answer some questions and be approved by you before they are allowed in. I know it's going to get crazy here in a little while, but my crew will be coming to work. I don't want any of them working nude because I don't want Jack to see them.
Terri said, "Under the circumstances Dan and Kim would understand. I will put on a pair of shorts and tee-shirt and I have something for Ashley and Debbie to wear too."
Ted shrugged his shoulders saying, "Terri, it doesn't matter to me, because one of my officers will be near you at all times and when Ashley and Debbie get ready to clean the deck, I can have Mary or Shelly out there with them."
"I need to go down and talk to Jack and fill him in and give him instructions. For now, keep all the doors locked." Ted said as he walked towards the door.
Ashley said, "Well Deb, this isn't getting any work done." Both girls turned and headed up the stairs.
As they were walking up the stairs Mary called out, "Let Shelly or me know if you have to go outside."
Marion arrived with an entourage of workers about fifteen minutes later. Ted came back up to the house briefly and gathered everyone around. Once he had everyone's attention he said, "We had a situation here about an hour ago, so it is imperative that we have this system in and running before we leave tonight. I know I'm asking a lot, but I will pay you the extra money to stay until the job it done. I have to go down to the station and interview our prisoner, so I will be gone for awhile. If any of you need anything, let Marion know and she will get it for you immediately. Does anyone have any questions?"
No one said anything so Ted smiled and said, "Thank you in advance for getting this done."
As Ted was leaving, the guy with the ditch witch arrived so Ted got out of his car and talked to him. Ted told the guy, "The main lines to the gate will be run along the edge of the driveway. I also want you to check with Marion and the other workers before you load the equipment back on the trailer, they may want to hard wire somewhere else.
As Ted was getting in his car, Pete and Jeff his system wiring specialists arrived, so Ted got back out of his car and waved at his officer to let them enter. Ted explained that the lines would be buried and they could start with some of the monitor wiring. He said they added more cameras and another monitor. Both guys told Ted not to worry about a thing and to go take care of business.
Ted waved at Jack as he drove down to the end of the driveway. Jack walked over and got his last minute instructions before Ted drove off, heading for the station.
I got off the elevator at my floor and when I stopped by my secretary's desk she smiled at me and said, "Congratulations."
I asked Beth to follow me as I walked into my office, leaving my door ajar. Beth stepped into my office and once I was seated at my desk I asked her to close the door and sit down. When she was seated she looked at me and frowned. I asked, "Beth, why are you frowning at me?"
Beth said, "I'm sad because you'll be leaving me."
I sat patiently behind my desk and tried to piece together anything that has been said to me lately to give me a hint of what's going on. When I couldn't come up with an intelligent reason why Beth was sad, I finally asked her, "Beth, you have been an excellent secretary for me, why will I be leaving you?"
Suddenly Beth gasped and covered her mouth when she realized I had no idea what she was talking about. Beth started apologizing for letting the cat out of the bag. I looked at Beth, saying, "You haven't let anything out of the bag......yet, but you've been a great secretary for me, I'm not leaving you anywhere."
Beth suddenly started bouncing up and down in her seat and clapping her hands and giggled. I watched her for a few seconds with astonishment. Finally I said, "You are the second one to congratulate me this morning so I will be very happy to hear why I am receiving the congratulations."
Beth said, "After you left on Friday the news spread through the office like wild fire that you are being promoted, this morning, at the meeting." I sat quietly for a moment trying to think of what position I was being promoted to; I was clueless.
Beth said, "I'll get your coffee and cheese Danish so you can snack before your meeting."
I thanked Beth and once she was out of the office I called Kim. Her secretary said she was unavailable but she would have her call me as soon as she was finished. I hung up the phone and sat in my chair trying to remember all the conversations of the past week or month. Nothing I came up with gave me any clue. Beth came back with my coffee and my cheese Danish and put them on the edge of my desk. Then she said, "The papers you wanted me to complete are in that folder on your desk and ready for your signature." I thanked Beth and she walked out of the office.
I had about a half an hour before my meeting so I opened the folder and reviewed the letters and files. One by one I signed everything and placed them back in the folder then pressed the intercom to inform Beth the papers were ready to be sent out. Beth came in and picked up the folder saying, "You need to leave for your meeting soon."
I smiled and said, "My schedule says the meeting is in board room number four."
Beth said, "That's correct, sir."
As I walked into the board room there were already a number of people there and many of them came up to me and shook my hand and smiled at me. A couple of the guys, who I recommended for promotion, shook my hand a little longer than normal.
As the time of the meeting grew nearer, I walked down the table to my normal seat and placed my portfolio on the table. I stood near my chair and greeted some of my other colleagues. About a minute before the meeting was scheduled to start I took my seat and opened my portfolio and prepared for the meeting. Tom Banks, our CEO walked into the room and everyone grew quiet. Tom took his place at the head of the table and he started with all the meeting preliminaries. Once all that was out of the way, he dropped the gavel and started the meeting. Anyone who has attended a corporate meeting knows there is a procedure that must be followed. When the reports were finished we went into the unfinished business before we started into the new business.
At the top of the new business was the corporate restructuring due to an upcoming Initial Public Offering - Tom has decided to go public and sell shares of the company. The IPO will make Tom a very rich man, and Chairman of the new Board of Directors.
Tom called a couple of guys and their spouses, one at a time, to the front of the room and introduced them before announcing the new position to which each was promoted. One of the guys was given my position before I even left it. I thought it was strange, but I waited. Then Tom called me up to the front of the room and when I stood up I buttoned my jacket and walked up and shook hands with Tom and smiled at him.
I saw Tom signal with his head and I looked around and saw Kim being escorted up the side of the room towards us; Kim was smiling broadly at me. Tom shook hands with Kim and without a script Tom summarized a little information about both of us.
Finally the big moment came when Tom said, "Because of Dan Morrison's programs which have saved the company plenty of money and his leadership in the company, the Board of Directors and I have chosen Mr. Morrison to be our new Chief Executive Officer because we believe the Board of Directors needs someone like him with the hands on experience sitting at the head of the table. As of this moment, Dan Morrison is being promoted to that position."
There was a loud round of applause and Kim pulled my face to hers and kissed me passionately right in front of everyone. For the first time my mind went blank, I couldn't think and my body was on autopilot, even when I raised my hand and smiled at my colleagues. When everyone quieted down I stood in front of them then turned to Tom Banks asking, "What makes you think I want to take the position of CEO?"
Tom was smiling from ear to ear until he heard me and then he frowned at me asking, "Do you want me to hire your wife as CEO?"
I smiled at Tom saying, "No, that's ok, Kim has her hands full where she is, so I guess I'll take the position. But we will have to talk about the benefits once the surprise wears off."
I looked around then asked, "Is my secretary, Beth Thompson, in the room?"
Sitting in the chair at the back of the room I saw Beth wave at me. I said, "Beth, please come up here for a few seconds."
Beth made her way up the side of the packed room until she was standing next to me. I turned to Tom and said, "Beth Thompson has to be part of the package."
Jerry Wilber, the guy who took my old job was sitting in chair behind me so I asked Jerry to stand up and step forward. He was smiling until I said, "Beth Thompson has been my secretary for six years and although you were promoted to my old position, I want you to know I'm taking Beth with me as I move up. In other words, you'll have to find your own "gal Friday" who knows you as well as Beth knows me."
Beth reached up and hugged me as she whispered in my ear, "Thank you, Dan."
Tom picked up the gavel and banged it on the table and in a rough voice said, "I recess this meeting for thirty minutes. Please take the time to congratulate our new management staff."
