C13

The next morning, Maya awoke to an empty bed beside her, stretching lazily from the comfort of her sheets as she glanced over at the clock and saw that she still had half a day left before she had to get ready to leave. She stretched out her arms and legs, feeling the warmth of the blankets against her skin. A smile appeared on her lips and her eyes twinkled with delight as she closed them and snuggled deeper into her pillow, imagining how nice it would be to lie there for hours without having to do anything at all except relax and sleep... And she would have gotten that wish had it not been for the knock on the door and the sound of the bell ringing before long. She groaned inwardly, pulling herself from her blissful slumber while rolling over on her side away from the disturbance outside. She glanced over at the clock again and then looked over to see that her cell phone had been placed neatly on the table at the headboard end of the bed. She grabbed the device and opened up the calendar application; noticing that she had missed two calls from a number that she didn't recognize. She dialed back the number immediately and held it up for Dan to hear.

"Hello?"

"...Hey Maya!" The voice on the other line was unmistakably familiar. Maya squinted, looking around the room for the source of the voice. "What are you doing awake? I called you yesterday evening but got your voicemail..." Maya heard shuffling in the background followed by the sound of keys jingling together as the voice continued speaking, "...and today too! Are you okay? Where've you been all night...? Oh man... So sorry to bother you again but I was wondering if you had any idea where you'd go or what you might do once this project is over? Do you know anybody that has a job that needs somebody with experience in business development and marketing management... You're so smart, Maya! You can help me with my startup company! Please let me hire you to work for us..."

Maya sighed in exasperation. That sounded more like a sales pitch than a sincere request. After all, the caller had asked to speak with her several times previously and she politely declined the opportunity both days because she figured that it wasn't worth her time. Now that she was listening to him ask for a second time in one day, she wondered if he somehow managed to track down the information that she gave him in the previous call. However, it was highly unlikely that he found out about her current location by using GPS technology from her cell phone unless she was actually carrying the device with her and leaving it in plain sight. Still, she wasn't surprised by the caller's persistence; after all, she hadn't seen or heard from the guy since last week when they had their first conversation. He must have been checking in on her periodically, hoping to finally catch her in the moment of weakness that allowed her to talk to him and offer to lend him a helping hand. Unfortunately for him, she refused to be pressured into taking on extra responsibilities and decided that she preferred to focus on herself rather than take on additional work commitments. If she were going to give anyone a chance to help her out, she'd rather choose someone who genuinely cared about her and wanted to be a good friend to her, even if that meant sacrificing a few dollars on the side. Besides, the money she'd earn from her position wouldn't pay off her debts anyway, so what difference would the additional income make? None at all. She doubted that she'd be able to afford any of the properties that she was interested in buying anytime soon either.

Maya put her phone aside and turned to look at Dan, lying naked beside her on the bed with his chest rising and falling slowly as he breathed in deeply through his nose and exhaled out of his mouth. His face was completely relaxed and peaceful as he slept peacefully while clutching the blanket tightly with his right arm, leaving the rest of his body exposed to view. Maya smiled, turning over on her back to stare at him while rubbing her chin against the top of his bare shoulder. She felt warm inside knowing that he was here with her and that she had a whole afternoon to enjoy in the company of such a wonderful man. For now, she planned on keeping it that way and enjoying the peace and quiet, not bothering to wake him and instead staying there and getting some much needed rest herself.

When she woke up later, she went straight to the bathroom to wash up, shower, brush her teeth and fix her hair before coming back to the bedroom to grab a pair of clothes, a sweater, a jacket, her purse and car keys before heading downstairs to the lobby to meet her ride outside. They had agreed upon meeting early in the morning at 7:30AM in order to ensure they had plenty of time to get ready before departing from the hotel. When she walked outside, she noticed her driver standing by the curb with a smile on his face and holding a sign with 'Danielle' written on it in large block letters, just like he promised she'd receive in advance. She waved goodbye to the receptionist, who had greeted them with a cheerful welcome during check-in and was waving back enthusiastically while watching Maya walk over to greet the man waiting patiently for her. Before Maya could say anything or even get close enough to thank the driver for driving her all the way to Boston and for agreeing to come pick her up this morning, she spotted another unfamiliar vehicle parked along the street in front of the building. She stopped abruptly and watched as the passenger door swung open and a middle aged man climbed out, walking towards them confidently with a big grin across his face. As the driver approached Maya and introduced himself, Maya recognized the stranger as her new mentor. It seemed that she would be working closely alongside him throughout the duration of this project and was already scheduled to spend quite a lot of time with him while attending meetings at various locations around town over the course of three full days starting today. At least he didn't seem too bad to look at or too scary to work with... Not like the others in her group did. She didn't want to judge him based solely on a quick glance though; perhaps she was just being too harsh on everyone involved considering how nervous and unsure of herself she had been when she had first met him in person. In fact, judging by the way he carried himself, she couldn't help but think that this might actually be an exciting challenge for her after all... Even if he didn't happen to be exactly who she had been expecting.

As they made their way toward the SUV, she tried to remember everything that was discussed regarding the details of this particular project when they first spoke over the phone in order to make sure she was prepared to answer questions and provide the required information as necessary. Her mind raced over every detail, recalling conversations that she had overheard while listening in on her coworkers' discussions about projects that she'd never been part of personally, but knew enough about to pretend like she understood what was going on. This is how things always happened before; whenever something unexpected occurred or whenever she faced a challenge for which she wasn't entirely familiar with the requirements and processes, the only thing that remained constant was that the people around her expected her to do whatever it took to keep the ball rolling regardless of the obstacles or barriers that stood in the way... Whatever it takes...

