Next One Is a Babe

Cindy hastily thanked Otis for dropping her back to the company even though he had somewhere else to be. He laughed it off and said affably, "There's no need to thank me for this. Besides, we dragged you out for lunch, so it's only right that one of us drops you back. Now, go on and get back to work. I have to get going."

With that, he put the car into drive and pulled away.

Cindy took in a deep breath to steady herself. Then, she turned to walk into the lobby of the company building.

Presently, there were a couple of employees who stood there; they had seen Cindy getting down from Otis' car and talking to him afterward for a few minutes or so. Naturally, they began to sneak meaningful glances at her the moment she passed through the lobby.

Since she had grown used to this, Cindy ignored them and hurried over to the elevator, but she had only just come to a stop in front of a pair of tightly-shut elevator doors when Mary came over with a bunch of folders in hand. She must have just settled quite the workload.

When she saw Cindy, she immediately said, "Come here and take the executive elevator."

The communal elevators were all stuck on other floors, and Cindy was already waiting for one of them to arrive on the first floor. However, Mary reached out and grabbed her by the arm. Then, she hauled her into the executive elevator as she said," It's fine. Mr. Kraufmann said that you can take this elevator if you're ever in a rush."

Cindy resisted the urge to frown at this. Otis was giving her far too much privilege, and he was really looking out for her. Based on this factor alone, she wagered that he and Gary were actually close friends. Did he ever stop to think how uncomfortable I'd be to be receiving special treatment, though?

In the end, she sighed in resignation and watched as the doors of the elevator closed before her, and she made her way up the building with Mary.

When she got to her office and returned to her desk, she let out a slow breath. Most people would be delighted to have taken the executive elevator, but it wasn't the case for her. She was a little flustered by it, if not just a twinge guilty for enjoying the privilege.

All things considered, she thought she was being rather absurd as well. However, she couldn't stand how Otis was so devoted to looking out for her, and it put her in the spotlight more often than it helped her blend into the rest of her co-workers.

It didn't take long before her peers returned to the office as well. Everyone had their own work cut out for them, but there were a few who wouldn't mind a little bit of escapism in the form of gossip.

Cindy sat at her desk and tried to get some work done, but at that moment, the sound of rolling wheels approached her. Soon, a figure slowly came into her peripheral view, and the person giggled mischievously as she asked, "I heard that you went out for lunch with Mr. Kaufmann today. Come on, tell me what he's like."

Cindy turned to look at the girl next to her a little disapprovingly. She didn't feel like talking about her superior with others, but since the girl had asked, it would do Otis little credit if she didn't vouch for his personality. As such, she said impassively, "He's a very nice and approachable man, and he's different from how we usually see him."

The girl raised a curious brow when she heard this and mused, "That's a bit hard to imagine. Also, I can't believe you actually went out for lunch with him, though I did hear that there was someone else who joined the both of you."

Cindy nodded, but she wasn't sure if she should bring up Gary's name. After all, no one here knew that she only got her apprenticeship because he had pulled some strings with the company, and though not everyone would have necessarily heard of him, she didn't want his reputation to be affected if his act of pulling strings got out.

With that in mind, she said, "He's a friend of Mr. Kaufmann's, and they were going to have a meal when Mr. Kaufmann decided to invite me along."

The girl beside her didn't dwell much on this and merely nodded at the explanation. "I see. Well, did Mr. Kaufmann mention anything about work to you?"

"No," Cindy replied quickly. "Why would he? This is a huge company, and I'm sure there are far more important matters than our apprenticeship that he has to take care of."

The girl nodded slowly in agreement, and she seemed a little disappointed that nothing exciting had come from this conversation.

That said, Cindy wasn't sure what answers she was expecting either; after all, she had nothing interesting to offer. It was amusing how everyone here believed she had a wealth of secrets when she had none at all.