I turned to Kim and immediately asked, "When did you find out about this?"
Kim looked at me saying, "A couple of weeks ago I got a phone call asking me to be here this morning. I forgot all about it until last Thursday when my secretary reminded me. Then over the weekend we had so much going on I forgot to mention it. I had to have a company car bring me over here this morning after I walked into my office and Trudy reminded me about this appointment. I didn't know what it was about, honest, Dan."
Suddenly Kim and I were busy shaking hands and we didn't get any more time to talk. Then Tom banged his gavel and said, "Five minutes we are going to start our meeting." I told Beth I wanted her to stay. I hugged Kim and told her I loved her before she left the room.
I looked at Tom and said, "I hope it's ok that I bring along the one person who has helped me tremendously. Beth is an asset to me that I'm not ready to give up."
Tom smiled saying, "That's part of the reason you were given this new position without any other upper management person even being considered. Dan, you've always taken care of your people and we respect that. It's a plus in our book."
Tom continued by saying, "Over the last couple of weeks we have had a crew working night and day preparing your new office. They finished it over the weekend and I'll have a crew start moving you to your new office this afternoon."
Tom looked at Beth and said, "We are ahead of Dan knowing that he wouldn't leave you behind, so you will be moved to your new office this afternoon as well. However, there are some things that you will have to do to become an executive secretary. I have all the confidence in the world that you will be able to meet the requirements."
Beth thanked both Tom and me, and then Tom said, "Take a seat right up here on this side of the table for the rest of the meeting."
Beth and I took the seats that Tom had indicated we sit in. To say that I was stunned by the recent developments is an understatement. Physically I was at the meeting and I knew what went on, but my mind wandered and the possibilities seemed endless. When the meeting was finished Tom came over to me and said, "We are going to have a Board of Directors meeting at eleven thirty in board room two. The meeting will extend through lunch time so we will have it served in the board room. I want you to take Beth to my office and see my Ms. Summers because both of you have some papers to fill out. A local police officer is coming in about fifteen minutes and he or she will fingerprint both of you. The board wants to double check to make sure neither of you have any history. We will be running your prints through the FBI as well as a couple other agencies."
As Beth and I turned to leave Tom asked, "Oh by the way, do both of you have valid passports?"
I turned and said, "I have my passport."
Beth replied, "I have my passport also."
When Tom let the subject drop, Beth and I walked out of the board room and headed towards Tom's office. The now former CEO and Chairman of the Board of our company had two levels before we were able to reach the office of his executive secretary Brenda Summers. When we walked into the office she stood and came around her big mahogany desk and shook our hands. Brenda Summers looked at both of us and talked to us with a very surly attitude but I let it pass.
Beth and I were still filling out some paperwork when Brenda informed us the officer was there to take our fingerprints. He came into the office and set up him electronic fingerprint scanner. After each of us cleaned our finger tips with alcohol wipes he scanned our prints and then had us fill out and sign some forms.
Once the officer left and we were finished filling out our paperwork, Brenda asked us to follow her with the same strange tone of voice she used when we arrived. We walked out in the hall and turned to the right. Brenda stopped short and said to Beth, "Ms. Thompson, we have a short list of secretaries for you and Mr. Morrison to review."
Brenda turned again and walked through the first door and said, "Ms. Thompson, this office will be used by the secretary you choose."
We walked through a second door and Brenda walked to the big mahogany desk which was the same size as the one in her office. Again Brenda turned and looked at us saying, "Ms. Thompson, this is your office. Your desk is equipped with everything you will need to start. Your personal items will be moved up here this afternoon from your old office. You will be given a chance later today to go to your old desk and clean out any other items which the movers leave behind. I will remind you there will be meetings for both of you the rest of the afternoon. I have taken the privilege of making your calendar through tomorrow. Do either of you have any questions?"
I looked Beth and asked her if she would step out of the office for a second and I would call her back in when I needed her. Beth looked at me, and then walked through the door which we had entered moments before. Looking Brenda straight in the eye I said, "I have been in management most of my life and have never treated any of my employees the way you've treated Ms. Thompson and me since we arrived in your office. I'm not sure what the problem is, but it seems you resent Ms. Thompson moving up so rapidly. Less than an hour ago I was promoted to Chief Executive Officer for this company and my secretary was part of the package deal to which Tom agreed. I realize your boss, Tom Banks, is my superior, but I will tell you that your condescending attitude towards me and Ms. Thompson should change and change at this moment. If it doesn't, then you are dismissed and Ms. Thompson and I will finish the tour on our own and I will have a talk with Tom before the next meeting. The choice is yours, Ms. Summers, what's it going to be?"
I watched as Brenda's facial expressions change immediately and she opened her mouth to say something to me but I held up my hand and stopped her. Looking over her shoulder towards the door I said, "Ms. Summers would you kindly go to the door and ask Ms. Thompson to come back in here."
Beth walked back into the room and when she was standing near me I nodded to Brenda and she said, "Please accept my apologies for my previous attitude. I am accustomed to working alone. I will make the adjustment because we will be working closely together. Thank you for your understanding."
I smiled at Brenda and she attempted a small smile back. Walking to one of the doors in Beth's new office, Brenda opened it and stepped inside a beautifully decorated bathroom equipped with a very large glass enclosed shower. Brenda looked at Beth saying, "Ms Thompson, you will need to bring in some of your personal items and keep them in your bathroom, along with a small travel kit of personal bath items. There will be times when we will need to rush to catch a flight, so having some personal items in a travel pack will be handy. Over here is a small walk in closet where you can keep a few business suits and leisure clothes. We have some drawers built in for you to keep your under clothes. You will need a small travel bag to keep in the closet for those times when we will have to travel. You won't have to worry about the liquid limits of the TSA because when we fly we will be doing so on a corporate jet and won't have to go through the lines."
Brenda paused and asked again, "Do either of you have any questions which I can answer at this time?"
Beth asked, "How often will we be flying straight out of the office without notice?"
Brenda smiled saying, "It will depend on the type of business trip you will be going on really."
Beth asked, "May I look at what you have in your bathroom and closet so I will have some idea what I should have in mine?"
Brenda replied, "Yes, I will show you right after we tour Mr. Morrison's office. If both of you will follow me, I will show you his office now."
"Mr. Morrison, you should have some personal bath items for your bathroom, plus a small travel kit with those items in it as well. Each of you should have at least three days worth of clothes, both business and leisure, hanging in your closet. Like Ms. Thompson's closet, there are drawers for you to put some underwear and socks in. You will also need to keep a small travel bag in your closet. Mr. Banks, for example, keeps four suits and four pair of shoes in his closet at all times.
Turning to Beth, Brenda smiled saying, "Ms. Thompson, I don't want to sound like I am getting personal but you will need to know what Mr. Morrison wears and doesn't wear because most of the time you will be the one who packs his travel bag for him along with your own. I have to do that for Mr. Banks all the time so it's no big deal."
Beth looked up at me and with a smile she said, "Ms. Summers, may I call you Brenda and you can call me Beth?"
Brenda looked at Beth and said, "I guess it would be fine as long as we are in private like this, but Mr. Banks prefers we refer to each other and Mr. or Ms. when we are in public or at a meeting."
Beth smiled and said, "I understand and that will be fine. Tell me Brenda, you said you have to pack Mr. Banks's travel bag when you get ready to travel and I will have to do the same thing for Dan? What exactly do we pack for them?"