Once inside the SUV, the driver shut the door behind them and started the engine while Maya settled comfortably into the leather seats and glanced over to see the man sitting beside her with one leg stretched out and propped up on the seat in front of him. He glanced up briefly, smiling broadly as he caught Maya staring at him. His gaze moved quickly between hers as if he wanted to confirm whether she was paying attention. Maya kept her eyes trained firmly ahead as the vehicle sped forward, passing traffic on its way out of the parking lot. As they pulled onto the road in the direction of downtown Boston, the man began talking. He explained to Maya why he'd picked this specific place to stay overnight while also describing the amenities within the hotel and nearby areas where she could go shopping for food and supplies. He pointed out restaurants that he recommended that she visit while in town and mentioned the local attractions that she should definitely see at some point. She listened attentively and responded appropriately as he spoke, trying to avoid making eye contact with him and attempting not to show any signs of hesitation or discomfort. The less that was said about the subject at hand, the better...

The journey lasted longer than expected due to heavy traffic and other delays that resulted in them arriving almost forty minutes late, forcing them to rush in order to arrive on time for the initial conference. Maya's heart beat faster when she saw the tall glass office building in the distance as the vehicle entered the area around it. There were many vehicles lined up along the streets, indicating that most likely everybody was rushing to get ready for a meeting that would begin shortly. Traffic slowed down significantly as the car made its way through the congested street, causing her pulse rate to increase further until she finally arrived at a small circular drive situated at the front entrance. She exited the vehicle as instructed, following the instructions from the driver and entering the elevator without delay. Inside the elevator, she pressed the button for the sixth floor, hoping to reach the designated meeting room in time to greet the team members on time. As they rode up, she leaned against the wall next to the window, peering outside in search of her destination.

Finally, the doors opened and she stepped out into a large open space filled with people wearing business attire. Some of them were standing in clusters near the windows, conversing quietly among themselves while others sat alone at desks facing away from each other, preparing for upcoming meetings. She scanned the crowd and her eyes landed on a couple of familiar faces immediately, including those belonging to several of her colleagues from previous jobs that she'd worked for. A few seconds passed and she realized that these were probably all part of the same group that had requested her participation on this particular project. Although she hadn't spoken to any of them since she left, it didn't surprise her to learn that they still remembered who she was. After all, it wasn't uncommon for former employees to attend meetings and participate in important events like this, especially when they hadn't gone out of their way to try and make contact afterward...

She approached the desk located at the end of the long row of workstations and placed her bag on a chair to her immediate right, removing her shoes and placing them neatly on a shelf underneath the desk. Just then, she spotted two men approaching the front desk together. One of them was a short muscular black man with dreadlocks, dressed in slacks and a collared shirt. The other man was taller, with wavy brown hair worn short with a receding hairline. Both were clean shaven with dark skin. The shorter man reached into his pocket to retrieve a set of keys while the larger man looked directly into Maya's eyes. He was the one that called her name earlier and was presumably the man whom she would be working with for the duration of the assignment. His intense expression softened slightly once he noticed that she was looking in his direction, but she was unable to read anything else beyond that because he continued to speak to the woman behind the counter.

"I'm sorry Ms. Danielle," he apologized apologetically. "You'll have to wait here while I let them know that you've arrived."

Before the receptionist could respond, he turned around to leave, taking the keys from the lady at the front desk while he motioned Maya to follow him. Together, the trio made their way to an office suite located on the far side of the large open space. As soon as they reached the doorway, he unlocked the door and ushered her inside before shutting the door behind her. She followed him into the room and took a moment to adjust to the dim lighting, feeling somewhat awkward and uncomfortable at being in this particular place so early. She wasn't sure why he insisted on bringing her here so early and decided to ask rather than risk upsetting anyone by asking later, although the fact that it was already 8AM suggested that maybe nobody else had yet to arrive for the meeting anyway.

After turning off the lights overhead and locking the door behind him, he closed the blinds before sitting down behind the desk. Maya stood silently beside him while he checked his watch repeatedly as he waited for somebody to appear. Minutes passed before she heard someone walking across the hall before opening the door to enter the room and find him seated behind the desk. Maya glanced over at the newcomer while remaining silent and keeping her eyes focused straight ahead. Her eyes widened momentarily as she took notice of the man's appearance, realizing that she recognized him from somewhere. It took a minute before she recalled seeing his picture while researching her prospective employer online before accepting the job offer. It seemed that there had been no mistake; this was the very man she had seen in the pictures.

When the last door in the hallway was shut, the man standing in front of the desk spoke to him for a brief second. She listened carefully to hear what they discussed in order to determine whether they would need to introduce her or not, however neither of them mentioned anything about her presence in any capacity and instead simply went straight into introductions for everyone present except for Maya who was left out of the conversation completely. Once everyone was properly introduced and they all shook hands to officially greet one another, he informed the others in attendance about how impressed he was by all of their hard work and dedication to ensuring the success of the project. Then they all sat down to discuss the details of the plan and decide on a schedule for accomplishing certain tasks. They agreed that everything would happen according to the original timeline that was initially proposed, but that it might take longer than anticipated since it wouldn't be possible to complete all aspects of the task in just four days. In response, the manager told them not to worry about anything and reassured them that he'd do whatever it takes to ensure that they succeeded at their objectives. The meeting lasted for approximately half an hour and ended without any mention of Maya or any discussion pertaining specifically to her role in the operation.