Chapter 2012 - Secret Audit (3)

Chloe was reading the documents and occasionally taking notes on the computer. She was understanding the ins and outs of Blanc from the financial perspective and little by little things were starting to make sense.

Chloe was amazed by some arrangements and she wondered how such a young company (only about three years old) can have so elaborate mechanics. It was everything she learned in her class and much more. Blanc took care of existing needs, and future expansions will be covered with minimal changes while it provided flexibility for swift shifting of resources in case of reorganization. It was amazing.

Of course, Chloe didn't know that the Blanc infrastructure was set up under the guidance of financial experts from the White corp.

Sarah and Aiden benefited greatly from their siblings as Jeff and Sophia helped with finances, legal issues, and business decisions.

Chloe felt that just by reading these documents she was getting a profound knowledge about how a company should run.

A message on the company's chat app appeared on Chloe's screen...

[Matilda]: Lunch?

Chloe noticed that it was close to lunchtime. Matilda has many other friends at work, but she was aware that Chloe is new, so she was being extra accommodating by offering her company. As her neighbor and coworker, Matilda felt somewhat responsible for Chloe.

Chloe glanced nervously toward Noah. Normally, she would just go, but her boss (aka the supervisor) was right there, and she didn't know if it was appropriate to leave. Should she ask him for permission?

"Yes, Chloe?", Noah spoke without looking at her and she wondered (again) if he can read minds or if he has some other power.

For the last few hours, Chloe was focused on the documents and didn't notice that Noah would look at her often, and even when he was facing the screen in front of him, Noah was aware of her presence and would keep an eye on her with his peripheral vision.

"I was wondering when is the lunch break."

Noah's lips lifted into a smile and he turned her way. "I will not starve you, Chloe. There is no need to ask. If you need a break, take it. What will you have for lunch?"

"I don't know yet. I was thinking of meeting a friend…", Chloe's voice drifted away when she saw that Noah's expression became serious. He said that lunch was fine, did he change his mind?

"You are familiarizing yourself with the task and I don't know how long I can be here before I need to tend to other things. Shouldn't you take advantage of my time with you and use every minute to ask questions?"

Chloe thought how that makes sense. "OK. I will grab something quickly and…"

Noah was exasperated. Didn't she get what he said? Obviously not, and he needs to spell it out. "We will have lunch together. What do you want to have?"

"Oh… I'm not picky.", Chloe said and imagined the two of them going out and heading to a restaurant. Considering who Noah is, most of the people know him and they will notice her and… oh, the gossip! "Can we have lunch here?"

"You don't want to eat out?"

"You said it that I should use every minute of you being here, so…", she paused and waited for him to respond.

Noah was fine with that. Actually, just the two of them worked better. He typed something on his computer and Chloe took this opportunity to respond to Matilda: "I'm swamped with work and will eat later. Thanks for thinking of me."

The door of the office opened after a quick knock and two women entered.

Their hairs were lifted into tight buns without a single hair out of place and they wore sharp business suits. Chloe recognized them as two women who were not-so-welcoming in the conference room earlier that day and she gulped softly. Will they reprimand her again? Or will they report to Noah about Chloe's tardiness? 

Two women stood straight in attention, facing Noah, while they didn't spare a single glance at Chloe.

Chloe noticed that the two women look alike. Are they twins? Sisters, definitely.

"Lizzie, Scarlet…", Noah addressed them and gestured to Chloe. "This is Miss Chloe Long. She will be working under me going forward and she has a white badge clearance."

At Noah's words, two women turned to Chloe and bowed a little in greeting.

Chloe wondered what is going on. How come two stern women who scolded her that morning suddenly showed respect? Is it because of the white badge? Or because Noah said that Chloe will work as his report?

Chloe responded with a tight smile. This reminded her of how people would change their attitude toward her at the moment they found out that she is from the Long family. Chloe dislikes people who treat her nicely (or not) without taking the time to get to know her. She is aware that people, in general, don't have the time to make friends, but they could at least be polite from the start. These two women were obviously looking down at Chloe, yet now they are respectful. Unfortunately for Lizzie and Scarlet, this shift in behavior made Chloe dislike them. It does not mean that they can't work together, but they will never be friends. 

Lizzie and Scarlet are Noah's deputies. The two of them are managing the administrative side of Blanc as Noah's proxies. Lizzie and Scarlet are strict in general, and the fact that Noah is present is making them extra stern as they want to appear dependable.

The way how Noah introduced Chloe, indicated to Lizzie and Scarlet that they just got another superior. Noah said that Chloe will be his report, but with the white badge, Chloe was placed at the top of the company.

"Chloe…", Noah spoke to her. "I added the two of them as to your contacts, and you can reach them directly if you press pound and two on your office phone. If you need anything, they will help you out."

Chloe nodded. She understood that in Noah's absence these two women will answer her questions related to the financial audit. She didn't like the idea of working with Lizzie and Scarlet because they made her uncomfortable. She would rather work with a person who is smiling more. Maybe someone like Noah. She shooed away those thoughts as unreasonable. He is busy and this is work.

"We got what you asked…", Lizzie said and was about to put a booklet on Noah's desk, but Noah raised his hand to stop her.

"Give that to Miss Long."

Lizzie placed the booklet on Chloe's desk.

"A restaurant menu?", Chloe asked when she realized what she got.

"You said that we should eat here so… pick what you want.", Noah said. "Lizzie and Scarlet will take care of the order."

"What will you have?", Chloe asked. She skipped breakfast and was starving. But this was lunch in the office with Noah and she didn't want to appear greedy by ordering too much, and at the same time, she didn't want to stay hungry either. The balance was important and she hoped that when she hears what Noah will order, she can use that as a baseline of what is acceptable.

Unfortunately, Noah was not very helpful.

"You pick first. Order anything you want…"

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