Brenda smiled while looking at me and then back at Beth saying, "Most times they will be in a meeting right up until it is time to walk out the door and go to the airport, so it will be our responsibility to make sure we have our bags packed, and then we will have to do the same for them. That's why I said it will be important for you to know how Mr. Morrison dresses and what he wears or doesn't wear from suits to pajamas. You are now an executive secretary and you won't just be shuffling papers any more.
Your secretary will be the paper shuffler and you will be keeping Mr. Morrison's calendar and making sure he has what he needs for the meeting. When both of you are traveling, it is important you make sure Mr. Morrison is dressed to impress. I suggest you and Mr. Morrison get together so you can find out more about him, because on business trips it will be your responsibility to make sure he is ready. There is a lap top on your desk with all the important information on it. I suggest you take that home with you tonight and familiarize yourself with the programs and the information contained in it. You can make your own personal files, but you will find there is a calendar already started with a link on the desktop. There is also a company cell phone with all the latest features and attachments on your desk. You will need to familiarize yourself with all the features and apps on that as well. You will need to set up a corporate email address. I can help you with all this as we move through the rest of today and into tomorrow."
Beth was a little wide eyed as she listened to Brenda speak but she seemed to take it all in stride. Beth couldn't get over the fact that she will be responsible for packing my travel bag and handling my underwear. Finally Beth said, "Let's go in and tour Dan's office."
Brenda pushed open the double wooden doors and both Beth and I stood looking into what most would call a small apartment. There was a desk over by the windows in the corner of the room. I looked at all the leather chairs and couches then I saw the bar on one side of the room. Beth stepped in and said, "WOW! This certainly isn't like your old office, Dan."
Although my heart was trying to leap out of my chest, I kept a straight face and said, "Brenda, would you be so kind and give us a tour?"
Brenda said, "I've been in and out of here over the past couple of weeks while they were working to get this ready for you so I know where everything is. On that wall over there is a Murphy bed and that door over there leads to your private entrance. Your bathroom is over here."
Brenda opened a door to my bathroom and all three of us stepped inside then Beth almost fainted when she saw the hot tub in the corner and a glass shower as big as hers on the other back corner. The walk in closet door was in the wall, near the sink. I walked into the closet see how much room I had for clothes then pulled out some of the built-in drawers to see how big they were.
I walked out of the closet into the bathroom then back into my office with Brenda and Beth closely behind me. I walked over to the bar and found out it was a fully stocked wet bar with a small refrigerator full of beer. Some of the beer was imported. I walked around my new desk and by the time I got behind it Brenda and Beth had caught up with me. Brenda took over and showed me my new laptop and cell phone and suggested I take them home and get familiar with them because I had a full schedule of meetings for the next two days. I sat down in my chair and Brenda showed both of us the phone system and said it will take some getting used to but a list of numbers were under the phone. Brenda showed both of us that my desk was equipped with a digital voice recording device. She demonstrated how it worked and showed me where my supply of CDs was located. Brenda picked up the remote control on my desk and pushed a couple of buttons and a panel on the wall near the bar opened up and a very large flat screen TV appeared. She handed me the control and showed me the buttons. I closed the panel and said I would check that out later.
I looked at my watch and we had about fifteen minutes to get to board room two for our next meeting. Brenda said, "Beth, if you want to sit near me during the next meeting, I can show you what you will need to know and do for Mr. Morrison."
If both of you are interested, I would like to set up appointments starting early tomorrow morning for both of you to interview the perspective candidates for secretary. "I will leave their personnel folders on your desk, Mr. Morrison."
I looked at Brenda and asked, "Am I limited to the short list of secretaries you have compiled or is the list open so can I add some of my own candidates to that list?"
Benda looked at me and said, "We complied the short list of more experienced secretaries so you can get up and running faster, but if you have other secretaries in mind that you would like to interview, please leave a list of names with my secretary and we will pull their folders for your review."
We walked back towards Brenda's office and once inside Brenda asked us to follow her. She opened her bathroom door and we walked in and saw it was set up just like Beth's. Brenda opened her walk in closet and Beth followed Brenda inside while I went back into Brenda's office. When the girls emerged from the bathroom I looked at my watch and said, "We need to get going."
I picked up my portfolio from Brenda's desk and Brenda handed Beth a legal pad and the three of us headed for our meeting. When we reached the board room many of the board members were already there. There was a table along the side wall loaded with food.
Tom saw all three of us walk into the board room together so he walked right over to us and asked, "Ms. Summers, did you get the paperwork and the fingerprints done?"
Brenda smiled at Tom saying, "Yes sir, Mr. Banks, and we had some time so I showed both Mr. Morrison and Ms. Thompson their new offices. I also explained about having clothes in their offices so we could fly out at a moments' notice. Mr. Morrison and Ms. Thompson are thinking of adding some names to the short list of secretaries we compiled, so I will have their folders ready for the morning interviews."
Tom looked at Brenda smiling and replied, "Ms. Summers, I probably don't need to tell you this, but Mr. Morrison has his own way of doing things and he gets great results, so whatever Mr. Morrison asks from you, please consider it as if I am asking."
I turned to Tom and said, "Ms. Summers was and is a great help. She gave Ms. Thompson and me a lot of information in a very short time."
Tom turned to me and said, "Mr. Morrison, I have arranged seats for the three of you to sit together. You will be on my right side and Ms. Summers and Ms. Thompson will sit together so they can gather the information you will need later. By the way, both of you will need to have some clothes in a travel bag with you tomorrow because I believe we will be taking a trip tomorrow afternoon. We will confirm everything later today."
"Let's get this meeting started." Tom said.
Tom stood at the head of the table and banged his gavel one time and everyone went to their seat and sat down. An agenda was lying on the table in front of each person. At the top of the agenda I saw was the introduction of the Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Dan Morrison. I listened to Tom as he opened the meeting and introduced each of the board members who stood or just waved when their name was called. Then he named off his executive secretary before he named my executive secretary. Finally after a brief summary of my accomplishments with the company Tom said, "Here is our new CEO, Mr. Dan Morrison. Mr. Morrison, please say a few words."
I stood up and looked around the room and noticed all eyes were on me. I didn't know what they wanted to hear or what they had heard in order to vote me into my new position. I started off by thanking the board for putting their trust in me and told them I will give them a hundred and ten percent. Then after a brief pause I started talking about the business. I kept going for about five minutes without any notes or figures to back up what I was saying. When I finished I thanked the board again. I turned to Tom and said, "Thank you for the opportunity to serve this company in this capacity."
Everyone stood and applauded and Tom let them go on for a minute or so before he raised his hand and everyone took their seat again. Tom looked at me and then looked at each of the board members before saying, "Now you can understand why I wanted Mr. Morrison as CEO. He will bring a lot of hands on experience to us and the best part is; Mr. Morrison has a way with those people who work for him. The productivity in each department he headed has been above and beyond any other. The people that work for Mr. Morrison have always praised him for being a great boss."
The next item on the agenda, Tom said, "Mr. Morrison, Ms. Thompson, each of you have a wage package in front of you. While I conduct some miscellaneous business, I would ask that each of you review your package. Both of you may use the office to my right so you can have a place that's quiet."
Beth and I picked up our packages and walked over to the office door. Once inside, each of us took a seat and opened our envelope. I immediately scanned the first few pages for any irregularities but there weren't any. I flipped over to the next page and saw a very healthy eight figure salary. I looked at the numbers of my very generous six figure expense account and my six figure entertainment account. My travel and my accommodations were automatically covered by the corporation. My severance package was another handsome figure which I marveled over. I closed my paperwork and looked at Beth who was sitting wide eyed with her mouth open.
I asked Beth, "Do you understand everything in your package?"
Beth looked at me saying, "Dan, do you know what's in my package for wages?"
I smiled at Beth saying, "I don't know right now, but I will when we get ready to review your performance. I'm willing to bet you like your raise, don't you?"
Beth looked back at me saying, "This isn't a raise, they're giving me a bank."
I smiled and calmly said, "Turn to the next to the last page and tell me if you understand everything that's on there."
Beth got up and walked over to me and sat down next to me and said, "Not really. I see the salary then there are all these other items with large dollar amounts behind them."
I went through and explained what each item was. Then I looked at Beth and asked, "Are you sure you want to do this with me? After listening to Brenda it is apparent, you will be called upon to do things for me and with me that you've never done before."
Beth looked at me saying, "Dan, I've always appreciated the way you treated me since I came to work for you. This morning I thought you were going to move up and leave me behind and to tell you the truth, I didn't know if I was going to stay with the company if you had done that."
I looked Beth in the eyes and said, "We don't have time to talk now, but tell me if you want to go on this journey with me and if you don't there won't be any hard feelings and I will have to choose two secretaries tomorrow morning. I want you to stay, but you must know that we will have a much different life in this position."
"You can say that again! I'm going to stay with you through thick or thin and we are going to be a forceful team." Beth said.
I said, "If we do travel tomorrow, then we will have a chance to talk more. Remember you have to learn about me so you can be there with whatever I need."
Beth said, "I promise to do my best."
We put everything back in our envelopes and I opened the door and held it for Beth to enter first. She walked over to her chair and sat down. Tom continued to talk for a few more minutes and then he looked at us and asked, "Mr. Morrison, Ms. Thompson, the package being offered to you is reviewable after six months if you each accept your wage package. Mr. Morrison, do you accept your wage package as stated?"
I looked at Tom and said, "I accept the position as Chief Executive Officer and I accept the wage package as stated with the review in six months."
Tom looked at Beth and she said, "Yes, Mr. Banks, I accept the position as Mr. Morrison's executive secretary and also accept the wage package as stated with the review in six months."
On our way down the hall, Kim stopped to wake up Becky and Lisa, telling them it was time to get up and get ready for work. She told them Jenna was in our room just waking up as well. Both of them smiled and mumbled "Good morning" while they groggily put their feet over the edge of the bed and stood up wiping the sleep from their eyes. Both Kim and I returned their morning sentiment.
We found Terri, Mary and Shelly sitting at the kitchen breakfast counter drinking coffee. Terri jumped up and immediately poured Kim and I a cup of coffee. We sat down and started fixing our coffee while Terri stood at the stove and made two egg and cheese omelets with wheat toast. Within a couple of minutes Terri placed our breakfast in front of us then sat down to drink her own coffee and talk to us.
Kim told Terri, "I'm going into work this morning, however, when Hanna calls to let you know when she is being released from the hospital, I want you to call me and I'll take a taxi over to the hospital and meet Shelly."
Shelly said, "I will be bringing the unmarked car to the hospital. But I'll be in full uniform."
Kim asked Terri, "What bedroom do you want Hanna to have?"
Terri thought for a moment then replied, "I think the bedroom next to mine will be perfect for her. I'll have Debbie and Ashley go through the room and make sure it's cleaned thoroughly and ready for her."
Kim reminded Terri that Ted and Marion along with their expanded crew would be working around the house today and all of them will be nude so it would be hard to shield Hanna from all the nude people. Kim said, "We'll just have to play it by ear."
As Kim and I were finishing our breakfast, Jenna, Lisa, and Becky came downstairs and everyone greeted them with, "Good morning."
All three of them smiled saying "Good morning." Jenna looked at Terri and asked, "Terri, would you make us some eggs and toast. We'll get some OJ out of the refrigerator."
Terri smiled as she stood up saying, "I made mom and dad an egg and cheese omelet; do any of you want one?"
All three girls replied, "I'd like one please."
Once again, Terri stood at the stove and within a few minutes she placed an omelet on each plate. Jenna operated the toaster and made the toast, buttered it and placed some on each plate. All three girls stood at the counter, picked up a plate and carried it to the table to sit down to eat.
I stood up and said, "Come on darling, we need to hit the road so we can be ahead of all the traffic."
Terri got up and stood by the door leading out to the garage and waited for us to walk over to her before she reached out and hugged and kissed both of us.
Our trip to work started silently, but that only lasted a few minutes. Kim told me she was a little bit nervous. She said, "I hope Ted has most of the system up and running later today so we can see what's going on outside our home. I am worried about our safety and what might happen if one of the people find out we have both girls at our house."
I looked over at Kim and said, "Honey, we are safer than any other family. We have two professional police officers staying at our home who are excellent marksmen and I'm positive they will make sure we are protected. Not only that, Ted is only a radio call away and if anything happens, he will come with screaming squad cars. If it will make you feel any better, I will stop by the gun shop on my way home tonight and buy a couple of hand guns so we can have them in our bedroom."
Kim looked at me saying, "I think that's a great idea, Dan. We live in the country and it would be good to have something to use just in case."
That being settled, our conversation turned to the weekend and the fun we had. Kim said, "I love you so much for the lifestyle we live. I am living the life that other wives can only dream about."
I looked at Kim and said, "Honey most husbands would give their left nut to be able to dip their wicks in as many pussies as I have. I only have to you to thank for allowing me to live a lifestyle most husbands wouldn't dare to dream about for fear they would lose their nuts completely while they slept. It's a good thing your name isn't Lorena Bobbitt."
Both of us burst out laughing and Kim added, "No problem honey, we won't be calling you stubby any time soon."
I told Kim how much fun I shared with Terri and Jenna last night. She let me ramble on for some time before she said, "Dan, both of our daughters love us very much and it is only fair that we show them how much love we have for them."
We arrived at Kim's office and I leaned over and kissed her before she got out of the car and closed the door. I sat in the car and watched her lovely ass as she walked up to the glass doors. Kim turned and saw me, then blew me a kiss before she disappeared inside.
Slowly I drove over to my office. I parked in my designated parking spot and as I got out of my car a co-worker named Hank came walking over to me and said, "I heard the rumor over the weekend that congratulations are in order."
I smiled at him questioning, "What are you talking about?"
He smiled at me saying, "Don't tell me the old man kept you in the dark?"
I smiled back at him saying, "The only thing I know is there's a meeting first thing this morning to fill a position."
Hank smiled at me and asked, "Are you sure that's all you know?"
I smiled back at Hank as we walked into the building and said, "See you at the meeting."
Meanwhile at home Terri finished fixing breakfast for herself, Mary and Shelly and they sat down to eat together. Mary said, "This still feels so strange being here and being nude and knowing that I'm being paid for working."
Shelly relied, "I know. This is so surreal sitting here naked with our client and enjoying breakfast and yet at any moment we could be called upon to go into full swing and have to draw our weapons and protect her. I'm having the same feeling as you are, Mary."
Terri smiled, saying, "When I came here to interview with the Morrisons for my housekeeping position and they informed me they were nudists, I was nervous too and once I took off my clothes I had the strangest of feelings, but I wanted to get away from Harold so bad, I was willing to do anything. However, now I think it is strange to put clothes on after living here as a nudist. I don't know how Dan and Kim do it so easily."
The doorbell sounded and Terri stood up along with Shelly and walked to the door. Both of them walked to the door and Shelly took her position behind the door while Terri opened it and saw Ashley and Debbie standing on the porch. Terri invited them in and the four of them walked towards the kitchen. Terri poured both of the newcomers a cup of coffee and they sat down and joined the conversation.
Terri said, "Before I forget it, we want you to go through the room next to mine even though it hasn't been used. Please clean it and make sure everything is set in the bathroom. Hanna is coming here later today and we are going to give her that room to use."
Both Ashley and Debbie were surprised that Hanna was getting out of the hospital so soon and both of them expressed their sentiment that this was the best place for Hanna to be because Mary and Shelly were here to protect her.
The doorbell sounded again and Terri stood up along with Shelly and walked to the door. Shelly took her place behind the door and Terri opened it and saw a man standing on the porch she didn't know. The man asked, "Is Terri Powell at home?"
Terri had a cold shiver run through her body when she heard his words, yet somehow she remained calm and with a straight face she was able to say, "Just a moment please, I'll get her for you. Please, wait right here."
Terri quickly closed and clicked the lock on the door as Shelly dashed to the office, calling quietly to Mary as she ran. As both of them were putting on their shorts and tee-shirts only Mary put on her pistol belt. Shelly called Ted on her radio and used the code word they had set up between them. Terri quickly went to the kitchen and got Ashley and Debbie and took them upstairs to her room and closed and locked the door as prearranged.
Shelly went to the front door and opened it while Mary stood with her gun drawn behind the door. Shelly smiled at the young man waiting on the porch and said, "Hi, I'm Terri Powell, how may I help you?"
The young man looked Shelly up and down then said, "Hi, I was asked to come here and talk to you and see if you were ok."
Shelly replied, "Well as you can see I am doing very well, but who asked you to come here and see me?"
The young man said, "I don't know his name, but he knows you and he wanted me to talk to you, then stop and see him."
Immediately Shelly threw the young man to the porch and Mary came out and the two of them cuffed him. The whole time the young man was being cuffed he continued to scream, "What are you doing? I only came here to talk to you!"
Seconds later Ted came to a screeching halt in front of the steps and ran up on the porch and grabbed the young man and stood him up. Immediately Ted started questioning him asking, "What's your name?"
The young man said, "John. John Harrison. Why am I being handcuffed and thrown around?"
Ted asked, "Why are you here?"
"A guy asked me to stop by and see if Terri Powell was doing ok." John replied.
"Where's that guy now?" Ted demanded?
"He dropped me off and then said he would wait for me down by the road." John said quickly.
Ted looked towards the road then said, "Watch him, I'll be right back."
Ted jumped in his car and drove down the driveway where he got out and looked around. He knew it was a lost cause because even though he came in his own private vehicle, he would have given himself away by the way he was driving. Ted drove back up to the house and called for a patrol car to come out and pick up the young man. While they were waiting Ted read the young man his Miranda Rights and asked him if he understood his rights. John stuttered, "Yes, I understand, but what I don't understand is why I'm being arrested for just asking Terri if she was ok?"
The patrol car arrived and Ted gave his officer some instructions, then the officer left with John sitting in the back seat. Ted made a phone call to one of his other officers and instructed him to bring a marked car out and park on the south side of the driveway on the edge of the road. Ted said, "I'll be awaiting your arrival so I can give you further instructions."
Ted called Marion and said, "I want you to call Pete and Jeff and tell them I'm tied up with police work and ask them if they can work for me today. Tell them it is of the upmost importance that we have the system up and running today."
Marion asked what happened and Ted gave her a brief description of the events and then told her he had to go to the office and interview the prisoner. Then he told Marion to pull in as many favors as she could to get the job done. Marion told Ted not to worry, she will do her best.
Ted turned to Mary and Shelly saying, "Apparently someone has figured out that Terri is here. The only way I can figure out is someone must have been watching the hospital and followed Kim back here yesterday. For the rest of the day, I want both of you to wear at least the shorts and tee-shirts you have on now and wear your pistol belts. I want both of you to be ready for anything. Just because we nabbed an innocent kid they sent up to the door doesn't mean that we are out of the woods on this. Don't let Terri go outside or at least out in the front of the house and if she goes out on the deck, one of you will have to be with her. Mary, I am going to put you on the clock, but please don't put it down as overtime."
Mary looked at Ted saying, "Don't worry, Sergeant Johnson, we have the house covered. No one is coming in here unless we have your approval."
Ted looked at Shelly and said, "Go up and tell Terri it's all clear and tell her I want to talk to her.
When Terri came back down with Ashley and Debbie, Ted was waiting. He looked at Ashley and Debbie then asked, "Do both of you know what's going on? Do you remember what Dan said the other night at the party about being on the lookout?"
Ashley was quick to say Terri had told them someone she didn't know came to the door asking for her. That's why we went to her room and stayed there until Shelly came up to get us.
Ted said, "Neither of you are in any danger. I have two officers here in the house and I have another officer at the end of the driveway who is going to stop anyone on this road and interview them."
"Terri, I need you to give me a list of anyone who you are expecting to come here to work today, other than my crew." Ted said.
Terri walked to the kitchen breakfast counter and wrote down, Tony, Patty, Beth and Barbie Williams and Bill Smith. Then she handed the list to Ted. Terri said, "That's all I'm certain about but others may show up."
Looking at Terri, Ted said, "This is a start. Jack is going to be sitting at the end of the driveway and I'm going to have him stop anyone who comes down the road and interview them. I will tell him to let these people in automatically, but all others will have to answer some questions and be approved by you before they are allowed in. I know it's going to get crazy here in a little while, but my crew will be coming to work. I don't want any of them working nude because I don't want Jack to see them.
Terri said, "Under the circumstances Dan and Kim would understand. I will put on a pair of shorts and tee-shirt and I have something for Ashley and Debbie to wear too."
Ted shrugged his shoulders saying, "Terri, it doesn't matter to me, because one of my officers will be near you at all times and when Ashley and Debbie get ready to clean the deck, I can have Mary or Shelly out there with them."
"I need to go down and talk to Jack and fill him in and give him instructions. For now, keep all the doors locked." Ted said as he walked towards the door.
Ashley said, "Well Deb, this isn't getting any work done." Both girls turned and headed up the stairs.
As they were walking up the stairs Mary called out, "Let Shelly or me know if you have to go outside."
Marion arrived with an entourage of workers about fifteen minutes later. Ted came back up to the house briefly and gathered everyone around. Once he had everyone's attention he said, "We had a situation here about an hour ago, so it is imperative that we have this system in and running before we leave tonight. I know I'm asking a lot, but I will pay you the extra money to stay until the job it done. I have to go down to the station and interview our prisoner, so I will be gone for awhile. If any of you need anything, let Marion know and she will get it for you immediately. Does anyone have any questions?"
No one said anything so Ted smiled and said, "Thank you in advance for getting this done."
As Ted was leaving, the guy with the ditch witch arrived so Ted got out of his car and talked to him. Ted told the guy, "The main lines to the gate will be run along the edge of the driveway. I also want you to check with Marion and the other workers before you load the equipment back on the trailer, they may want to hard wire somewhere else.
As Ted was getting in his car, Pete and Jeff his system wiring specialists arrived, so Ted got back out of his car and waved at his officer to let them enter. Ted explained that the lines would be buried and they could start with some of the monitor wiring. He said they added more cameras and another monitor. Both guys told Ted not to worry about a thing and to go take care of business.
Ted waved at Jack as he drove down to the end of the driveway. Jack walked over and got his last minute instructions before Ted drove off, heading for the station.
I got off the elevator at my floor and when I stopped by my secretary's desk she smiled at me and said, "Congratulations."
I asked Beth to follow me as I walked into my office, leaving my door ajar. Beth stepped into my office and once I was seated at my desk I asked her to close the door and sit down. When she was seated she looked at me and frowned. I asked, "Beth, why are you frowning at me?"
Beth said, "I'm sad because you'll be leaving me."
I sat patiently behind my desk and tried to piece together anything that has been said to me lately to give me a hint of what's going on. When I couldn't come up with an intelligent reason why Beth was sad, I finally asked her, "Beth, you have been an excellent secretary for me, why will I be leaving you?"
Suddenly Beth gasped and covered her mouth when she realized I had no idea what she was talking about. Beth started apologizing for letting the cat out of the bag. I looked at Beth, saying, "You haven't let anything out of the bag......yet, but you've been a great secretary for me, I'm not leaving you anywhere."
Beth suddenly started bouncing up and down in her seat and clapping her hands and giggled. I watched her for a few seconds with astonishment. Finally I said, "You are the second one to congratulate me this morning so I will be very happy to hear why I am receiving the congratulations."
Beth said, "After you left on Friday the news spread through the office like wild fire that you are being promoted, this morning, at the meeting." I sat quietly for a moment trying to think of what position I was being promoted to; I was clueless.
Beth said, "I'll get your coffee and cheese Danish so you can snack before your meeting."
I thanked Beth and once she was out of the office I called Kim. Her secretary said she was unavailable but she would have her call me as soon as she was finished. I hung up the phone and sat in my chair trying to remember all the conversations of the past week or month. Nothing I came up with gave me any clue. Beth came back with my coffee and my cheese Danish and put them on the edge of my desk. Then she said, "The papers you wanted me to complete are in that folder on your desk and ready for your signature." I thanked Beth and she walked out of the office.
I had about a half an hour before my meeting so I opened the folder and reviewed the letters and files. One by one I signed everything and placed them back in the folder then pressed the intercom to inform Beth the papers were ready to be sent out. Beth came in and picked up the folder saying, "You need to leave for your meeting soon."
I smiled and said, "My schedule says the meeting is in board room number four."
Beth said, "That's correct, sir."
As I walked into the board room there were already a number of people there and many of them came up to me and shook my hand and smiled at me. A couple of the guys, who I recommended for promotion, shook my hand a little longer than normal.
As the time of the meeting grew nearer, I walked down the table to my normal seat and placed my portfolio on the table. I stood near my chair and greeted some of my other colleagues. About a minute before the meeting was scheduled to start I took my seat and opened my portfolio and prepared for the meeting. Tom Banks, our CEO walked into the room and everyone grew quiet. Tom took his place at the head of the table and he started with all the meeting preliminaries. Once all that was out of the way, he dropped the gavel and started the meeting. Anyone who has attended a corporate meeting knows there is a procedure that must be followed. When the reports were finished we went into the unfinished business before we started into the new business.
At the top of the new business was the corporate restructuring due to an upcoming Initial Public Offering - Tom has decided to go public and sell shares of the company. The IPO will make Tom a very rich man, and Chairman of the new Board of Directors.
Tom called a couple of guys and their spouses, one at a time, to the front of the room and introduced them before announcing the new position to which each was promoted. One of the guys was given my position before I even left it. I thought it was strange, but I waited. Then Tom called me up to the front of the room and when I stood up I buttoned my jacket and walked up and shook hands with Tom and smiled at him.
I saw Tom signal with his head and I looked around and saw Kim being escorted up the side of the room towards us; Kim was smiling broadly at me. Tom shook hands with Kim and without a script Tom summarized a little information about both of us.
Finally the big moment came when Tom said, "Because of Dan Morrison's programs which have saved the company plenty of money and his leadership in the company, the Board of Directors and I have chosen Mr. Morrison to be our new Chief Executive Officer because we believe the Board of Directors needs someone like him with the hands on experience sitting at the head of the table. As of this moment, Dan Morrison is being promoted to that position."
There was a loud round of applause and Kim pulled my face to hers and kissed me passionately right in front of everyone. For the first time my mind went blank, I couldn't think and my body was on autopilot, even when I raised my hand and smiled at my colleagues. When everyone quieted down I stood in front of them then turned to Tom Banks asking, "What makes you think I want to take the position of CEO?"
Tom was smiling from ear to ear until he heard me and then he frowned at me asking, "Do you want me to hire your wife as CEO?"
I smiled at Tom saying, "No, that's ok, Kim has her hands full where she is, so I guess I'll take the position. But we will have to talk about the benefits once the surprise wears off."
I looked around then asked, "Is my secretary, Beth Thompson, in the room?"
Sitting in the chair at the back of the room I saw Beth wave at me. I said, "Beth, please come up here for a few seconds."
Beth made her way up the side of the packed room until she was standing next to me. I turned to Tom and said, "Beth Thompson has to be part of the package."
Jerry Wilber, the guy who took my old job was sitting in chair behind me so I asked Jerry to stand up and step forward. He was smiling until I said, "Beth Thompson has been my secretary for six years and although you were promoted to my old position, I want you to know I'm taking Beth with me as I move up. In other words, you'll have to find your own "gal Friday" who knows you as well as Beth knows me."
Beth reached up and hugged me as she whispered in my ear, "Thank you, Dan."
Tom picked up the gavel and banged it on the table and in a rough voice said, "I recess this meeting for thirty minutes. Please take the time to congratulate our new management staff."
I turned to Kim and immediately asked, "When did you find out about this?"
Kim looked at me saying, "A couple of weeks ago I got a phone call asking me to be here this morning. I forgot all about it until last Thursday when my secretary reminded me. Then over the weekend we had so much going on I forgot to mention it. I had to have a company car bring me over here this morning after I walked into my office and Trudy reminded me about this appointment. I didn't know what it was about, honest, Dan."
Suddenly Kim and I were busy shaking hands and we didn't get any more time to talk. Then Tom banged his gavel and said, "Five minutes we are going to start our meeting." I told Beth I wanted her to stay. I hugged Kim and told her I loved her before she left the room.
I looked at Tom and said, "I hope it's ok that I bring along the one person who has helped me tremendously. Beth is an asset to me that I'm not ready to give up."
Tom smiled saying, "That's part of the reason you were given this new position without any other upper management person even being considered. Dan, you've always taken care of your people and we respect that. It's a plus in our book."
Tom continued by saying, "Over the last couple of weeks we have had a crew working night and day preparing your new office. They finished it over the weekend and I'll have a crew start moving you to your new office this afternoon."
Tom looked at Beth and said, "We are ahead of Dan knowing that he wouldn't leave you behind, so you will be moved to your new office this afternoon as well. However, there are some things that you will have to do to become an executive secretary. I have all the confidence in the world that you will be able to meet the requirements."
Beth thanked both Tom and me, and then Tom said, "Take a seat right up here on this side of the table for the rest of the meeting."
Beth and I took the seats that Tom had indicated we sit in. To say that I was stunned by the recent developments is an understatement. Physically I was at the meeting and I knew what went on, but my mind wandered and the possibilities seemed endless. When the meeting was finished Tom came over to me and said, "We are going to have a Board of Directors meeting at eleven thirty in board room two. The meeting will extend through lunch time so we will have it served in the board room. I want you to take Beth to my office and see my Ms. Summers because both of you have some papers to fill out. A local police officer is coming in about fifteen minutes and he or she will fingerprint both of you. The board wants to double check to make sure neither of you have any history. We will be running your prints through the FBI as well as a couple other agencies."
As Beth and I turned to leave Tom asked, "Oh by the way, do both of you have valid passports?"
I turned and said, "I have my passport."
Beth replied, "I have my passport also."
When Tom let the subject drop, Beth and I walked out of the board room and headed towards Tom's office. The now former CEO and Chairman of the Board of our company had two levels before we were able to reach the office of his executive secretary Brenda Summers. When we walked into the office she stood and came around her big mahogany desk and shook our hands. Brenda Summers looked at both of us and talked to us with a very surly attitude but I let it pass.
Beth and I were still filling out some paperwork when Brenda informed us the officer was there to take our fingerprints. He came into the office and set up him electronic fingerprint scanner. After each of us cleaned our finger tips with alcohol wipes he scanned our prints and then had us fill out and sign some forms.
Once the officer left and we were finished filling out our paperwork, Brenda asked us to follow her with the same strange tone of voice she used when we arrived. We walked out in the hall and turned to the right. Brenda stopped short and said to Beth, "Ms. Thompson, we have a short list of secretaries for you and Mr. Morrison to review."
Brenda turned again and walked through the first door and said, "Ms. Thompson, this office will be used by the secretary you choose."
We walked through a second door and Brenda walked to the big mahogany desk which was the same size as the one in her office. Again Brenda turned and looked at us saying, "Ms. Thompson, this is your office. Your desk is equipped with everything you will need to start. Your personal items will be moved up here this afternoon from your old office. You will be given a chance later today to go to your old desk and clean out any other items which the movers leave behind. I will remind you there will be meetings for both of you the rest of the afternoon. I have taken the privilege of making your calendar through tomorrow. Do either of you have any questions?"
I looked Beth and asked her if she would step out of the office for a second and I would call her back in when I needed her. Beth looked at me, and then walked through the door which we had entered moments before. Looking Brenda straight in the eye I said, "I have been in management most of my life and have never treated any of my employees the way you've treated Ms. Thompson and me since we arrived in your office. I'm not sure what the problem is, but it seems you resent Ms. Thompson moving up so rapidly. Less than an hour ago I was promoted to Chief Executive Officer for this company and my secretary was part of the package deal to which Tom agreed. I realize your boss, Tom Banks, is my superior, but I will tell you that your condescending attitude towards me and Ms. Thompson should change and change at this moment. If it doesn't, then you are dismissed and Ms. Thompson and I will finish the tour on our own and I will have a talk with Tom before the next meeting. The choice is yours, Ms. Summers, what's it going to be?"
I watched as Brenda's facial expressions change immediately and she opened her mouth to say something to me but I held up my hand and stopped her. Looking over her shoulder towards the door I said, "Ms. Summers would you kindly go to the door and ask Ms. Thompson to come back in here."
Beth walked back into the room and when she was standing near me I nodded to Brenda and she said, "Please accept my apologies for my previous attitude. I am accustomed to working alone. I will make the adjustment because we will be working closely together. Thank you for your understanding."
I smiled at Brenda and she attempted a small smile back. Walking to one of the doors in Beth's new office, Brenda opened it and stepped inside a beautifully decorated bathroom equipped with a very large glass enclosed shower. Brenda looked at Beth saying, "Ms Thompson, you will need to bring in some of your personal items and keep them in your bathroom, along with a small travel kit of personal bath items. There will be times when we will need to rush to catch a flight, so having some personal items in a travel pack will be handy. Over here is a small walk in closet where you can keep a few business suits and leisure clothes. We have some drawers built in for you to keep your under clothes. You will need a small travel bag to keep in the closet for those times when we will have to travel. You won't have to worry about the liquid limits of the TSA because when we fly we will be doing so on a corporate jet and won't have to go through the lines."
Brenda paused and asked again, "Do either of you have any questions which I can answer at this time?"
Beth asked, "How often will we be flying straight out of the office without notice?"
Brenda smiled saying, "It will depend on the type of business trip you will be going on really."
Beth asked, "May I look at what you have in your bathroom and closet so I will have some idea what I should have in mine?"
Brenda replied, "Yes, I will show you right after we tour Mr. Morrison's office. If both of you will follow me, I will show you his office now."
"Mr. Morrison, you should have some personal bath items for your bathroom, plus a small travel kit with those items in it as well. Each of you should have at least three days worth of clothes, both business and leisure, hanging in your closet. Like Ms. Thompson's closet, there are drawers for you to put some underwear and socks in. You will also need to keep a small travel bag in your closet. Mr. Banks, for example, keeps four suits and four pair of shoes in his closet at all times.
Turning to Beth, Brenda smiled saying, "Ms. Thompson, I don't want to sound like I am getting personal but you will need to know what Mr. Morrison wears and doesn't wear because most of the time you will be the one who packs his travel bag for him along with your own. I have to do that for Mr. Banks all the time so it's no big deal."
Beth looked up at me and with a smile she said, "Ms. Summers, may I call you Brenda and you can call me Beth?"
Brenda looked at Beth and said, "I guess it would be fine as long as we are in private like this, but Mr. Banks prefers we refer to each other and Mr. or Ms. when we are in public or at a meeting."
Beth smiled and said, "I understand and that will be fine. Tell me Brenda, you said you have to pack Mr. Banks's travel bag when you get ready to travel and I will have to do the same thing for Dan? What exactly do we pack for them?"
Brenda smiled while looking at me and then back at Beth saying, "Most times they will be in a meeting right up until it is time to walk out the door and go to the airport, so it will be our responsibility to make sure we have our bags packed, and then we will have to do the same for them. That's why I said it will be important for you to know how Mr. Morrison dresses and what he wears or doesn't wear from suits to pajamas. You are now an executive secretary and you won't just be shuffling papers any more.
Your secretary will be the paper shuffler and you will be keeping Mr. Morrison's calendar and making sure he has what he needs for the meeting. When both of you are traveling, it is important you make sure Mr. Morrison is dressed to impress. I suggest you and Mr. Morrison get together so you can find out more about him, because on business trips it will be your responsibility to make sure he is ready. There is a lap top on your desk with all the important information on it. I suggest you take that home with you tonight and familiarize yourself with the programs and the information contained in it. You can make your own personal files, but you will find there is a calendar already started with a link on the desktop. There is also a company cell phone with all the latest features and attachments on your desk. You will need to familiarize yourself with all the features and apps on that as well. You will need to set up a corporate email address. I can help you with all this as we move through the rest of today and into tomorrow."
Beth was a little wide eyed as she listened to Brenda speak but she seemed to take it all in stride. Beth couldn't get over the fact that she will be responsible for packing my travel bag and handling my underwear. Finally Beth said, "Let's go in and tour Dan's office."
Brenda pushed open the double wooden doors and both Beth and I stood looking into what most would call a small apartment. There was a desk over by the windows in the corner of the room. I looked at all the leather chairs and couches then I saw the bar on one side of the room. Beth stepped in and said, "WOW! This certainly isn't like your old office, Dan."
Although my heart was trying to leap out of my chest, I kept a straight face and said, "Brenda, would you be so kind and give us a tour?"
Brenda said, "I've been in and out of here over the past couple of weeks while they were working to get this ready for you so I know where everything is. On that wall over there is a Murphy bed and that door over there leads to your private entrance. Your bathroom is over here."
Brenda opened a door to my bathroom and all three of us stepped inside then Beth almost fainted when she saw the hot tub in the corner and a glass shower as big as hers on the other back corner. The walk in closet door was in the wall, near the sink. I walked into the closet see how much room I had for clothes then pulled out some of the built-in drawers to see how big they were.
I walked out of the closet into the bathroom then back into my office with Brenda and Beth closely behind me. I walked over to the bar and found out it was a fully stocked wet bar with a small refrigerator full of beer. Some of the beer was imported. I walked around my new desk and by the time I got behind it Brenda and Beth had caught up with me. Brenda took over and showed me my new laptop and cell phone and suggested I take them home and get familiar with them because I had a full schedule of meetings for the next two days. I sat down in my chair and Brenda showed both of us the phone system and said it will take some getting used to but a list of numbers were under the phone. Brenda showed both of us that my desk was equipped with a digital voice recording device. She demonstrated how it worked and showed me where my supply of CDs was located. Brenda picked up the remote control on my desk and pushed a couple of buttons and a panel on the wall near the bar opened up and a very large flat screen TV appeared. She handed me the control and showed me the buttons. I closed the panel and said I would check that out later.
I looked at my watch and we had about fifteen minutes to get to board room two for our next meeting. Brenda said, "Beth, if you want to sit near me during the next meeting, I can show you what you will need to know and do for Mr. Morrison."
If both of you are interested, I would like to set up appointments starting early tomorrow morning for both of you to interview the perspective candidates for secretary. "I will leave their personnel folders on your desk, Mr. Morrison."
I looked at Brenda and asked, "Am I limited to the short list of secretaries you have compiled or is the list open so can I add some of my own candidates to that list?"
Benda looked at me and said, "We complied the short list of more experienced secretaries so you can get up and running faster, but if you have other secretaries in mind that you would like to interview, please leave a list of names with my secretary and we will pull their folders for your review."
We walked back towards Brenda's office and once inside Brenda asked us to follow her. She opened her bathroom door and we walked in and saw it was set up just like Beth's. Brenda opened her walk in closet and Beth followed Brenda inside while I went back into Brenda's office. When the girls emerged from the bathroom I looked at my watch and said, "We need to get going."
I picked up my portfolio from Brenda's desk and Brenda handed Beth a legal pad and the three of us headed for our meeting. When we reached the board room many of the board members were already there. There was a table along the side wall loaded with food.
Tom saw all three of us walk into the board room together so he walked right over to us and asked, "Ms. Summers, did you get the paperwork and the fingerprints done?"
Brenda smiled at Tom saying, "Yes sir, Mr. Banks, and we had some time so I showed both Mr. Morrison and Ms. Thompson their new offices. I also explained about having clothes in their offices so we could fly out at a moments' notice. Mr. Morrison and Ms. Thompson are thinking of adding some names to the short list of secretaries we compiled, so I will have their folders ready for the morning interviews."
Tom looked at Brenda smiling and replied, "Ms. Summers, I probably don't need to tell you this, but Mr. Morrison has his own way of doing things and he gets great results, so whatever Mr. Morrison asks from you, please consider it as if I am asking."
I turned to Tom and said, "Ms. Summers was and is a great help. She gave Ms. Thompson and me a lot of information in a very short time."
Tom turned to me and said, "Mr. Morrison, I have arranged seats for the three of you to sit together. You will be on my right side and Ms. Summers and Ms. Thompson will sit together so they can gather the information you will need later. By the way, both of you will need to have some clothes in a travel bag with you tomorrow because I believe we will be taking a trip tomorrow afternoon. We will confirm everything later today."
"Let's get this meeting started." Tom said.
Tom stood at the head of the table and banged his gavel one time and everyone went to their seat and sat down. An agenda was lying on the table in front of each person. At the top of the agenda I saw was the introduction of the Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Dan Morrison. I listened to Tom as he opened the meeting and introduced each of the board members who stood or just waved when their name was called. Then he named off his executive secretary before he named my executive secretary. Finally after a brief summary of my accomplishments with the company Tom said, "Here is our new CEO, Mr. Dan Morrison. Mr. Morrison, please say a few words."
I stood up and looked around the room and noticed all eyes were on me. I didn't know what they wanted to hear or what they had heard in order to vote me into my new position. I started off by thanking the board for putting their trust in me and told them I will give them a hundred and ten percent. Then after a brief pause I started talking about the business. I kept going for about five minutes without any notes or figures to back up what I was saying. When I finished I thanked the board again. I turned to Tom and said, "Thank you for the opportunity to serve this company in this capacity."
Everyone stood and applauded and Tom let them go on for a minute or so before he raised his hand and everyone took their seat again. Tom looked at me and then looked at each of the board members before saying, "Now you can understand why I wanted Mr. Morrison as CEO. He will bring a lot of hands on experience to us and the best part is; Mr. Morrison has a way with those people who work for him. The productivity in each department he headed has been above and beyond any other. The people that work for Mr. Morrison have always praised him for being a great boss."
The next item on the agenda, Tom said, "Mr. Morrison, Ms. Thompson, each of you have a wage package in front of you. While I conduct some miscellaneous business, I would ask that each of you review your package. Both of you may use the office to my right so you can have a place that's quiet."
Beth and I picked up our packages and walked over to the office door. Once inside, each of us took a seat and opened our envelope. I immediately scanned the first few pages for any irregularities but there weren't any. I flipped over to the next page and saw a very healthy eight figure salary. I looked at the numbers of my very generous six figure expense account and my six figure entertainment account. My travel and my accommodations were automatically covered by the corporation. My severance package was another handsome figure which I marveled over. I closed my paperwork and looked at Beth who was sitting wide eyed with her mouth open.
I asked Beth, "Do you understand everything in your package?"
Beth looked at me saying, "Dan, do you know what's in my package for wages?"
I smiled at Beth saying, "I don't know right now, but I will when we get ready to review your performance. I'm willing to bet you like your raise, don't you?"
Beth looked back at me saying, "This isn't a raise, they're giving me a bank."
I smiled and calmly said, "Turn to the next to the last page and tell me if you understand everything that's on there."
Beth got up and walked over to me and sat down next to me and said, "Not really. I see the salary then there are all these other items with large dollar amounts behind them."
I went through and explained what each item was. Then I looked at Beth and asked, "Are you sure you want to do this with me? After listening to Brenda it is apparent, you will be called upon to do things for me and with me that you've never done before."
Beth looked at me saying, "Dan, I've always appreciated the way you treated me since I came to work for you. This morning I thought you were going to move up and leave me behind and to tell you the truth, I didn't know if I was going to stay with the company if you had done that."
I looked Beth in the eyes and said, "We don't have time to talk now, but tell me if you want to go on this journey with me and if you don't there won't be any hard feelings and I will have to choose two secretaries tomorrow morning. I want you to stay, but you must know that we will have a much different life in this position."
"You can say that again! I'm going to stay with you through thick or thin and we are going to be a forceful team." Beth said.
I said, "If we do travel tomorrow, then we will have a chance to talk more. Remember you have to learn about me so you can be there with whatever I need."
Beth said, "I promise to do my best."
We put everything back in our envelopes and I opened the door and held it for Beth to enter first. She walked over to her chair and sat down. Tom continued to talk for a few more minutes and then he looked at us and asked, "Mr. Morrison, Ms. Thompson, the package being offered to you is reviewable after six months if you each accept your wage package. Mr. Morrison, do you accept your wage package as stated?"
I looked at Tom and said, "I accept the position as Chief Executive Officer and I accept the wage package as stated with the review in six months."
Tom looked at Beth and she said, "Yes, Mr. Banks, I accept the position as Mr. Morrison's executive secretary and also accept the wage package as stated with the review in six months."
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